Photo by Joel Ross Studios
a message from tina jones
Champagne. It might just be my favourite wine region on the planet, and possibly my favourite style of wine. For me, Champagne is a very special wine, and is summed up perfectly by Lily Bollinger:
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I drink Champagne when I’ m happy and when I’ m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’ m alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’ m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it— unless I’ m thirsty.
When I first travelled to the region of Champagne, I was enchanted. The landscape and towns are lovely, easy to navigate, and yet it was very different from other wine regions I had visited. There’ s a lot of formality in the region. You are more likely to encounter a producer’ s representative wearing a suit here than anywhere else! And arriving at a fine restaurant to see a dinner tasting menu paired with half a dozen different Champagnes is commonplace. At the same time, though, the formality is really a self-assured pride. The producers know that they have something very, very special to offer the world.
At home, pouring a glass of Champagne with friends is a wonderful way to celebrate a milestone, or to create an instant celebration. Champagne makes it easy to open a conversation, and it makes any food and wine pairing even easier. I know Champagne— any Champagne— is not an inexpensive wine; but I also know that few other wines make any occasion as special as Champagne does.
Welcome to this fascinating world of Champagne. In this issue, Gary Hewitt gives us a glimpse into some interesting debates in his interview with Terry Theise; Sylvia Jansen, our talented Champagne expert who has visited the region more times than I can count, takes us on tour with her; Mike Muirhead smoothes out some of the wrinkles in our knowledge; and Andrea Eby explores some alternatives to the world’ s most famous sparkling wine. We hope you will enjoy your Banville & Jones exclusive tour!
Enjoy!
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