Do you think you are too bummed out by the current economic climate to drink a bottle of Champagne at the holidays this year? If so, you need to re-think your position.
Yes, I understand that the situation is pretty grim. However, in 
my view, there is no such thing as an acceptable holiday season without Champagne. Moreover, there is no excuse for foregoing Champagne in December as long as there remains the possibility of balancing accounts with a few nights of tuna casserole in January. I figure that tuna casserole won’t kill me, whereas a holiday season without Champagne just might.
Of course, given the current climate, many of us will only get one shot at Champagne this year. So we’d better hit the mark with our one shot. Among the world’s greatest wines, Champagne is the one that is as much “made” as “grown,” so your best assurance of success is to start with a great producer and then pick a wine on the price tier that is appropriate to your circumstances.
If this strategy sounds sound to you, think about going with Gosset, a venerable house that is currently at the top of its game. Gosset’s Champagnes are consistently wonderful, balancing a rich, deeply-flavored profile with an uncanny elegance usually found only in lighter wines.
Gosset’s lineup is arrayed on four tiers, and though you can’t go wrong on any of them, I’d steer you toward the second level if this will be your first foray. The entry level wine is “Brut Excellence,” a non-vintage wine that is certainly well above average if not 
always downright thrilling. Next up is what I regard as the sweet spot in the portfolio, or what we might call the “Reserve” wines, a “Grande Réserve” and a “Grand Rosé.” Then there’s a vintage-dated wine, and the one you’re most likely to find now would be the 1999 vintage brut. At the top are three wines in the “Célébris” line, a Blanc de Blancs, a Rosé 2003, and a Brut 1998.
If you’ve only got one shot at these, I’d steer you toward the Grand Rosé, which offers an especially illuminating introduction to this house’s great work. Priced at $85 (but probably available for less with some effort), this may be a stretch, but you can take 
comfort in the knowledge that you’ll be getting a wine that is very competitive with Cuvée de Prestige wines priced around $150. Although it is broad in texture and quite deep in flavor, it remains lifted and elegant, perhaps due to the fact that it is a rare rosé that is based predominantly on Chardonnay grapes. These comprise 56% of the blend, along with 35% Pinot Noir sourced from Grand Cru villages and 9% still red wine from the famed villages of Bouzy and Ambonnay. Complete and thoroughly convincing, it is beautifully packaged and even better in magnums–just in case you can get your friends to chip in for something really special.
My next column (published on WRO on Christmas Eve) will be devoted to Champagne, and I’ll profile a few other exemplary houses in this space between now and the end of the year. However, you need not delay your purchase for fear that I’m saving the best for last. Other houses make Champagnes that can be as good as Gosset’s, but nobody turns out wines that are consistently better.
1