Champagne – exciting, refreshing, celebratory. We celebrated the coming of summer last night at SFWC with our Champagne class, led by sommelier and wine educator Christie Dufault. Christie gave a great explanation of how Champagne is made and why it is so special – the grapes, soil, climate, and winemaking technique are all contributing factors. The wines were fantastic – grower Champagnes, vintage Champagnes, and a trio of rose Champagnes. My favorite was the Billcart-Salmon Prestige Cuvee rose, their top bottling. What can I say, I have expensive taste!
The wines:
- Paul Berthelot Brut Reserve NV – Dizy
- Jean Lallement Brut Grand Cru NV – Verzeney *
- Pierre Péters Cuvée de Réserve Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru NV – Le Mesnil-sur-Oger *
- Laurent-Perrier Brut Millesime 1999 – Tours-sur-Marne
- Gaston Chiquet Brut Cart d’Or 2002 – Dizy *
- Taittinger Prestige Rose NV – Rheims
- Vilmart Cuvee Rubis Premier Cru Rosé NV – Rilly-la-Montagne *
- Billecart-Salmon Cuvee Elisabeth Salmon Brut Rose 1998 – Mareuil-sur-Ay
*Small quantity available for purchase; let us know if you are interested.
Thanks to Christie for a great class and to all the students for attending!
Cheers!
–Melanie Friedman
