Bringing in your New Year with a little bit of bubbly

You may be in a quandary about WHICH of the many fine champagnes to choose when you’re in Paris. You’d like to pick out foryour Parisian friends (or your friends back home)a champagne that will knock their socks off. Erid’s suggested a number of champagnes that are sure to bring a sparkle to your host and hostess’s eyes:
“Excellent, mais très cher : Dom Pérignon Très très bons : Roederer, Bollinger, Deutz Très bons : Laurent perrier, Veuve Clicquot, Taittinger, Ruinart Bons : Moet, Mumm, Heidsieck évidement, à consommer avec modération (i.e. Drink in moderation!) That final bit of advice (BNALLers ignore!) but if you’re someone’s guest, don’t guzzle the champers. Savour it. I try to follow that advice occasionally, but sometimes I simply forget.
The above labels are the Rolls Royces of the champagne labels, but you will also discover that many French champagne lovers pride themselves on finding labels that may not have a large distribution but can be exceptionally good. If you really like the champagne, maybe they will be kind enough to share the name of their champagne source. (If the champagne is ordered directly from the propriete, they’ll deliver the champagne to your door - and bill you later! What a lovely idea).
How do you recognize a good champagne? Some people say that the smaller the bubbles, the finer the champagne. I think much champagne drinking has to do with your personal taste. The last few bottles we have found were from producers in regions of Ay and Epernay rather than the heart of the champagne producers which would be Rheims. Once in my life I’ve had the thrill of drinking a bottle of Louis Roederer Cristal Rose. This is not an easy bottle to come by. In fact, in the little town of Bernay in Normandy, a wine merchant tried to tell me that a Cristal Rose didn’t exist. It most certainly does, but normally the Cristal Rose needs to be ordered directly from Louis Roederer winery in Rheims and in limited quantities. It is expensive and should be saved for a very special occasion.