Perrier-Jouët Belle Époque 2004, by Geraldine Ramer

Belle-epoque
Perrier-Jouët Belle Époque 2004

“see how it quivers and whispers in the glass”
—George Farquhar

Those clever English playwrights of the 1600s were, apparently, keenly attuned to the allures of champagne in all of its aspects. Movement and sound, after all, add sensory dimensions to champagne that other wines don’t have, another reason for our fascination with it. That these remarks appear on the stage centuries ago highlights champagne’s ageless appeal.

These observations are prompted by a tasting I attended earlier this season of the luxury cuvée of Perrier-Jouët, the Belle Époque 2004, just recently released. And having begun with a quote from an Englishman, I’ll cite a Frenchman, Voltaire, on the subject of luxury: “le superflu, chose si nécessaire.”

The first thing I’d like to say about Perrier-Jouët is that, yes, you do pronounce the t. Having gotten that rather mundane detail out of the way, we can now proceed to something closer to the sublime, the Belle Époque itself. Vintage champagnes are produced only when there is a vintage of exceptional quality, which is the case with 2004, bottle aged in the unique chalk cellars of the region, and then released after seven years or so.

Read the full article on the Berkshire Review, an International Journal for the Arts!