Champagne Flashcards
What are the 3 AOC’s in Champagne and what do they produce?
- AOC Rosé de Riceys = 100% rosé (from PN)
- AOC Coteaux Champenois = 100% still
- AOC Champagne = 100% sparkling (PN, PM, Chard)
Champenois and Champage AOCs cover the same area and use the same grapes
What is the difference between wet and dry champagne?
Wet Champagne:
- Limestone-rich marls of Côte des Bar
- Subsoill isn’t pulling the moisture down from the topsoil
Dry Champagne:
- topsoil does not retain moisture,
- has chalk subsoil
- Open expanse due to the thinlayer of topsoil that couldn’t support higher plant life
- Chalk soil
What are the 3 primary soils found in Champagne?
- Belemnite chalk - upper/mid slope = preferred due to location:
- -found at the upper to mid slope, where there is more sun and better water retention - Micraster chalk
- Virgulien / Kimmeridgean marl - ring of limestone-rich marl
What is the climate in Champagne?
- Dual climate = strong continental; maritime influences
- Lies at the northern part of French viticulture
- 49°-49.5° parallel north
- Receives around 1600 sunshine hours
- continental influence winters: cold
- maritime influence spring/autumn: frosts
- fairly proportionate rainfall
How did the emergence of Champagne come about?
- In the middle ages trade fairs would take place 2x a year in Champs
- was a crossroads for trade
- Wealthy textile barons would gift sp wine
- Whe the customers were more of the wine than the textiles, those w/ foresight changed production
Why is Champagne associated with Royalty and wealth?
- For 600 years, 27 French kings were crowned at the cathedral in Reims
What is the difference between the rural/ancestral method vs. the Champagne method?
Rural / Ancestral:
- represented ONE alcoholic fermentation that underwent a winter pause
Champagne:
- involves TWO seperate and distinct alcoholic fermentations
What are the tradititonal vs modern grapes grown in Champagne?
Traditional:
- Gouais Noir
- Gouais Blanc
- Fromenteau
Modern:
- Pinot Noir (38%)
- the least amount of acidity and moderate alcohol - Pinot Meunier (34%)
- moderate acidity and the least amount of alcohol - Chardonnay (28%)
- contributes the most acidity and the most alcohol
What are the 4 principle sub-regions of Champagne?
What do they mainly grow?
- Montange & Val de Reims - Pinot Noir
- Vallée de la Marne - Pinot Meunier
- Côte des Blancs - Chardonnay
- Côte des Bars - Pinot Noir
What contributions did Dom Perignon Veuve Cliquot Madame Pommery have within Champagne?
Dom Perignon:
- creating his cuvée-blend of Chard, PN, P Meunier clusters at the press
- usefulness of strong English glass bottle
Veuve Cliquot (Ponsardin): - riddling / remuage process; developed pupitres
Madame Louise Pommery:
- started the trend to make drier styels of champagne
Champagne:
What is the history and intent behind the Echelle des Crus?
- In 1911 Champagne ranked its wine producing villages Echelle des Crus:
- the producing villages and areas around them were ranked (80-100%)
GC - 100%
PC - 90-99%
- Prior to 2003 CIVC based the price of grapes off of Grand Cru sites; this trickled down to lesser styles
- Since 2003 the price is based from individual contract
Champagne
What 2 methods of the ancestral method are there?
and what grapes are used?
- Partial ferement is chilled in Dec;
- - bottled in March
- - = slightly fizzy, cloudy wine - Chill Partial Ferment
- - then bottle with yeast for 2-3 months
- - then disgorge
- Finished wine for both must not be above 7% abv and RS between 6-8%
- The grape is 100% Mauzac
What is Tete de Cuvée and its role in a Champagne house?
- The prestige bottling within each house
- Very expensive per bottle
How is rosé Champagne made?
- By adding a small amount of Pinot Noir to the white cuvée before the 2nd ferment
- Vinify a rosé by the saignée method then put it through the 2nd ferment
Champagne
What do the following terms mean?
Blanc de Blanc
Blanc de Noirs
Vintage
Non-Vintage
Blanc de Blanc:
- White sp made only from white authorised grapes
Blanc de Noirs:
- White sp made from black grapes
Vintage:
- Only produced in the best years
Non-Vintage:
- A bled of several vintages
What are the various sweetness levels in Champagne?
- Lowest level first
- Brut Nature - no dosage added; 0-0.3% sugar
- Extra Brut - 0-0.6% sugar
- Brut - 0-1.2% sugar (was 0-1.5%)
- Extra Sec (dry) - 1.2%-1.7% sugar (was 1.2%-2.0%)
- Sec (dry) - 1.7-3.2% sugar (was 1.7-3.5%)
- Demi-Sec - 3.2-5% sugar
- Doux - over 5% sugar
What role did Spanish cork and English glass have in Champagne?
Cork:
- Provided an air tight wine bottle closure
Glass:
- was stronger and didn’t burst under the pressure of champs in the bottle
Champagne
What do the terms mean?
