Pressure’s on for Champagne bottle glass trial

Aug 31 2008 by Michael Kelly, Sunday Sun

IT appears that soon champagne bottles won’t be what they once were.

Tests are currently being carried out to see if producers can reduce the weight of the glass used to contain the legendary fizz.

Faced with huge production and transport costs, GH Mumm — the Champagne house owned by French spirits and wine group Pernod Ricard — has just completed a trial production run of some 2.5 million Champagne bottles weighing 835g (29oz) each when empty . . . 65g (2.3oz) less than standard champagne bottles.

Champagne bottles have been made of thick glass, with most weighing around 900g (2lbs) — more than double the weight of a standard wine bottle — since the 19th century to ensure that the pressure from the sparkling wine inside does not cause the bottle to explode.

But as Champagne houses become more aware of the environmental impact of producing such heavy glass bottles, and have to pay more to buy and transport them, they want to make them lighter.

Mumm has put the lighter bottles in caves, where they will age for at least 2½ years to see whether they will explode.

The trial is being watched closely by other Champagne houses.

Pommery — the champagne house owned by Vranken-Pommery Monopole — is the only big Champagne group to use 835g bottles. It adopted them in 2003 and says it can now load 4000 more bottles on every truck.

It estimates that, if every Champagne house switched, there would be 3000 less trucks on the road every year.

Which, for me, would be a good thing, having nearly been totalled by a lorry while on my holiday in Spain.

There I was, ambling along in my hired Nissan Micra, when said truck emerged abruptly off a slip road to scare the bejaysus out of me by trying to play tag with my rear bumper.

It then swerved out to overtake before cutting back inside too hastily, requiring me to stamp on the brakes.

I gave him the universal single-digit hand signal for his efforts . . . which he acknowledged with a wave.

Perhaps it means something different in Spain.

Never mind, it gave me a good excuse — like one was needed — to have a drink when I arrived at the campsite which, fortunately, boasted a splendidly stocked supermarket with a good booze section containing some familiar bottles of wine.

The Faustino V Rioja, at five euros, was much called upon during my two-week stay, the spicy red losing none of its attraction even in temperatures above 30C.

The Faustino V Rioja reserva was available at a shade under 13 euros . . . quite a lot to spend on a bottle of plonk on holiday, so I indulged just the once.

It was worth it for the rich, smooth taste, with hints of oak, ripe fruit and treacle flavours.

A bargain was the Torres Gran Vina Sol Chardonnay, which cost eight euros and 65 cents . . . roughly about £6. In shops over here it costs nearly £12.

My nine-year-old son — social services look away now — had a sip and nailed its taste with “ripe melon”. I chipped in with burnt oak, butter and lemon zest, and he shrugged “whatever”.