Bubbles....Yes Please! By Lee Calihan

A Guide To Champagne at Events

Champagne makes a party festive, and I can’t think of many parties, where it wouldn’t add a little class.  Here’s the low down on what bubbles people are drinking and how much we find that they consume.

Champagne Tutorial

Any sparkling white wine from the Champagne region of France.  It’s only a Champagne if it’s from France.  You don’t need Champagne to get a great sparkler, as other locations making affordable and delicious sparkling wine.  One of the most famous American vineyard producing amazing sparklers is Schramsberg.  Fun Fact:  The White House serves Schramsberg for it’s champagne toasts! Cava refers to the sparklers from Spain and Prosecco bubbles hail from Italy.  Whatever style your taste buds gravitate to, here are some good ratio’s.

Toasting Portion – 1 glass per person.  5-7 pours per bottle (750 ml bottle).  Although you only get 5 – 5 oz pours from this bottle, we have found that you can usually pour slightly smaller pours and fill up 7 glasses.  Champagne glasses aren’t that large, and champagne bubbles so this can stretch.

Cocktail Event – 1.5 – 2 glasses per person, depending upon what other options you have.   Typically we find that women drink more champagne than men, but at a celebration, especially in the summer, it is a fantastic drink to serve.

The Rockstar Classic

Veuve Cliquot – The orange label and it’s light & fresh taste make this an awesome champagne to class up any social situation.  This drink is liquid gold at a party.  We have found that people will drink as much as you purchase with Veuve.  You probably will run out of whatever quantity you have on hand, and that’s ok.  Always keep them wanting more.

We are loving…

Rose Sparkling - Want your party to have a softer hue?  Rose champagne is typically a little bit sweeter than classic champagne. 

Your Favorite Sparkling + St. Germain / Bitters, Lemon Twist & a Sugar Cube / Flavored Bitters / Fresh fruit Puree

One of the most fun ways to dress up champagne that doesn’t drink as well on it’s own is to add a topper.  A champagne bar with a selection of items to add to your sparkling is a really pretty way to dress up reasonably priced bottles.  It’s like adding fantastic jewelry onto a simple dress.  The higher quality the topper, the fancier the champagne seems!