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Certified Sommelier Exam (CMS 2) > Champagne > Flashcards

Champagne Flashcards

1
Q

Champagne vintages:
2013 - 2015

A
  • 2013 - cool spring, summer hail, later than normal harvest; vintage releases show good tension
  • 2014 - warm September saved the harvest
  • 2015 - driest growing season on record; richness characterizes the vintage
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2
Q

Champagne vintages:
2016 - 2019

A
  • 2016 - above average quality despite frost and hail; Pinot Noir performed better than Chardonnay generally
  • 2017 - tricky conditions with a warm, humid autumn; Chardonnay performed better than Pinot Noir
  • 2018 - bumper crop, generous ripeness, though lower than normal acidity
  • 2019 - dry and hot, but acidity levels were higher than 2018
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3
Q

Champagne vintages:
2020 - 2022

A
  • 2020 - damp spring followed by summer heatwaves
  • 2021 - challenging (rainy, April frost decreased crop size about 20%)
  • 2022 - warm, but wines show freshness
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4
Q

Name 7 iconic Champagne producers in Côte des Blancs.

A
  1. Agrapart et Fils
  2. Diebolt-Vallois
  3. Larmandier-Bernier
  4. Pierre Moncuit
  5. Pierre Péters
  6. Salon
  7. Jacques Selosse
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5
Q

Name 5 iconic Champagne producers in Vallée de la Marne.

A
  1. Billecart-Salmon
  2. Bollinger
  3. Dom Pérignon
  4. Philipponnat
  5. Pol Roger
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6
Q

Name 12 iconic Champagne producers in Montagne de Reims.

A
  1. Emmanuel Brochet
  2. Charles Heidsieck
  3. Krug
  4. Benoît Lahaye
  5. David Léclapart
  6. Marie-Noëlle Ledru
  7. Bruno Paillard
  8. Jérôme Prévost
  9. Louis Roederer
  10. Taittinger
  11. Veuve Clicquot
  12. Vilmart et Cie
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7
Q

Name 5 Champagne producers in the Côte des Bar.

A
  1. Vouette & Sorbée
  2. Roses de Jeanne (Cédric Bouchard)
  3. Marie-Courtin
  4. Pierre Gerbais
  5. Nathalie Falmet
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8
Q

Food pairings for Blanc de Blancs champagne.

A
  • Caviar
  • Oysters
  • Smoked fish
  • Fried foods
  • White truffles
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9
Q

Food pairings for Blanc de Noirs champagne.

A
  • Quiche/frittata/egg dishes
  • Salmon
  • Sushi
  • Shellfish
  • Roasted chicken
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10
Q

Food pairings for Demi-Sec champagne.

A
  • Fresh fruit
  • Light desserts
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11
Q

Food pairings for rosé champagne (Brut).

A
  • Duck
  • Lamb
  • Salmon (grilled or smoked)
  • Tomatoes
  • Tuna
  • Cherries
  • Beef carpaccio
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12
Q

On what parallel is the region of Champagne located?

A

49th parallel

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13
Q

What is the general climate of the Champagne region?

A

Cool continental

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14
Q

The region of Champagne does or does not have protection from Atlantic influence?

A

Does NOT have protection from Atlantic influence.

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15
Q

As the region of Champagne has no protection from Atlantic influence, how does weather affect the region?

A

Unpredictable weather with rain, frost, and hail threats.

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16
Q

The region of Montagne de Reims is named after the Grand Montagne, which is more elevated plateau than a real mountain.

  • What is the Grand Montagne’s elevation?
  • Quickly describe it.
A
  • 298m asl at its highest point
  • Covered by a lush, dense forest on top with vineyards planted on the north, northeast, east, and southeast side of the plateau.
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17
Q

The Marne River flows through the Vallée de la Marne.

On which bank are most of the vineyards planted?

A

The right bank (northern side of the river) which faces south/southeast.

A lot of Pinot Meunier is planted in the Vallée de la Marne.

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18
Q

What are the 2 main soil types found in the region of Champagne?

A
  1. Limestone
  2. Chalk
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19
Q

Select the correct answer.

In the region of Champagne:

a. Grapes are picked earlier to preserve natural acidity.
b. Grapes are picked later to preserve natural acidity.
c. Grapes are picked later to preserve botrytis.

A

a. Grapes are picked earlier to preserve natural acidity.

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20
Q

Briefly list the 7 steps of méthode champenoise.

