Champagne on Up and Up

French Champagne prices will rise at least 10% next year, partly because of strong demand but mainly because of drought and a dispute over grape prices.

The prediction came from Yves Benard, president of Moet et Chandon, the largest producer of Champagne in France. Benard said the drought would cut into the size of the 1990 crop. And he said the price of grapes would jump by at least 20% following the end of a 30-year-old negotiating system between growers and producers and a collapse of discussions. The former agreement had fixed an annual overall price; without that system, prices are free to fluctuate.

Benard said Champagne sales rose from 15 million cases in 1980 to 21 million cases in 1989. But he warned the increased sales could hurt the image of Champagne, which has come to be recognized almost exclusively for its use at celebratory occasions. “Champagne must slow down its growth,” Benard said.

However, the number of producers of Champagne may rise. The 4,000 growers on the hills of Champagne, keen to cash in on Champagne’s growing popularity, want to market their own Champagne rather than sell grapes to the major producers, who have until now reaped most of the profits.

Growers who already sell their Champagne to individuals visiting the Champagne region are hoping to set up small export markets within Europe, leaving the biggest markets of the United States and Asia to large companies such as Moet et Chandon, Mumm or Veuve Cliquot.

Britain remained the biggest foreign market overall, with sales rising more than 10% during the past two years to 1.9 million cases. American consumers, sobered by a falling dollar and anti-alcohol campaigns, bought only 1.1 million cases last year, down from 1.3 million in 1987.

Wine of the Week

1989 Eagle Ridge Ehrenfelser ($8)-- Ehrenfelser is a cross of Riesling and Sylvaner, developed in Germany in 1929. Eagle Ridge of Sonoma County is the only winery in California producing it. The wine has a spiciness not unlike Muscat, but with a mild earthy component in the background. This off-dry wine is lovely for picnics and for taming the spices in Thai, Sichuan and other hot Asian foods.