CHRISTOPHER MERRET INVENTS CHAMPAGNE

What did Christopher Merret in London do?

In London in the mid 17th Century, Christopher Merret was a respected English physician and scientist. In 1651 he became a Fellow of The Royal College of Physicians, and was later a founder of The Royal Society.

Strong Glass Copes with Champagne Pressure

One of his big interests was the industrial use of minerals. In 1662, he translated Antonio Neri's 'The Art of Glass', and expanded the work with extra pages of his own, showing that he had more than a 'passing interest' in glass making.

Earlier in the 17th Century, an Englishman by the name of Sir Robert Mansell, monopolised glass making in England, and indeed he was able to produce very strong glass due to using coal powered factories. French glass at the time was not nearly as strong.

Back to Chris....

At the end of 1662, he presented his paper 'Some Observations Concerning the Ordering of Wines' to The Royal Society. He described adding sugar and molasses to wine to make it brisk and sparkling. Today, this is known as the Methode Champenoise - the second fermentation to produce the bubbles. As a result of the great strength of English glass, he was able to deliberately add the sugar to the still wine, to induce the second fermentation, without worrying about the bottles exploding.

So, what exactly did Dom Perignon do then?