A
  1. Still wine is made
  2. Assemblage of cuvée
  3. Bubbles are created using liqueur de tirage
  4. Sur lie aging - Autolysis
  5. Riddling (rémuage) using pupitre or gyropalette
  6. Disgorging (dégorgement)
  7. Dosage added using liqueur d’expédition
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21
Q
  • What are the contents of liqueur de tirage?
  • What does it do?
A
  • A mixture of still wine, yeasts, sugar, and fining agents.
  • Serve to ignite the second fermentation.
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22
Q

What are the contents of liqueur d’expédition (aka dosage) and how does it affect the style of the wine?

A
  • A liquid mixture of sugar syrup and wine.
  • The amount of sugar in the liqueur d’expédition (dosage) is determined by the desired style of the wine.
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23
Q

List the 3 main grape varieties planted in the Champagne region and approximately how much of each is planted.

A
  1. Pinot Noir - 38%
  2. Pinot Meunier - 32%
  3. Chardonnay - 30%
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24
Q

What is the AOP for the region of Champagne?

A

Champagne AOP

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25
Q

What are the 5 subregions of the Champagne AOP?

A
  1. Montagne de Reims
  2. Vallée de la Marne
  3. Côte des Blancs
  4. Côte des Bar
  5. Côte de Sézanne
26
Q

What are the aging requirements for NV champagne?

A
  • 12 month on lees
  • Min. 15 months total aging
27
Q

What are the aging requirements for Vintage champagne?

A

Min. 36 months total aging.

100% of the blend must come from the stated vintage.

28
Q

Select the correct answer.

In the region of Champagne, Cru status is awarded to:

a. entire villages in Champagne, rather than individual vineyards or properties.
b. single vineyards only, like Burgundy.
c. only to properites, like Bordeaux.

A

a. Entire villages in Champagne, rather than individual vineyards or properties.

29
Q

What is the CIVC?

Be able to say what each letter stands for.

A

Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne

  • The regulatory body responsible for mediating relations between growers and producers. It oversees the production methods and promotion of Champagne.
  • It regulates the size of harvests, authorizes blocage and deblocage—respectively the reserve and release of wine stocks for use in future vintages—and safeguards the protected designation of Champagne.

Today, the CIVC recommends, rather than regulates pricing, and supervises the exchange between growers and Champagne houses in order to promote fairness.

30
Q

What was the Échelle des Crus in Champagne; and what did it leave behind?

A
  • It was a percentile system by which the villages, or crus, of the Champagne appellation were 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 between 80-90 were simply crus.
  • Until 1990, a village’s échelle rating represented the set percentage of price that a grower could receive for fruit. Thus, growers in grand cru villages would receive the full price set by the CIVC, and other villages would receive a percentage equivalent to their échelle rating.
  • In the early 2000s, the CIVC abolished the system entirely, but the premier and grand cru villages retain their titles, and producers may continue to label wines from these villages as such.
31
Q

Define and describe Blanc de Blancs champagne.

A
  • Only white grapes are permitted, but they are not always sourced from the Côte des Blancs.
  • They may be vintage-dated or NV.
  • The Blanc de Blancs category represents some of Champagne’s most ageworthy bottlings – while austere and often steely in youth, better examples develop an intense bouquet with maturity.
32
Q

Define and describe Blanc de Noirs champagne.

A
  • White wine produced solely from black grapes.
  • The wine usually displays richness, intensity, and weight, although it can lack the supreme elegance and finesse of Blanc de Blancs.
33
Q
  • Define and describe Spéciale Club Prestige Cuvée champagne.
  • When did the concept originate?
A
  • The “Special Club” concept originated in 1971, with a dozen grower-producers.
  • Lacking the marketing budgets of larger houses, these producers banded together to promote their prestige cuvées through identical packaging.
  • Special Club bottlings are estate-bottled, vintage-dated wines that represent the pinnacle of each individual grower’s style and production.
  • Special Club bottles and labels share identical design.
34
Q

What is Spécial Club also known as?

A

Club Trésors de Champagne

35
Q
  • How many members are there in the Spécial Club?
  • Name 5.
A
  • 24
  • Members:
    1. Paul Bara
    2. Gaston Chiquet
    3. Marc Hébrart
    4. J. Lassalle
    5. A. Margaine
36
Q

Define an RM (Récoltant Manipulant) champagne.

A

A grower-producer who makes Champagne from estate-grown fruit.

These are aka ‘Grower’ champagnes.

95% of the grapes must originate in the producer’s own vineyards.

