Attention champagne and wine collectors: on April 25th at 6pm at Cru Restaurant on Fifth Street in New York there's going to be an auction of vintage Champagne and rare wines dating back as far as the 1800s. The bottles are from the collection of real estate collector Robert Rosania and will include names like Krug, Dom Perignon, Bollinger, Cristal, and Roederer to name just a few. The total collection going up for auction includes 1,346 bottles, 303 magnums, and 11 jeros of Champagne. No word on why Rosania is looking to sell these valuables other than he's looking to "share these discoveries with others."Posts with tag champagne
Historic Champagne Sale in New York
Attention champagne and wine collectors: on April 25th at 6pm at Cru Restaurant on Fifth Street in New York there's going to be an auction of vintage Champagne and rare wines dating back as far as the 1800s. The bottles are from the collection of real estate collector Robert Rosania and will include names like Krug, Dom Perignon, Bollinger, Cristal, and Roederer to name just a few. The total collection going up for auction includes 1,346 bottles, 303 magnums, and 11 jeros of Champagne. No word on why Rosania is looking to sell these valuables other than he's looking to "share these discoveries with others."The Veuve Clicquot Globalight
Karim Rashid must really love sweeping pink lines and feminine appeal -- his Veuve Clicquot Loveseat featured the theme and now so does this Veuve Clicquot Globalight limited edition champagne cooler that he designed. Intended to "encapsulate the bottle with warmth" and surround it with light, Rashid drew his inspiration from a random brainstorming scribble and the idea of a purse or handbag. It serves 3 functions by cooling the champagne, lighting the champagne, and serving as a way to carry the champagne. $4000
Gallery: The Veuve Clicquot Globalight
Village Called 'Champagne' Fights For Its Name
A small town in Switzerland is fighting to be able to do something most town's take for granted: put its name on its wine bottles. Despite the fact that the village has been in existence for over 1000 years, and has been producing wine since at least as far back as The Middle Ages, there's a ban in place keeping the town name of 'Champagne' from appearing on its wine and food labels. A deal struck back in 2004 between the European Union and Switzerland (in order to protect the French wine-producing region of the same name) is to blame, and as a result the poor town of 713 residents has been experiencing steady drops in sales and may even lose jobs in the future. The residents are fighting it, but so far to no avail. Poor Champagne.
BKWine: Fall Tours
Wine, travel and gastronomy are a scrumptious combination. Brought together in great packages, BKWine Tours provided by Britt Karlsson and her husband Per have three new wine tours to launch their autumn program for 2008. One trip per month between September and November, the destinations are Bordeaux, the Douro Valley in Portugal, and Champagne and each trip takes place over a long weekend. Learn about wines, enjoy fantastic travel and gastronomic jubilation this fall...what could be more fun!Gallery: BKWine Tours
Cuvee R. Lalou 1998 is Finally Here
This month marks the launch of the long-awaited Cuvée R. Lalou 1998 from Champagne Mumm retailing for about $160. The Cuvée R. Lalou is the offspring of the Cuvée René Lalou, originally launched in 1966 and last released in 1985. Produced only in the best years as a blend of grapes from up to twelve single vineyards, this cuvée is a blend of seven such lieux dits. Created by legendary winemaker René Lalou, the original Cuvée René Lalou was a single, complex blend of grapes from the finest twelve villages, which was intended to highlight the exceptional Mumm terroir. I'm sure that any product from G.H. Mumm will be a high quality, luxury champagne worth celebrating...especially with great food. World's Most Expensive Champagne
We've seen expensive bottles of champagne before but this is a new record. The combination of a once-in-a-lifetime offer with a personalized box of twelve champagne bottles may be the most amazing bubbly offer ever -- but you will have to dig deep into your pockets to pay for it. For €50,000, a limited-edition box set of Perrier-Jouet 2000 Belle Epoque, with a unique twist of liquor added, you can have your own personalized champagne and even store it in their famous cellars for a short time. These pricey bottles o' bubbly will go on sale this Thursday and will only be available for customization to one-hundred people.
Champagne's Big Expansion
A decision has been reached regarding the growth of the region that may produce champagne in France. With an additional thirty-eight rural districts chosen to help produce the famous grapes, reaching a total now of 357 districts, the production of bubbly may be able to keep up with the increasing demand. In 2007 France's champagne makers sold over 330 million bottles which was a 4.6 percent increase from the previous year. And as other world economies such as China, India and Russia grow so does their appetite for champagne. Extending the grape producing boundaries is a significant move for the industry considering its strong hold to the 1927 law that no vineyards outside of the Champagne region would be allowed to produce the sparkling wine.The NY Times Tastes the Krug Clos d'Ambonnay
We first mentioned Krug's new and highly anticipated single vineyard 1995 Clos d'Ambonnay back in the fall, and although it's not due for release until May Eric Asimov for The New York Times got to take a taste and, according to him, it's "worth every penny." So just how many pennies is he giving the nod to? About 300,000 of them, as the Clos d'Ambonnay is expected to sell for between $3000 and $3500 per bottle. Will you be springing for a bottle of your own? Money or not, good luck getting your hands on it -- there are only 250 cases in existence.
