Aging Requirements, Allowed Grapes, and Wine Law Flashcards
What are the aging requirements for Champagne and Vintage Champagne?
Champagne NV: 12 months on the lees, 15 months total.
Vintage Champagne: 12 months on the lees, 36 months total.
What is the minimum alcohol for a champagne base wine?
9%
What % of a vintage champagne must be from the stated vintage?
100%
What are the allowable grapes in Champagne AOP?
Pinot Noir Chardonnay Meunier Pinot Blanc Pinot Gris Arbane Petit Meslier
Current Sweetness levels for Champagne?
Brut Nature* 0-3 grams per liter Extra Brut 0-6 grams per liter Brut 0-12 grams per liter Extra Dry 12-17 grams per liter Sec 17-32 grams per liter Demi-Sec 32-50 grams per liter Doux 50+ grams per liter
*Brut Nature wines may not contain any added dosage. Equivalent terms include Non-Dosé, Brut Sauvage, Ultra Brut, Dosage Zéro, Sans Sucre, Pas Dosé.
What is the CIVC?
Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC)
The regulatory body responsible for mediating relations between growers and producers, oversees the production methods and promotion of Champagne
Regulates:
- Size of harvests
- blocage and deblocage (reserve and release of wine stocks for use in future vintages)
- until 1990, set the price of grapes through Échelle de Crus. Today they recommend rather than regulate pricing. In the early 2000s, the system was abolished, but the villages retain their titles.
What is Échelle de Crus?
A percentile system by which the villages, or crus, of the Champagne appellation are rated.
Villages that achieved the maximum échelle (“scale”) of 100 were classified as grands crus;
Villages that achieved an échelle of 90 through 99 were classified as premier cru.
Villages with a rating below 90 were simply crus.
What are the 7 types of champagne producers set by the CIVC?
NM (Négociant Manipulant): A house that purchases grapes and or base wines from growers and other smaller houses. Some NM houses own a significant portion of their own vineyards; others own none at all.
RM (Récoltant Manipulant): A grower-producer who makes Champagne from estate-grown fruit. 95% of the grapes must originate in the producer’s own vineyards. CM (Coopérative Manipulant): A growers’ co-operative that produces the wine under a single brand. RC (Récoltant Coopérateur): A grower whose grapes are vinified at a co-operative, but whose wines are sold under the grower's own label SR (Société de Récoltants): A firm, not a co-operative, set up by a union of often related growers, who share resources to make their wines and collectively market several brands. ND (Négociant Distributeur): A middleman company that distributes Champagne it did not make. MA (Marque d’Acheteur): A buyer’s own brand, often a large supermarket chain or restaurant, that purchases Champagne and sells it under its own label.
What is the only AOP in France that allows a rose to be produced by blending red and white wine?
Champagne AOP
What is the only AOC/AOP that does not need to include Appellation Contrôlée (or Protégée) on the label?
Champagne AOP
What are the Principle Grapes in Pineau des Charentes AOP?
Vin de Liqueur Blanc:
Ugni Blanc
Folle Banche
Colombard
Vin de Liqueur Rose & Red: Cabernet Franc Cab Sauv Malbec Merlot
Is Chaptalization allowed in Pineau des Charentes AOP?
No
Aging for Pineau des Charentes?
Vin de Liqueur Blanc: may not be released until April 1 of the second year following the harvest, including at least twelve months in oak
Vin de Liqueur Rosé/Red: may not be released until October 1 of the year following the harvest, including at least eight months in oak
Pineau des Charentes Aging designations?
Old: 5 years in oak
Very Old/Extra Old: 10 years in oak
Noble Grapes of Alsace?
Riesling
Pinot Gris
Muscat
Gewurztraminer
