It is almost New Year’s Eve and champagne (or other sparkling wine) will be on the menu. Why not learn a bit more about this bubbly concoction and increase your enjoyment of it?
Today, in honor of this amazing beverage, I present Champagne Info!
#9: Sabrage (opening champagne bottle with saber)
If you really want to show off on a special occasion, like a wedding, you can learn how to open a bottle of champagne with a sword or saber. I can be a little dangerous and a bit messy, but if you are trying to make an impact more than the wine itself, sabrage might be of interest to you. That said, I wouldn’t do this with a fine bottle of champagne.
It is said the practice was invented by Napoleon’s soldiers who would use their sabers to open their bottles of champagne after a successful battle or a visit to Veuve Clicquot’s Champagne winery. (More in the Wikipedia article below)
Photo: Filckr User Cristina Gehlen
More info on Sabrage:
- Sabrage on Wikipedia
- Case Study | On Beheading Bubbly from The New York Times
- How to Saber Champagne (Slow Motion) from Linda Lawrey on Google+
Previously in Champagne Info: