Don't bother with a £400 bottle of Champagne

It’s often said that you get what you pay for – but when it comes to fizz, that may not be the case.A panel of experts recently conducted a blind taste test on Champagnes and a sparkling wine that ranged in price from £18 to £400 – and a £40 bottle was the overall winner.The study was conducted by the universities of Oxford and London, with the panel of tasters comprising of four people who worked in the Champagne industry – the top experts - six intermediates who worked in the wine trade and five social drinkers, people who like a tipple but aren’t deeply knowledgeable about alcohol.They were given seven Champagnes and a sparkling wine to try – three by Mumm ranging in price from £39 to £75, three by Perrier-Jouet that cost £40, £50 and £400 and a sparkling English wine by Ridgeview that cost £18.The drinks were served in unlabelled black containers – so the panel couldn’t even be swayed by the colour of the drink.After much sniffing, swilling and gulping, the overall best-tasting drink was declared by the experts and intermediates to be Mumm’s Vintage 2004, at £40. The social drinkers, meanwhile, preferred Mumm’s de Verzenay NV, which costs £75.The study, the results of which were published in Flavour journal, was carried out to see if it’s possible to discern the proportion of red and white grapes in fizz, as they give the drinks their flavour profiles.Those who’ve just splashed out on a very expensive Champagne needn’t worry, however, that they’ve completely wasted their money – as they will impart status and often improve with age.The price makes them taste better, too.Colin Thorne, Events and Education Manager for 2013 Independent Wine Retailer of The Year Vagabond Wines, told MailOnline: ‘A lot of Champagne sells on more than just how it tastes. The sort of person who buys a Louis Vuitton suitcase doesn't just buy the suitcase but the status the brand gives them too. It’s a funny drink as it’s the most expensive wine most people ever buy yet it tends to get thrown down in a toast without a moment’s thought as to how it tastes. ‘Most people prefer wines that are ready to drink and some prestige Champagnes only reveal their full spectrum of flavour after many years of bottle age.’And Professor Charles Spence, from the University of Oxford, who led the study, told the BBC: 'If you know how much something costs - the psychology of that high cost seems to make things taste better.'(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az