37
Q

Define an NM (Négociant Manipulant) champagne.

A

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.

Large Champagne houses with the most international presence are invariably in this category. Examples include Moët et Chandon, Louis Roederer, Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Billecart-Salmon.

38
Q

Name 3 champagne houses that fall under the umbrella of the luxury conglomerate LVMH.

A
  1. Moët et Chandon
  2. Krug
  3. Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin
39
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Brut level champagnes?

A

0-12 grams per liter

40
Q

Define and describe Cuvée de Prestige/Tête de Cuvée in champagne.

A

Usually the finest and most expensive bottling that a house offers, the prestige cuvée is typically (but not always) vintage-dated and aged for a number of years prior to release.

Prestige Cuvées are usually only released in superior vintages, and may undergo more traditional vinification procedures, such as barrel fermentation, riddling by hand, and cork-finishing during the second fermentation.

Many of the large houses produce prestige cuvées from their own vineyards—even single vineyards in exceptional cases.

Prestige cuvées may be Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs or rosé in style.

Not all houses produce a prestige cuvée, and some produce several.

41
Q

Give 3 examples of Prestige Cuvée (Tête de Cuvée) in champagne.

A
  1. Pol Roger “Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill”
  2. Louis Roederer “Cristal”
  3. Moët et Chandon “Dom Pérignon”
42
Q

What does the term “Grande Marque” mean in Champagne?

A

This term (‘Great Brand’) refers to the great and famous merchant houses in Champagne.

They represent international brand awareness, infallible reputation and unyielding customer loyalty.

‘Grand Marque’ is not in any way an official classification.

43
Q
  • How many Grandes Marques are there in Champagne?
  • Name 3.
A
  • 24
  • Names:
    1. Ayala
    2. Salon
    3. Veuve Clicquot
44
Q

Define and describe Rosé champagne.

A
  • Can be made Vintage, NV, and prestige cuvées.
  • The traditional saignée method, in which the wine gains its hue through extended skin contact, is less common than blending.
  • Champagne is the only AOP in France that allows a rosé to be produced by blending red and white wine.
  • A rosé prestige cuvée, a novelty in years past, is usually the most expensive and rare product a house offers.
45
Q

Define and describe NV champagne.

A
  • Generally brut in style, the NV cuvée represents a house’s signature style.
  • The blender’s job is to ensure its consistency from year to year.
  • Non-vintage Champagne makes up at least 3/4 of the market.
46
Q

What is the Préstige Cuvée for the Grande Marque Moët et Chandon?

A

Dom Pérignon

47
Q

What is the Préstige Cuvée for the Grande Marque Roederer?

A

Cristal

48
Q

What is the Préstige Cuvée for the Grande Marque Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin?

A

La Grande Dame

49
Q

What is the Préstige Cuvée for the Grande Marque Taittinger?

A

Comtes de Champagne

50
Q

What are the Préstige Cuvées for the Grande Marque Charles Heidsieck?

A
  1. Champagne Charlie
  2. Blanc des Millénaires
51
Q

What are the Préstige Cuvées for the Grande Marque Krug?

A
  • Clos du Mesnil (100% chardonnay)
  • Clos d’Ambonnay (100% pinot noir)
52
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Brut Nature level champagnes?

A

0-3 grams per liter, no added dosage

53
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Extra Brut level champagnes?

A

0-6 grams per liter

54
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Extra Dry level champagnes?

A

12-17 grams per liter

55
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Sec level champagnes?

A

17-32 grams per liter

56
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Demi-Sec level champagnes?

A

32-50 grams per liter

57
Q

In g/L, how much residual sugar is permitted for Doux level champagnes?

A

50+ grams per liter

58
Q

Champagne vintages:
2008 - 2012

A
  • 2008 - regarded as a standout vintage (until 2012 came along)
  • 2009 - superb summer made plump wines
  • 2010 - dry conditions followed by wet August, so sorting was crucial
  • 2011 - erratic and problematic - started warm and dry but then became cooler and wetter in June and July
  • 2012 - exceptional vintage despite low yields due to frost
59
Q

Who and which house pioneered the process of remuage, or riddling?

A

Madame Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, the Veuve (“widow”) Clicquot

Riddling is the procedure that allows sediment to be easily removed from a bottle during dégorgement (disgorgement).

60
Q

What is the automated device that replaces hand riddling?

A

Gyropalette

61
Q

How many bottles does a gyropalette hold?

A

504

Certified Sommelier Exam (CMS 2) (49 decks)

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