Why Do We Drink Champagne on New Year’s Eve?
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Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Ever wonder why we celebrate NewYear’s Eve with champagne? The answer dates back at least 1,500years. And it involves a mix of history, location and -- notleast -- skillful marketing.
In the late fifth century, King Clovis, the reigningmonarch of northern France, was fighting to defend histerritory. Legend has it that he promised his wife, theBurgundian princess Clotilde, that if he won his next battle, hewould convert to Christianity. He won, and in 496 he wasbaptized in a church in the city of Reims, in the heart ofFrance’s Champagne region.