Richard Juhlin INTERVIEW
WORLD’S #1 CHAMPAGNE EXPERT
Tell us about your journey to becoming a champagne expert?
It is a long story that actually started when I was 8 years old. I visited a winemaker in Mosel valley with my parents and while there, I was the only one pinpoint- ing the wines in a blind tasting. That is when I understood I had a gift. But it was not until 1986 when I visited Reims for the first time that it all took off. Since then I’ve fallen in love and my passion, in combination with my ‘photographic memory’ of smell, started the train rolling.
What are the rules of cham- pagne tasting? There are different rules, but for me the most important is to be 100% focused in my own mental bubble so I experience each sub- lime facet of the magic wine.
What do you love about cham- pagne so much?
I love life and few things are as multifaceted and full of life as champagne. Over time, the chang- ing face of champagne is similar to that of human life.
Why do you think champagne has stayed so popular and remained a luxury icon for so long?
Simply because it tastes and feels so good.
What’s your favorite champagne? 1928 Pol Roger Grauves
What was the first champagne you tasted? Veuve Clicquot sec.
What accessories should every cham- pagne lover own?
Perfect champagne glasses, an ice bucket, a wine fridge or a cellar, and a decent collection of vintage champagnes.
What do you love to eat with your champagne?
Champagne is the perfect drink with so many dishes, and today is the only wine that can follow a whole degustation menu from the leading modern chefs of the world.
Is there any music that you love to hear while sipping bubbly? Yes, very much so, but according to my mood I choose both the music and the champagne. More classic stuff with light blanc de blancs, jazz with the more powerful and prestigious cuvees, and nostalgic Dire Straits in the car when I am
8 EAT LOVE
SAVOR.Com • Summer 2011
in Champagne.
Do you have a favorite movie that featured champagne?
All the great scenes with 007 sipping a Bolly or a Dom while seducing his women.
Are there any faux pas you see in serving and drinking champagne? Too many drink champagne when smoking, too many drink champagne too cold, too many drink out of the wrong type of glass, and too many serve dry champagne with dessert.
What do you wish people knew about champagne?
That it is the best bargain in the wine world and there are 5200 different producers of champagne globally.
What is your favorite Champagne flute?
It is not a flute it is my own glass, the Juhlin Glass. -- INTERVIEWER ANGELA TUNNER
You can find Richard Juhlin online at
www.champagneclub.com
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