Roddy Ropner
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What Lies Behind The Champagne Label, Part 1
16.Mar
What can we really expect when selecting a champagne and how can we make a choice?
Champagne is one of the most recognised wine regions in the world. The names of champagne houses like Moët & Chandon or Veuve Clicquot are known to anyone with a passing interest in wine. But what can we really expect when selecting a champagne and how can we make a choice? A few key pointers to be found on the labels can yield a mine of information and help us move beyond the old favourites.
The most obvious distinction is between vintage and non-vintage (NV). The former is only produced in the very best years. Many factors contribute to a great year, including ripeness and the balance between sugars in the grapes and acidity. The wine is aged for longer before being bottled and develops a flavour and complexity that can take one by surprise on first acquaintance. Vintage champagnes improve year on year. Recently tasted examples of 1990 Bollinger and Jacquesson are still wonderfully fresh. The finest recent vintages are 2004, 2002, 1998 and 1996. The vintage on the label indicates the year the grapes were harvested.
Is there a growing demand for champagne?
NV, also referred to as multi-vintage, is exactly that: a blend of wines produced from several vintages. The NV represents the particular style of a champagne house. Most producers take great pains to make a wine that is recognisable. The finest I have tasted recently is the Louis Roederer Brut Premier NV, which is a wonderful combination of bracing acidity with body to match.
Most champagne is a blend of three grapes; chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier. Champagnes termed blanc de blancs (white of whites) are produced only from Chardonnay. This white grape is prized for its finesse and elegance. If you want a champagne with freshness and character then consider Ruinart’s blanc de blancs NV or Pierre Gimonnet’s Cuis Premier Cru blanc de blancs brut NV, at half the price.
Blanc de noirs (white of blacks) describes champagnes made from either of the two black grapes, pinot noir and pinot meunier, or a blend of the two. The grapes are gently pressed so no colour passes from the skins to juice. Pinot noir is admired for its depth of flavour and richnesss. Meunier is usually spoken of as the workhorse grape but this impression is changing. If money is no object then Krug’s Clos d’Ambonnay from a single vineyard planted pinot noir might be for you. More affordable but no less desirable is Billecart-Salmon’s Clos Saint Hilaire.
Rosé (pink) champagne has taken on a new lease of life and is being treated seriously by producers. The colour is derived from the dark-skinned grapes. An interesting example recently encountered is Larmandier-Bernier’s ‘Rosé de Saignée; almost like red wine but with bubbles. Easier to find will be the Veuve Clicquot Rosé NV.
Champagne offers tremendous variety and few markers that it is possible to start exploring beyond the tried and tested brands.
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Biography
Roddy Ropner is the founder of the boutique Hong Kong wine company, Wellspring Wines. Born in England he went to school at Eton College and has a degree in Asian Studies (Mandarin) from Durham University, with a year spent in Beijing. He is also a born-again student having completed an MBA at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a diploma from the Wine and Spirits Institute in the past 4 years.
Roddy developed an interest in wine from an early age. He was doubly fortunate to spend two summers at the top Bordeaux first growth Château Mouton Rothschild as a teenager followed by two stays in California’s Napa Valley on his family’s vineyards. After graduating from university he joined Christie’s auction house in London as a specialist in Chinese ceramics. He was then promptly posted to Asia where he was promoted to director with responsibility for the Asian offices. During a twenty year career he worked for Christie’s in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan where he met his wife Kumiko. Roddy was able to continue his interest in wine by organising auctions in Tokyo and wine tastings across the continent.
Ropner has a particular love for the wines of Burgundy in France and Barolo & Barbaresco in northern Italy. He was recently inducted as a member of the “Order of the Knights of the Truffles and Wines of Alba” a body whose onerous duty is to promote the foods and wine of the Piemonte region.
