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23.
Keeping Champagne
A - The pointlessness and
danger of keeping Champagne for too long
The Champagne has already remained in the Houses for as long as necessary to complete its evolution. Therefore, it is neither useful nor desirable to let it age at home. The Champagne does not improve with ageing in the client's cellar. It is ready to be consumed as soon as it leaves the House cellar. Nevertheless, despite its real capacity for transport, several weeks of rest will enable it to fully re-establish its molecular balance (possibly slightly disturbed by the delivery. However, it can be enjoyed without waiting.
We know (and we will return to this point), that there are several unfavourable factors in keeping Champagne. It is, therefore, advisable to drink it without delay, except if you possess a good cellar.
B - Conditions for keeping Champagne
A cellar is described as good when it has a fresh and consistent temperature, of 10 to 12° C (15°C maximum). Humidity is not a problem as long as it is not excessive (a hygrometry of 60 to 70 is ideal). This would damage the labels and, at worst, the corks could become mouldy and this taste might be transferred to the wine. In addition, the cellar must be protected against everything harmful to the quality of the Champagne: light, nauseous odours, air currents, abrupt temperature changes and vibrations. If you are not lucky enough to have a cellar fulfilling these conditions, do whatever you can to keep your reserves in conditions as close as possible to the ideal cellar. Be aware that there is no need to worry, providing that your bottles are sheltered from the light.
Storing bottles "upright" or "laid down" proves to be far less important than for non-sparkling wines. In fact, the pressure within the bottle allows the cork to always remain perfectly humid and, consequently, supple and efficient, whether the bottle is upright or laid down. Some people even consider that the upright position has the major advantage of avoiding any contact between the cork and the wine, thus limiting the risk of transferring an unpleasant taste.
In all cases, Champagne deteriorates if exposed to the light. Its quick and harmful effects are well known. To avoid the "taste of the light", it is, therefore, essential to leave the Champagne in darkness. At the very least you need to protect it with a brown tinted glass or to wrap the bottles in yellow cellophane or foil. These precautions are necessary unless you have the benefit of a rare and expensive source of light (with reduced effects on the wine), such as a sodium vapour lamp also known as "neon".
Consequently, if you lack a suitable cellar, lie the Champagne down in a bottle-rack in a room as dark and as close as possible to the ideal storage conditions. If the humidity is not excessive, the bottles can remain in their case (if delivered in a large quantity), which would shelter them from the light. An expensive but efficient solution is the flat stockroom, equipped with refrigerated bottle-racks or cupboards, designed so that each compartment has its own temperature. Champagne can be kept here without harm in its designated section.
The shop organisation is also an important factor in the correct storage of Champagne. Independent wine shops generally take all the necessary precautions to stack the bottles in the best conditions. However, it is regrettable to see Champagne displayed upright in bright light too frequently, when dummy bottles designed for shop windows exist. In supermarkets, these storage problems are not always resolved in a satisfactory manner. There are too many where the bottles are upright, constantly and directly lit by fluorescent lighting.
C - Length of storage in a good cellar
It is pointless to keep Champagne for too long at home, because it is difficult for an individual to know if the quality chain has been interrupted at one moment or another during the life of the bottle. Assuming that the Champagne has always been kept in the best conditions and that the bottle has then been stored in an excellent cellar (after a shipment following the disgorgement within the normal time limits), the quality will remain the same for 3, 4 or 5 years (perhaps even 6 or 7 years), then it will diminish. If the bottle has been exposed to the light before the purchase, the damage is already done and can only get worse. In reality, the purchaser has no idea how long his Champagne can remain in the cellar without deteriorating. It also depends (in addition to the storage conditions), on the way the Champagne was produced, how the blend is made up and the internal transformations later undergone by the wine. And above all, the purchaser has no knowledge about the most important thing: the Champagne's disgorgement date. This (relates) approximately to the date from which the Champagne may be enjoyed.
D - Aged Champagne
Yet, certain connoisseurs deliberately run the risk of systematically keeping their Champagne for several years. These people appreciate aged Champagne. They are rare in France but quite numerous in Great Britain, where they remain loyal to an ancient tradition. The Champagne loses part of its exuberance and a great deal of its freshness; on the other hand, it gains in suppleness. Its bouquet is enriched but it is modified, giving a more or less pronounced taste of Madeira. Although the result may please some palates, the Champagne has, nevertheless, changed its character and become a different wine.
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