The Widow Clicquot: The Story of a Champagne Empire and the Woman Who Ruled It Audiobook (Unabridged)

" If you've ever looked at the bright yellow label and wondered if there really was a Veuve Clicquot rather than a marketing creation, the answer is oui--Barb-Nicole, bourgeois survivor of the French Revolution, bankrupt widow and winemaking genius was not just a real person, but a revolutionizer of 19th century industry. While managing vineyards and negotiating the every changing political allegiances of France, she also invented labels and international name recognition, a secret method for storing bottles en pointe to ensure clarity, profit-sharing to keep the method secret, used the Napoleonic Wars as a marketing tool and convinced occupying Russians not to loot the cellars but to pay and sing the praises of Clicquot champagne. "

" So far a really interesting biography of the woman behind one of the largest and most prolific Champagne empires (and my personal favorite :) "

" Started out slow, thought the first chapter was overly wordy - "get to the point already." In the end I reall;y enjoyed it and learned so much about wine and the wine industry. "

" I love me some good bubbly from the orange label and I learned a lot about champagne and business from this book. "

" Great history of the woman and the bubbly! Educational and enjoyable. I so want a glass right now...but I gave up wine for lent. Darn. Also the author is a professor at Colby! "

" The woman behind the famous champagne, it turns out, has a remarkable story. Lucky in the timing of her birth and in the man to whom she is married, bold in her risk taking, daring and tenacious in her entrepreneurship, she is quite the role model. Anyone who enjoys the story of a bold entrepreneur, of a fascinating woman, or of a great wine should read this book! "

" Eye-opening story of the life of female entrepreneur in a time when that status was highly unusual. Also an interesting history of the development of the champagne industry. "

" I'd hoped that this wouldbegoodeffervescent and enlightening fun. And it's ok. I learned quite a lot about the brief period during which champagne became *c*h*a*m*p*a*g*n*e!, a story I hadn't known. But the prose is baggy and flabby--this book fails the minimal test of editing, namely the application Struck & White's Rule 13. And the whole thing tries too hard. And so, while I have said that I finished, I mean that I finished reading the book, but not that i finished the book "

" Made me love champagne even more that I now understand so much more about it and where the industry comes from. "

" Fascinating look at life in France amidst a rash of revolutions, and at the beginning of Champagne as it is known now. But it runs long--particularly since the author admits the historical record on Widow Clicquot is sparse. Too many bubbles of historical fiction in this wine for my taste. "

" I love Veuve and I loved this book. Mazzeo rules in recreating the life of a true visionary and artist in a time when the world expected women to be seen and not heard. "

" Interesting, a bit dry, but moved along at a nice pace. I found it very informative on the how and why of Champagne, along with a slice of frech history you would not nessacerraly find in other books on France. If Champage is your passion a must read. "

" Fascinating read about the history of Veuve Clicquot champagne. Wonderful to read about the success of a woman in her time, the history of champagne, and general great read. "

" Enlightening and fun even though there seems to be so little actual record on the widow "

" This book could have been much more interesting & a great historical fiction novel. Instead read like a college dissertation. Great champagne! Merci Madame cliquot. "

" In traveling to France I was going to the Veuve Clicquot Champagne house and I wanted a little knowledge of the family. Enjoyed the book and the woman who started it all. "

" I learned a ton about champagne. The Widow is an interesting character. My only complaint was the flowery writing style. "

" I never thought much about Veuve Cliquot other than how delicious it is. Now that I understand the story behind the yellow label, I have even greater appreciation not only for Cliquot but also the entire sparkling wine industries. "

" There is so much to know about champagne! I'm really enjoying learning about it, and with each page want to run out and buy a bottle so I can sip on some bubbly as I read. "

" Interesting, without sharing much about the subject at all. Very little is known, so the author gives a history of the region and time period instead. "

" With only my high school French as a guide, I never knew Veuve meant Widow. I enjoyed reading about the building of the Champagne industry from 1811-1870. And besides I love to drink it! "

" This was a facinating topic but the way it was written was very academic. It took me several tries to get into but it was worth it. "

" Great history of the woman and the bubbly! Educational and enjoyable. I so want a glass right now...but I gave up wine for lent. Darn. Also the author is a professor at Colby! "

" Fascinating insight into the development of my favourite beverage! Author's knowledge of French history is impressive, and very approachable. "

" Molly, I agree with you, well said........"Informative, but not quite as rich as I'd hoped". Lots of good info regarding champagne and the regions, but a bit dry. "

" I enjoyed reading about the entrepreneurial nature of the Widow Cliquot, and it made me want to know more about business woman from that era and before. All we here about are those male industrial barons. I also picked up some useful wine terminology. "

" I give it three stars because it gave me a good high school history refresher, but the book also felt like a high school history paper . . . Repetitive and unsure. I got bored half way through "

" For biography, this reads well and has a good pace. Very informative and imaginative as well. "

" I genuinely enjoyed learning about Veuve Cicquot and truly admire her. It was a fascinating journey. But I found the author dry, and Clicquot's life was not dry. She also occasionally and unexpectedly inserted her opinion, which I found to be an annoying interruption. "

" History of an unlikely business woman who was determined to make her family business grow despite her own limitations as a woman in male dominated French society "