Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/541538
Retail EDUCATION 10 Beverage Dynamics • July/August 2015 www.beveragedynamics.com their own grapes, do not buy any grapes and do not sell any grapes. Their Champagnes are sold mostly in France, but some go to Belgium, England, Japan and Italy. All Champagnes are aged in large oak casks from Alsace. There is no stainless steel. An oversize cask has been converted to a charming sitting room for a few people. My favorite Champagne, made mostly with Chardonnay, is the fragrant Cuvée Spéciale Club Millésimé 2004, produced from the oldest vines that have the smallest yields. The property is very decorative - with carved barrels, painted murals, and co- pious fl owers. A walk down the Avenue de Champagne in Epernay shows large buildings and mansions owned by many of the most prestigious Champagne houses – one right after the other. It begins at the Tourist Offi ce, and continues for 1 km, on both sides of the wide street. LEAVING THE MARNE FOR THE AUBE A visit to Urville, in the Aube, takes a little over an hour. A visit to Drappier should not be missed. The home and furnish- ings and cellars are exquisitely mounted. Those wine cellars were built in 1152 by Cistercian monks, and the Drappier fam- ily has been cultivating the vineyards for the last two centuries. The Jurassic-era Kimmeridge soil is like that of the Grand Cru Chablis. The white chalky soils, many former oyster beds, are best for Chardonnay, while the little valleys with stones and minerals further north are best for Pinot Noir. Michel Drappier is the seventh-generation winemaker. His son, is studying enology, while his daughter is hand-selling Drap- pier Champagnes with the importing company Dreyfus-Ashby in New York. Wines are made in the original stone cellars. Right now, there are 30,000 liters in wood for the reserves. A large egg-shaped barrel is being studied. Michel says it is the most perfect shape. Currently, it is the only one in Champagne. The entire vineyard is organic, and one-third of it has now been certifi ed. Even the Martinique sugar cane used for the dos- ages is organic. These dosages, incidentally, are aged for 15 to 25 years in Limousin oak tanks. It gets thick and concentrated, and one drop per bottle is all that is necessary. These 'liquors' are stored in glass demijohns, some for more than 50 years. Further, Michel is using less sulfur, to reduce chances of reduction in his wines. He ferments at very low temperatures, noting that lon- ger, cooler fermentations result in smaller bubbles. Michel Drappier is aiming to be Carbon-zero, and solar power provides 55% of his elec- tricity needs. Further, he uses 99% recycled glass, cardboard and wood, and 85% soda glass from the north of Paris. The Drappier 'Grande Sen- drée' 2006, with almost equal parts of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, gets six years of bottle aging before release. Inciden- tally, this Champagne has been matched with Renoir's paint- ing "Dance in the Country" as part of a collection of ten in- dependent Aube Champagnes matched to ten Renoir paintings. LAST STOP LES RICEYS The municipality of Les Ric- eys, which consists of three vil- lages, has three specifi c AOC/ AOP designations: Champagne (designated in 1936); Coteaux Champenois (designated in 1970) and Rosé des Riceys (designated in 1947). This re- gion is so far from Reims and Epernay that it never had any of its vineyards designated as Grand- or Premier-Crus. Nevertheless, still red wines from Les Riceys are used by other Champagne producers when making rosé Champagnes. Nicolas Feuillatte Cuvée Palmes d'Or Rosé, for example, is made from Pinot Noirs from the village of Bouzy (using 50%) for power, and from Les Riceys (50%) for fi ne aromas. Champagne Morize Père et Fils Brut Réserve and the Morize Rosé des Riceys 2011 are very fruity examples of those appellations. They go so well with food that they are often referred to as 'gastronomic rosés.' Wrap up your tour with a visit to the medieval city of Troyes, which was laid out like a Champagne cork. Illuminated red hearts proclaim this a 'city of love.' BD Mural of vineyard work, plus wooden presses, at entrance to Dom Caudron. Flasks of liqueurs for dosage, some 50 years old, aging in the cellar at Drappier. HARRIET LEMBECK, CWE*, CSS** is a prominent wine and spirits educator. She is president of the Wine & Spirits Program, and revised and updated the textbook Grossman's Guide to Wines, Beers and Spirits. She was the Director of the Wine Department for The New School University for 18 years. (*Certifi ed Wine Educator, **Certifi ed Specialist of Spirits). She can be reached at hlembeck@mindspring.com. PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL LEMBECK, CWE, CSS