Author Topic: Any Champagne "experts" here? (Read 1438 times)

airbumba · « **Reply #15 on:** December 19, 2004, 08:36:51 AM »

If it's not 'real' Champagne ur lookin for, California's Cuvee Napa is pretty good.

Curval · « **Reply #16 on:** December 19, 2004, 08:53:44 AM »

This is good

This is a bit better

Nice too

This is mighty fine stuff

majic · « **Reply #17 on:** December 19, 2004, 09:01:15 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Curval
This is good

This is a bit better

Nice too

This is mighty fine stuff

Dom is $30 worth of champagne and a $100 name. Cristal I've not had but I'd have a hard time paying that much.

Holden McGroin · « **Reply #18 on:** December 19, 2004, 10:54:58 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Schaden
probably cheaper to drive to France for the weekend

With the dollar / euro exchange rate a good California champagne should be just about free shouldn't it?

rpm · « **Reply #19 on:** December 19, 2004, 11:17:43 AM »

Cristal is the most overrated wine in the world...unless you are a Gangsta Rapper.

qts · « **Reply #20 on:** December 19, 2004, 12:14:00 PM »

Rather than going for the Brut Champagne, try the Blanc de Blancs. Why don't you make it the excuse to take a week's holiday and drive down?

airbumba · « **Reply #21 on:** December 19, 2004, 05:16:33 PM »

Baby Duck

Dinger · « **Reply #22 on:** December 19, 2004, 05:35:40 PM »

VC is pretty good cheap champagne. I dring willingly and with appreciation many sparklin' wines, but a proper champagne is pretty hard to beat. Give me four glasses -- two of champagne, two of someting else -- and a blindfold, and I'll willingly test that statement.

Lazerus · « **Reply #23 on:** December 19, 2004, 05:46:48 PM »

I used to sell wine myself. Once you pass the $25 mark or so, the increase in cost is faster than the increase in quality.

As far as quality for a great price goes, Korbel Chardonnay Champagne is a good buy. It could probably be rated as an 'Extra Dry" and tastes great.

Looking for something a little more conventional? Taittinger Millesime(sp?) or Moet White Star are good.

OIO · « **Reply #24 on:** December 19, 2004, 06:43:54 PM »

Make your own champagne.

Grab a bottle of carbonated water.

Mix strongest cognac you got in it.

Squeeze a little bit of lemon juice.

There!

airbumba · « **Reply #25 on:** December 19, 2004, 09:24:54 PM »

Nilsen , I see you've finally realized u can't drink with the big boys, and are going for the light-weight stuff.
Well, although I'm saddened to see the loss of another 'real' drinker, I do wish you the best in your new 'sipping' life, and want u to know that , although we drinkers will miss u greatly, we do wish u the best.

beet1e · « **Reply #26 on:** December 20, 2004, 03:06:10 AM »

Nilsen!

I spent an afternoon in the French town of Epernay during the summer, which is where the offices of about seven champagne firms can be found. The Champagne region of France is near Reims, where we were staying.

So we went into the first champagne company we could find, which was Moët & Chandon, and were surprised to find that the bottling is done right there in town. I was expecting it to happen in the country.

Some signs to look for - If the label has no date, the champagne is not a vintage. A "vintage" is when all the grapes that went into making the champagne are from the same year, and it has to be a particularly good year for that to be possible. In the case of Moët & Chandon, the last vintage year at the time I was there was 1998. Other signs to look for are "Premier Cru" and "Grand Cru". I can't remember the explanation (I think Straffo would know) but it's something to do with the blending of the grapes.

You need to get something that's to your taste - dry or sweet. In your price range that should be possible. I bought a Brut for around 32 euros.

Moët & Chandon website (has a nice girly on the home page. Well I thought so, anyway!

Dinger · « **Reply #27 on:** December 20, 2004, 03:48:15 AM »

Well, yeah, Vintage will set you back. The blends are mixes of years to maintain more or less the same taste. So Moet, VC ant the others all have their own taste.
Beyond that, my snobbish take is:
If it's pink or sweet, you're better off getting a sparkling wine from somewhere else.

And again, I'll do the blindfold test. Just show up at my house with two bottles.

CyranoAH · « **Reply #28 on:** December 20, 2004, 05:04:42 AM »

Campagne? We don't need no stinkin' champagne... try Cava!!

Daniel

majic · « **Reply #29 on:** December 20, 2004, 06:28:59 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by CyranoAH
Campagne? We don't need no stinkin' champagne... try Cava!!

Daniel

If memory serves, the only one I've had was Freixenet. Well known brand over there?