We polled 100 of the top 250 bars that recieved votes in our World’s 50 Best Bars 2013 survey.
We asked which are the best sellers and which brands are catching the imaginations of consumers for the trending list.
Don't forget to check out the results for gin, vodka, rum, Tequila, liqueurs/bitters, Scotch, World Whiskies, Brandy, aperitifs and digestifs.
BEST SELLING
The allure of the beautiful era – or Belle Epoque, as the French say – is no doubt one of the reasons people visit high-end hotel bars and classy venues. So no wonder Perrier Jouët, which counts Belle Epoque as its noted vintage, is a popular tipple.
Last year, Moët & Chandon was top of the fi zzy pops but PJ has won this year – good news for brand
owner Pernod Ricard.
Pernod’s other champagne brand, Mumm, is also a regular on both lists and a recent study by London and Oxford universities showed experts preferred a £40 of Mumm over a £400 bottle of Perrier Jouët. Of course there was a lot more to the study than that and we recommend reading it in Flavour Journal.
Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy has the Champagne category well covered and stablemates Moët, Veuve Clicquot, Mercier, Ruinart and Dom Perignon are only missing Krug for a full house. Krug made the trending list last year (at number 10) but is nowhere to be seen this year.
TRENDING
The two best sellers have switched places in the trending list. Though it might not be a household brand like Moët, Mumm or Veuve, Champagne Devaux has been making a few waves in the French media and several recent write-ups praise the sparkler for its taste.
The company says it ages its Champagne for “much longer” than appellation rules require and also sets out some strict rules about viticulture and vinifi cation – though that’s not unusual in Champagne, or indeed France.
Bollinger is back on both lists this year and Lily Bollinger’s famous saying could be used not only to describe Champagne consumption habits but visits to bars in general: “I drink Champagne when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise, I never touch it – unless I’m thirsty.”
Like many successful women in Champagne, Lily took over the business when her husband died. Widow in French is ‘Veuve’ so that should give you a clue to at least one more widow Champagne.
