“I drink champagne when I win to celebrate . . . and I drink champagne when I lose to console myself.” - Napoleon Bonaparte 
 

While traveling in the Marlborough wine country of New Zealand in the South Pacific, I decided to send you my favorites picks of champagnes and sparkling wines from around the world for this Holiday season. 

In the early part of the 18^th century, the Benedictine Monasteries of Hautvillers, Pierry, Verzy, and Saint-Nicaise in Reims owned the best vineyards in the Champagne region. They cultivated the vines and pressed the harvest to produce the first sparkling wines, which they either sold themselves or through agents in cities as Epernay or Reims, Ay or la Valle Sur Marne in the Champagne province. So much in sparkling wine history happened since Fryer Pierre Dom Perignon said, “I am drinking the stars!” on his first sip of bubbly Champagne when making wine with green grapes in the Hautvillers Abbey. 

All sparkling wine starts as still wine and has the sparkle added later. One of the crucial factors in the quality of every sparkling wine is how the fizz is added. In the Champagne method, known also as Methode Champenoise, the carbon dioxide gas produced as part of the fermentation process (as yeasts devour sugar) is dissolved within the wine in its individual bottle, so that when it is released the bubbles stream to the surface.

Types & Styles 

Champagne from the Champagne province in France is made in various styles, from bone-dry to fully sweet. The style is identified on the label: Brut - very dry, usually the best quality and good with food; Extra dry - interestingly, a little more sweet than Brut, just off-dry; Sec - medium-dry, good for parties or champagne breakfasts; Doux - sweet, dessert style champagne.  

Other than sweetness levels, champagne also comes in different styles determined by the blend of grapes and “house” characteristics that go into the bottle: Non-vintage - most champagne is non-vintage, meaning it is a blend of 2 or 3 vintages, which is one of the keys to champagne's consistency in terms of taste and quality. NV wines will be a blend of all three permitted grapes unless otherwise stated. These wines are made for immediate consumption and few will benefit from further ageing. Vintage - this is made from a single vintage and from the best grapes. Not every year is declared as a vintage year, and vintage champagne is only made if conditions are good enough. These wines are usually considerably more complex than NV champagnes and are capable of further development if cellared. Blanc de Blancs - made only from Chardonnay. Usually fruit forward, light, creamy and elegant. Blanc de Noirs - made only from the two Pinots. Punchy, full-bodied, not quite rounder character, sometimes not so elegant. Rosé - pink champagne, often made by blending some still red wine into champagne.  The elite, known as Grande Marques, are costly vintage champagnes. These are marketed as “luxury goods” as much as fine wines. Given that they can cost 3 or 4 times as much as most fine vintage champagnes, it is debatable whether they represent a good value, but they can be extraordinarily good. These Grande Cuvées are usually made with grapes from Grand Cru vineyards and are suitable for cellaring - if you can wait! 

Size terms to know if you want to celebrate big: Magnum - 1.5 liter bottle (2 bottles); Jeroboam - 3 liters (4 bottles); Methuselah - 6 liter bottle; Balthazar - 15 liter bottle (20 bottles) for when you have the whole family in from out of town! 

I hope my following selections will please your palates and your wallets. You may already know about many of these well-known brands, because year after year for centuries they have been part of our New Year celebrations and all of the great occasions we celebrate with friends and family.

My Picks 

Most of these champagne houses are from the Old World; non-vintage Brut and Grande Marques that I enjoy recommending are easily found in wine shops:

Rose Laurent-Perrier Brut Non Vintage from Valle de La Marne ( $45 to $ 60). One of the best-selling rosé champagne in the world, Laurent-Perrier is one of the few rosés still made by the saignée method (also known as “bleeding” in wine lingo). It is bottled in an embossed bottle that is a reproduction of those used in the late 17th century. The champagne is made from 100 % Pinot Noir grapes. Notes of strawberries and black cherries with an elegant finish. Great when pairing creamy cheeses or seafood, such as salmon hors d’ouevre.

Perrier Jouet Grand Brut Non Vintage from Epernay ($36 to $42). Since 1811, this is one of the quality champagnes, quickly recognizable by its flowery label. Distinctive champagne with notes of spicy yeast complexity, and age-on nose, but still has a lime/citrus freshness. Very refreshing on the palate with a lively and long elegant finish. Great acidity texture pairs well with fish appetizers and smoked salmon bites.

Taittinger Brut Non Vintage La Francaise ($38 to $45). One of the most prestigious Champagnes from the heart of Reims. Today, it is family-owned again, after many years in the hands of a corporation. It is known for its fruity aromas of apple, orange blossom, toast, and nuts. Fat, ripe, and suave, medium-bodied that finishes clean and persistent. An excellent non-vintage brut, it is great for pairing with blue cheese, veiny mild cheese, and goat honey melba toast, as well as fine poultry terrines, and white truffle chocolates.

Gosset Brut Grand Reserve ($65 to $75) and Gosset 1999 Grande Brut Millesime ($90 to $100) from the tiny town of Ay, where they have been making wine since 1584. The first very particular champagne is a blend of chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, with gentle aromas of apricot, peach, toasty nuts, and flavors of cinnamon, anise, and almond on the mid-palate. Gosset Vintage 1999 is known for its fine, tiny bubbles, a mid-palate minerality and toasty brioche flavors, nutty hazelnut mouthfeel with a creamy exceptional length. Recommended with Prosciutto and fine hard cheeses, cold plates, and creamy fungi “vol au vent” or phyllo pastries. Caviar and Foie Grass are a must!
 

Dom Pérignon Brut 2000 Moet & Chandon from Reims ($175 to $225). Dom Pérignon was the 17th century Benedictine monk who has gone down in history as the person who "invented" Champagne. His name was originally registered by Eugène Mercier, who sold the brand name to Moët & Chandon, which used it as the name for its prestige cuvée, first released in 1937. Each vintage offers a new aspect of Dom Pérignon, reflecting an assemblage that is a unique act of creation. In its constant quest for the ultimate balance between Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the Dom Pérignon style traces in vintage after vintage a complex structure made up of aroma and sensations, silky smooth bubbles and elegant on the finish.

Krug "Grande Cuvée" Brut Non Vintage ($145 to $175). The family is still making the finest cuvee since 1843, when a German immigrant name Joseph Krug opened his champagne house in Reims. There is no formula or recipe - each year the Krug family meets to re-create "their" Krug Grande Cuvée. This is done with careful attention to the most minute detail, so that after six years of aging it will be in perfect continuity with previous Krugs. The bouquet is wonderfully creamy, leading to magical combination of weight and balance on the palate. The long, lingering finish is both nutty and toasty, ending with a final flourish of freshness, crisp and length of aristocratic fine bubbly.