Clicquot's Big Ladies

Fancy a bottle of White Horse House? How about The Pine, then? Or Big Mountain Fair House?

There's no question that they sound far more appealing in their native French – to anglophones, at least. There is a swirling romance to the language that seems so leaden and utilitarian in translation.

So it is with Veuve Clicquot's Big Lady, the 2004 vintage of which was launched this month. There have been a spate of prestige cuvée launches in the last twelvemonth: Dom Pérignon 2003, Cristal 2005 and now Grande Dame. As three of the most visible brands in the market...