Today is Pearl Harbor Day, and the events of that day led to WW2 and, as Franklin Delano Roosevelt promised, eventual 'absolute victory.'
There is only one wine to celebrate absolute victory, pure celebration, and bliss - and that wine is Champagne. Not a sparkling wine from somewhere else in the world, but Champagne.
Winston Churchill supposedly once remarked "Remember, gentlemen, it's not just France we are fighting for, it's Champagne." Due to its geographic location, the wine region known as Champagne experienced the 20th century in a rather forceful manner. The area saw some of the most intense fighting of World War I and was again occupied territory after May of 1940 until liberation in 1945.
Given the destruction of WWI, occupation in WW2 that was coupled with harsh winters, it's amazing any Champagne was produced at all. The fighting in the European theater also ended in Champagne with an unconditional surrender in Reims, the capital of the region. Wine historians note that the last explosions of the war (in Europe) were Champagne bottles popping. Although the Third Reich had demanded the best vintages to be delivered monthly to Berlin, producers did their best to keep the best out of Nazi hands. In fact, the end of the war in Europe was commemorated with the consumption of 6 cases of 1934 Pommery by General Eisenhower's forces. The end of things and the beginning of things are best suited to celebrations by Champagne.
But there are some guidelines.....
1. Give Champagne reverence. Have fun with it. Pair it with intense feeling, if nothing else.
2. If it's not from the Champagne region of France, it's a sparkling wine. Don't call a sparkling wine Champagne. Those grapes and vineyards have survived everything from the scourges of Attila the Hun, bloody civil wars, and Hitler. Show some respect.
3. Don't get wrapped up in discussions of terroir, this wine is all about the blend...
4. Even if you're someone who 'only drinks reds,' you can still drink Champagne. If it's good enough to christen ships and celebrate the end of the bloodiest conflict in human history, it's good enough for you.
There is only one wine to celebrate absolute victory, pure celebration, and bliss - and that wine is Champagne. Not a sparkling wine from somewhere else in the world, but Champagne.
Winston Churchill supposedly once remarked "Remember, gentlemen, it's not just France we are fighting for, it's Champagne." Due to its geographic location, the wine region known as Champagne experienced the 20th century in a rather forceful manner. The area saw some of the most intense fighting of World War I and was again occupied territory after May of 1940 until liberation in 1945.
Given the destruction of WWI, occupation in WW2 that was coupled with harsh winters, it's amazing any Champagne was produced at all. The fighting in the European theater also ended in Champagne with an unconditional surrender in Reims, the capital of the region. Wine historians note that the last explosions of the war (in Europe) were Champagne bottles popping. Although the Third Reich had demanded the best vintages to be delivered monthly to Berlin, producers did their best to keep the best out of Nazi hands. In fact, the end of the war in Europe was commemorated with the consumption of 6 cases of 1934 Pommery by General Eisenhower's forces. The end of things and the beginning of things are best suited to celebrations by Champagne.
But there are some guidelines.....
1. Give Champagne reverence. Have fun with it. Pair it with intense feeling, if nothing else.
2. If it's not from the Champagne region of France, it's a sparkling wine. Don't call a sparkling wine Champagne. Those grapes and vineyards have survived everything from the scourges of Attila the Hun, bloody civil wars, and Hitler. Show some respect.
3. Don't get wrapped up in discussions of terroir, this wine is all about the blend...
4. Even if you're someone who 'only drinks reds,' you can still drink Champagne. If it's good enough to christen ships and celebrate the end of the bloodiest conflict in human history, it's good enough for you.
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