Bigger Is Better

One of the best-kept secrets in the wine business has to do with the aging of wine in large bottles. Almost everyone agrees that a magnum bottle, which is twice the size of the regular bottle, does wonders for wine over time. But no one knows why.

Theories about volume-to-surface ratio, about cork respiration rates relative to volume, about bigger and tighter corks for bigger bottles are all very interesting but are unproven. Indeed, some would say that theories themselves are irrelevant. Let’s just look at the result and be glad.

It turns out that big bottles, which are so good for the aging of red wine, are also very hospitable to sparkling wine. The winemakers have known this for years, but the market for sparkling wine in magnum is very limited, and despite the positive showing of bubblies fermented in the larger bottle, very little attention is paid to its marketing.

For the last several years, Connoisseurs’ Guide has conducted side-by-side comparisons of the same wine in the regular 750-milliliter bottle and the 1.5-liter magnum bottle. In most instances, the wine in the big bottle has been richer in character and has a smoother, finer set of bubbles. It may have been one of those insider secrets, but now it has been made public.

A few words about price: Wine pricing is very competitive and is subject to the whims of individual store owners. Nowhere is this more true than in sparkling wine as we approach the much-ballyhooed end-of-the-millennium holiday. Some retailers have knocked as much as 30% from retail prices in their attempt to capture as much business as possible, and others are raising prices on some limited stock items. Prices for magnums shown in this article reflect general trends in the marketplace.

California Wines in Magnum

Call it our California palates if you will, but we generally like the California wines in magnum more than we like the French. We like the combination of freshness and richness in the local offerings, and we find more depth and intensity overall.

The California wines generally sell for a little less than the French, which is another reason to like them. But we must admit that we did not sample the most expensive Champagnes, and we concede that the best of the French (often into triple digits for regular bottlings, let alone what they would cost in magnum) are simply terrific sparkling wines and continue to be the model by which all bubblies are measured.

* Chandon Brut, 63% Sonoma County, 37% Napa County, $28. Always reliable. Fresh, citrusy aromas, frothy mousse (the term used to describe the bubbles in sparkling wine) of relatively small bubbles and a brisk finish make this one suitable for aperitif service or alongside simple hors d’oeuvres.

* * * 1993 J, Sonoma County, $70. This bottling is one of the most refined and delicate sparklers produced in California. It starts with a bright, lemony suggestion of fruit that speaks to its California heritage but brings along the sweet, creamy, baked cake scents of long aging on the yeasts. Smooth and finely beaded in its mousse, the J ’93 from magnum is long, light and sleek on the palate.

$ * * * Mumm Blanc de Noirs “Napa Cuvee,” Napa Valley, $28. Outgoing and fruity from the first sniff to its lasting aftertaste, this bright and bouncy wine is full of the cherry-infusion fruitiness that marks the best California Blanc de Noirs and comes with plenty of creamy yeastiness and an extra bit of toasty complexity. Its energetic, foamy mousse matches handsomely with the wine’s ebullient style, and its easy-to-like approach combined with its richness make it a fine choice for stand-alone sipping or as an accompaniment to many fish and chicken courses. One would never go wrong with the one-star-rated regular bottling, but this wine in magnum is so much more magnificent that I recommend it to you with great enthusiasm.

* * Roederer Estate Brut, Anderson Valley, $40. This beauty smells of roasted lemons, baked cream and fresh brioche with hints of vanilla. It is wonderfully foamy on the palate, and though the bubbles aren’t the smallest, they are nonetheless small enough in bead and creamier in feel than the bubbles of its sibling in the regular size. And, if anything, the underlying fruit here seems a bit less evolved, suggesting that any bottles left unconsumed after the new year can easily benefit from a year or two of cellaring.

* * * Roederer Estate Brut Rose, Anderson Valley, $50. This elegant wine is generous and refined, and its comparison to its equally highly rated regular bottling is instructive. Here we have a wine with a fine-grained mousse and a balanced, creamy, toasty, still fruity character, yet the bigger bottle is at once deeper in character and less youthfully fruity.

French Champagnes in Magnum

Admittedly, we preferred the California wines as a group, but the best of the French are very good. And they are different in character. Even the best of them is less fruity than what we produce in California, but “fruit” depth is not a classic measure of Champagnes. Rather, richness, balance and nuance are the strong suits of French sparklers.

Also, it must be said that the French wines, although not vintage-dated in most cases, simply tasted older than their California peers. Indeed, they probably are longer aged, as well as possibly suffering from the journey and also, perhaps, from a longer wait for purchase than the California wines.

We also noticed wild price swings on these wines. Some with $80 retail prices are selling for closer to $50 in some stores.

Bollinger Brut “Special Cuvee,” $70. Definitely a longer-aged cuvee, it smells and tastes of the toasty, almost burnt paper notes that can come with sitting on the yeasts in the winery. It carries the creamy, pinpoint mousse of the better bottlings but seems too low on energy and a bit too acidy to show Champagne at its best.

* * Moet et Chandon “White Star,” $50. People often take White Star for granted because Moet makes more expensive sparklers, and the White Star is a bit sweeter than the typical austere Champagne. Yet, in the magnum format, the wine has matured nicely, with effusive yeasty, roasted nut overlays to direct fruit and slight sweetness to balance its brisk acidity. Kudos here for plain old drinkability. Those who find French Champagne too sour will have little to complain about with White Star.

* * Louis Roederer Brut “Premier,” $70. Well, Brut Premier is not Roederer Cristal, but it doesn’t cost a couple hundred dollars either. This bottling is a very precise working of good quality Champagne. Older than its California counterparts, or at least seeming to be, it has more toasty baked bread and yeasty components but less fruit vitality. Typically French in its austerity, yet wonderfully refined and rich, it makes a clear showing of its heritage and of the differences between it and its California cousins from Roederer.

Tasting Notes is based on tastings conducted by Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine, a monthly newsletter devoted to the critical review of California and West Coast wines. Readers of the Times may obtain a sample copy by sending their name and address to: CGCW, P.O. Box V, Alameda, CA 94501, by calling or faxing, (510) 865-3150 or by e-mailing CGCW@aol.com.

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Definition of Symbols

* * * A world-class wine, superb by any measure, the top 1% to 2% of all wines tasted.

* * An exceptional wine, well worth the effort to find, 10% to 12% of wines tasted.

* An admirable wine, tasty, focused, attractive, about 25% of wines tasted.

No Rating: The best are quite pleasant and can be good buys when moderately priced.

$ Good value for the money.

x Below average quality, to be avoided.