History of Champagne

Many people do not actually know what champagne is, only that they can enjoy those delightful bubbles at many occasions. Champagne is the drink that is at the center of many wonderful events from weddings to launching ships to intimate dinners.

What is the mystery drink that has claimed such a high position in your lives?

The answer is; Champagne is a sparkling white wine. Why it is this drink so special? Well, the history of champagne along with its wonderful taste has made it so special. The only true Champagne is found in the Champagne region of northern France.

There are different tales of the story of Champagne with the most popular being that Dom Pérignon created the first champagne, but actually, no one created champagne. During the natural process of creating wine, champagne was made.

The main reason everyone contributes the creation of Champagne to Dom Perignon is that he was a Benedictine monk in 1688 that was appointed treasurer at the Abby of Hautvillers. One of his many tasks was to manage the cellars and wine making.

Grapes were picked late in the year, which did not allow the yeasts enough time to convert the sugar into alcohol prior to the cold winter months. Fermentation would stop during the cold months, and then in spring as temperatures began to get warmer the fermentation would begin again, only creating carbon dioxide, which was trapped in the bottle of wine making the bubbles.

At this time, the sparkling wine produced was not a desired product.

Dom Perignon tried many different things to stop these bubbles but could never rid the wine of the unique bubbles that were created. He did not the other hand, add much to the wine and champagne industry such as blending grapes, developing a method to press black grapes to create a white juice, and to fight exploding bottles he used stronger bottles.

During the 18th century, Champagne was still not a preferred drink with only about 10% of the region partaking of the bubbling wine. Among the 10% were the English and French royalty during aristocratic gatherings.

By 1800, more and more individuals had the desire to drink sparking wine and it was being produced right along side regular not sparkling wines.

In 1728, Louis XV allowed wine to be transported in bottles. This helped the industry tremendously, and in 1729, Ruinart established the first Champagne House on record.

In 1735, an ordinance was passed that stated the size, shape, and weight of all champagne bottles as well as the size of the cork that could be used, and the way in which the cork would be secured to the collar of the bottle.

In 1743, the House of Moet was established which is today one of the largest champagne houses in the area.

The way in which champagne was created by the monks to the champagne merchants grew and developed into new and improved way to perfect the process of fermentation including the aging, distribution, marketing, and exporting.

Corking machines and wine muzzles came to be in during the 1820’s and 1830’s and in 1836; an invention that would change the wine industry was invented.

The sucere-oenometre was created by a pharmacist, M. Francois that would measure the amount of sugar in wine. With this invention, the second fermentation needed to produce champagne could be determined a little better.

Four new champagne houses were created in the 1920’s, which were Bollinger, Irroy, Mumm, and Joseph Perrier.

World War I was devastating to the region.

Wine production was not at the top of list and many of caves in the region that were once home to fermenting wine were now shelters from bombings. After the war, the region had to be rebuilt, however, due to other crises across the world such as the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, Prohibition in the United States, and the Great Depression, wine sales were no more.

Prohibition in the United States ended in 1934 and the wine industry began to see life again.

Between the years of 1945 and 1966, sales quadrupled.

Champagne is once again the toast of the town no matter what occasion you need to commemorate.

Champagne is not just a drink for the royals but is a drink that is used to toast special occasions, events, and individuals in our lives. Today, you can find a large variety of Champagnes to help celebrate any event.