Champagne and the war of the rosés

Nicolas Ruinart ditched the cloth game to cut a dash in the sparkling Champagne market, but was he the first to create rosé Champagne? It’s a thorny issue

Rosé Champagne offers a fine wine take on this most delicious of creations

In 1729, cloth merchant Nicolas Ruinart founded what claims to be the first and oldest Champagne house, Champagne Ruinart.

Eagle-eyed readers will note that Champagne Gosset, founded in 1584, claims to be the oldest wine house in Champagne. It produced still and occasionally, almost by accident, sparkling wines from Champagne.

Champagne Ruinart sold sparkling wine exclusively, however, thus claiming the title of oldest Champagne house in our modern sense.

The Ruinart story is ...