Saturday, July 26, 2008

Celebratory Champagne

I've been planning on drinking my bottle of 1985 Perrier-Jouët Fleur de Champagne for a long time. And what better reason to do it than to to toast to my new status as a homeowner? But then I had to drive through traffic to get home from the closing, and I walked into the apartment, and almost immediately had to evacuate because of a fire alarm.

Grrr.

When I finally got back upstairs, I changed out of my suit, read my email, and laid down to watch the news/take a nap.

About 90 minutes later, when the phone rang, I woke up. I was going to celebrate after all.



On first taste, the champagne was a little yeasty and strong. The color was very dark, more like honey than straw. It probably should have been aged somewhere other than my refrigerator for the last six years. But after the bottle was opened and started to air out, it got better. The second glass went down smoothly -- especially with a black-and-white cookie.

The rest of the bottle was equally good. Of course, it probably would have been better had I eaten something more substantial first. Because when I went to go eat later, my stomach did not want to cooperate.

I could have done without the being sick, the lying down in the middle of my living room before 10 pm -- I refused to get up and evacuate during the second fire alarm of the evening, even after my partner in drinking put flip-flops on my feet -- and the massive headache when I woke up at 5 am. But drinking a very expensive and rare bottle of champagne? Awesome.

And it's not over yet: There will be more drinking at tonight's shindig, in which we will be saying goodbye to the old apartment. I can hardly wait.


7 comments:

DSL said...

I see how it is.

restaurantrefugee said...

That is a great bottle from a great vintage. Congrats.

p.s. normally fully bodied vintage champagnes need food to be properly enjoyed, even a black and white cookie.

dara said...

Refugee: I took the first sip, expecting a little bit of sweetness -- since, after all, it was champagne -- but there was absolutely none. So it was shocking to my palate. But then, with a little air, it got better. Or I got drunk. Or perhaps both.

Paige Jennifer said...

My closing took six hours. And I was fucking my mortgage broker (who randomly responded to the title 'boyfriend'). It was the longest closing he ever dealt with. And afterwards we gorged on ginormous, greasy, gourmet burgers and slender, buttery fries. It was the best celebration. Well, until I felt ill from all of the food.

dara said...

I shoulda had a greasy burger before drinking all the champagne. If I had, I wouldn't have gone from sleepy to painfully drunk and sick in the space of an hour.

Anonymous said...

If you prefer your bubbles in a less dry format, try a Cartizze Prosecco. They are not easily found but wow - they are fantastic. Look for the Cartizze from Bisol and La Torderra. Cartizze prosecco is from the highest sub AVA of the region and the finest expression of prosecco; and they are not very expensive - about $40 retail.

dara said...

It wasn't that I don't like dry champagne, it was just that this particular bottle was unexpectedly dry -- possibly because of my sleepiness, lack of food, or both.

I've had some proseccos before, and I do like them -- I also am a big fan of cava.