It is extraordinary enough that one small area in north-eastern France, on the northern edge of Europe’s wine-growing regions, should be capable of producing the finest sparkling wine in the world, one of the few worth discussing as a wine and not merely as a sparkling beverage. Yet Champagne fascinates not only wine lovers, but also historians – social, economic, political – linguists, physiologists, physicists and chemists. The long-awaited new edition of Nicholas Faith’s landmark The Story of Champagne tells the tale of Champagne from the winemakers’ point of view. This classic study of the world’s greatest wine is a masterpiece of storytelling and analysis that has for decades sent readers away with renewed excitement about the different types of Champagne and the landscape, geology and climate that inspire them. The story of champagne explores the history of Champagne from its origins in the seventeenth century to the high-tech industry of the twenty-first before examining the wine itself, how it is made, the crus, the vines and the harvest. Faith provides completely up-to-date statistics on wine production and consumption and finishes the book with an all-important evaluation of today’s most important producers. The Story of Champagne is essential reading for anyone interested in the world’s most celebrated wine.

"This is an excellent book that should be on the bookshelf of every champagne lover and MW student." - Tamlyn Currin, jancisrobinson.com

Nicholas Faith was renowned for the books and hundreds of articles he wrote on wines and spirits over a 30-year period. His first book, The Winemasters, won the André Simon award. He also edited the prestigious magazine L’Amateur de Bordeaux. Founder of the International Spirits Challenge, the world’s leading alcoholic spirits competition, Nicholas Faith became in September 2010 the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Bureau National Interprofessional de Cognac.