A History of Champagne, with Notes on the Other Sparkling Wines of France

In 1882, Henry Vizetelly attempted something no wine writer had ever done: a comprehensive history of a single wine. The result is this meticulously researched volume, born from a decade of visits to Champagne's vineyards and cellars, where he witnessed the vendange and observed the production of sparkling wine in all its phases. Vizetelly draws on his position as wine juror at the Vienna and Paris Exhibitions to weave together economic insight, cultural anecdote, and firsthand observation into a portrait of Champagne at a pivotal historical moment, just before the phylloxera crisis would devastate European vineyards. The book ranges across the region's history, its famous houses, the trade's economics, and the social rituals surrounding the world's most celebrated fizz. Reading it now feels like stepping into a vanished world: one where Champagne was still becoming the icon it would become, captured in precise Victorian prose by a writer who loved the subject deeply. Essential for anyone interested in wine history, the evolution of luxury goods, or the cultural forces that shape what we drink.