Debate a Bubble - Supermarket Champagne - Does It Make You Feel Special?

Link to Debate a Bubble - Champagne News and Reviews

Supermarket Champagne - Does It Make You Feel Special?

Posted: 19 Oct 2010 07:24 AM PDT

My last post was all about cheap champagne and in particular the amazing prices that the supermarkets in the U.K. and, to a lesser extent elsewhere, offer around Christmas time.

Are these champagnes any good? Are they good value? Would you be better off buying two bottles of Cava instead of one bottle of cheap champagne?

All good questions and like all matters of value and taste, the answer is subjective - there's no right or wrong reply.

But that did get me wondering why we enjoy buying, or at least drinking, champagne.

For me champagne has to make me feel as though I'm enjoying a special treat. If it doesn't do that then, whatever the price, I would definitely be asking myself 'Is this worth it'?

In my view champagne has to offer me EITHER the history, tradition, glamour and style of the big houses - I'd be a hypocrite if I said I wasn't impressed by all that, OR the humanity and authenticity that some of the smaller growers offer and which the large houses find much harder to achieve.

So where do supermarket champagnes fit into that?

For me they offer me neither of the things I look for and I can't see that they offer much except the price.

I was driving near the Côte des Blancs this morning and saw something that only served to reinforce this feeling .

I drove past Château Malakoff. No, not a palacial manor house, but a huge and very modern production facility where three brands are produced: Beaumet, Jeanmaire and Oudinet.

No room for romance here. This is a factory and as if to prove it there's a tanker park by the side. Of course all big champagne houses transport juice by tanker, but do you, the consumer, need or want to see this?

The quality of the champagne may be great. In fact Oudinet is sold by Marks & Spencer in the U.K. and they have a reputation for good wine and, to be fair, they don't sell Oudient at bargain basement prices- but if I'm looking for either of the two things that make me want to buy champagne, I'm not going to find them at Château Malakoff.

So what about you?

What makes you buy champagne?

Why not share your views by leaving a post here?

Looking forward to hearing from you