Champagne

Clareman

Hi all,

Caught between the Bargain Requests and Wedding forum to ask these questions, so apologies in advance if this is the wrong forum.

I'm getting married in a couple of months and instead of buying a drink for the toast we are going to give out a glass of champagne for the toast, I was wondering

A) Can anyone recommend a nice (cheap) champagne to get.
Where to order it
C) How many bottles would I need to order for 180 people?

Thanks in advance

IrishWhiskeyCha

Min 6 glasses per bottle but they could get up to 8 if you want.

so 30 bottles would be plenty but ask your hotel as they will have fairly percise figures per bottle as they know what an average bottle yields in their glasses.

A nice basic Champagne will do as people really will not notice. When it comes to champagne people think a well known name means a good champagne yet some entry level Moets etc are no better than Tesco's own brand champagne. However to save your blushes you don't have to buy the Tesco branded one as there are others of similar price.


You should take a trip to the North and In ASDA they had a Champagne called DeVallois 2003 Vintage for £15.

Tesco had one called P.Boutet also for £15 and one recomemded by Decanter magazine for half price at £17 called Francois De Rozay. Bought them all and all excellent for the price. But that was a few months ago so not sure if they still stock them ... they will surely have at least one cheap one each.

However if you want real value for money I will also mention a sparkling Wine from the Sunday Times Wine Club called Cuvée du Président

This is a sparkling wine but is made using the traditional champagne methods. Has all the creamy biscuit charachteristics that you would associate and expect with a champagne and has out performed many top class champagnes consistently over the years. Possibly not as bubbly as other sparklers but again the normal joe will not notice especially with only one glass. But I have never had a bottle go flat and have kept one over night and all.

You might even get a few freebies for joining for the first time. There is a charge of £5 per order and £12 per case of 15 bottles for delivery to Ireland so it will be £29 extra on top but with sterling as it is it's still very good value and works out less than 13Euro per bottle. Trust me this is good stuff but if your unsure buy some to taste and taste it against a real champagne and also some very basic imitations like Jacobs Creek or Maguigan sparkling wines which basically are white wine with fizz if you ask me. Check out the website and you can ring a Dublin number and talk directly to a wine expert. They are very helpful. I bought my wine from them for my wedding in 2007 and people were very impresed with the quality. Yet including the corkage we ended up paying significanly l;ess than the hotel would of charged us for their house wine :cool:

Clareman

Wow, thanks a million for that site, it's a gold mine, really appreciate it

MattKane

Hi Clareman,

6 glasses per bottle is about right. Although I'm a big fan of Champagne, you can generally get as good for less - although if you pick the right Champers, they can also punch well above their weight, and better value is being sought from there more and more. I think they have a bit of a surplus this year.

There are plenty of Champagne quality sparklers coming out of Loire Valley, and lots of excellent value Cavas and Proseccos from Spain and Italy respectively. If your budget is tight, I would definitely consider the latter.

Good luck

rediguana

Clareman wrote: »

Hi all,

Caught between the Bargain Requests and Wedding forum to ask these questions, so apologies in advance if this is the wrong forum.

I'm getting married in a couple of months and instead of buying a drink for the toast we are going to give out a glass of champagne for the toast, I was wondering

A) Can anyone recommend a nice (cheap) champagne to get.
Where to order it
C) How many bottles would I need to order for 180 people?

Thanks in advance

Just my own opinion and I'm sure people will disagree, and slightly off-topic too, but...

I would be a bigger fan of having a Champagne reception (pre- meal) instead of having a Champagne toast. When the Champagne goes around after the meal, people will already have various different drinks in front of them, and will be possibly after having dessert. The Champagne won't do itself justice at all under these circumstances. Everyone will accept the glass but probably a sizable minority won't actually drink it, wasting your money.

Just my thoughts! A good few weddings I've been to recently haven't given any drink for the toast. I don't blame them, it adds on big money!

Best of luck anyway, I got married myself last year and I went for O'Briens Mionetto Prosecco (€20).

p.s. I would be slow to direct anybody to shop up north. Ultimately it puts southern businesses (not all of whom are heartless profiteerers) at risk, and may reduce choice in the ROI in the long term.

