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Enjoying champagne in Newport, RI is delightful because bubbly and the City-by-the-Sea compliment each in the most amazing ways.

Vueve Champagne Newport, Rhode Island

There are two things that both Newport and champagne represent in the most exquisite of ways and those are luxury and fun. The beverage (and especially the popping of its cork) has long been associated with celebration; often considered a treat to be enjoyed on special occasions. That said, if you want to enjoy it on a daily basis, have at it! Nothing is stopping you…

What is Champagne?

A sparkling white wine created from the grapes of the Champagne region of France in accordance with a number of stringent rules that require secondary fermentation in the bottle. Secondary fermentation is when sugar is added to the bottle before it is corked to get the yeast going again. The name has been legally protected so that sparkling wines from anywhere else in the world have to call themselves something else (Prosecco, Sparking Wine, etc.)

The primary grapes used in production are black Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier as well as white Chardonnay.

Royalty

It should come as no surprise that European royalty took a liking to effervescent alcohol, starting in the 17th century. The winemakers made no secret of this as they marketed their sparkling wine to a growing middle class looking to exercise their newfound wealth.

Yacht Moet Champagne Newport RISweet Versus Dry

The primary differentiation between different types of champagne is the sweetness of the wine as measured by the residual sugar that remains after fermentation. The amount of sugar that remains determines which category the wine will be labelled as:

  • Extra Brut (less than 6 grams of residual sugar per litre)
  • Brut (less than 12 grams)
  • Extra Dry (between 12 and 17 grams)
  • Sec (between 17 and 32 grams)
  • Demi-sec (between 32 and 50 grams)
  • Doux (50 grams)

Interestingly, while Extra Dry and Brut are the most common types, Extra Dry is actually the sweeter of the two.

The Bottle

The two common sizes of bottles are standard or “full” (750ml) and Magnum (1.5L) but there are actually many other sizes that have been or are used.
  • Quarter (187 milliliter)
  • Half (375 milliliter)
  • Full (750 milliliter)
  • Magnum (1.5 Liter)
  • Jeroboam (3 Liter)
  • Methuselah (6 Liter)
  • Salmanazar (9 Liter)
  • Balthazar (12 Liter)
In theory, the larger bottles make for better bubbly as the amount of air is left in the bottle is comparatively smaller, but there has not been scientific research performed to prove or disprove this hypothesis.