About Champagne

Champagne refers specifically to a sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region of France, which is from where it gets it’s name.

As with many products produced in a specific region, champagne must actually come from this part of France, other wines produced in exactly the same way but from other regions are referred to simply as sparkling wines – the difference is simply where they were produced.

The extremely fizzy or bubbly (which is of course another name for champagne) characteristic is caused by a second fermentation of the wine which occurs in the bottle, called carbonation, which occurs becasue of the addition of yeast & sugar after the initial fermentation, and after bottling.

Champagne is generally associated with luxury, affluence, wealth, & success, mainly through it’s marketing, but also through it’s romantic historical ties to nobility.

There are three main grapes that are used to create Champagne which include the Pinot Noir, the Pinot Meunier, and the Chardonnay.

The Pinot Noir is a blue/reddish grape and provides champagne with strength, finesse, and spiciness.

The Pinot Meunier is a blue/reddish grape and provides champagne with character and ripeness.

The Chardonnay is a white/greenish grape and provides champagne with elegance and lightness.

Wine created that does not have bubbles are known as still wines and are very important in the creation of Champagne as many Champagne houses will use a variety of still wines made from several different grapes across many vineyards to create their champagne.

The main reason Champagne houses use more than one vineyard is that relying on one or just two vineyards can be devastating if they do not produce a good crop.

The majority of champagnes are white and even though two of the most popular grapes used to create champagne are black, the juice and pulp of these grapes is white.

The method used to obtain the white juice is to gently press the juice from the skins of the black grapes before they have time to impart any of the color. Most champagnes are created using all three varieties of grapes normally with a combination close to Chardonnay 49 percent, Pinot Noir 49 percent, and the rest Pinot Meunier.

Once all the wines are chosen, the cellar master of the Champagne House will make the decision on how the wines will be blended, and then the Méthode Champenoise will be performed.

The Méthode Champenoise is created in the following fashion only a much larger scale.

The bottle of still wines are chosen and blended to create the house style. The glass is thick so it can withstand the pressure that will be created during the process.

Next, liqueur de triage, a solution of sugar and yeast, is added to the wine, then the bottle will be sealed.

The waiting game is next; the yeast must ferment the sugar that was added which creates more alcohol and more carbon dioxide. This gas that is being produced cannot escape the sealed bottle and is being held under pressure it will begin to dissolve into the wine.

This is where those tickly bubbles come from.

Now, the wine is left alone for a specific amount of time up to many years. The dead yeast cells will pass on richness to the wine. The bottle of wine should be turned and tapped every once in awhile so that in the end the bottle will be facing with the neck down known as remuage, which puts the dead yeast cells in the neck of the bottle.

The neck of the bottle is now dipped into freezing brine to make a frozen plug in the neck of the bottle holding the dead yeast cells. The cap when opened will release the lees and the plug in a process called degorgement. The last step is sealing with a cork, wire capsule, and foil.

Now, the champagne is ready to be sent to market.