Jun 16, 2026
This is part two (Ep 609 is Part 1)of a two-part series on the history of Champagne, which tells the story of how Champagne became Champagne!
Photo: Champagne
Vineyards Credit: WFNP
I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole when I discovered an entire encyclopedia of the history of Champagne on the Union des Maisons de Champagne site. It was the equivalent of 200 pages of information on Champagne from its origins up until the 1980s and was detailed and fascinating.
In this show I cover:
- The innovations of the 1800s that made Champagne sparkle on purpose with consistency and the contributions of the Veuve (widow) Clicquot
- The effects of phylloxera on Champagne
- The Champagne Riots
- World War I and German occupation part 1
- The Roaring 20s, the Great Depression, and the effect of Prohibition
- World War II and German occupation part 2
- Post war, rebuilding, UNESCO status, and a commitment to the environment
Enjoy!
Source of all this fascinating info is...
Full show notes and all back episodes are on Patreon. Join the community today!
www.patreon.com/winefornormalpeople
_______________________________________________________________
This show is brought to you by my exclusive sponsor, Wine Access – THE place to discover your next favorite bottle. Wine Access has highly allocated wines and incredible values, plus free shipping on orders of $150 or more. You can’t go wrong with Wine Access! Go to wineaccess.com
