News February 2006

16.02.2006: The opposition against the war in Iraq has cost French wine - but not champagne - export to the USA for as much as 112 million dollars. Two Stanford-economists describes it in Decanter.com as a rare example of consumer boycot that actually has worked. The export of champagne however has not been affected at all - on the contrary - where the Americans bought 18,9 million bottles of bubbly in 2003, the amount in 2004 actually increased to as much as 20,3 million bottles. Maybe the Americans cannot see the difference between the French and the American bottles? The USA is the only country, where producers of sparkling wines continue to sell their fizz as champagne.

17.02.2006: Tennischampion Kim Clijsters kept a most generous promise, as she gave away a bottle of champagne to each of 10.000 spectators of her match in the second round of the WTA-tournament in Antwerpen. The Belgian already last autumn said she would buy champagne for everyone, if she managed to regain her topplacement in the WTA-tour. The generosity has cost Clijsters around 130.000 euros, says Belgian press.

22.02.2006: Topchampagne Dom Perignons new vintage rosé 1996 was presented at the supposedly best restaurant in the world, Fat Duck in Berskshire, England. The topchief Heston Blumenthal in association with the Dom Perignon vintner, Richard Geoffroy, put together the five hour long dinner. The new vintage was served as the aperitif whereas vintages 1990 and 1978 were served with the food.

The menu of the day was served for British top winewriters and consisted of dishes such as snailporridge, bacon and eggs-icecream, salmon in liquorice, oysters and passionfruitjelly.

Richard Geoffroy describes his 1996-vintage as "dramatic and black", says Decanter.

På dansk

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