Champagne: The essential guide to the wines, producers, and terroirs of the iconic region

by Peter Liem

Winner of the André Simon Drinks Book of the Year Award.Winner of the IACP award in Wine, Beer & SpiritsA stunning box set, complete with seven vintage maps in a pull-out drawer.Based on six years of on-the-ground research and unprecedented access to actual Champagne growers, Champagne is the first book to actually describe producers and wines based on their terroir - enlightening readers by showing them exactly where, how, and by whom these great wines are made. Champagne is one of the most iconic, sought-after wines in the world, beloved by serious wine collectors as well as everyday wine drinkers. However, it is also one of the most misunderstood wines out there - obscured by a multimillion-pound marketing industry that makes it difficult for consumers to honestly judge value and understand what they're drinking.Included in the stunning box set are the Louis Larmat vinicultural maps - the only detailed wine maps of the region, which were commissioned by the French government in the mid-1940s and have never appeared in print in English.

Genres: Wine, Cookbooks, Nonfiction, France, Food and Drink, Food

303 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 10, 2017

Reviews

[N.N. Heaven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Champagne is one of the most complex, misunderstood and highly coveted wines in the world. Everyone, from the serious wine collector to the occasional imbiber, drinks champagne yet many of us wine drinkers haven’t a clue what makes a great champagne. Peter Liem, in my view and many others, is the number one authority on all things wine and he’s written the complete guide on champagne.



Starting with a history of champagne and the Champagne Region in France, Liem educates the reader without talking down to the reader. I learned so many things I never knew before. As a wine drinker and someone who has visited the Champagne Region in France, this book is a treasure-trove of information long since forgotten.



Liem then takes us on the ultimate tour through the region and describes in great detail what the differences in each vintage and how to choose the best wine you can afford. He intersperses excellent tips for wine drinkers of all budgets to buy, store and drink champagne. He also emphasises how champagne doesn’t need to be saved for special occasions. It can be enjoyed anytime.



As a wine connoisseur, I drank up this book and will be purchasing the hardcover for my permanent collection. The maps alone are worth the price of the hardcover. It also makes a great gift for the wine enthusiast in your life.



I can’t recommend this book enough, especially for those who love champagne.



Many thanks to Ten Speed Press and Netgalley for giving me an ARC in the hopes I’d review it.



My Rating: 5 stars



This review first appeared: https://princessofthelight.wordpress.com

[January Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will definitely be buying a hard copy version of this for myself and as gifts this Christmas season. Informative and fun to read. Would make an excellent coffee table book (box set) .

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you like soil, this is the book for you. There is a lot of good info in there, but it’s like reading an encyclopedia- so dry and lacking personality. Where are the stories about the winemakers, who are fascinating individuals?

The descriptions of the champagnes are rarely comprehensible. For example: “it’s intended to express the puissance of Mailly’s terroir.”

[Jake Leech · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know nothing about wine and even less about Champagne, although over the last year or two I have been drinking quite a bit of the standard, widely available non-vintages (think Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label) with a couple of forays into vintage bottles on special occasions.

I think Liem's aim is twofold. His first goal is to give a broad introduction to Champagne, and as such the first part of the book is a very readable discussion of the history of Champagne and production methodologies. His second goal is to argue for an increased appreciation of the terroir of Champagne, which is often overlooked due to most Champagne being blended. To this end, the second section of the book goes through the various areas in the Champagne region, discussing their soils, and highlighting specific villages and producers who are making single-vineyard Champagnes. After reading the first section quite quickly, I reserved the second section of the book for lazy Sunday afternoons, one chapter at a time, and allowed myself to daydream of traveling through the French countryside trying all of these wines.

The third section gives overviews of the various producers and houses that Liem believes are driving the idea of terroir in Champagne, as well as other changes that the author thinks are giving Champagne a new sense of potential, and allowing it to move away from the fizzy, "special occasion" idea of Champagne that I grew up with. I'm not going to sit down and read section three through, but it is already proving a valuable reference as I decide what to drink next...

[Reshma Patel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t know anything about Champagne until I visited last year and fell in love with it. Liem starts with the history of Champagne, then goes into describing the terroir of the different villages/vineyards and its impact on the wine, and finally good Champagnes to try in different price ranges. He even provides a brief story on each the Champagne house owners, which makes it more intimate. I believe this is the first book about Champagne that really discusses the terroir and promotes grower, single-cru, and single-vineyard Champagne. I noticed that there was a silent competition in between Burgundy and Champagne when I visited both places last year, and Liem often compares/contrasts Burgundy and Champagne in the book as well. He provides beautiful maps that help you follow along. The writing is very approachable and my favorite aspect was how he emphasizes that you don’t need a special occasion to drink Champagne. I listened to his interview on the “I’ll Drink to That!” podcast and got the sense that he was a humble guy with a vast amount of knowledge on Champagne. HIGHLY recommend this book for those interested in learning about Champagne or those who are already connoisseurs – there is something for everyone.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful and engaging book on the history of champagne.
Not only will you learn about champagne but how it came to be, who is primarily responsible for it and how the different regions of France and around the world greatly effect the taste, texture and experience of champagne.
I liked how Remi Krug described the wines like music, it made it easier to understand the complexity of blending and the tasting of wine.
The codes of the champagne producers was interesting and a great piece of information.
If you are a wine person then you will absolutely love this book, pictures and the immense detail that is packed in it. If you are not a wine person, you will still enjoy this book for the easy way to learn more about the history of a truly unique wine.

[Jordan Rock · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book (and maps) for a wine/Champagne geek. Peter Liem really knows what he's talking about and you will too after reading this book (e.g., history, production techniques, regions/villages/vineyards, producers) . While I've loved Champagne for awhile, I've never really approached it from the micro terroir-based perspective promoted by Liem and I thought his approach was fascinating. This book really renewed and heightened my passion for Champagne.

The book is written well, extremely informative, and is packaged and presented nicely enough to be a coffee table book.

This book was everything I was hoping for. Very highly recommended for all wine geeks.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the information is ok but it is so dense yet not that informative, this really feels like a vanity book and is very shallow in talking about the regions. The maps are good but there’s not much introduction about them save for a few stats and some broad information.
Best as a coffee book and not for learning.

[Catherine]

On January 17, 2018, I received this beautiful masterpiece. The reproductions of The Larmat Maps of the Champagne Region by Louis Larmat is like a treasure map of vineyards and I can't wait to see them in real life. I am really, really ecstatic for this! Thank you Mr. Peter Liem!!

[Liam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on Champagne detailed and thorough.

While i did read it cover to cover, i is definitely a book that may be better suited as a reference book than a general read.

But if you want to learn almost everything there is to know about Champagne, this book is for you.

[Kerwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pride of place. Preeminent expert on the region, the wine, the fascination. This is one of those box sets with a double volume.

[Corbin Routier · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author does an excellent job mixing history, business practices, wine making process, and personal experience into one seemless narrative. Very educational, not the least bit pretentious, and gives the reader many ways to identify with champagne. I will use this book to guide me as I visit the region.

[Bobby Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best Book on Champagne

Liem takes us into the vineyard, cellar, and, most importantly, the minds of the great winemakers of Champagne. He has delivered an unparalleled guide to a seemingly cryptic region that delivers concise information on styles and production. His explanation of cuvée, grower champagne, and the likes is easy to understand and informative

[Craig Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book on Champagne to date.