Christmas and New Year wouldn’t be the same without a few bottles of champagne to share with your friends and family, but to add that little bit of extra sparkle and style to your celebrations here are a few tips taken from the famous Château de Saran, in the heart of Champagne, that are really simple and make you look and feel like a real connoisseur.
Part 1 - Putting on the style
Big is better
A bottle of champagne only contains about 6 glassfuls, so it doesn’t need many people to finish the bottle. If you’re throwing a party you’re going to need a lot more than 1 lonely bottle, so why not buy magnums instead?
A magnum is a double bottle and although it’s usually a little bit more expensive than buying 2 bottles, there are a couple of very good reasons to go for magnums:
First there’s the wine itself.
Part of the ageing process for champagne involves the interaction between the air in the neck of the bottle and the wine that fills most of the bottle.
In a magnum you have twice as much liquid as in a bottle but only a little bit more air, so the whole ageing process is slowed down.
That means magnums spend longer in the champagne-maker’s cellar and this extra ageing means the flavours and aromas are always that little bit richer, rounder and more complex – try it and I’m sure you’ll notice the difference.
Second, magnums look so much more impressive and will really add a bit of fun and elegance to your party. I guarantee that the slight extra cost of magnums is well worth it.
Image courtesy of Michel Jolyot, the finest photographer in champagne
Which glasses?There are two reasons for choosing champagne glasses:
A real wine fan might say you that you should have glasses that are the right size and shape to enhance the champagne.
If that’s you, then go for the tulip-shaped champagne glass called a flute: tall, tapering in at the top, but not too narrow (if it’s too narrow you can’t move the champagne around in the glass to release the aromas)
The other very good reason to choose a champagne glass is because you like the look of it, in which case
These are not so good for appreciating the finer points of the champagne, but for certain occasions and a bit of fun they’re great. They are also just right for champagne cocktails – one sugar cube with a drop of two of angostura bitters dripped into it, a good measure of brandy or cognac and topped up with champagne – a soft, sweet and silent killer of a cocktail and still hard to beat.
Next two more simple tips taken from the best soirées in Champagne.
Always hold your glass by the stem – why?
- That’s what the stem is for
- It looks more elegant
- The warmth of your hand doesn’t warm the champagne
- You don’t cover up the colour and the bubbles in the champagne
If you’re throwing a party, try to avoid pouring a tray of glasses and leaving it for your guests to take a glass as they arrive.
- The champagne will soon warm up
- The fizz will soon die down
- Part of the fun of champagne is seeing the bubbles rise up in the glass as it is poured in front of your eyes.
Serving
Last but not least, there’s lots of advice out there about the best temperature to serve wine, and champagne is no exception. The trouble is unless you happen to have a thermometer in your handbag or wallet – I don’t think so – simply knowing the ideal temperature is not much help. So here’s something a little more practical.
Put the bottle in an ice bucket with ice and half topped up with water, for about 20 minutes. This will get your bottle to the perfect temperature, which incidentally is 80 – 100 C for non vintage champagne. It’s a couple of degrees warmer for older vintage champagne, so 15 minutes in the ice bucket will be fine.
By the way, you can keep champagne in the fridge for weeks without harming it, but the fridge is at about 40 C so take the bottle out 10 minutes before opening it.
Part 2 of your Christmas champagne tips will be along in a day or two so keep an eye on this blog.
To learn more of the secrets of champagne go to
Jiles
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