Champagne: Wine of Kings and the King of Wines, Hardcover

Celebrate the treasure that is champagne with this sparkling tribute to the bubbly--now fully revised and updated.

Nothing says "special occasion" like popping open a bottle of champagne. Champagne guides you through the astounding story of how this delicious drink became the hallmark of celebrations, commiserations, and partying across the globe. It explores the process of making champagne and how the subtle blend of grapes produces a notable house style; the history of champagne, from the earliest makers to the establishment of the regulatory body; and the recent award of World Heritage status by UNESCO. The core of this beautiful volume focuses on individual entries on all the major champagne houses, lesser estates, co-operatives, growers, and variations of sparkling wine. Each entry provides background on the House and explores the notable traits of its products, together with tasting notes and recommendations. Finally, Champagne examines the growing interest in sparkling wines and the social and cultural impact of this drink of kings.

Revised and updated version of Treasures of Champagne, in a new format.

Tom Bruce-Gardyne has been writing on wine for almost 20 years and has twice won the Louis Roederer "Drinks Writer of the Year" Award. He is a regular columnist for the Herald & Times newspaper group in Edinburgh. His books include The Story of Scotch Whisky and The Deuchars Guide to Edinburgh Pubs and he has also written Souvenir Guides on Scotch Whisky and The Royal Mile.