Champagne: Part 1 Flashcards
Before the advent of temperature controlled winemaking processes, how was the fermentation process affected by cooler climates?
Early onset of winter effectively halted a must mid-ferment, and the warmth of spring resuscitated it.
As an active fermentation releases carbon dioxide, many wines developed a slight effervescence in the new year.
What advancements facilitated the sprarkling winemaking process in the 17th century?
- stronger glass bottles
- uniform bottle neck openings
- use of cork to maintain an air-tight seal
When was the first intentionally crafted sparkling champagne created in Champagne?
Between 1695 and 1698.
Which champagne house was to first to become established and when?
Ruinart (1729)
When was the first champagne drinking glass debuted?
1755
A long conical bowl.
What scientific advancement of the 1800s enabled producers to fine-tune the fermentation process in Champagne?
- Louis Pasteur’s discovery of the action & significance of yeast (1857)
How are producers able to maintain consistency with their wines?
- blending different grape varieties
- harvest grapes from different sub-regions
What is the benefit of harvesting grapes from different sub-regions?
Minimizes the risk of crop loss due to frost or other adverse weather conditions.
What is the concept of “house style”?
A proprietary blend; this allows the blending of different varieties from various areas/subregions.
What are mono-parcelles and mono-crus?
Mono-parcelle: a single-vineyard bottling (Philipponnat’s Clos des Goisses, since 1935)
Mono-cru: produced from one village (Salon’s Cuvee “S” Le Mesnil Blanc de Blancs, 100% Chardonnay, since 1921)
These small-site producers are terroir-driven and are on the rise among the big houses.
What are grower-producers?
Small-scale producers who embrace the mono-parcelle & mono-cru concept of producing wine from a single vineyard/village.
What sets grower-producers apart from traditional Champagne producers?
Instead of striving for consistency each year, they embrace vintage variation and the signature flavours of a single cru and/or single-vinyard bottling.
Consumers have warmed to this approach.
How prominent are co-operatives in Champagne?
There are more co-operatives in this region than any other French wine region.
Originally, they contributed to the success of the big houses when their stocks ran short.
Now, they have grown large and powerful and compete with the big houses for the same customer.
What is the function of the co-operatives in Champagne?
They sell:
* juice
* still wine
* sparkling wine sur lattes
* private labels
What does sur lattes mean?
This literally translates as “on the lattes.” Lattes are the thin strips of wood used to separate one row of champagne bottles from another in a stack.
Selling wine sur lattes refers to the sale of finished sparkling wine to another party who will put their own label on it.
How is it that Champagne is mercantile and commercially astute?
It has an internal hierarchy (Grands Crus, Premiers Crus) and pays close attention to the market.
They factor in global market demand when setting its annual yields to maintain price stability. If sales are good, the yield is increased. If sales are less encouraging, the yield is curtailed and part of the crop may even go unpicked (as in 2020)
Excess production results in a drop in prices)
What control does the Comite Interprofessionel du Vin de Champagne have over Champage production?
They can block or authorize the release of a producer’s reserves. This is decided within the context of global sales.
How early did vineyards become well established in Champagne?
By the 4th and 5th centuries CE.
What peoples inhabited the region of Champagne through history?
- Roman Empire
- Vandals
- Teutons
- Franks
- Huns
What wines were produced in Champagne as early as the 9th century?
- vins de la montagne: mountain wines
- vins de la riviere: river wines.
All the wines were still and most were red.
What is the historical significant of Reims?
After the baptism of Clovis, this city witnessed the crowning of 27 French Kings (from Louis VIII to Charles X) over 600 years in the Cathedral of Reims.
Since, the wines of Champagne have been associated with royalty, celebration, privilege, wealth, power and position.
The city of Reims has been the center of which historical conflicts?
- wars between the Frankish & Germanic kingdoms
- Hundred Years War
- Napoleon’s battles against Austria, Prussia & Russia
- WWI
- WWII
When was champagne permitted for transportation in bottle?
1728 by the king’s decree.
Prior to this, champagne was only permitted to be transported and sold in cask, but casks could not hold onto the effervescence.
When was it declared that the word “champagne” could only be used in conjunction with the wines produced in the Champagne region?
1887, by the Court of Appeal in Angers.
When did phylloxera arrive in Champagne?
1890
It reduced the vineyards to one-fifth of their former size.
When was the Champagne zone of production delineated?
1908
Growers from the Aube, a region south of the city of Troyes, were not officially included.
Aube was then included as a “second” zone of production. However, this stigma was removed in 1927 and Aube was recognized and included as part of the official Champagne region.
What is the significance of the city of Troyes?
- looks like a champagne cork when viewed from above.
- residents say it is the heart of Champagne (with historical precedent)
- home of the Counts of Champagne
- was once the capital of the Champagne region
What are sparkling wines produced outside of Champagne called?
Sparkling wines outside the Champagne region cannot be called champagne. These producers must use the terms:
* cremant
* petillant
* mousseaux
Other French producers may indicate use of the Champagne method of production on their label with the term:
* methode traditionelle