Clareman

We have to have a drink for the toast, both sets of parents would disown us if we didn't, I think the drink after the meal is just a drink, it's a nothing, whereas people may remember having a glass of champagne for a toast, hence my reasoning for having it. Also, my other half likes champagne so if we have a few bottles left over it won't go to waste

rediguana

Clareman wrote: »

We have to have a drink for the toast, both sets of parents would disown us if we didn't, I think the drink after the meal is just a drink, it's a nothing, whereas people may remember having a glass of champagne for a toast, hence my reasoning for having it. Also, my other half likes champagne so if we have a few bottles left over it won't go to waste

Ah yeah, fair enough. My missus loves the bubbles too.

I was at a wedding where they went for a punch reception. The bride and groom weren't really drinkers so they weren't really clued in about what people like to drink. Hardly anyone touched the (disgusting) stuff! Still a brill wedding though...

Clareman

There won't be many people arriving too long before the meal, there is a bit of a trip and some great bars near the hotel so we're just having a tea/coffee reception with canapes (sp.) with the summer punch as a option, it's my expierence that most people just want to have a glass of what they are used to to start with, after the meal it's just another drink, just our opinion really

IrishWhiskeyCha

Good Luck Clareman on the day and where ever you source your bubbles hope it all works out.

rediguana wrote: »

p.s. I would be slow to direct anybody to shop up north. Ultimately it puts southern businesses (not all of whom are heartless profiteerers) at risk, and may reduce choice in the ROI in the long term.

Hi Rediguana, don't want to start an arguement but I dissagree to this mentality. I actually do believe that retailers are having a hard time at the moment but maybe it is the wholesellers and importers that are taking the perverbials ... And until either they or the retailers cop-on and start demanding cheaper prices so they can compete with the north then we are just supporting a rotten system. I have a few friends in retail (Own their own business) and I hear stories from them that they can't buy at wholesale cheaper than retail in the north on certian products and often you have the same importer for both districts. Even in my own hobby (Whiskey) certian bottles of whiskey cost less in Europe and US than what it would cost wholesale with Duty & Vat deducted. So if we vote with our feet and pockets then the system will have to change. It's all down to lack of competition and seeing what is the maximum can be charged instead of charging a fair price. This is very wrong and there is no justification to the prices. I have no problem paying maybe 15% to cover higher costs and wages but when you see differences of 50% between same products in Tesco Ireland & Tesco NI you have to wonder? Sorry for deviating Clareman & I hope you dont take offence Rediguana.

AARRRGH

I was at a lovely wedding recently and they used a delicious cava instead of champagne. It saved them a fortune, the guests didn't notice (and wouldn't have cared) and it tasted nicer than champagne.

olaola

We went for Prosecco like RedIguana, you'll get a better quality bottle for the same price as a lesser quality Champagne. I personally prefer Prosecco over Cava, I think it's less acidic.

the beer revolu

olaola wrote: »

We went for Prosecco like RedIguana, you'll get a better quality bottle for the same price as a lesser quality Champagne. I personally prefer Prosecco over Cava, I think it's less acidic.

I like both and probably drink more Prosecco than Cava but the best sparkling wine I've ever tasted bar none was a Cava.
Was given the bottle and had no expectations of it but was blown away when I tasted it. Never been able to find it since.
I think the bodega was 'Age' or something del Age and there was dragon type crest on it. No idea if it's value or anything.

IrishWhiskeyCha

The problem I find with Cava and especially Presecco, in this country anyway, is that they vary greatly in taste profile and can usually be much sweeter than champagne which is a sure give away that you are using a cheaper alternative.

So the advice would be taste anything before you buy a few cases of it.

Should be a good week-end too ... tasting 5 or 6 bottles of bubbly

Clareman

6 bottles of champagne, that doesn't sound a bad weekend to me at all

Clareman

Hi all,

Was in an off license last night and saw a bottle of the Cuvée for sale so I picked up a bottle, for 30 euros if you don't mind, we both thought it was lovely so I went ahead and bought 3 cases of it from The Sunday Times Linkey

In case anyone cares I went ahead and bought a lovely Chardonnay and Merlot

I also took advantage of their Half Price Introductory Case offer

Thanks all for your help

rediguana

No offence taken, IrishWhiskeyCha! You're making valid points. I've read things about the wholesalers aright that makes you think something has to change.

