Champagne is synonymous with celebration and success—but have its festive associations detracted from its status as a fine wine in its own right? Drawing on his intimate knowledge of a classic but rapidly changing region, Michael Edwards takes a radically different approach in this unrivaled, terroir-based guide to the world’s best sparkling wines. Ninety in-depth profiles of the best small growers as well as the greatest houses are organized geographically—from the finest producers of the great city of Reims, wine towns of Epernay and Aÿ, and the leading villages of the Marne, and to the rising stars of the Aube (Côte des Bar) and beyond. Edwards also discusses the culture of Champagne, reviews trends in viticulture and winemaking, and investigates controversial solutions to the current crisis of success in a region that cannot satisfy global demand for its wines. Additional sections explore the gastronomic traditions of the area, give advice on pairing Champagne with food, survey the vintages of the past 20 years, list the wines with the best price-to-quality ratio, and more, making this extensively illustrated work a true connoisseur’s guide to the most glamorous and perhaps the most enigmatic of French wines.

マイケル・エドワーズによる本作は、祝祭の象徴という虚飾を剥ぎ取り、テロワールという真実へと迫る極めて思索的な一冊です。著者はシャンパーニュを単なる贅沢品ではなく、大地の声を聞く「芸術作品」として再定義しました。その筆致は情熱的でありながら冷徹な観察眼を備えており、読者を泡の向こう側にある深遠な哲学へと誘います。 伝統あるメゾンと新進気鋭の造り手を対等に描く構成は、地域が抱える「成功という名の危機」を浮き彫りにし、土地の変遷を辿る叙事詩のような深みを与えています。地理的な広がりの中で紡がれる美食やヴィンテージの考察は、知的好奇心と五感を激しく揺さぶるでしょう。本書は、最も華やかで謎めいたワインの真髄を解き明かすための、至高の導き書なのです。