History of Champagne
Champagne is the epitome of celebrations – without popping a bottle, a party is incomplete. Whether it is a romantic date with your partner, a wedding, promotion or victory celebrations, champagne makes every moment memorable. As interesting as the drink and its applications are, the history of how it came to existence is a story you must know.
The Name has it
The name Champagne comes from the Latin word ‘compania’ referring to the resemblance between Compania located in south of Rome and rolling hills in France.
Champagne is a region in Paris where vineyards were planted in around 50 AD but eventually they were destroyed by Emperor Domitian in 92 AD because he thought the wine was not in the interest of the empire. However, Emperor Probus, who was son of a gardener, replanted the vineyard in 202 AD.
It was an Accident
The vineyards were destroyed in FrenchWars Of Religion. The Benedict Abbey was rebuilt and by 1661, 25 acres of vineyards were planted. Dom Perignon was appointed in 1668 to supervise the wine making operation and he worked meticulously to improve the quality of wine produced in the abbey. Bubbles, which were due to carbon dioxide – a by-product of fermentation, were produced in his efforts to make the high quality white wine from red grapes which were considered to be a fault. He intended to get still wine but the effervescence and fizz in the drink was unwelcomed.
However, when the temperature dropped in winters, fermentation of wine stopped and the wine makers thought process of complete so they sold the bottles. Once these bottles were stored in a warm place or the temperature rose in spring, the fermentation process began and bubbles appeared. People were advised to consume the wine before Easter, thereafter. The bottles mostly exploded due to the pressure and those which survived were considered to be ruined because of the presence of bubbles. The sparkling wine soon became popular in French courts and a popular choice all over the world. It is known as spumante in Italy and Sekt in Germany.
Dom Perignon gave world the techniques to make Champagne in his efforts to get rid of the bubbles.
British Influence
Britain was a wealthy nation but without any resources to produce wine. Powerful Dukes such as Duke of Buckingham and Bedford promoted the wine of the Champagne region in France and the wines were transported to Britain in wooden barrels. English were the first one to consider the sparkling nature of the wine as an advantage when they discovered the bubbles due to fermentation in warm weather and tried to understand this tendency of wine. They started producing the sparkling wine and the French who had taken the bubbles as a blunder began to make it deliberately because of the growing popularity in the 17th century. Thus, English are said to have discovered the Champagne and not the French as they made the wine with intent, not by a mere non-reproducible accident.
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