Muselet

Meaning “muzzle” in English, a muselet (pronounced MOOSE-eh-lay) is the wire cage that holds a Champagne or sparkling wine cork firmly in place on the neck of the bottle. The muzzle is important when it comes to safety. Even though most people quickly remove it first, the muselet should actually not be removed before the cork is eased out. Rather, it should be removed with the cork at the same time.

Which of the following regions produces a dry red wine?

A. Tavel

B. Condrieu

C. St-Péray

D. Cornas

Cornas is a tiny region at the southern end of the northern Rhône Valley of France. Only red wines are made here, exclusively from syrah grapes. Condrieu and Saint-Péray are both white wine appellations located also in the northern Rhône. Tavel is an all-rosé appellation in the southern Rhône.

“In Europe then we thought of wine as something as healthy and normal as food and also as a great giver of happiness and well-being and delight. Drinking wine was not snobbism nor a cult; it was as natural as eating and to me, as necessary.”

–Ernest Hemingway(1899-1961),
A Moveable Feast

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