Champagne

Question 1

Annual Production

Answer 1

32 million cases or about 18% of the world’s sparkling wine production.

Question 2

5 zones

Answer 2

Montange de Reims - mostly Chardonnay, Pinot Noir
Vallée de la Marne - Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier
Cote des Blancs, - mostly Chardonnay
Cote Sezanne - Chardonnay
Cote des Bar - Pinot Noir,

Question 3

Soil type

Answer 3

Limestone subsoil rich in chalk - Cote des Bar - Kimmeridgian clay

Question 4

Grape varieties

Answer 4

7 grape varieties
Primary varieties - Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinto Meunier
Other varieties - Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meslier, Arbane

Question 5

Total Acreage

Answer 5

83,000 acres
Pinot Noir - 32,500
Pinot Meunier - 26,500
Chardonnay - 24,000

Question 6

Traditonal measurement for the quantity of grapes allowed in the press

Answer 6

Marc 4000 kilograms or 8,800 lbs

Question 7

Maximum HL per Marc

Answer 7

25.5 HL or 675 gallons

Question 8

Cuvée

Answer 8

20.5 HL free run and light first press juice. Used for premium Champagne production.

Question 9

Taille

Answer 9

5 HL juice from later pressings. Used for Demi sec and Extra dry production

Question 10

Rebeche

Answer 10

remaining juice residue not used in Champagne. Often sold to a distillery.

Question 11

Vintage Champagne

Answer 11

Only produced in best years
all wine form the same year
No Reserve wine
Aged a min. of 3 years

Question 12

Non-Vintage

Answer 12

House style, 3/4 of Chamagne production
May not be bottled until Jan. 1st the year after the harvest.
Once bottled stored underground for the secondary fermentation. Min 15 months maturing with at least 12 months on the lees

Question 13

Riddling

Answer 13

turning the bottles so the sediment settles in the neck

Question 14

Liqueur d’expédition

Answer 14

dosage to top off the bottle after its disgorged. Adjusts the level of sweetness;

Question 15

Levels of sweetness from dry to sweet

Answer 15

Brut nature
extra brut
brut
sec
demi sec
doux

Question 16

Prestige Cuvée or Tete du Cuvée

Answer 16

Top of the line - best grapes and techniques

Question 17

Blanc de blanc

Answer 17

Uses only white grapes

Question 18

Blanc de Noir

Answer 18

Only red grapes - primarily Pinot Noir but sometime Pinot Meunier

Question 19

Rose

Answer 19

Usually created by blending a small amount of red wine into the cuvée or liqueur d’expidition

Question 20

Champagne classification

Answer 20

Echelle des crus rating based on the quality of grapes
Grand Crus - score of 100 - 17 villages
Premieur Crus - score of 90-99 - 44
Crus - scores of 80 - 89 -296

Question 21

How many Champagne houses are there?

Answer 21

300

Question 22

RM

Answer 22

Recoltant Manipulant - growers that produce their own Champagne

Question 23

How many Champagne appellations are there?

Answer 23

3
Champagne AOC
Coteaux Champenois - Whiote, Red, or Rose still wine
Rose de Riceys - Still Rose wine made from Pinot Noir in the commune of Riceys in the far south of Champagne.

Question 24

History

Answer 24

Deliberate inter of bubbles started in the end of the 17th century - Christopher Merret created the glass bottle that could withstand the pressure and documented the second fermentation.

Question 25

Term used for the juice extracted from the free run and the first light pressings of grapes for Champagne

Answer 25

Cuvee

Question 26

Juice from the later pressings of grapes - generally used for demo-sec or extra-dry champagne

Answer 26

Taille

Question 27

Juice and residue from the last pressings of grapes in champagne production

Answer 27

Rebeche

Question 28

Minimum lees aging for champgne

Answer 28

12 months

Question 29

Minimum lees aging time for vintage champagne

Answer 29

3 years

Question 30

Classification system for the villages of Champagne

Answer 30

Echelle des crus

Question 31

Number of Grand cry villages

Answer 31

17

Question 32

RM

Answer 32

Recoltant Manipulant “grower that makes champagne”

Question 33

AOC for still pink wines located at the south end of the champagne region

Answer 33

Rose de Riceys

Question 34

AOC for still wines that covers most of the land within Champagne

Answer 34

Coteaux Champenois