Champagne: History and Birth of Effervescence

“ Champagne !”  we say when it's time to celebrate good news. These little bubbles are indeed so ingrained in our culture today that they have become synonymous for all of us with celebration and prestige.

But how did this wine reach the pinnacle of French and global gastronomic culture? What is its history ? How is it made? What sets it apart from other sparkling wines? These are the questions I propose to explore in this two-part article series.

 

Champagne: A Royal History

The history of wine in Champagne begins with the Romans who were the first to plant vines in the region in the  3rd century.At the fall of the Empire, Clovis was subsequently the first king to make it a wine region of interest. Thus, in 496, during the festivities crowning him king of the Franks in Reims, the wines of Champagne (at the time non-sparkling) flowed abundantly. This was the first association of the famous beverage with royalty.

During the Middle Ages, it was The Church that primarily took care of the vineyard : the wine was consecrated and consumed during mass, and thus it was the monks who maintained the French vineyard. During this period and until the early 19th century, many French kings were crowned in Reims with each time, festivities celebrating the local wines.Over the centuries, the image of Champagne will be definitively marked, and the wine of the region will become synonymous with celebration and prestige, to the point of being recognized in 1654 under the reign of Louis XIV as the official wine of coronations.

During the Revolution and in the decades that follow, the vineyards leave the religious fold to become properties of wealthy merchants and traders.Thus, while some houses like Gosset (1584), Ruinart (1729) or Moët & Chandon (1743) already existed before, other great houses emerged like Billecart-Salmon (1818), Mumm (1827), Deutz (1838) or even Charles Heidsieck (1851). It is the time of international expansion. 

While the reputation of Champagne wines had already crossed borders in the 12th century, it was indeed during the 18th and 19th centuries that its export developed dramatically, notably towards England and the United States, countries that remain today the primary foreign markets for Champagne.

Le Déjeuner d'huîtres, Jean-François de Troy (1735). Painted at the request of Louis XV, the painting depicts for the first time a bottle of champagne

As mentioned above, for many centuries, the wines of Champagne were not effervescent.Indeed, while the phenomenon of "sparkling" wines was already known to humans since Antiquity, this chemical reaction was not really understood and was neither regular, nor intentionally induced or even desired. It was only in the years 1670-1690 that we witnessed the true birth of sparkling champagnes, in complete break with the tradition of past centuries. The beginnings were quite laborious: producers did not really understand the mechanisms of this effervescence, many bottles exploded, and the stability of the product was not guaranteed.Progress was made during the 18th and 19th centuries thanks to the efforts of many winemakers, implementing techniques that allowed for better control of bubbles (more resistant glass, cork sealing, stable storage temperatures, etc.). It was ultimately only thanks to Louis Pasteur's work on fermentation during the 19th century that we truly began to understand effervescence.

You have understood, we can therefore definitively debunk the myth presenting the monk Dom Pérignon (1638-1715) as the official inventor of modern Champagne! A talented winemaker, he indeed contributed to the viticultural influence of the region, but it is unlikely that he truly uncovered the secrets of effervescence (sorry Dom Pé').

Finally, Champagne is not the first sparkling wine of France! Indeed, it seems that Blanquette de Limoux is considered as such thanks to written records dating back to 1531. The Champagne monks were probably inspired by their Languedocian counterparts, who themselves had at that time a rather approximate mastery of bubbles.

In any case, it is established that sparkling Champagne is indeed the first sparkling wine to have been produced in a specific region and regularly by local producers.

Still a symbol of celebration and luxury, Champagne has now become widely popularized around the world. The official AOC was created in 1936 and the industry is now present across more than 190 countries. Each year, it brings nearly 320 million bottles to the market (with more than half exported).We are far from the 8 million bottles produced in 1850 or even the 100 million bottles of 1970 !

The market has also become significantly concentrated. While there are more than 300 Champagne houses, some large groups have a considerable influence in the region, such as Pernod Ricard (Mumm, Perrier-Jouët), Vranken-Pommery (Vranken, Pommery, Heidsieck & Co Monopole etc.) but especially LVMH (Dom Pérignon, Ruinart, Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot etc.).If these large houses are the main image of Champagne in France, it is even more so abroad: nearly 75% of the volumes of Champagne intended for export indeed come from these renowned brands. Thus, as you know, there is a tendency to highlight small producers (such as Champagnes Veuve Fourny, Franck Bonville, or even Pertois-Moriset), it should not be forgotten that the international resonance of Champagne owes much to these prestigious big names and their impressive marketing power.

Stay connected! Next week, we will update the mysteries of Champagne production, the reasons for its often high price, and we will see how to taste it properly.