Celebrate Bubbles on the 5th International Champagne Day

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You can call it luxurious. You can call it sparkling wine. But only if it is from France, may you call it champagne! Today Champenois are reaping the rewards of many centuries of hard work in the exclusive Champagne appellation; a region that has come to represent a worldwide benchmark for quality, authenticity and excellence. And, to highlight the drink that need not be saved for only special occasions, the Champagne Bureau has named Global Champagne Day annually.

Global Champagne Day is designed so that champagne enthusiasts, all over the world, will gather together in ‘virtual appreciation’ of everything champagne. It really is a Social Media Experiential Day for all. The day even has its own social media hashtag: #ChampagneDayGlobal and website: www.champagneday.fr/.

The 24-hour event is now in its fifth year and encourages consumers to blog, tweet and post their thoughts about the French sparkling wine by using the #ChampagneDay hashtag. Yes, Friday, October 24, 2014, is 5th International Champagne Day!

 

Champagne has a rich history. Fossil evidence shows that wild vines flourished in the Champagne region. However, it was the Romans in AD 79 who laid much of the groundwork for the now world-famous Champagne appellation. The Romans recognized the exceptional terroir they began to develop the vineyards and introduce forward thinking winemaking techniques. They also quarried the chalk creating vast chalk pits (crayères) now used as cellars by the Champagne Houses. The name even derives from Latin - ‘campus’, ‘campania’ meaning field and in old French this became ‘champaign’.

 

CITYPEEK  sought out to interview world renown champagne expert, Maria Denton, a Master of Champagne and Certified Sommelier, who is a Portfolio Manager for Moet Hennessy. As an advocate for daily champagne sipping, she tells CITYPEEK, in an exclusive interview, "In this country, it seems we always seem to save Champagne for special occasions, but Champagne is one of the most versatile wines in the world.  It can be enjoyed with every course in a meal—as Non-Vintage selection an aperitif, a nice Vintage Blanc with a first course seafood dish, a richer Rosé with meats like duck or pork, and a Demi-Sec to enjoy with a light dessert or cheese course.

 

There really is no substitute for “real” Champagne...nothing elevates an experience like Champagne. The Champenois have over 300 years of experience in creating these remarkable wines, and their terroir is exceptionally suited to creating the kind of laser-focused white wines that can withstand long aging on the lees in the bottle.

 

Champagne is perfect for any day that ends in “y." Ms Denton continues. Cheers to that, Madame Bubbles!

 

Raz Mariam Razavi, of Wines by Raz,  "highly recommends to sip on Pol Roger champagne ($45) and also Delamotte Champagne ($39) "Just grab any bottle of Champagne and make sure to toast all day Friday and thru the weekend," she exclaims. (Prices  quoted are subject to change.)

Did someone say champagne school?  Flûte Gramercy in New York City did! Learn all about champagne and sparkling wine at Champagne School with monthly guided tastings where Flûte’s experts present a selection of bubblies for you to taste side-by-side. Classes include a review of how champagne is made, suggestions on food pairings and the opportunity to compare the styles of different wine makers.

 

Philadelphia's Positano Coast invites all on  Friday, October 24th to celebrate Champagne Day 2014! Throughout the day, they will offer $5 glasses of Prosecco, and $5 specialty champagne cocktails. The Champagne cocktails include the 'Twisted Lemon with Prosecco,' St. Germain and a lemon twist and the 'Atardecer with Prosecco,' Sicilian blood orange puree and ginger Cognac.

 

San Diego's Table 926 is offering a special champagne menu both Friday and Saturday. You can choose a glass of champagne and one of 3 special paired menu items for just $13 or make it a meal and choose a glass of champagne and all 3 menu items for just $28.

 

Every day is champagne day in Reims, France. Try a champagne tour. We found one: La Vigne du Roy Champagne Tours,  a family run business based in the heart of Champagne,  specializing in private tours of the Champagne region. Try a 1/2, full or multple day tour of the region where champagne is king!

The top exporters of Champagne worldwide are: Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Piper Heidsieck, Laurent Perrier, Pommery, Pol Roger, Mumm, Nicolas Feuillatte, Lanson, Taittinger and Perrier Jouët. In 2011 19.4 million bottles of Champagne were shipped into just the United States! 308 million bottles were shipped worldwide in 2012.

 

The Champagne Bureau located in Washington, DC, is the U.S. representative of the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC), the trade association that represents all the grape growers and houses of Champagne, France. The Bureau works to educate American consumers about the uniqueness of the wines of Champagne and expand their understanding of the need to protect the Champagne name in the United States. It has awarded this Friday to be National Champagne Day.

 

Now, what to eat with all the bubbles? Hmmmm, so many choices.

 

Patti Neumann is Publisher/Founder of CITYPEEK.com

& an award-winning 21 C Social Media Publicist/Influencer

on food, sips, hospitality & the good life.

CITYPEEK.com has its finger on the pulse of what's hot.

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