We’ve all heard of the decadent drop, and we know it’s usually consumed on special occasions, but what is Champagne? At its core, Champagne is a form of sparkling wine, but that’s about all it has in common because while all Champagne is sparkling wine, not all sparkling wine is Champagne. So what makes Champagne, Champagne?

Brut Champagne is made using the special grapes grown in northern France, however, differs on the sweetness scale. This type of Champagne is classified as ‘Brut’ which roughly translates to “dry, raw, or unrefined,” in French. In general, Brut is classified as the ‘driest’ of all Champagnes, it must be made with a dosage of fewer than 12 grams of added sugar per litre. And it’s worth mentioning that this is also the most common style of sparkling wine.

Let’s not get it confused, the Champagne bottle popping that we witness on podiums at the Formula 1 season and Moto GP is purely for show. In fact, if you even attempted such a feat at a family gathering your grandmother would almost certainly fall off her chair. There’s absolutely nothing worse than sending a cork rocket into your kitchen ceiling either, so let’s explore the correct way to open a bottle of Champagne.

There are some pretty serious do’ and dont’s when it comes to serving Champagne the right way. These can even differ from country to country and situation to situation. Under traditional settings, particularly in France itself, this is the correct way to serve Champagne according to the experts at Vranken-Pommery.