GORDON BROWN may be fretting about the economy but in the City they are breaking open the champagne. Very big bottles of it.

Workers flush with bonuses have been snapping up the bubbly, and in the capital stocks of the larger bottles are almost dry. A rush on jeroboams (the equivalent of four standard bottles) has been reported at some clubs, while in wine bars sales of magnums (two bottles) have been huge.

At the fashionable Umbaba nightclub, a venue in Soho favoured by the VIP crowd from Prince Harry and his friends to Ms Dynamite, 14 jeroboams were sold on Saturday, each with a price tag of £3,500.

A club spokesman said: “At this time of the year when City bonuses are paid out there is always a rush on champagne but this year has been amazing. A lot of City boys have just been leaving their credit cards behind the bar and the orders have not stopped.”

Dom Perignon is a favourite brand but all the top makes are doing well. At Corney & Barrow, which runs 12 wine bars in the City, sales of champagne magnums are up 40 per cent. A spokesman said: “Sales are definitely on the increase this year and the main seller is the magnum of Veuve Clicquot at £95.”

Jeroboams have also been cracked open, with £195 bottles of Louis Roederer emerging as the bestseller.

The average City worker was in line to get a £23,000 bonus this year, though some senior figures walked off with more than £1 million from the leading finance houses.

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