Franks Gentlemen’s Essentials is the leading wine & spirits shop in Sliema and we are proud to stock a new selection of fine champagnes produced by Pommery & Lallier. These sparkling wines are all made in the traditional method and are renowned for their fine bubbles and great taste. Champagne Pommery was founded in 1858 by Alexandre Louis Pommery and is one of the great houses of Champagne.
Masion Lallier was established in 1906 and is today considered as being one of the boutique Champagne houses. Its grapes are sourced from Ay one the 7 grand cru of the region.
A brief history about Champagne.
Champagne, like other major wine regions of France, has seen the cultivation of grapes for wine for at least 2,000 years, since the time of the Romans. Indeed, it was the Romans who named the area “Campania” for its resemblance to the rolling hillsides of Southern Italy’s Campania region.
Of course in Europe there are a variety of sparikiling wines and methods of production, however the most famous of these methods is the classic or traditional method, which was referred to as the méthode champenoise. EU laws forbade its use as of 1990 so that no other European wine region could incorporate any term that included champagne.
The classic method provides the greatest complexity and generates the most expensive results, especially if it originates in France. This method reflects many different styles but is generally based on a classic combination of Chardonnay, which provides the elegance and acid backbone to the wine; Pinot Noir, which provides structure and power; and Pinot Meunier, which provides fruitiness. The latter is not found in many of the most expensive and aged wines as it is said to depreciate with time in the bottle.
The hottest trend in sparkling wines is Rosé, which requires either that the juice comes in contact with skins or, in Champagne, that red wine is blended into the white wine to provide the color. No other EU appellation is allowed to make a Rosé using such a method.
The next critical element of many sparkling wines is the dosage or sweetening level added to the finished wine. The Champagne region of France is 70 miles northeast of Paris and is in a zone that traditionally had difficulty in producing ripe grapes. While the grapes certainly have flavor ripeness, they produce wines low in alcohol and high in acid. Over the centuries, the traditional method evolved a defined system of greater levels of sweetness suited to different consumers.
From vintage dated champagnes, rose champagnes and the entry level brut we have got you covered for your special occasions! so pop by our shop in level 2, The Plaza shopping centre ,Sliema and choose from a large selection of brands such as Moet & Chandon, Veuve Cliquot, Bollinger, Gosset , Dom Perignon, Krug and much, much more. You can also browse our website to see our extensive selection & buy online. We also offer free deliveries with purchases over 50 Euros all over Malta & Gozo.
