The Linux Extremist

A geek cannot live on caffiene alone. In my experience, another staff of life of technology folk is booze. Indeed, I’ve been employed by companies where you didn’t have to be a borderline alcoholic to work there, but it certainly helped. An entire year of my life is somewhat muddied by the haze of having drunk way too much due to work associated recreation. After that, I promised myself never to work in the City of London again.

I digress. While I’ve put the days of tequila slammers and black sambuca behind me, I still enjoy a tipple now and then. My girlfriend, being a much classier and sophisticated sort than I, is fond of champagne. I like champagne too, but I must admit my knowledge of it could be summarised by the following points:

1. If it doesn’t come from the champagne region of France, it has to be called “sparkling wine.”

2. Cristal is the best. After all, Puff Daddy said so.

3. Dom Perignon was the champagne of choice in James Bond films.

4. Moet tastes like sparkling vinegar.

5. Don’t believe Tesco when they say something has won a silver medal.

Obviously, I didn’t drink champagne too often. Besides, a bottle of Krug Grande Cuvee can cost around £90 a bottle. One gets the distinct sensation of someone oily in a beret fingering one’s wallet when purchasing champagne.

Fortunately, some years ago, someone noticed that the soil around West Sussex is rather like that in the Champagne region; since that time the Nyetimber Vineyard (www.nyetimber-vineyard.com) has been producing excellent sparkling wine. Out of curiosity, I bought a bottle of Nyetimber Classic Cuvee 1998. When my lady tried it, she remarked that it tasted rather like the £90 Krug.

The only way to settle this was to try both at once. You can’t really put champagne back in the fridge after you’ve opened it, so we were going to have to drain both bottles in once sitting. The two bottle taste test was going to leave us blotto, but it would to settle the matter.

Both bottles were chilled to the same temperature and in the same conditions (they sat side by side in the fridge). Upon opening the bottles, the Nyetimber obviously had more fizz; the cork could have put my eye out. My lady and I each had two glasses, one for each wine, and yes, to enable two fisted drinking.

The first taste revealed that they were very similar in flavour, with one very big exception. I am not the sort of person who reads all sorts of different fruit flavours into what is essentially made from grapes, but the Krug had an aftertaste of wood, like it had been stored in oak vats. The Nyetimber didn’t taste of that at all. I like wood furniture, but not drinking wood champagne; I prefered the Nyetimber instantly.

My lady agreed with this analysis. Another couple of drinks and we were both wondering how long the French had gotten away with charging outrageous prices for champagne when Nyetimber was available. A few more and we were laughing at the television news.

The overall result, apart from a slight headache the next morning, was that the Krug may have more status, but the Nyetimber is better value and if you don’t like licking your coffee table, actually tastes better. It’s relatively inexpensive at £20 a bottle for the Grande Cuvee, so one can afford to drink more of it. As it’s not bling, Puff Daddy won’t drink it. As it’s English, we’re not paying for the privilege of being robbed by the French. All in all, it’s just about perfect.

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