Champagne Flashcards
NM bottler code
Negociant Manipulant. Champagne House. May or may not own vineyards. i.e. Krug
RM bottler code
Recoltant Manipulant. Grower-producer. Min 95% of fruit from their own vineyards. i.e. Marc Herbart
CM bottler code
Cooperative Manipulant. Grower’s Coop. Single branded. i.e. Nicolas-Feuillatte
RC bottler code
Recoltant Cooperateur. Growers own brand, bottled at a coop.
SR bottler code
Societe de Recoltants. A firm of often related growers, may market several different brands
ND bottler code
Negociant Distributeur. A middleman co. that sells wine it did not make
MA bottler code
Marquee d’Acheteur. Buyer’s own brand, usually a large supermarket brand. i.e. Kirkland, Trader Joe’s
List the sweetness levels of Champagne from driest to sweetest and their respective RS
Brut Nature/Non-Dose: 0-3 g/l (no added dosage) Extra Brut: 0-6 g/l Brut: 0-12 g/l Extra Dry: 12-17 g/l Sec: 17-32 g/l Demi-Sec: 32-50 g/l Doux: > 50 g/l
The grapes of Champagne
Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Meunier, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Arbane, Petit Meslier
Departments included in the Champagne AOC
Marne, Aube, Aisne, Seine-et-Marne, Haut-Marne
Vintage dated Champagne requirements and elevage
Grapes 100% from stated vintage (except liquer de tirage and liquer d’expedition). Max 80% of a year’s harvest may be sold as Vintage wine. Elevage: min 36 mnths from date of tirage.
NV Champagne elevage
15 mnths from date of tirage. Wines may not be disgorged until at least 12 months after the date of tirage
Max pressing yield for Champagne AOC
102 liters/160 kg (2,550 liters from 4,000 kg). 1st 2050 L is vin de cuvee, 2nd 500 L is vin de taille (sold off or added is small proportion for structure) Additional pressed juice is rebêche, or the “end of pressing”, and must account for 0-10% of the total. This may only be used for distillation.)
vin clairs
Champagne terminology. High acid base wine, the result of primary fermentation, ~ 11% abv. Often chaptilized prior to fermentation, which may occur in SS or oak (typically used, some use a % of new oak). Often undergoes malo though not universally. Generally clarified through fining, filtering , or centrifuge. Typically remains in tank or barrel (rarely bottle) until Feb or March
vin de cuvee
In Champagne production, The first 2050 liters of juice pressed from 4000 kg of grapes, considered highest quality
vin de taille
In Champagne production, A 2nd pressing of the following 500 liters of juice pressed after the first 2050 liters of vin de cuvee is separated from 4000 kg of grapes. Usually richer in pigment and tannin but lower in acidity, many producers sell off this lesser component of the must or include it in a minor proportion as a structural element in a blend
rebeche
In Champagne production, A third, final pressing of grapes required by law after the vin de cuvee and vin de taille. Must comprise 1-10% of the total. Used for distillate, not Champagne
debourbage
In Champagne production, The settling of pressed juice in order to remove solids via racking before fermentation. Occurs at a cool temp for 8-15 hours
bourbes
In Champagne production, Solids such as skins and pips removed through debourbage and racking prior to juice fermentation
assemblage
In champagne production, The blending of base wines, often from various grapes, vineyard sites and vintages, used to achieve a consistent house style from year to year
liqueur de tirage
In Champagne production, A mixture of still wine, yeasts, sugar, and fining agents. Ignites the secondary fermentation. As a general rule, four grams of sugar per liter of wine will produce one atmosphere of pressure; the standard measurement in champagne is 24 grams of sugar, which produces roughly six atmospheres, although a little may be lost at disgorgement.
tirage
In Champagne production, The act of bottling. Customary to refer to non-vintage wines by the year of bottling rather than the year of harvest. For example, “tirage 2005” means that the wine was bottled in 2005, and the base vintage is most likely 2004. May not occur until Jan 1, year after harvest
liqueur d’expedition
In Champagne production. Aka Dosage. The blend of sugar and wine added to champagne just after disgorgement. Either cane or beet sugar is normally used, and the wine can be young or old, depending on the producer’s preference
Champgane AOC established
1936
Number of villages, 1er, and GC in Champagne
357 villages, 42 1er cru, 17 GC
prise de mousse
In Champagne production, Secondary fermentation. Takes up to eight weeks for the yeast to convert the added sugar to alcohol & Carbon Dioxide. The abv rises ~ 1.2-1.3%, and the carbon dioxide creates a pressure inside the bottle of five to six atmospheres
bidule
Champagne production, a plastic capsule that will serve to capture the sediment during remuage
sur latte
Champagne production, The storing of bottles stacked on their sides, which is the most space-efficient method of storing champagne in the cellar. This is the way that champagnes are stored during the second fermentation and aging in the bottle, before they are put into riddling racks to prepare them for disgorgement
degorgement
In Champagne production, Disgorgement. The process of removing the yeast sediments after fermentation and aging in bottle. The sediment must be collected in the neck of the bottle through riddling, whether manually or through the use of a gyropalette. Typically, the bottle of the neck is then frozen to collect the sediment into a solid mass, and then this mass is ejected when the capsule is removed. Some growers, however, still disgorge bottles without using the freezing technique.
