You can't come to Reims without doing the Champagne Trail... and soaking up the complementary glasses handed out by the Champagne Caves... more so... soaking up the mystique and glamour of this fashion beverage. Well, that was our intention when we set out this morning.
We selected the Taittinger Caves... primarily because they were close to the Reims Basilica... that was also on today's schedule. We faced the prospect of a cold day... maximum of 7°... so we were looking for indoor venues.
Just a couple of comments on Reims Basilica... whose fame and fortune flow from the fact that on that very site... in 495 AD... a young warrior by the name of Clovis... king of the Franks... won a battle close by... and was so relieved to have won... he raced to the nearest place of worship... and gave his soul to the god presiding in that church. By converting to Christianity, Clovis was able to consolidate a string of minor tribes under the Frank banner... that led to the modern nation of France. Patrons donated generous amounts to the Abbey on the site... enough to build a grand church that was consecrated as a Basilica in 1049.
Just like Clovis, all succeeding Kings of France (with two exceptions) have trudged from Paris to Reims to receive the Reims Bishop's blessing... an act that was accepted as the coronation. Now, the Basilica has been stripped of its riches... but still stands proud as an aging... crumbling reminder of the influence this grand lady exercised in days gone by. Again, I am amazed at the resources put into religion over the years. Reims is in the third division of French cities. The town only has 180,000 citizens... but has a huge Cathedral and an even bigger Basilica... not to mention all the local parish churches. When is too many churches enough?
Back to Champagne! It needs a very stable environment in which to mature... constant temperature... around 10° - 12°. For Reims, this control is best achieved by storing the bottles 20-30 metres underground... in high levels of humidity... in chalkstone rock.
In the 4th century, the Romans had dug tunnels to mine chalk... and left facilities perfect for storing Champagne bottles for the maturing process. Monks had the wine business around Reims sown-up with various restrictive trade practices... and had adopted the old Roman chalk mines to store the wine (not Champagne at this stage)... Benedictine monks ended up with the responsibility to keep churning out the wine... an ecclesiastical calling no doubt. In the 18th century, the monks worked in cooperation with a wine family... and the family gradually took over the business from the monks.
If you are a lover of champagne, you may wish to pay homage to the Benedictine monk Brother Jean Oudart... our Taittinger guide hinted that Oudart was a Taittinger man... but I imagine every Champagne Cave claims to be a descendant. During WWI, the Taittinger site was an army command post... you could imagine the list of volunteers to that posting would have been lengthy. In 1932, Pierre Taittinger bought the Château de la Marquetterie from the wine house of Forest-Fourneaux. In 2004 the Taittingers sold the business to a USA hotel chain. The family were shocked to see the changes proposed by the new owners... so shocked that they made offers and repurchased the property the following year.
Now here are some tips to those of you who know less about Champagne than I do... there must be one of you out there.
The size of the bubbles (effervescence) in the glass will tell you the period of fermentation. Big bubbles... fast fermentation. Taittinger has one grand label that is fermented for 10 years... and its bubble streams are made of tiny particles... the premium grade (that we tasted) is fermented for only 3-4 years... and it's bubble size is moderate. The cheap stuff you buy at the corner bottle shop has gigantic bubbles... by comparison. Next time you are served Champagne in a restaurant... call back the waiter and say, "My good man... I cannot possible drink this rubbish... the bubbles are too big". He will know exactly what you are saying.
The subtle secondary flavours of champagne start to dissipate immediately after the sediment is removed from the bottle. Don't hold onto your good Champagne for too long. In the months preceding Taittinger selling its Champagne, the bottles are tilted at an angle and twisted 20 degrees every second day. This allows the sediment to slide down the neck of the bottle. Just before sale, the neck of the bottle is frozen... the cap removed... the effervescence forces the frozen Champagne up to the mouth of the bottle... thereby ejecting the sediment... and losing only 10 cls of liquid... an ingenious technique. I was horrified to learn that the gap of 10 cls is filled with ordinary fermented wine... and they throw in a bit of sugar as well. After all the care taken in nursing the brew to this point only to throw in some rough stuff at the final step... it doesn't seem right!
Tuesday , we leave France for England. We'll be in England at the start of the first Ashes test... I hope I am not made to suffer too much.
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