5 Things to Consider Before Serving Champagne At Your Bar

If you run your own bar or plan on opening one in the future, Champagne is definitely a popular beverage choice for your menu. But, will it give you the best rate on investment? How do you serve it properly? Which glassware should you use? These are all important things to consider before offering the beverage at your establishment. In this article, we’ll go over everything you need to know about serving Champagne at your bar.

1) Train your staff on opening a bottle correctly

There’s nothing better than impressing your customers, especially in an upscale bar. And there’s nothing worse than looking like you don’t know what you’re doing. Opening a Champagne bottle is very different from opening a beer bottle. The act requires both patience and skill. So, how do you do it properly?

First, your bartender must make sure that the cage around the cork is loosened before opening.
After, he or she must carry the bottle at a 45 degree angle away from any customer. The bottom of the bottle should be in one hand and the cage should be in the other.

Lastly, he or she must rotate the bottom of the bottle and apply a bit of pressure to the cork and cage at the same time.

The cork will then come out. Keep in mind that it’s perfectly normal for there to be some spilt liquid.

2) Choose the most profitable brand of Champagne

Yes, Champagne is one of the best tasting drinks (if not the best!), however, when serving it at your bar, you must do what’s beneficial for your bottom line. That being said, the best way to ensure that you will make a profit is to pick the brands with the best return on investment. To start, the most expensive brands don’t always lead to the most profits. Just because a bottle of Champagne is pricey and from France, doesn’t mean it’s right for your bar or restaurant.

When making your choices, you must go for the best tasting and most flavourful options. To find the right bottles, you should start by looking at distributors who offer the biggest deals and highest quality drinks. It’s important to stay away from brands that are too sweet. You want to be able to find a balance of both sweet and dry flavors to please as many customers as possible. Brut is an ideal dry option that will make adding other drinks like juices to your beverages worthwhile (for cocktails).

After you find the right distributors for your bar, you need to ensure that your orders are organized. The easiest way to do this is by using a bar inventory app. With one, you can ensure that you’re not wasting funds on lost or misplaced orders. Everything will be organized for you so you can receive the exact amount of Champagne bottles you’ve requested.

3) Invest in the right glassware for Champagne

When planning to serve Champagne at your bar or restaurant, the last thing you want to do is suffer from inadequate glassware. It’s incredibly important to use the right glassware, not only to impress your guests, but to provide them with the proper experience. We recommend going with either a Champagne flute or a white wine glass for your stock. The flute option is designed for more affordable Champagnes, as it makes the drink more spritzy and hides away any flaws. If you’re looking for a material that interferes the least with the flavor and taste, make sure to go with the crystal white wine glass option.

4) Pair your Champagne with the right foods

From various cheeses, grapes, and meats, offering food and beverage pairings on your menu is incredibly important for increasing profits and satisfying customers. The good thing about Champagne is that it goes well with almost everything. Depending on what’s most in demand at your bar or restaurant, you can take advantage of pairing items. A smart way to be sure about a pairing that will be successful at your specific bar is to invest in a beverage analytics platform. With one, you’ll be given intelligent insights into which foods and beverages sell best together. From there, you can decide which foods to pair with your Champagne.

5) Determine the right temperature for your bottles

Temperature is crucial to sustaining the flavor of any bottle of Champagne after opening. Most importantly, keeping your bottles at an overwhelmingly cold temperature will ruin the taste – which will lead to excessive waste. The safest thing to do is to keep your bottles between 45 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. This range will ensure that your drinks both look and taste great.

Overall, all the things mentioned above are important factors to consider before and when serving Champagne at your bar. From choosing the right brands to pairing them with the right foods, adding Champagne to your menu needs to be done right.