At the same time, if you value diversity in the marketplace, you have to support the little guys in the market. I wasn't really saying to give Tesco ROI your business instead of Tesco Newry, or Dunnes for that matter! But small independent importers, if you value that sort of thing, need support, especially during tough times like these, or they will go under there will be less choice and variety in the long term.

But that's just me, I love wines and it wrecks my head if I get stuck having to get one from a boring big supermarket where it looks like there are a lot of wines on the shelf, but really it's all the same thing. My local supermarket is Dunnes and the selection of wines there is exceptionally boring for anybody who is interested in wines.*

OP, I think the Cremant de Limoux that you've gone for is an excellent choice. Vintage too!

p.s. Prosecco is often a touch sweeter than Champagne / Cava. Sweetness in a wine doesn't necessarily mean a wine is poor quality. Many inexpensive, entry-level wines are noticeably sweet though, as they are the entry point to the wine category for most people, and a full-on dry wine would just scare them back to Bulmers or whatever.

pps. An exceptionally-good Cava is Codorniu Cuvee Raventos. It's about €18, widely available.

*The Dunnes selection is dull (in Bishopstown anyway) but they have one great one there now. An €11 Viognier from the south of France that won the Best Viognier 2009 competition at the London International Wine Fair recently. I reviewed it yesterday on my blog:

http://pauljkiernan.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/laurent-miquel/

IrishWhiskeyCha

Clareman wrote: »

Hi all,

Was in an off license last night and saw a bottle of the Cuvée for sale so I picked up a bottle, for 30 euros if you don't mind, we both thought it was lovely so I went ahead and bought 3 cases of it from The Sunday Times Linkey

In case anyone cares I went ahead and bought a lovely Chardonnay and Merlot

I also took advantage of their Half Price Introductory Case offer

Thanks all for your help

It's great that you got something that ye liked and I hope ye have a wonderful day. And enjoy whats left over when ye get back from ye'r honey moon

Good luck

IrishWhiskeyCha

rediguana wrote: »

No offence taken, IrishWhiskeyCha! You're making valid points. I've read things about the wholesalers aright that makes you think something has to change.

At the same time, if you value diversity in the marketplace, you have to support the little guys in the market. I wasn't really saying to give Tesco ROI your business instead of Tesco Newry, or Dunnes for that matter! But small independent importers, if you value that sort of thing, need support, especially during tough times like these, or they will go under there will be less choice and variety in the long term.

But that's just me, I love wines and it wrecks my head if I get stuck having to get one from a boring big supermarket where it looks like there are a lot of wines on the shelf, but really it's all the same thing. My local supermarket is Dunnes and the selection of wines there is exceptionally boring for anybody who is interested in wines.*

That is a valid point too ... I do support my local producers as much as possible and am willing to pay extra for quality especially for meat & local veg is usually as good value as super market rubbish so always buy that also where possible. I Also like going into independent Off Licences and support Irish beers when I can. So I suppose we are on a similar view point in ways.

IrishWhiskeyCha

rediguana wrote: »

No offence taken, IrishWhiskeyCha! You're making valid points. I've read things about the wholesalers aright that makes you think something has to change.

At the same time, if you value diversity in the marketplace, you have to support the little guys in the market. I wasn't really saying to give Tesco ROI your business instead of Tesco Newry, or Dunnes for that matter! But small independent importers, if you value that sort of thing, need support, especially during tough times like these, or they will go under there will be less choice and variety in the long term.

But that's just me, I love wines and it wrecks my head if I get stuck having to get one from a boring big supermarket where it looks like there are a lot of wines on the shelf, but really it's all the same thing. My local supermarket is Dunnes and the selection of wines there is exceptionally boring for anybody who is interested in wines.*

That is a valid point too ... I do support my local producers as much as possible and am willing to pay extra for quality especially for meat & local veg is usually as good value as super market rubbish so always buy that also where possible. I Also like going into independent Off Licences and support Irish beers when I can.

But yes we need to be careful on how we support Irish Jobs but it can be a hard one to balance.

So I suppose we are on a similar view point in ways.

Clareman

Thanks Cha, appreciate it, the plan is to have a BBQ type thing the day after the wedding so will have the Champagne and Chardonnay on ice, so bought a little bit more of that, also will be giving presents of a couple of bottles to people as well

grenache

Dont waste your money on champagne, the biggest rip off you can get! Instead, go for a medium priced and better value sparkling wine, Jacobs Creek range is very good, as is Wolf Blass. A decent Alsace Cremant would do nicely too.

cuddlycavies

grenache wrote: »

Dont waste your money on champagne, the biggest rip off you can get! Instead, go for a medium priced and better value sparkling wine, Jacobs Creek range is very good, as is Wolf Blass. A decent Alsace Cremant would do nicely too.

