Champagne Terms Flashcards
deblocage
the release of older vintages of base wine for use in assemblage.
blocage
Reserve wine stock for future vintages
méthode Champenoise
The old name for the traditional method of making champagne, banned by the European Union in 1985 as a concession to protecting the Champagne appellation.
débourbage
A settling of the juice after pressing to remove solid particles such as skins and pips before fermentation.
rebêche
the final pressing of the grapes, following the cuvée (the first 2,050 liters) and the taille (the next 500 liters). By law, the rébeche cannot be used in champagne production, and is generally sent to be distilled.
bourbes
remining solids from the base wine
vins clairs
High acid base wine after first fermentation (~11%alc), some go through malo,
liqueur de tirage,
A syrupy mixture of wine, sugar and yeast that is added to sparkling wines to cause a secondary fermentation that induces carbonation.
assemblage
The blend, both in terms of the blend of different grape varieties or the blend of different base wines for a particular champagne.
prise de mousse
second fermentation, heart of champagne method
“sur latte”
Name given to bottles stacked in the cellar to age. The name refers to the wooden slats inserted between rows of bottles to stabilise the pile. During this ageing period Champagne can be bought by one champagne maker from another with the buyer finishing off the production process and selling the champagne under his own brand name, even though he did not start the process. Champagne bought in this way is called Vin sur latte.
remuage AKA Riddling
the process of turning or shaking the bottles to let the yeast lees move to the neck of the bottle for removal
dégorgement
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
producers used to preform this which each bottle would be briskly shaken in order to prevent the sediment from sticking to the sides of the bottle
bidule
plastic capsule that will serve to capture the sediment during remuage
pupitre
a frames that bottles are stored on
Transvasage
The decanting of wine from one bottle into another, used to make champagne in very small bottles (187ml) or very large ones (greater
liqueur d’expédition?
Dosage, liquid mixture of sugar syrup and wine.
determines the wine’s final sweetness
what is vin de cuvée & vin de taille?
vin de cuvée is the first part of the press
vin de taille the last part of press, richer in pigment and tannin, lesser component sometimes sold off or used for structure (around )
Dosage
Sugar added to champagne after disgorgement, either through aliqueur d’expédition,which is a solution of cane or beet sugar and wine, or MCR, concentrated and rectified grape must. Thedosageis usually a crucial component of champagne, as it balances the naturally high acidity of the wine and plays an important role in the aging process. The level of dosage determines the category of champagne (i.e. Extra Brut, Brut, Extra Dry, Demi-Sec, etc.), and the majority of champagnes today are dosed as brut, between 0-15 grams of sugar per liter, with an average dosage in Champagne estimated at around 10-12 grams.
Millésime—
A vintage year or a vintage wine. A champagne must be declared as a vintage wine at harvest in order to be able to say Millésime on the label. Note that the word Millésime simply means that the wine comes from a single vintage, and strictly speaking, has nothing to do with its level of quality.
Monocru
A champagne made from grapes grown entirely in a single village.
Tirage
The act of bottling. In Champagne, it’s often 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.
