Dom Perignon - how a wine becomes an icon

Even though he didn't really "invent" Champagne, Dom Perignon was the first to make white wine from black grapes, essential for the Champagne of today. But most importantly, he initiated the art of blending -- then a novel idea.

It was said of Dom Perignon that so fine was his palate that he could taste grapes brought in from individual vineyards and identify their source. Instead of making single-vineyard wines, as was the norm, Dom Perignon used grapes from different parcels owned by the abbey or coming from farmers as tithes to create wines of consistent quality, which enhanced the abbey's reputation. So highly esteemed were the wines of Hautvillers that they fetched twice the price of wines of other villages.

| Via SF Chronicle |

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