D4 Flashcards
What is the principal natural factors that lead to the principal sparkling wines of the world?
Climate
What climates are ideal for sparkling wines?
Cool climates where grapes struggle to ripen.
Why are cool climates where grapes struggle to ripe ideal for sparkling wines
Grapes are just ripe in terms of flavour, but retain the acidity required for high quality wines.
What is the result of growing wines in cooler climates on sugar and alcohol.
Sugar accumulates slowly, giving wines of low alcohol (9-11%). Necessary because the second fermentation produces additional (1-2% abv) alcohol.
What are suitable regions for growing grapes for sparkling wines?
- Greater latitudes - Champagne, England, Tasmania
- Locations with cooling influence - by coast (Sonoma) or high altitude (Trentodoc)
Why might warmer areas be suitable for growing grapes for sparkling wines?
Grapes grown in warmer areas will tend to have riper fruit flavours and lower acidity vs cooler sites. This can be desirable for short-aged (tank method or limited lees contact in transfer or tranditional method)
Why are elegant, balanced, long-lees-aged wines likely to require cooler growing climates?
The more intense fruit flavours that dominate warmer climate grapes are less preferable when making these wines.
What are the most commonly used grape varieties for making premium and super-premium sparkling wines?
Chardonnay
Pinot Noir
What attributes of Chardonnay make it useful for sparkling wines?
- In autolytic styles of wines, subtle apple and citrus compliment rather than compete with the biscuity aromas from autolysis.
- Early ripening - good for cool conditions
- Early budding
- Yields can be high without a loss of quality
What attributes of Pinot Noir make it useful for sparkling wines?
- Early budding/early ripening
What grape varietal facts can influence the style of a sparkling wine?
- intensity of aromas - aromatic or neutral
- ability to retain acidity while ripening
- how the base wine responds to autolysis (if applicable)
What grape growing factors influence sparkling wine production?
- Yields - high yields help to retain high acid, yield lower potential alcohol and result in delicate flavours - all desirable in sparkling wines
What can effervescence in wine increase?
Perception of any off-flavours from diseased fruit.
When does harvesting and why?
Earlier than still wine production to achieve the desired high acid, low alcohol profile. Also means that risk of fungal disease is reduced as they are less likely to be on the vine when autumn weather starts.
Although low potential alcohol and high acidity are desirable, what is not?
Unripe flavours, they become more prominent as the wine matures.
What does whole bunch pressing produce?
Juice low in solids and phenolics.
Why should pressing be performed as quickly and gently as possible?
It minimises maceration with and extraction from the skin, that would bring unwanted colour and tannins. It is important to minimise the amount of phenolic compounds in the juice.
What kinds of presses are commonly used?
Pneumatic and basket, as they are able to press gently.
Juice from press fractions is ____ in phenolics, solids and pH than free run juice.
Higher.
When can press juice be useful?
In wines with short maturation due for immediate consumption as they wines tend to be faster maturing.
What is required for a healthy first/second fermentation?
Nutrients provided by a certain amount of grape solids
What can be done about excessive tannin or colour in the juice?
Fining may be performed (with casein, gelatine or PVPP)
What is typical temperature for the primary fermentation?
14-20C. To retain fruit flavours.
What are some considerations when choosing a yeast strain?
- The flavours they will promote in the wine (ie thiols and esthers may be positive in tank wines but not in autolytic styles)
- During second fermentation the yeast must be able to start fermenting in alcoholic conditions and low pH.
- Must be able to continue fermenting through low temperatures, high pressure with poor nutrients.
- Rapid autolysis and easy flocculation are desirable in traditional method wines.
What is one of the most common commercial yeast strains?
EC1118 - Prise de mousse
What is the difference between white wines that have gone through MLF and sparkling wines?
The buttery flavours found on white wines that have undergone malolactic conversion are not typically found on sparkling wines. This is because diacetyl, which gives the buttery flavour, is metabolised by the yeast during the second fermentation.
What is the risk if MLF does not take place during the primary fermentation?
It could take place during the second fermentation, which can turn the wine hazy. If MLF is not desired, the wine may be sterile filtered.
What are some of the options for handling the base wine after the primary fermentation?
- Maturation on oak
- Lees ageing
Why would only a small amount of new oak be used when maturing a base wine?
The aromas and flavours of oak (vanilla, toast and spice) are usually magnified in the sparkling wine
What is assemblage?
Blending of wines.
What is the purpose of blending?
- Balance
- Consistency
- Style
- Rosé wines
- Complexity
- Minimisation of faults
- Volume
- Price
What should be done before secondary fermentation?
- For traditional method wines, the final blend should be stabilised for tartrates and proteins before being bottled for second fermentation.
- For all methods of production for sparkling wine, base wines should be clarified before second fermentation.
What are the different methods of sparkling wine production?
- Traditional
- Transfer
- Ancestral
- Tank
- Asti
- Carbonation
What are the steps in the traditional method?
- Liqueur de tirage is added to the base wine
- Wine is bottled and sealed
- Secondary fermentation is performed
- Lees aging (optional)
- Riddling and disgorgement
- Liqueur d’expédition added
- Cork/capsule fitted
What is the liqueur de tirage a mixture of?
Sugar, selected yeasts, yeast nutrients and a clarifying agent such as bentonite and/or alginate.
In most fully sparkling wines, enough liqueur de tirage is added to supply about ___ g of sucrose per litre
24
What is the increase in ABV for an addition of 24 g/L of sucrose in the liqueur de tirage?
1.5%
What is prise de mousse?
The secondary fermentation, literally ‘capturing the sparkle’.
