A star is born

Champagne gained its initial following in England, because it was transported in casks and bottled after arrival. The English manufactured bottles in coal-fired ovens, resulting in a stronger construction; they also reintroduced cork as the stopper of preference. When Champagne underwent a secondary fermentation in this improved container, it didn’t explode or leak. And the resulting sparkling wine appealed to the English palate. A market was born.

Shortly thereafter the French Court adopted this new form of wine and it became a favorite throughout France. Its largest market, however, came about when Russian troops were billeted in the Champagne region at the end of the Napoleonic War. Czar Alexander I and his army developed an insatiable taste for the area’s sparkling wine. In response to this demand, the house of Veuve Cliquot developed the méthode champenoise, making production of Champagne commercially profitable. Shortly thereafter many of the great Champagne houses, such as Krug or Pommery, were founded.

Demand for sparkling wine continued to grow until the Russian market disappeared after the Revolution of 1917. Thirteen years later, American Prohibition removed the U.S. market. The final blow was the global recession of the 1930s, when demand for luxury items such as Champagne hit an alltime low. The market did not really return until the mid 1950s, when the world began to recover from the economic and social devastation caused by the Second World War.

Nowadays it is customary to celebrate any event with a glass of bubbly. It can also be enjoyed as an apéritif. Even better, we can enjoy sparkling wine made in the County (in the traditional method), and at a much more reasonable price.

THIS WEEK’S PICK
This week I tried a wonderful port-style wine produced by Harwood Estates. Their 2010 Marquesa (also the name of the wine style) is made from a varietal developed in 1994 at the University of Minnesota. Its lineage includes Frontenac and Pinot Noir grapes that are cold-climate hardy and resistant to disease. Packed full of flavor and high sugar levels, the Marquette grape has only been commercially available since 2005.

Harwood winemaker Lauren Horlock saw an opportunity to make a port-style wine from this grape, and the end result is a warm mouthful of black cherry and spiced honey. With its heft, color and nutty notes, this wine reminds me of a Colheita (single-vintage tawny port). The wine has a touch of heat at the end that, during the depths of winter, makes a perfect after-dinner beverage beside a cozy fire. Lauren purposely left the sugar levels of this fabulous wine lower to avoid a cloying finish. This means we can drink more!

Marquesa is available at Harwood Estates, located at 18908 Loyalist Parkway, just west of Hillier.