Champagne Flashcards
Where is Champagne?
it’s located in northeast of France, about 145km east of Paris. It center around cities like Reims and Épernay. Also the only place in the world where sparkling wine can legally be called champagne
What is the climate here?
Cool continental
What are the soils you can found here?
Belemnite Chalk (Montagne de Reims, Cotes des Blancs, Vallee de la Marne) and Micraster Chalk (lower slopes, Côte des Bar)
mostly chalky soils, with limestone, marl, sand and clay
What are the permitted grapes?
8 grapes are permitted:
- Chardonnay
- Pinot Noir
- Pinot Meunier
- Pinot Blanc
- Pinot Gris
- Arbane
- Petit Meslier
- Voltis (5% only)
discontinued grapes: Pinot de Juillet and Pinot Rose (2010), Gamay (1962)
How many AOPs in Champagne? And what are them?
3 AOPs:
- Champagne AOP
- Coteaux Champenois AOP
- Rosé de Riceys AOP
What are the permitted training methods in Champagne?
4 types:
- Chablis
- Cordon Royat
- Valle de la Marne (Meunier only)
- Guyot (simple or double)
What are the aging of Champagne AOP?
NV: min 15 months from date of tirage (12 months on lees)
Vintage: min 36 months from date of tirage (12 months on lees)
What are the sub-regions in Champagne?
•Montagne de Reims
•Côte des Blancs
•Valle de la Marne
•Côte des Bar
What are the sweetness level classifications for Champagne?
•Brut Nature 0-3g/L
•Extra-Brut 0-6g/L
•Brut 0-12g/L
•Extra-Dry 12-17g/L
•Sec 17-32 g/L
•Demi-Sec 32-50 g/L
•Doux 50+ g/L
Brut Nature wines may not contain any added dosage, equivalent Non-Dosé, Brut Sauvage, Dosage Zéro, Ultra Brut
What are the grand crus in Montagne de Reims?
10 grand crus:
- Sillery
- Puisieulx
- Beaumont-Sur-Vesle
- Verzenay
- Mailly-Champagne
- Verzy
- Louvois
- Bouzy
- Ambonnay
- Tours-sur-Marne
What are the grand crus in Vallée de la Marne?
1 grand cru only:
- Aÿ
What are the grand crus in Côte des Blancs?
6 grand crus:
- Chouilly
- Oiry
- Cramant
- Avize
- Oger
- Le Mesnil-sur-Oger
What are some of the prestige cuvées?
What are the champagne producer codes?
•NM - Négociant-Manipulant (big house buy grapes/wines and make champagne under their name
•RM - Récoltant-Manipulant (grower producers, grow their own grapes and make their own champagne)
•CM - Coopérative de Manipulation (cooperative where multiple growers pool their grapes and produce champagne under shared label)
•RC - Récoltant-Coopérateur (a grower who belongs to a co-op but sells Champagne under their own private label, made by the co-op)
•SR - Société de Récoltants (a family group (usually siblings) who share grapes and produce Champagne together under one label)
•ND - Négociant-Distributeur (a distributor or merchant who buys finished Champagne and simply labels and sells it — doesn’t make it)
•MA - Marque d’Acheteur (a “buyer’s brand” — often a private label made for a supermarket, hotel, or restaurant chain)
