Product Description

Through an introduction to the Champagne region, the history of the wine and the development of the champagne method, this book traces champagne's beginnings as a still wine and, via the appointment of a young monk, Dom Pierre Perignon, as Cellarer at the Abbey of Hautvillers, its evolution into the sparkling wine known today. An examination of wine making and the vine varieties is accompanied by an overall look at the Champagne makers, from small growers to the great houses such as Krug, Moet et Chandon, Pol Roger and Veuve Clicquot. There are also notes on the vintages for each year since 1945.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1377384 in Books
• Published on: 1999-10-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The lack of an exclamation mark at the end of the title indicates that Maggie McNie's Champagne is no frivolous millennial celebration of bubbly but a serious study of the wine, its history and its makers. One of Faber and Faber's useful series on the major wine regions, it is shorter than some of its companion volumes, but thorough nonetheless. The history of champagne is complex and fascinating. It originated as a still "grey" wine brought, by an accident of geography, to the attention of the various contenders for the ownership of France as they tramped back and forth over this crossroad of Europe and found its wine to their taste. The wine acquired its modern character in the late 17th century, when the famous monk Dom Perignon developed techniques of purification, blending and, crucially, introduced the second fermentation that introduced the bubbles. Recent sensational revelations that the ancient Romans had in fact beaten him to it in the sparkling wine stakes seem unlikely to tarnish champagne's reputation. Now no wedding or lottery win is complete without it. It has become a signifier of wealth and success. Maggie McNie's survey covers the great marques as well as a selection of the most interesting of the thousands of producers crammed into the region. She includes a vintage chart and concludes with an account of the Grandes Dames, those remarkable 'Champagne widows', from the Veuve Clicquot in the early nineteenth century to the present-day Mme Duval who took over Duval Leroy in 1991 on her husband's death. Excellent reading. -- Robin Davidson

Customer Reviews

An excellent expose of a facinating region.
This is a truly remarkable book. Maggie McNie seems to effortlessly combine comprehensive detail with general background and history. The book comes across in so much of a chatty, lively style that you might be tempted to forget how soundly researched and clearly analysed is the subject matter. It avoids the dictionary approach of some of the volumes in this series and elects to provide ample information in a readable format. McNie's writing is always pleasant and occasionally sparkles as much as her subject matter.

Champagne, c'est un art!
Great book, lots of information on 'le' and 'la' Champagne! For me, it lost one star as 'The Makers' overview is not that comprehensive and consistent as the one in Stevenson's encyclopedia. However, this book is certainly a 'strong buy' - let the bubbles go!