The hills of Champagne, as in Burgundy, are divided into many individually named vineyards, some containing more than one lieu-dit , or named parcel. Champagne houses, in general, followed a different path. Champagne is a blended wine, mostly. Trips Salon André Clouet Peter Liem Champagne Champagne 2011 Trip MORE >>

Brooklynguy is in love with Champagne. had the distinct honor and pleasure of tasting as much of the Terry Theise Grower Champagne portfolio as I could last week, at the Michael Skurnik tasting last week at TriBeCa Grill. Geoffroy uses lots of Meunier, and the wines were all long and intense. What an opportunity! Me too. MORE >>

I was fortunate to be able to attend the Michael Skurnik tasting at TriBeCa Grill in mid January, and amidst the great lineup of German, Austrian, and French wines, there was of course a Terry Theise Champagne section. But these were not just any Champagnes, all were grower Champagnes, wines made by the farmers who tend the wines. MORE >>

This wine is unusual in that it is 100% Pinot Meunier, a grape that is more often part of the blend in Champagne and only very rarely appears on its own. Egly-Ouriet makes big and full bodied Champagnes, not for the faint of heart. NV Egly-Ouriet Brut "Les Vignes de Vrigny ," $46, Michael Skurnik Wines. Glad I did, too. MORE >>

If you're anything like me then you've been thinking recently about non-dosage Champagne. Non-dosage Champagne has no sweetener added to the wine used to top up the bottle after disgorgement. This must happen for every bottle of Champagne, and there are houses that produce 50,000 bottles in a year. Grower Champagne. MORE >>