Care To Sit On A Giant Champagne Cork?
The folks at Wine Spectator's Unfiltered column didn't love it but I think the champagne cork and cage set from Michael Chiarello's home furnishings company Napa Style is kind of kicky. Then again I'm a fan of small things made large. The cork stool in bright orange is not made of cork but of polyethylene and the stool is made of chromed steel. The fun part is that the two pieces can function as one unit or a separate stool and a table. It costs $448 for the set.
Harrod's Dom Perignon Oenothèque Bar
The trend of Champagne bars seems to be booming lately, Europe's longest Champagne bar opened last November and the Liberty Hotel in Boston just got their own Veuve Clicqot Champagne bar. Harrod's, the posh department store in London already has a Champagne and Oyster bar but they are now opening the Dom Perignon Oenotheque bar on February 11. The bar will will offer two vintages by the glass: the 1995 at 65 pounds (around $127) and the 1975 at 250 pounds (around $490) per glass. The Dom Perignon Oenothèque is aged in cellars before the wine is disgorged so that the yeast can mature further. Champagne that is disgorged 15 years after release will taste different from the same wine disgorged five years earlier. The bar is only open for a limited time. Model Claudia Schiffer, who stars in a video by the designer Karl Lagerfeld for Dom Perignon Oenotheque, is scheduled to visit on February 26 and the bar will close on March 3.
Liberty Hotel To Open Champagne Bar
A former jail in Boston is becoming quite the hot spot. The Liberty Hotel , which was formerly the Charles Street Jail, will soon be the home of the first Veuve Clicquot Champagne bar in the U.S. The bar is named La Grande Dame and is an alcove on the second floor of the hotel. Flute glasses and bottles of Veuve Clicqot's La Grande Dame as well as other bubbly selections from the French Champagne house will be available. This is just the third Veuve Clicquot bar in the world; two others recently opening in Hamburg, Germany and Macao, China. The bar is set to open on Friday.
Marmite for Your Valentine?
If you're looking for points in the "uniqueness" department this Valentine's Day and know somebody who likes marmite, this champagne flavored version with a heart-shaped label and "I LOVE YOU" in big bold letters definitely fits that description. 600,000 jars will be made, and although they aren't going on sale in stores until January 21st (£2.99) you can get one now from Selfridges & Co. if you're willing to pay a little more (£3.99). You can also glam things up a bit with a personalized engraved silver lid -- if you're willing to pay (£145).
Bubbly Basics: Champagne 101
With New Year's Eve just about here it is time to purchase the bubbly, but which one to choose? Although there are numerous bottles to choose from and a spectrum of price ranges, the type of sparkling wine or Champagne you choose may help you see the tree through the forest (or the bottle through the cases as it were). Classified by type of grape or amount of sugar here are the categories you want to be sure to know before popping the cork.- Demi-Sec: The sweetest of the champagnes, it is best served with dessert. (If you see Sec, this is a touch drier than the Demi-Sec).
- Brut: Dry and most popular around the holidays... very little sugar.
- Blanc de blancs: Made only of Chardonnay grapes, this is great with seafood.
- Blanc de noirs: Light in color though made from dark-skinned grapes, this is fabulous with meat and cheese.
- Rosé: A variety of options abound in this category from light to dark which makes it pair well with different foods.
- Vintage Champagne: Made from the grapes of a single harvest of an exceptional year which makes them more expensive.
French Town Hopes For A Second Chance To Make Champagne
The threat of a Champagne shortage and the recent decision to consider expanding the Champagne grape-growing region might be good for one small French city. The Wall Street Journal tells the story of the town of Péas, which in the 1950s decided to stop growing grapes and turn toward other agricultural pursuits such as wheat and potatoes. Legend has it that when the mayor at the time found out that his city was eligible to seek inclusion in the champagne grape-growing region, he threw the letter away.Huge mistake. A hectare (around 2.5 acres) of agricultural land in Péas is valued at less than $9,000 while a hectare of land that can be used to grow grapes for Champagne can be worth almost $1.5 million. What a difference one letter could have made.
But Péas may be getting a second chance to earn that Champagne money with the plans to expand the regions boundaries. As you might imagine, the town is rather excited about the prospect. They will have a long wait though, the first new vineyards probably won't be planted until 2015, with a first harvest in 2017. For now, all we can do is wish Péas bonne chance.
Laguiole Rossignol Champagne Sabre
If you have ever seen sabrage, the act of slicing off the top of a Champagne bottle rather than popping the cork, you know it is one of the coolest tricks around. It can be done using a any large sharp knife but Laguiole Rossignol has created a Champagne Sabre specially designed for this one stunt. The beautiful sabre is hand crafted in France featuring brass bolster, signature Laguiole "Bee" and riveted wood handle and a high carbon stainless steel blade. This ultimate party toy sells for $325.Want to see how it's done? Also, what NOT to do. Check out these YouTube videos.
