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| Photo by eugeneshoots |
Edible
Skinny was lucky enough to experience the Longines Masters last weekend as a
guest at the table of Champagne Baron de Rothschild; and if you’re going to be
the guest of anyone’s table at the sold out Los Angeles leg of a three part
indoor show jumping Grand Slam featuring horses that cost upwards to 50 million
dollars, one of the newest and most delightful champagnes in the luxury market
is the way to go! ;-)
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| Photo by eugeneshoots |
The
Longines Masters was a display in lavishness.
The horses were divine (my Black Stallion novel loving inner child was
giddy beyond belief!), the food was exceptional (Yves Mattagne, 2
star Michelen Chef, was flown in for the event… he made great veggie dishes and
has a penchant for pouring sauces tableside), but the Baron’s best bubbles were
what made the event!
Our
host of our tour into the world of affluent effervesce was Monsieur Frédéric
Mairesse, Managing Director of the Champagne Barons de Rothschild. A former winemaker, Frédéric had previously
worked for such champagne powerhouses as Champagnes Mumm et Perrier Joüet,
Danone Champagne Pommery & Lanson, and LVMH. In 2003 the Rothschild family decided to take
on the challenge of crafting the perfect champagne label (the family had
entered the winemaking business 120 years ago and have mastered such favorites
as Opus One in Napa). Their first release
was in 2009 and five years later you can find the family’s 300,000 plus
Champagne bottles per year in more than 82 countries around the world. 
Frédéric
spends most of his time as a Negociant (French for purchaser of grapes) vying
for the best Cru grapes (French for the best grapes possible) in an area where
there is a finite number of Cru grapes because there’s a finite amount of land
(most of these farmers live in tiny houses with a few rows of grapes in the
backyard… and a Lamborghini in the driveway).
But Frédéric is a wunderkind of a negotiator as their Brut Multi-Vintage
contains 60% Chardonnay grapes that are primarily Grand Crus from the Côte des
Blancs. Champagne Barons de Rothschild
focuses on multi-vintage for their Champagne line (due to the exclusivity of
the grapes nearly 75% of Champagne produced is non-vintage and made up by a
blend of several years' harvests).
The
Rothschild’s approach is their champagne label is a family affair; they look at
their fizz as an investment in their children’s future. The bottle’s symbol of five intersecting
arrows represent the 5 sons of Mayer Amschel Rothschild, the original patriarch
of the Rothschild dynasty, who in the 1700s sent his five sons out to the
countries of Europe but advised them to always unite and work together as
family. A philosophy that allowed the
Rothschilds to become the wealthiest family in human history. And now they’re taking the philosophy into
the world of Champagne.
The
results are a Brut Multi-Vintage ($99.99) a rich bubbly nectar that that sips
with the lightness of the spark of a new idea.
Wine Spector called it, “well-knit, integrating a firm backbone of
acidity and a fine, lightly creamy texture with flavors of patisserie apple,
pastry, blanched almond and meringue. A smoky hint of minerality gains momentum
on the finish.”
While
at the Longines Masters, I was also lucky enough to get to sample the
Rothschild’s Rose Multi-Vintage (of which only 5,000 bottles are made a
year). As every blissful sip of silky
splendor swirled on my palate complimenting the spectacular event before me,
all could I think was this is what precision of craft is all about.
Here’s
to life being delicious, sipping the finest of Champagnes, and having grapes in
the backyard and a Lamborghini in the driveway! ;-)
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