{"id":4745,"date":"2020-06-16T16:56:01","date_gmt":"2020-06-16T19:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/?p=4745"},"modified":"2020-06-16T16:56:01","modified_gmt":"2020-06-16T19:56:01","slug":"beware-of-flying-corks-by-moreaboutwine-com-dec-22-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/domainebousquet.com\/en\/beware-of-flying-corks-by-moreaboutwine-com-dec-22-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Beware of Flying Corks By MoreAboutWine.com – Dec 22, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When the Washington Nationals celebrated their World Series victory a few months ago, the locker room was awash in sparkling wine. Players and coaches reveled in showering themselves with sparkling wine, a victory tradition hardly uncommon in the world.\u00a0 No matter how much fun it seems, however, popping champagne corks can be dangerous in such close quarters.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>If you\u2019re planning on opening champagne today, you might want to wear a catcher\u2019s mask. About two dozen people die a year from flying corks, mostly at weddings. A bottle of champagne has three times as much pressure as a tire. Once untethered from that wire hood, it will travel 25 miles an hour \u2013 60 miles an hour if, say, you left the bottle in the back seat of a car parked in Florida in August. An untamed cork also can soar 50 feet in the air, but if you shorten the distance \u2014 say to your wife\u2019s eyeball \u2014 that cork is flying at dangerous speeds.<\/p>\n

Dom Perignon knew first-hand about the dangers of flying corks. In the 17th<\/sup>\u00a0century he and fellow French monks said a few prayers when they bottled what they hoped to be still wine. The weather was so cold in this most northern wine growing region, that fermentation stopped when temperatures dropped only to start again as temperatures warmed in the spring after the wine was bottle. Kaboom! The second fermentation created a lot of CO2, which caused the bottles to explode. Winemakers even wore masks when they went into the caves. The monks were embarrassed when the bottles exploded in the cellars of well-heeled Brits.<\/p>\n

The good Dom put a positive spin on the flaw and declared he was \u201cdrinking stars,\u201d but that\u2019s probably what he saw after being hit a few times by flying corks.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Exploding bottles should have been the end to winemaking in Champagne, but along came British chemist Christopher Merret who actually invented the traditional method of champagne before Dom Perignon stumbled on it accidentally. Merret and his mates invented a stronger bottle that wouldn\u2019t explode and saved the champagne industry.<\/p>\n

Having now dispelled the myth that the French invented champagne, we aver that no one makes it as good as the French. Besides being the only region that owns the champagne name, its cool climate and t chalky, limestone soil make champagne unique.<\/p>\n

Generally, only pinot noir, pinot menieur and chardonnay are used in champagne. Prosecco? Glera grapes. Cava? macabeo, parellada and xarel grapes. Hardly household words. Prosecco and cava are nice, inexpensive sparkling wines with larger bubbles \u2013 but they lack the finesse or luxurious texture of champagne.<\/p>\n

California sparkling wine makers use the same grapes as the French and are making very good wines that can compete with the French. Oddly, though, they often cost more than French champagne and that discourages people from substituting champagne with sparkling wine.<\/p>\n

Get on the holiday bandwagon and open one of these delicious bubble makers \u2013 but be careful when you remove the cork.\u00a0 Here\u2019s a tip: grip the cork and turn the bottle. When it is almost out, push the cork to one side and let the gas seep out. Voila!<\/p>\n