Ridiculous generalisation and factually incorrect. The only Australian sparklings that come close to Champagne quality in terms of taste and complexity are the likes of Janze, Chandon, Croser or Pelorus(NZ). They're roughly the same price as entry level champers so why bother. The ''brands'' you mention above are volume produced transfer method sparklers with probably 18 weeks on leese never mind 18 months.If you can get tesco own brand NV on promo weekends at 25-30%off, you're streets ahead.

Clareman

Not meaning to bump the thread, but others might be using it for information for getting large orders, so I thought I'd let you know, not only have the Sunday Times rang me on a couple of occassions making sure everything was perfect with the order as well as offering advice of what is to go with what, but they have thrown in a few free bottles as a thank you for the large order, I must say I have been very very impressed with their customer service and am recommending them to everyone

IrishWhiskeyCha

I've been buying wine of them for a few years not and got my Wedding wine from them too so I can report the same. They really do know what they are talking about and are very good with advice.

Clareman

I must say I am very impressed, I started the whole ordering thing last Friday, talked to a nice guy on the phone, someone rang me from them on Saturday to check everything and give me a bit of a discount, got an email (well 15 emails) from them yesterday saying my order was being shipped, this morning at 9.20 the nice FedEx man was at my door delivering all the wine, less than a week from ordering to delivery, to the west of Ireland

Clareman

I must admit to not being a Scotch Whiskey fan, the only whiskey I drink is 12 year old Jameson (I know, I'm so post amn't I?), but they threw in a bottle of the attached for free cause of the size of the order, is it any good?

Sorry about the quality, taken from my iphone

IrishWhiskeyCha

Clareman wrote: »

I must admit to not being a Scotch Whiskey fan, the only whiskey I drink is 12 year old Jameson (I know, I'm so post amn't I?), but they threw in a bottle of the attached for free cause of the size of the order, is it any good?

Sorry about the quality, taken from my iphone

Seriously sound of them.

It is on the standard of Jameson 12yo. A Scotch blend which I find a fairly decent dram. Plenty of flavour and just a hint of peat smoke so not an over powering scotch. I've never seen it in this limited edition packaging which would add a few quid to it and looks very well as a pressie. Thought it was a Johnny Walker Blue there for a moment which is about €200 worth but this is probably around €40-50.

I'll take it off your hands so


Just joking ... but if you've not had your stag yet I'm sure the bouys will finish it off for you ... or if either father, father in-law to be or best man is into it might do as a gift.

When is the big day ... can't be far now.

Just a foot notr on delivery for others ... it usually takes around 2 weeks for a single case to be delivered if they use the regular postal system. But they do express large orders.

Clareman

Stag is this weekend, am in the pub now actually, you have to love iphones, I'm not wasting that bottle on the crowd of ruffians that are my friends

stackerman

Sorry guys but am I missing something re The Times and delivery ? Thier site says del only to UK but Clareman got del to 'the west'. . . .
Very slow of me

MediaTank

keving wrote: »

Sorry guys but am I missing something re The Times and delivery ? Thier site says del only to UK but Clareman got del to 'the west'. . . .
Very slow of me

No Dublin phone number either?

Clareman

I just rang them and they delivered it no bother, delivered via FedEx, in fact the FedEx had a lot of other boxes from the Times going to other people

stackerman

Will call them then,
many thanks

IrishWhiskeyCha

Can't see it on my monthly news letter any more either.

If you join online that should be okay.

stackerman

IrishWhiskeyCha wrote: »

Check out the website and you can ring a Dublin number and talk directly to a wine expert. They are very helpful. :cool:

Hi whiskeychaser, could you please tell me how you managed to get delivery from the Sunday Times site ? I have tried and cant seem to get the order processed.
Many thanks in advance

IrishWhiskeyCha

I have always rang direct as I like to talk to someone about the wine before I order. Once you order once you will become a member and you'll get a membership number.

The phone number is 1890 929 999.

I've tried it and it works but it's weekday office hours