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So when a region of the world
becomes known for a specific type of food,
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they'll go to great lengths to protect it.
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I mean, let's look at Kobe beef.
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It can only be called that
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if it meets a very particular
set of requirements,
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including that the cow was born, fed,
and slaughtered in a region of Japan
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that includes the city of Kobe.
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Quebec regulates who can sell maple syrup
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and the government even keeps
a strategic reserve.
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French champagne is from, you guessed it,
the Champagne region of France
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and it's heavily regulated.
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But the pandemic is exposing
the behind-the-scenes drama
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about how it's produced.
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DYING ON THE VINE
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You must hold it like this
and tap, all the way up.
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Okay.
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And I use the back of the knife.
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- Here, this part. OK.
- Yes, that part.
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Okay, merci.
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Oh, it's quite heavy.
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Okay.
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This is very difficult.
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Whoaaaaa!
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(Charlet) There were many reasons
to break out the champagne sabre in 2020.
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Whooooo!
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And that's bad news
for Charles Duval-Leroy and his family.
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Merci.
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This is what we have today for
Femme de Champagne: non-vintage.
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It is more of apéritif-style vintage.
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We stay in the frame
of elegance and finesse.
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(Charlet) The Duval-Leroy has been
in this business for 150 years.
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They produce more than
2 million bottles annually
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for big clients like Delta Airlines
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and the Moulin Rouge.
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With COVID-19 keeping planes on the ground
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and event spaces closed,
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sales have plummeted by almost 40%,
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and the champagne industry
has had to take drastic action.
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This is an unusual year.
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We had a good harvest,
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but due to this COVID-19 crisis,
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we couldn't harvest all the grapes.
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As you can see,
there are a lot of grapes left.
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It's a frustrating year for us.
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If I didn't know the context,
it looks like sabotage.
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It's really something unprecedented.
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There are so many times
that we ask ourselves
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if there's a new wine-making method.
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No, it's just throwing the grapes
on the ground.
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It makes no sense.
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With the sales dropping
throughout the year,
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how did the industry respond?
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The first step was to say,
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"Let's reduce quotas.
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If we reduce quotas, we reduce production.
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We won't inflate the stock
that hasn't been sold."
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It's a truly collective response
to lower production,
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which is why we have left grapes
on the vine today.
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It's a heartbreaking response,
but we know it's necessary
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for the long term in Champagne.
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(Charlet) Champagne has spent decades
meticulously curating a global image
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as the way to mark special occasions.
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It's this type of deliberate management
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that led to cutting production
by 100 million bottles this year
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to prop up prices.
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But the decision left
over 10,000 tons of grapes to waste away,
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and it didn't necessarily
account for issues
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that were already threatening
champagne's reign
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as a celebratory drink of choice.
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Can you talk a little bit about
the state of of the champagne industry
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before the pandemic hit?
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Because I remember there was already
talk of champagne
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having a little bit of an image crisis
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before COVID.
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Since 2008, champagne
hasn't regained its sales
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simply because the final consumer,
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due to to economic issues,
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has shifted from champagne
to other alcohols
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or other aperitifs, of course.
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Champagne hasn't benefited yet
from Instagram.
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We see more and more that
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there is an audience that
needs to show itself
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with a big glass with lots of ice
and colors in it.
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A gin and tonic that's well prepared
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and looks beautiful.
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And champagne is very elegant,
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but it's served in a small glass
with not a lot in it.
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It's too discreet to take a selfie
or a photo with.
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"Look, I'm in a dreamy landscape."
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(Charlet) But some smaller producers
have a different take
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on the right response to the crisis.
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The color is incredible,
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it looks like Roussanne [grapes].
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(Charlet) While the big names
in the industry
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sell millions of bottles each year,
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Alselme Selosse makes only about 50,000
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and each one can go for hundreds of euros.
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We're looking for the grapes' stems.
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(Charlet) Like this?
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(Anselme) Yes. And then, on the soil.
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(Charlet) No. That's sad.
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(Anselme) Yes, it's sad because
there's a full team that worked on it
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for a whole year.
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This is a gift from nature.
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We're insulting nature.
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We're not able to keep what it gives us.
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(Charlet) The quotas mean all producers
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are leaving grapes on the ground
to compost.
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Something that Selosse sees
as particularly hard for smaller companies
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that can't lose out on revenue.
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So the industry implemented a quota
to try and ease the crisis.
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Do you think that was the right solution?
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It's not a solution.
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It's a way to carry on
while keeping everyone at ease.
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I see it as a race to the bottom.
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Those who make no effort,
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who don't adapt,
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who see vines as grape-producing machines,
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they are the ones being rewarded.
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So they want the good producers
to waste their high-quality fruits
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so that they can sell
their poor quality fruits.
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That's not how you give
young people a future.
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These three young men
are the future of the region.
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(Charlet) For Selosse, champagne success
depends on innovation
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from the next generation of winemakers.
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Charlet, would you like
a glass of champagne?
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Okay. (laughter)
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(Charlet) But younger producers,
like Alexander Chartogne,
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are also the ones
with the most recent investments,
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leaving them the most at risk financially.
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I love it.
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Would you drink this for
an aperitif or with food?
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It depends on your mood.
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It depends on the moment.
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You can drink it
really early in the morning
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or really late in the evening.
(laughter)
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This is really good, though.
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(Charlet) Most champagne makers
are doing fine.
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For now.
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But their future depends
on when the pandemic ends.
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And more importantly,
if sales pick up when it does.
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So, of all the industries
that have been hurt by the pandemic,
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champagne is not necessarily
the most sympathetic one.
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Why should people care
that champagne's been hurt?
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In many countries--
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whether it's the English,
the Americans, the Germans--
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nobody likes French people
but everyone loves France,
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and champagne is the tip of that image.