Champagne Bar Launch: Archer Street – Billecart-Salmon Champagne Bar, London

Archer Street is the first exclusive “Billecart-Salmon Champagne Bar” in London, and will be South Soho’s best-kept secret, taking on the sophisticated style of a “members-only club” and open to all those “in-the-know.”

The luxurious, laidback lounging areas are set over two floors and dotted with comfortable velvet sofas and button-back armchairs. The upstairs bar features large French windows, distressed wood paneling and plush velvet stools. The downstairs area has a playful and après ski feel with reclaimed rafter board walls, stripy cushions, quirky mirrors, and a long bar covered in antiqued steel panels. Renowned Italian restaurant, Bocca di Lupo and the soon to open Firmdale Hotel are in the neighborhood.

Archer Street promises Pop-up entertainment every evening with singing and dancing waiters and bar staff. A calendar of special themed evenings has also been created.

A monthly soiree will also be a specialty at Archer Street, where celebrities are invited to host their own evenings in the bar, giving a percentage of the proceeds to their elected charity. Each invited host can choose the theme of the evening and select the play-list of the DJ as well as take a turn behind the bar.

Archer Street – Billecart-Salmon Champagne Bar
3-4 Archer Street, W1, 020 7734 3342
www.archerstreet.co.uk

Liz Palmer
@champagnehouses

Get ready to raise your flute… Award-Winning Flûte Champagne Bar is set to open in London on December 8th


THE LOWDOWN:

Flûte was created in 1997 by founder/owner Hervé Rousseau, in a space on West 54th Street NYC. As a native Parisian, Hervé was inspired by his experience in the wine industry to combine New York’s unparalleled cocktail culture with a French attitude towards champagne, where no one waits for a special occasion to pop open a bottle of bubbly.
Flûte is most famous for their extensive list of champagnes. The London location promises to be more of the same – a place where London’s glitterati can get together and enjoy a glass or bottle of bubbly in stylish surroundings.

THE LOOK:

The London branch of Flute will follow the concept of the New York bars, featuring five private booths tailor-made for business or pleasure with their own volume and light controls.

PLAYLIST:

Music will play a key part in the Flûte Bar & Lounge offering, with a playlist created by top New York DJs Duane Harriott and Alec DeRuggiero. The venue will also present a full schedule of weekly and monthly events, including live jazz.

THE FIZZ:

Champagnes on offer will include vintage, non-vintage, prestige cuvée, rosé and boutique together with fabulous rare grower champagnes from choice vineyards. In addition, Flûte Bar & Lounge will premiere exciting new varieties such as Drappier Brut Nature Zero Dosage rosé and also serve some killer cocktails …so I’ve been told!

There will be approx.100 Champagnes by the bottle and 25 by the glass, with prices starting at £5 for a glass and £45 for a bottle – with today’s market, this is affordable!

THE FOOD:

There will be an innovative menu of light bites, spearheaded by a spring roll bar serving no less than 20 different fusion creations, an ideal accompaniment to a glass of chilled champagne.

WHO GOES: To be determined.

ADDRESS:

Flûte Bar & Lounge
4 Great Portland Street,
Soho,
London,
W1W 8PA
http://flutebar.com

PIPER-HEIDSIECK LAUNCHES “BODYGUARD”

Champagne Piper-Heidsieck has wrapped its new limited edition ‘Bodyguard’ Champagne in a ‘sexy red crocodile skin’ for its launch this month.

The 75cl Champagne Brut, in a lipstick red faux crocodile skin sheath, is “a perfect example of how innovative and audacious this brand can be”, says Matthew Hodges, Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail Marketing Director. “Although Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail will distribute only small quantities of this limited edition in travel retail, it will bring a halo of excitement to the whole brand.” 


Champagne Piper-Heidsieck Bodyguard will be sold in selected travel retail outlets, with the initial rollout in Aelia, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport stores.

Tasting Notes from Piper-Heidsieck as having ‘springtime citrus aromas with notes of apples and pears’.

Liz Palmer – Wine and Travel Writer
Member of the Circle of Wine Writers (UK)
http://twitter.com/champagnehouses

Champagne Launch – Gosset’s Grand Blanc de Blanc

Founded in Aÿ in 1584 by Pierre Gosset, Gosset is the oldest wine house in Champagne. It also remains one of the most prestigious, considered by many collectors and connoisseurs as the world’s preeminent name in luxury champagne.

Gosset’s reputation for excellence starts on the vines. Its champagnes are composed almost entirely of grapes from Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards. Unlike most champagne producers, this illustrious wine house purposely avoids malolactic fermentation and always performs riddling and disgorging of prestige cuvées and large-format bottles by hand. Gosset champagnes are made with infinite care and kept in deep cellars for at least three years – and up to five or more for vintage and prestige cuvées – before release.

Gosset’s inimitable style – powerful and full-bodied, of unrivaled richness and staying power – has changed very little over the centuries. Gosset is now a fixture on wine lists of some of the most celebrated restaurants in the world, lauded by sommeliers for an exceptional capacity to enhance a wide range of cuisine. It is, in short, a legend among the wines of Champagne.

Released last week: Grand Blanc de Blanc Brut

Grape Varieties
100% Chardonnay from 11 different Premier and Grand Cru vineyards

Vinification
A blend of various vintages: 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999. Rests on the lees for a minimum of eight years before disgorgement

In the Glass
Luminous golden hue with green tints. Fine, steady and lively bubbles

On the Nose
Expressive and complex. Begins with elegant floral and fruity aromas of flowers and white fruits, including plum. Notes of brioche and butter emerge giving way to nuances of lemon, cinnamon and clove

On the Palate
Full, concentrated and rich, with remarkable structure, balance and freshness. Voluptuous flavors of tropical fruit with notes of sandalwood, exotic spices and toasted pralines

Serving Suggestions
This refined and sensuous cuvée charms with its complex yet harmonious aromatic profile. It will complement an infinite number of dishes. Perfect to sip throughout an entire meal, from pre-dinner cocktails to the cheese course.