February 25, 2021

Veuve Clicquot

I read the most wonderful book recently.  By Tilar J. Mazzeo, it’s called The Widown Clicquot.  “The story of a champagne empire and the woman who ruled it.”  The book, historical biography, tells the story of the famous widow Clicquot – the woman who made the champagne brand what it is.

There aren’t many historical biographies of female entrepreneurs.  Most of the women who built and ran businesses are lost to history, forgotten tales that made way for the barons of the industrial age who are known for building an empire.  Mazzeo had to work hard for her modest history of not even two hundred pages.  She dug through archives, went to the champagne house’s museum to find copies of the widow’s ledgers, and talked to everyone in Reims she could find.

I walked away from the book with a deeper appreciation of the champagne house, and even more so, a deeper respect for the women who fought against convention to build businesses.  It was a turbulent time to be in business (she survived three wars).  Perseverance conquered (along with a little good luck along the way).  She changed the way champagne was made and invented practices still in use today.

I had not every had Veuve Clicquot champagne before I read the book.  On Christmas Day this year, I experienced my first glass of the legend with the orange label.  It was a bold champagne with lots of apple, pear, and green apple.  The bubbles were perfect.  It’s a champagne that deserves the legacy of the name it bears and honors the woman who dedicated her life to it.