Want to say “thank you” or “congratulations!” in a very special way? Consider a champagne gift basket. It’s the perfect gift for the person who has everything.

A champagne gift basket is a great gift idea for business associates, employees, or graduates. It can also be a wedding gift or a celebratory gift. Champagne is a very light beverage and people seldom get drunk from it as long as you control yourself. It complements several foods which can also be added to the champagne gift basket for variety.

There are many producers of champagne, including Moet and Chandon, Krug, A. Carpentier, Bollinger and many more. The preference of the recipient is usually considered in cases like these where the recipient consumes the gift. Of course, the most expensive champagne gift basket will always be the gift that will generate the most awe but lesser gifts baskets are always welcome and appreciated as well.

Some stores often include cheeses or caviar with their champagne gift basket to relive the monotony of just a champagne gift. It is also a good hint as to what goes well with the champagne. These online specialty stores that specialize in champagne gift baskets and boxes are well versed in what foods complement the champagne you have just ordered. They might even have a selection of champagne bottles already packed with the complementing food item. If you have doubts regarding this, just order the champagne without the food.

A champagne gift basket is a great gift for momentous occasions or joyful celebrations of life. The birth of a baby, a graduation or a wedding is just a few of the times when a champagne gift basket is suitable. Other times when a champagne gift basket is appropriate might be a promotion or getting a job. Giving champagne could also be for a proposal of marriage or to say I love you to the woman you love. Sometimes the occasions that you feel most love and joy are those occasions when champagne is just right to celebrate life.

The Loire Valley, near Nantes in western France, is one of the most beautiful winemaking areas in Europe. A narrow, but wide region following the Loire river, it meanders from Auvergne and the Massif Central mountains to the Atlantic coast.

Vines producing wine grapes existed here as far back as the Roman invasion into the Loire Valley. Historians assert that as long ago as 380 AD reds were made in the surrounding hills and whites were fermented on the river banks.

The climate varies considerably over this wide region, with mild Atlantic weather winter and summer in the west, and cold winters and warm summers in the interior area.

In contrast to Bordeaux where 75% of the production is red, in the Loire three quarters goes to the creation of whites, with the main grapes being Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon. Most of the remaining quarter of red is produced from Cabernet Franc, with some Gamay and Pinot Noir.

Total production reaches 400 million bottles, the end product of grapes grown in clay-limestone, siliceous and chalky soils. Types range from dry whites to sweet, and rosÈ to fruity reds.

In the eastern part of the valley, around Pouilly and Sancerre, most of the grapes used for winemaking are Sauvignon Blanc. These go into making the delicious dry, white Pouilly-FumÈ. The other bank around Sancerre produces the robust, dry eponymous white.

Further west in the province of Touraine, one finds predominantly Chenin Blanc, which forms the starting point of the fruity Montlouis. Also made here are the glorious red Loire wines, Bourgueil and Chinon, mostly from Cabernet Franc.

And on the right bank of the Loire river, close to Tours don’t miss out on a lovely dry Vouvray. The product of Chenin Blanc grown in clay infested limestone and chalk, 13 million bottles are produced in the area on almost 5,000 acres.

Touraine’s neighbor to the west, Anjou-Saumur, also produces a delectable white from Chenin Blanc, famed for its smooth quality. Winemakers cluster around Angers as they have since the 6th century. Famous for the RosÈ d’Anjou, it’s reported to have been enjoyed by King Henry II of England. But the commoner can also enjoy the oak aged whites. With fifty-five million bottles produced from land covering 22,000 acres, there’s no fear of running out.

Coteaux du Layon is the widest wine area of the Anjou region lying along the Layon river where the vines are protected by the hills. Best known for a sweet wine purported to be from a recipe 15 centuries old. Harvest here is late, where the growers leave the grapes on the vines until they begin to over-ripen. Nearly 7 million bottles are produced from 4,450 acres.

Last, but certainly far from least, we finish our tour with the well-known Muscadet, which sits at the far west of the Loire Valley. Here is produced a pale white, lovely in its dry, astringent taste. Best drunk when fresh and young, by connoisseurs of any age. From its 31,000 acres of granite soil rises vines which produce grapes that fill nearly 100 million bottles, so take your time.

Though perhaps not as well-known a fact as wine or beer origin, cheese too is distinctive by country.

The French, of course, are known for producing and consuming a large amount and variety of cheeses. Roquefort and Brie are household names, even though their places of origin may not be known to many. The cheeses are named after towns of the same name. Yet, the French are neither the largest producers, exporters, nor consumers of cheese.

The largest producer is, not surprisingly, the U.S., which makes over 4.3 million metric tons per year. The largest exporter is Germany though France exports more by monetary value. But the largest consumer prize goes to… Greece. The average Greek consumes over 27kg (59 lbs) per person per year.

But quantity isn’t the only, nor perhaps the best, criteria for judging cheese by country. All the great names of cheese share equally in being fine producers.

The Swiss have their Emmentaler and Gruyère better known in the U.S. as simply ‘Swiss cheese’, the English their Cheddars after a town in England, but now among cheese professionals a method of cutting. The Greek’s are well known for a great goat’s milk cheese and also Feta, which is made from sheep’s milk.

The Germans, though their products’ names - Harz and Mainze - may be less well-known, are in the top echelon. Not only do they produce 1.9 million metric tons per year second only to the U.S., and export huge quantities (2.4 million tons), but they are the largest importer as well. Apparently, Germans simply can not get enough of fine cheese.

Belgium may be small, but the country is a giant in the cheese world. Limburger, which hails from there, is known the world over. The smell may or may not appeal to everyone, but the taste is enjoyed by cheese connoisseurs everywhere.

The Netherlands can proudly boast of a native cheese, the great Gouda. Much of their over 2 million metric tons of annual production exported to eager consumers around the world is of this type. Small wonder, considering they’ve done so since the Middle Ages. The buttery concoction is likely to continue to be a world favorite well into the future.

The Italians are famous for much great art. While perhaps not the equal of Michelangelo, the great cheesemakers who create a fine Parmesan or Grana can be equally proud of their creations. Aging for three years or more, these hard cheeses are second to none in taste.

The U.S. has few native cheeses, being a melting pot of other cultures from around the world. But it can lay claim to being among the most appreciative of the stellar creations generated by the sons and daughters of immigrants to its shores. Wisconsin Colby may have its origins elsewhere, but no one does it better.

Around the world this magnificent product - whose yearly production outstrips coffee by a wide margin - is savored by any bon vivant with a taste for a fine food.