Take a journey to the Champagne in your mind in this article I wrote for the New York Post a little while back.
I got in touch with some friends for this one, as well as a restaurateur in New York that I’ve wanted to connect with.
Cedric Nicaise, long-time wine director of Eleven Madison Park and owner / proprietor of the West Village eatery the Noortwyck, broke down the ease of access to Champagne from a Parisian home base. All the real fizz-heads know that unless you have a reason to visit a given producer, you won’t get an appointment. So for the traveler with only passing interest in bubbly, a day trip from Paris to the bigger houses with crayeres and tours will do.
New acquaintance Ariel Arce, owner of one of my favorite bars of all time (Air’s Champagne Parlor) and some very fun restaurants (Tokyo Record Bar, Niche Niche, Special Club), talked about the best places to eat and shop in Champagne: Sacré Bistro / Sacré Burger, Le Pressoir, Boulangerie Frédéric Hardy, Stéréo, L’Epicerie Au Bon Manger, Le Caves du Forum, among others).
Brendan Casey, owner of Parlour Wine & Spirits (Seattle, Brooklyn) and A-Bar (Brooklyn), gave some advice on some grower bottles to be on the lookout for:
Laherte Frères’ Ultradition, which is “perfect for dipping a toe into grower Champagne.” Ulysse-Collin’s Les Maillons is another to hunt down as it’s “the only producer making exclusively single-vineyard bottlings in the area.” Finally, keep an eye out for Roger Coulon’s Heri-Hodie, which is “a blend of current vintage and reserve wine from the ’90s that’s deeply nutty, complex and old-world expressive.”
It’s a quick guide to spending a perfect day in Champagne, unless you can get in to stay at Les Avises, the on-property hotel at Domaine Jacques Selosse. Then you should stay as long as you can afford to keep drinking Selosse.
If you landed here for weird SEO reasons, then the answer you are probably looking for is: fried chicken and caviar. Champagne pairs beautifully with fried chicken. The autolytic notes (bread dough, brioche, toast, and cream) and acidity balance with the spices and breading on the chicken. I’m originally from Nashville and grew up eating at Prince‘s Hot Chicken Shack. There, the chicken is brined in buttermilk and cayenne, fried in cast iron, and then slathered with a blend of fiery spices and fat to essentially candy the chicken as it cools. What emerges is a hot-candied shell of unrelenting pain and happiness over delicious fried chicken. If only young me had enjoyed a Champagne budget. See image below (featuring master craftsman and all-around amazing man, Wesley Knight) where we are desparately in need of a high-acid bottle of bubbly to cut the heat.
