Champagne Flashcards
Champagne - Geography & Climate
Divided in 5 main zones: Montagne de Reims (plateau bw the Marne River & the city of Reims), Vallee de la Marne (40 miles along the Marne River), Cote des Blancs (south & southwest of Epernay), Cote de Sezanne (southwest of Cote des Blancs around the town of Sezanne), & Cote des Bar (isolated area in the Aube department).
Soils - Chalk & Limestone marl. Cote des Bar lies on top of Kimmeridgian marl. Kimmeridgian soil is also found in the Loire Valley & Burgundy.
Champagne - Grapes
White Grape - Chard
Red Grapes - Pinot Noir & Meuniet
Chard dominates the Cote de Sezanne & Cote des Blanc, Pinot Noir dominates the Cote des Bar, Valle de la Marne is heavily planted to Meunier, & Montagne de Reim is has plantings of all 3 - PN, Chard, & Meunier.
Champagne - What is a marc?
The tradition measurement for the quantity of grapes allowed in the press is known as a marc, which is equivalent to 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lbs).
Champagne - What are the two catergories for the total volume of juice extracted from pressing?
Cuvee - The majory of the juice (20.5 hectoliters) from the free run & first light pressings. Cuvee is rich in sugar & acid.
Taille - The juice from the next set of pressings & is lower in acid & sugar. It is used for demi-sec or extra dry (the extra sweetness will mask its coarser nature). The permitted volume is 5 hectoliters.
Rebeche - The third pressings which may be used to produce still wine or a vin de liqueur known as Ratafie de Champagne PGI, spirits, or vinegar
Sweetness Levels of Sparkling Wine
Brut nature, sans dosage, pas dose, dosage zero, brut sauvage = no sugar added, less than 3g/L, <0.3% sugar
Extra Brut = very dry, less than 6g/L, <0.6& sugar
Brut = dry, less than 12g/L, <1.2% sugar
Extra dry/Extra sec = off dry, 12-17g/L, 1.2-1.7% sugar
Sec = slightly sweet, 17-32g/L, 1.7-3.2% sugar
Demi-sec = sweet, 32-50g/L, 3.2-5.0% sugar
Doux = very sweet, more than 50g/L, >5.0% sugar
Champagne Classification
The wines of Champagne do not have a classification scheme, but the villages do. Known as the echelle des crus, it rates each village on the quality of its grapes. Max score is 100 & classified as grand crus. There are 17 grand crus. Premier crus range from 90-99% are there are 42 premier cru villages.
Champagne Appellations
The Champagne AOC is the only appellation approved for sparkling wines in this region.
The still (tranquille) wines of the area are produced under 2 separate AOCs. The Coteaux Champenois AOC covers most of the region & used for white, red, & rose wines from the grapes allowing in Champagne AOC. Les Ricey AOC covers rose wines from 100% Pinot Noir.
