Is there literally any drink more celebratory than champagne? Just hearing the pop of the cork and tasting the first sip of the bubbly is enough to make you feel giddy inside. But to get the full effect of the taste of this wonderful wine, you have to get it just right. Here’s how:
Storage: If you plan to have your champagne in the next 3-4 days, then keeping it in the fridge works just fine but any longer than that will dry up the cork, causing it to loosen and allowing your drink to oxidize. In that case, storing it in a dry, cool place is better than putting it in the fridge.
Opening the bottle: The wire cage is imperative when opening the cork because, that way, the cork doesn’t just fly out. The best way to remove the cork is to untwist the cage while making sure to keep it away from cork, and then twist the bottle away from the cork rather than vice versa.
Serving: It’s tradition to serve champagne in champagne flutes, but the truth is it works even better in white wine glasses or coupes. The wide rim allows for the drink to aerate better than in flutes and allows the true flavours to come out. Also when serving, keep in mind to only pour a third of the way up so that it doesn’t warm up too quickly.
Holding the glass: Always remember to hold the glass by the stem of the glass. Cupping it around thebowl of the glass will warm your champagne quicker with your body heat, ruining the taste. It doesn’t hurt that it’ll make you look fancy-shmancy too.
Pairing: The best food to pair with champagne is anything salty, oily and fatty so you don’t need to shell out for caviar. Fries, cheese, burgers, all bring out the fruitiness of champagne and make for a great meal.
