The Dos And Don'ts Of Enjoying Champagne

Popping open a bottle of champagne can be a great way to celebrate a special occasion, though you don't really need an excuse to enjoy a glass of fine bubbly. Regardless of the specific type of champagne you're drinking, however, there are some things you need to know that will optimize the champagne's taste and allow you to enjoy it that much more:

DO Pour Into a Fluted Glass

For starters, make sure you pour your champagne into the appropriate glass. Specifically, champagne should be enjoyed in tall, glass flutes--and for good reason. Proper champagne flutes are long and narrow, which reduces surface area and allows the bubbles in the champagne to dissipate more slowly.

As a result, you get to enjoy that beautiful, bubbly carbonation even longer. On the other hand, pouring your champagne into a wine glass or other type of glass not only looks tacky, but will also cause your champagne to go flat more quickly.

DO Store Bottles Properly

Unless you plan on drinking an entire bottle of champagne at once (and if you do, who can blame you?), it's important that you know how to properly store your unfinished and uncorked bottles so that you can enjoy them later on without losing any taste or carbonation.

If you've ever uncorked a champagne bottle, you probably know that putting the cork back on isn't feasible. However, you can find plastic champagne stoppers (similar to wine stoppers, but with more of a mushroom-like shape) at your local winery or even home goods store. Be sure to use one of these and store your champagne bottle in a dark, cool area until the next time you decide to have a glass.

DON'T Chill in the Freezer

Finally, if you're in a hurry to get your champagne cold enough to serve, it might be tempting to toss that bottle into the freezer for a few minutes. However, putting champagne in the freezer can actually alter its taste. Not to mention, if you forget about it, you'll end up with an exploded champagne bottle. Instead, you can chill your champagne to the perfect temperature in less than a half hour by placing the bottle in a stainless steel ice bucket filled with ice and cold water.

As you can see, there's more to enjoying a glass of champagne than meets the eye. Be sure to keep these tips in mind to make the most of your next bottle. To learn more, contact a company like Pacific Wine Merchants.