A World Without Champagne?

For them, keeping a stock of bottles is "even better than saving money at the bank," said Lorson, "because they don't pay taxes on their bottles." It would be extremely difficult to estimate how many bottles small producers have in stock, said Lorson, but it is probably in the tens of millions.

Pierre Cheval, producer of Champagne Gatinois, estimated that as many as 100 million bottles are being kept in stock. He admits that he keeps a stock of champagne "for safety, in case of bad harvest."

And there's more bad news: the less bottles on the market, the higher the price of this already pricey favorite. "Champagne prices have already started to rise," said Asselineau.

But the demand keeps growing, especially in the emerging markets. In India, Brazil, China and Russia, champagne is considered a luxury good, said Lorson, and consumers in those countries are willing to pay more for a bottle, up to the equivalent of $40 dollars for an initial price.

There are also fears among French producers that consumers who can't find champagne may buy bubbly from other countries instead. "In the U.K., more and more people are buying the Italian fizzy Prosecco and bubbly from New Zealand," said Asselineau.

Two billion bottles of bubbly were sold last year, and only 15 percent of them were French champagne, according to Lorson. "There are bubbly producers outside of France who just can't wait to get market shares," said Asselineau.

"The threat is real," said Pierre Cheval producer of Champagne Gatinois. "We can't prevent people from getting their bubbly somewhere else. But our job is to make sure that champagne stays on top of the heap."