The popularity of sparkling wine sees no signs of letting up, with winegrowing regions around the world producing outstanding examples to satisfy global demand. Yet despite the ongoing competition, France's Champagne region maintains its premier position. The wines' reputation for luxury is part of the lure for consumers, but more important is their remarkable level of quality. This is especially true of bottlings from the crème de la crème of Champagne houses, which deliver complexity and depth of flavor seamlessly knit to vibrant acidity and fine texture.
Looking at the broader market for Champagne, it's my impression that there's greater diversity today than there was 10 years ago or even five years ago. This evolution has been fueled by a number of factors, including a huge spike in Champagne sales post-pandemic. More than anything, though, Champagne has come to be accepted as a wine in its own right, beyond the occasional celebration—a wine to pair with food, a wine to cellar, a wine to explore in its range of expressions. Serious consumers want to look beyond the handful of well-known names to find producers homing in on specific terroirs or offering distinctive styles.
As positive as it is for wine drinkers to have more options to try, it's important to remember that not all Champagne is created equal. Because of the changing nature of the marketplace, I expanded the number of producers in my Champagne tastings this year to encompass some names whose previous availability in the United States was either limited or non-existent. Bottlings from these wineries represent almost 20% of the total number of wines under review. Although there were some very pleasant surprises, such as a trio of 2019s from grower-producer Adrien Renoir, more often than not the wines from these "newbies" did not show the same qualitative strength as those from producers that have been regularly featured in my tastings.
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