France Champagne
Demand for XXL bottles of Champagne exploded in 2013. Many champagne producers had stopped making them, but are now embracing the trend. Champagne Drappier, a pioneer in the field, anticipated the phenomenon. Michel Drappier, its president, recalls the gradual increase in bottle sizes: “After the Balthazar (12 litres), fashionable in the 80s, came the Nebuchadnezzar (15 litres) in the 90s, and now, in 2013, the only way to impress your guests is with a Melchisedek, which holds 30 litres and can fill 200 flutes of champagne”. This trend can be seen in a wide variety of locations, from Formula 1 race tracks to St Barts and Saint Tropez's classiest beaches, from Canada to Nigeria, from large scale distribution chains of American wines to jewellery shops in Monaco, from three star restaurants to international auctions… There are several reasons behind this phenomenon.
The larger the bottle, the greater the longevity of the champagne. Dominique Demarville, cellar master at Veuve Clicquot explains: “The lifespan of wine in a Magnum is twice that of wine in a standard-sized bottle, and a Jeroboam will keep four times as long... so basically lifespan is proportional to size.” The most star-rated chef in the world, Joël Robuchon, only serves Magnums of Veuve Clicquot's Champagne Brut Carte Jaune in his restaurants! 
For the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, Louis Roederer Champagne put on its own show. Its Cristal 2002 was presented in a Jeroboam created by a master jeweller. The bottles were encased in a lattice of 24 carat gold set into the glass, enhancing the natural radiance of the champagne and creating multiple reflections of the historic Roerderer medallion. The work of Marseille designer Philippe di Méo, each hand-made bottle involved twelve separate trades and required four days to make; only 200 were produced and all were sold by July! Another 200 will be made for 2014. To celebrate
the millennium Louis Roederer released 200 Methuselahs of the 1990 vintage which are now selling at auctions for ten times the original price! The success of this investment lies in the wine's longevity, which is ensured by the fact that the secondary fermentation takes place in the original bottle, which is slowly turned and disgorged in the traditional style, and then dosed by hand...
Like the 1999, 2000 and 2002 vintages, which were also vinified in the bottle and stored like treasure for seven years in a dedicated cellar, the vintage Amour de Deutz Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 2005, from the eponymous Champagne House, is presented in Methuselah format, with 365 numbered bottles, or 366 in leap years. Distribution is restricted to one bottle per collector! In 2013 this cuvee comes in a white corian case, a symbol of purity, modernity, and authenticity. The larger the format, the more memorable the champagne.
Finally, the locomotive of Champagne, Moët & Chandon, offers new members of its “Club Privilèges”, consisting of the one hundred three-star restaurants in the world, such as the Bristol in Paris, or the Fat Duck in Bray, a Methuselah of the 2000 vintage, to congratulate them and encourage them to include their legendary vintages on their wine lists.
Major family events such as weddings and births, are also suited to large bottles. For Maylis Vranken's wedding, Paul Vranken, her father, president of Champagne Pommery, chose Jeroboams of Pop Love, in veiled reference to the celebration.
For the very large bottle sizes, the CIVC* authorizes the transferring of wines. This operation involves contact with oxygen and therefore slightly reduces the wine's capacity to age. The Champagne Houses that are capable of carrying out secondary fermentation in Methuselahs, Nebuchadnezzars, Primats and Melchisedeks can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Champagne Drappier is a pioneer in the field of vinification in all formats, from the half-bottle to the Melchisedek. Being aware of this, and therefore assured of the champagne's longevity, one of its Canadian customers did not hesitate to invest in XXL formats, with a view to leaving the content of his Champagne cellar to his ten-year-old son!
Finally, large bottles are popular at parties all over the world, from Saint Barts to Saint-Tropez, from Monaco to Mauritius, from Australia to Africa. Movie stars, Russian oligarchs and oil sheiks always want the biggest and the best, and fix their choice on a 52 kg Melchisedek to celebrate the New Year! Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne sent an emergency order of its Palmes d'Or 2002 Vintage in this giant format to Nigeria; Champagne Devavry recently sent a bottle of its Carbon Rosé, in the same size, to a Russian magnate in St Barts... To help serve them, Champagne Drappier has developed the Vcanter, a Swiss-engineered high-precision crank system, for easy pouring (designed by Carmelo de Giorgio).
These large bottles are often regarded as an extravagance, but there can be no doubt that they give the wines extra freshness and the bubbles a certain finesse, and that the wine will keep for longer. The craze for large formats is not exclusive to Champagne. Other vineyards and other terroirs are also seeing their attraction. At the time of writing, I received an e-mail announcing the first Balthazar (12 litres) of Château Margaux, presented in a sleek wooden case, padded on the inside and with metal bands on the outside, like a barrel, designed by the Paris agency Partisan du Sens.
*Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (Champagne Trade Association)
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