Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1854-11-02
Champagne in the United States

We extract the following interesting facts
from tue Paris CORES ondence of the New ork
Herald, ia relation 10 the sale of champagne in
the United States:
america is now the chcfes, consumer OF
champagne wines. There Is more champagne
sent from France To the United States thnn 10
any, or all other countries. might adj, more
than l. made in Champagne Itself more
than l. made ia all France, embracing even
the spurious with the genune--cVcn the bad
French champagne with the gc,od.
This humbug and it il an enormous one
ought TO be exposed. ! feel inclined To do some
thing Is help GA contamination 80 dcvoutly Ia
be wished. ! have got possession of some facts
which think ought To be known to the Aneri-
people; aud as | have coca sionally written
for your journal, during the many years that
have spent IN Europe, trust you will not
slider the inf Jrmation now communicate UNI
worthy Of place in your columns.
Before came aboard the last time ascertain
sd that at the various custom honses of the
United States nearly three times as much cham
payne was entered for the payment of duty as
the custom houses of France showed had been
exported to the United States
Now, this fact demonstrates that two
bottles out of every three of champagne brought
INTO the United States was spurious second, ]
learned that five times as much chnmpngpe is
sold IN the Wted States ~ is imported into our
country. Now. it New York sold all the cham
payne that is sold in the United States, this
would only give us one bottle in ten OF genuine
champagne. II we GO a little further, and take
the whole quantity of champagne made in France
and examine the records of exporting houses, a.
well as custom houses, shall find that the
poorer qualities only, with few executions are
sent to America. And if we scan the matter
still more closely, shall find TINT not one bottle
IN hundred drank by the Americans is of the
best quality made in the champagne districts
1t would not be extravagant to reduce this est
mate one-half
have been speaking only of past yintages-
say Tor flve years. The vintages of three years
ago were good. For three years they have been
blighted, while this year the champagne crop has
been cut off to such extent that there is not
one-tenth of the usual crop Scarcely auv ot
the best quality will find its way 10 the great
wine cellars. Nearly all the best qualities Of
French wine have this year risen fifty per cent
consequently none but the first class dealers can
furnish their usual supply of champagne Great
houses like Chquot, Bililecart Salmon Schneider
Ruinart, DC, will find their brands initiated and
forged to greater extent than ever. | visited
some OF these establishments but the one which
seems To have been most exempt from the wine
bighi, Is that OF Blllecart. speak of this house
because, during several years of residence in
EuroPe'i nave found their champagne more high
-,
Wh,ie was in the champagne districts,
sought an opportunity to visit the VINEYARDS OF
the most celebrated houses but after several
rather unsatisfactory "Reminiscences | fell in
with an intimate friend of NJ Becart himself
and 1t would be poor return for his courtesy il
did not recognise the kind attentions he SHOWED
to me. He had understood that was an Amer
can, DESTROYS of looking through the champaign,
districts, and proposed to take me on view
through the vintages owned by himself and hi
family. 1t seemed to be the best land in MareuiI
Bouzi, Verzendy and Rheims. When our lona
ride was over. he showed me through his vaults
stored with wine of three or four yintages
l gathered from what learned from Vi. Billie
cart Salmon, well from other sources tina
these large houses could move along in thei
regular course Of business, for one, or two, y
even three years, without serious interruption
even if the vintages should fail. | knew yer,
well that the Russians, with whom have been
drank the best wine made in Champagne an,
that the highest quality of champagne made b,
the houses of Billecart Salmon, Cliquot ant
Schroeder, were consumed by the courts of Eu
rope; and wondered that large amoun
of wine covered by the labels of Cliquot an,
Schroeder, should be sold in Boston. On inquiry
] found that the house of Cliquot had sent t.
the United States only limited amount for
few years, while, t6 look on their labels in the u
States. one would think that they had sent bask
cts by the hundred thousand. So far as Billecar
Salmon's wine is concerned. do not think thu
Americans know anything about it. had no
sem it there when left the United States, tive
years ago. But it is esteemed in Europe as full