High Life

一月向来是属于汽酒的月份。谨祝愿 2018 年将是满载美酒惊喜 的一年。 January is the time of year for bubblies. Let 2018 be a year full of vinous discoveries. 法 国香槟区出产的同名汽酒饮 誉全球，但汽酒本身即大千 世界，其风格种类之多，实在不胜枚 举。历史最悠久的汽酒乃来自法国南 部的利慕布朗克特而非香槟，但由于 后者在过去数个世纪中一直占据汽酒 领域的头把交椅，「香槟」一词经常 被误用作泛指任何汽酒。尽管是无心 之失，却足以让法国人气急败坏。从 1919年的凡尔赛条约到21世纪的欧 盟法律，他们一直小心翼翼地保护着 香槟这一黄金招牌，生怕被其他国家 挪用。 T here is way more to the world of sparkling wine than merely Champagne, the fizz from the eponymous region. Although not the first sparkler in history – a title held by Blanquette de Limoux from southern France – Champagne would rise to such prominence as to become an erroneous byword for all sparkling wines. This is much to the irritation of the French, who have been vigilantly protecting the name since the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, all the way to EU regulations in the 21st century. Each wine-producing country, INDULGE at least in the Old World, has its own style of sparkling wine, such as Portugal’s Espumante, Spain’s Cava, France’s various Crémants, Italy’s Prosecco and not least Germany’s and Austria’s Sekt, which can claim to be a continuation of the great Champenoise tradition. Whereas German Sekt appeared in 1826 thanks to Georg Christian Kessler, former employee at Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Austrian Sekt emerged in 1846 owing to Robert Alwin Schlumberger, former employee at Ruinart. On a per capita basis, both countries are amongst the biggest consumers of fizz. Vienna used to be the heart of a vast empire in Central Europe throughout the 19th century and beyond and with its sophisticated and epicurean bourgeoisie, the demand for sparklers was apparent. Indeed, much of Austrian Sekt productionused to be aroundVienna, but it has since spread across the country. Viticulture takes place all over Austria, but the overwhelming majority is in the trioof Federal States in the east, namely Niederösterreich, Burgenland and Steiermark. 环顾全球，尤其是旧世界，基本 上所有产酒国均拥有属于自己的独特 汽酒风格，如葡萄牙的 Espumante、 西 班 牙 的 Cava、 法 国 各 地 的 Crémants 及 意 大 利 的 Prosecco 等等。与此同时，德国和奥地利的 Sekt，更可谓香槟传统的继承者。德 国汽酒之父格奥尔格•克里斯蒂安• 凯斯勒曾于凯歌香槟任职，及后于 1826年开始在德国酿制汽酒。奥地利 汽酒之父罗伯特•埃文•舒伦贝格则 曾于慧纳香槟任职，及后于1846年开 始在奥地利酿制汽酒。按人均消费量 计算，德国和奥地利均是汽酒大国。 在19世纪前后，奥地利曾是泱泱 大国，而维也纳则是此中欧强权的心 脏。维也纳云集来自帝国各地的上流 贵族，而维也纳的资产阶级向来以酷 爱古典音乐、歌剧、艺术及美酒佳肴 而闻名，对汽酒的需求亦甚为殷切。 诚然，奥地利汽酒传统上集中于维也 纳临近地区，但时至今日，汽酒生产 已遍及多个地区。奥地利全国各地均 有种植葡萄，但绝大多数葡萄园集中 在东部三个联邦州，即下奥地利州、 布尔根兰州及施泰尔马克州。