- Cuvée
- Tirage
- Prise de Mousse
- Liquer de tirage
- Remuage
- Disgorgement
- Liquer de dosage
- Transversage
- A la Volee
- Liqueur de Dosage / Liqueur d’Expédition
- Cuvée = a specific blend of base wines
- Tirage = bottling
- Prise de Mousse = seizing the foam, refers to the 2nd ferment
- Liquer de tirage = mixture of wine, sugar and yeast to kick start the 2nd ferment
- Remuage = riddling; turning the bottles slightly, getting the yeast/lees to the neck of the bottle
- Disgorgement = removal of yeast after the 2nd ferm; freeze the neck of the bottle and take off the cap; yeast is ejected
- Liquer de dosage = topped up with natural base wine, left to blend in before release
- Transversage = larger format bottles do not have 2nd fermentation in bottle that they are served; this is the process of rebottling the wine into larger bottles
- A la Volee = tradtional method of disgorgement; wine is not chilled, sediment is removed by a cellar worker by hand
- liqueur d’expédition = the mix of sugar and still reserve wine added to Champagne after dégorgement and before the cork is insterted
Champagne
What are the steps within the traditional method?
- Make the base wine
- Assemblage - blending NV base wines to get the house cuvée
- Liquer de tirage = bottling; liqueur de tirage mixed into cuvee and bottled; what gurantees predictable amount of sparkle
– Sur Lattes
- Prise de Mouse (seizing the foam) - the 2nd alc ferm
- Riddling (remuage) - ageing on the lees on pupitres
- Disgorgement - removal of yeast after the 2nd ferm
- Liquer de dosage (bottle is topped up)
* liqueur d’expédition - the mix of sugar and still reserve wine added to Champagne after dégorgement and before the cork is insterted
What are the bottle sizes in Champagne?
Magnum - 2 Jéroboam - 4 Réhoboam - 6 Methuselah - 8 Salmanazar - 12 Balthazar - 16 Nebuchadnezzar - 20
Which Champagne region included in the Kimmeridgian Ring?
The Côte des Bar
Champs:
What is disgorgement “à la volée”?
The traditional disgorgement of Champagne by hand
Champs:
What is transversage?
The process of using 750ml bottles of champagne to fill large (bigger than magnums) and small format bottles after disgorgement
Champs:
What are the three levels in the Echelle des Crus?
Grand Cru: 100% (17 villages)
Premier Cru: 90-99% (44 villages)
Cru: 80-89% (255 villages)
What are the aging requirements for Champagne?
Vintage and non-vintage
vs
Cremant?
Non-Vintage Champs: 12 mos on lees + 3 mos in cellar
Vintage Champs: 12 mos on less + 24 mos in cellar (3 yrs total)
Cremant: 9 mos on lees
Champs:
What does the abbreviation RC refer to?
Récoltant-Coopérateur
A grower who sends his/her grapes to a co-op to be made into champagne, then sells this wine under a private label
What was the first Champagne House?
Ruinart (1729)
What werer the two principle grapes of Champs in the 9th-16th cens?
Gouais
Fromenteau
What is Champs most widely planted grape?
Pinot Noir
38%
Champs:
What is Tête de Cuvée?
A Champagne house’s prestige bottling
Champs:
What does CM refer to?
Cooperative de Manipulation
A cooperative that makes Champs using the grapes of its members
Champs:
What is a chaufrette?
A smudge-pot or oil-burning device used to prevent grape vines from freezing during a sudden cold snap
Champs:
What is the primary grape of Vitry-le-Francois?
Chardonnay
Champs:
What does the abbreviation NM refer to?
Negociant-Manipulant
A producer of Champs who busy grapes from others
Champs:
What does the term sur lattes refer to?
The practice of storing Champagne bottles on horizontal strips of wood
Champs:
What does the abbreviation RM refer to
Récoltant-Manipulant
A prodcuer who grows his/her own grapes and makes their own Champagne
Champs:
What is a pupitre?
A Frame rack for riddling
What is ‘recently disgorged’ (RD) or ‘late disgorged’ mean?
It is prolonged aging on its lees with its crown cap.
Carries the patina (thin layer) of age without the oxidative effect of 10 years in the cellar with cord and the concomitant (naturally accompanying or associated) loss of effervescence.
Champs: Lable Nomenclature:
NM RM RC SR CM MA ND
NM: negociant-manipulant:
- describing champange producers that incorporate grapes purchased from others in the vinification process; also may be using own fruit
- all big champagne houses belong to this category
RM: recoltant-manipulant:
- champagne producer vinifying only his or her own estate-grown grapes
- does not purchase grapes from others
RC: recolant-cooperateur
- a grape grower affiliated with a wine making co-op cellar; brings their grapes to the co-op which vinifies them; then retrieves the finished wine and sells it uner his or her private label
SR: Societe de Recollants
- a group of grape growers who jointly vinify and sell one communal or serveral communal brands
CM: co-operative de manilpulation
-a co-operative cellar which vinifies the grapes of its memer growers
MA: marque auxiliaire, marque d’acheteur, marque autorisee
- a private label registered by any individula, group or society (restaurant, wine store, supermarket etc); the source for that private label could be any of the types of producers already discussed
ND:negociant-distributeur
- referring to a wine buyer who purchases finished wines and gives them his or her own private label