pointage
In Champagne production, Also called poignetage. The act of shaking the bottles during lees aging, to put the lees in suspension and prevent them from sticking to the sides of the glass.Newer strains of yeast generally preclude the need forpointage, and most houses have abandoned the practice. It can also be done after disgorgement, to more evenly distribute theliqueur d’expédition
remuage
In Champagne production, Riddling. A complex process involving both the turning and tilting of bottles in a pupitre, to collect the sediment at the neck of the bottle in preparation for disgorgement. Antoine de Müller, cellarmaster for Veuve Clicquot in the early 19th century, is credited with inventing the riddling rack in 1816.
pupitre
In Champagne prodcution, An upright rack used for hand riddling. Two large wooden planks fastened together in an upright “A” shape, with 60 angled holes cut into each plank of wood. Aremuerwould fractionally turn and tilt each bottle over a period of about eight weeks, slowly inverting the bottles with the neck pointing downward
remuer
In Champagne production, a riddler
gyropalette
In Champagne production, A mechanical device used in place of riddling, to collect the yeast sediments in the neck of the bottle in preparation for disgorgement. Holds 504 bottles. Invented in SpainGyropaletteshave made this process much faster, a week or less, with no resulting loss in quality. Almost all champagne producers, large and small, use gyropalettes today, although some still riddle bottles by hand, either to preserve tradition or to accomodate oddly-shaped bottles that don’t stack neatly in the cage of a gyropalette.
sur pointe
In Champgane production, The storing of bottles upside down, on their necks. Bottles are held this way after riddling, while waiting to be disgorged, and are usually put into crates or cages to hold them in place. This method may also be used for the long-term storage of undisgorged bottles that still contain sediment, to concentrate the sediment in the neck so that the lees have a minimal continuing effect on the wine. Some say that wine keeps better when left undisgorged and stored this way, staying fresher for a longer period of time. Others prefer to disgorge wines normally before long-term storage. In order to drink a bottle that is stored sur pointe, it must first be manually disgorged, in a process called disgorgement à la volée.
RD
In Champagne production, Récemment Dégorgé, designation used by Bollinger and others to signify a bottling that has been stored sur pointe for a number of years and is only disgorged upon order
traditional Champagne press
A basket press, Coquard is the most common producer., holds a marc (4000 kg) of grapes
degorgement a la glace
In Champagne production, The modern method of disgorgement which involves dipping the neck of bottle in a freezing brine solution. The bottle can then be turned upright. The force of internal pressure will expel the semi-frozen sediment (and a small portion of wine) as the crown cap is removed
degorgement a la volee
In Champagne production, An older method of disgorement by hand utilizing the same principle as a la glace, however, without freezing the sediment excess wine is invariably lost along with it. Required method for wines stored sur pointe with a cork instead of a bidule
transvasage
In Champagne production, the transfer method. remuage is unnecessary, as the wine is disgorged into a pressurized tank and filtered. Dosage is added, and the wine is transferred to a clean bottle under pressure. Only allowed for 187 mL and 4.5 L (Rehoboam) and larger
blocage
In Champagne production, the reserving of wine stocks for future use. Regulated by the CIVC
deblocage
In Champagne production, the releasing of reserved wine stocks for current use. Regulated by the CIVC
autolysis
The chemical reactions caused by the breaking down of yeast cells through an enzymatic process, which occurs when a wine is left in contact with the lees over a long period of time. Autolysis is one of the fundamental processes in the making of champagne, as it imparts particular types of flavor complexity and textural finesse that can be achieved in no other way, and this is one of the main reasons for champagne’s long aging on the lees in bottle after the second fermentation
chef de cave
Head winemaker in Champagne
echelle des crus
The old system of vineyard classification in Champagne. Every winegrowing village was assigned a %, indicating the % of the standard price it would receive for it’s grapes. 100% = GC, 90-99% = 1er cru. CIVC stopped setting prices in 1990 and abolished the system altogether in 2000, however villages may still use their 1er cru and GC status on labels
Champagne permitted training systems
Cordon de Royat, Chablis, Vallée de la Marne, and Guyot (double and simple
Champagne Soils
Slopes: Belemnite Chalk is pushed to the surface. derived from the fossilized remains of millions of extinct cephalopods. Porous, heat retaining, well draining high limestone content allows roots to dig deeply and leads to high acidity
Valley: A layer of Micraster chalk, from fossilized sea urchins, over the Belemnite
The Aube: Clay dominates
A thin layer of clay and sand covers much of the chalk in Champagne
Champagne climate
along the 48th parallel. With a mean annual temperature of only 50°F, ripening is extremely variable, and quality can differ greatly from year to year, requiring the houses of Champagne to blend between vintages to achieve a consistency in their house styles. Frost, rain, fungal disease and hail are serious concerns for growers in the cold, Atlantic-influenced climate. Rain often interrupts flowering, resulting in a bouvreux, or second crop, that rarely ripens and is left on the vine
Champagne bottle sizes
Quarter Bottle (Piccolo) 187 ml Half Bottle (Demi) 375 ml Bottle 750 ml Magnum 1.5 L (2 bottles) Jeroboam 3 L (4 bottles) Rehoboam (discontinued in 1989) 4.5 L (6 bottles) Methuselah 6 L (8 bottles) Salmanazar 9 L (12 bottles) Balthazar 12 L (16 bottles) Nebuchadnezzar 15 L (20 bottles) Solomon 18 L (24 bottles)
Piccolo
Champagne quarter bottle, 187 mL
Demi Champgne bottle size
Half bottle, 375 mL