What does it mean to flocculate?
It refers to the process by which fine particles clump together. It produces a coarse sediment that can be efficiently removed by riddling.
What temperature are traditional method wines stored at during secondary fermentation? And for how long?
10-12C for 4-6 weeks
What is autolysis?
The benefits of this lees ageing are derived from autolysis, the enzymatic breakdown of dead yeast cells. Autolysis usually continues for four to five years but has been known to last for ten years. It is best known for producing compounds that add a biscuity complexity.
What is the benefit of keeping wine on lees after autolysis has finished?
The anti-oxidative qualities of yeast cells protect the wine from oxidation, in comparison to a disgorged wine of the same age. However, the longer a wine is kept in this state, the faster its evolution once disgorged. This is because the older a sparkling wine becomes, the less it can withstand the sudden shock of oxygen at disgorgement.
How is riddling performed?
Bottles are either hand riddled on pupitres or automatically on computer controlled gyro-palettes.
What is the effect of riddling?
As the bottom turns towards vertical (cap down), the lees flocculate and fall towards the neck of the bottle.
How long does riddling take?
Up to 8 weeks manually, or 3-4 days in gyropalettes
How are bottles disgorged?
Bottles are cooled to ~7C and necks immersed in a bath of frozen brine to freeze the yeast sediment in the neck. Cooling also increases solubility of CO2 in the wine. The machine inverts the bottle to upright and the cap is removed so the frozen yeast is ejected under pressure.
What is the liqueur d’expedition?
A mixture of wine and sugar or RCGM to top up the bottle where wine may have escaped during disgorgement.
What is the role of the dosage?
It balances the acidity of the wine.
What is the effect of age on the perception of acidity and what is the practical effect?
Acidity rounds out with age, thus the older the wine at disgorgement, the smaller the dosage.
What is the effect of some sugar developing post-disgorgement aromas?
The sugar in the liqueur d’expedition reacts with compounds formed during yeast autolysis in the Maillard reaction and develops roasted, toasted vanilla aromas.
Why was the transfer method developed?
The transfer method was developed in the 1940s to avoid the cost of manual riddling yet retain the bready, biscuit notes attained through yeast autolysis in bottle.
How does the transfer method differ from the traditional method?
Production of the wine up to riddling is essentially the same as the Traditional Method. However, because riddling does not take place, fining agents to aid flocculation do not need to be added within the liqueur de tirage. After lees ageing, the wine is chilled to 0˚C before discharge. The bottles are opened by a transfer machine and the wine is poured into pressurized receiving tanks. The wine is usually sweetened, SO2 is added, and typically sterile-filtered just prior to bottling.
When is the transfer method used in Champagne now, and why?
To fill small quarter-bottles and Jeroboam size bottles or larger, as all these sizes are difficult to riddle.
What is the ancestral method?
Partly fermented must is put into bottles and the remaining sugar is converted into alcohol and CO2, providing the effervescence.
What is the ancestral method also known as?
Pet Nat, the abbreviation of Pétillant nature
What is the character of ancestral method wines?
The wines are often low in alcohol, slightly cloudy, dry to off-dry with unconventional flavours sometimes compared to cider.
What is the tank method also known as?
Cuve Close, Charmat and Martinotti
What are the benefits of the tank method?
It enables large volumes of sparkling wine to be made inexpensively, quickly and with significantly reduced labour costs in comparison to the traditional method. There is no riddling, disgorgement or dosage and no long period on the lees during second fermentation.
What is the tank method ideal for?
Fruity wines made with semi-aromatic (e.g. Glera) or aromatic (e.g. Muscat) varieties.
Describe the tank method.
- The first fermentation for tank method wines is often slow and cool to retain fresh floral and fruit aromas and flavours.
- Sugar and yeast are added, and a rapid second fermentation takes place in reinforced tanks.
- This fermentation is typically arrested by cooling the wine to −5°C (23°F) when the desired pressure and residual sugar has been reached. If removed from the yeast lees immediately, the sparkling wines will retain the fruity aromas and flavours.
- Occasionally, the wine may be aged on the lees for up to nine months if a lees-matured attribute is desired, but many of the economic advantages of this system are lost.
- At the end of fermentation or lees contact, the wine is cold stabilised to precipitate tartrates. The yeast is removed by centrifugation or filtration. Sugar levels may be adjusted, and sulfur dioxide levels are checked and corrected prior to sterile filtration and bottling.
- Wine is chilled to -2°C (28.4°F) to stabilise and to reduce the effervescence, and then bottled with a counter-pressure filler.
What is the Asti method?
Similar to the tank method, but produces lower alcohol (7-7.5%) wines, with a high level of fermentable sugar which is stable due to filtering out of the yeast and nutrients.
What is carbonation?
The least expensive (and least prestigious) method of sparkling wine production is injection with carbon dioxide under pressure.
What is the advantage of carbonation?
It leaves the aroma and flavour characteristics of the base wine intact and thus it is suitable for aromatic or fruity sparkling wines
Why does the base wine for carbonated wines need to be of good quality?
Any faults will be accentuated by bubbles
When did Dom Pierre Pérignon die?
1715
What did Dom Pierre Pérignon contribute to Champagne?
The Coquard press, and introduced blending (assemblage).
What did Dom Pierre Pérignon think was a fault in wines?
Fizziness
When was the current AOC boundary in Champagne defined?
1927
What is echelon des crus?
Literally ‘ladder of growths’ - the rating system that determined grape prices.
What is echelon des crus?
Literally ‘ladder of growths’ - the rating system that determined grape prices.
That is the ‘blocage’ system?
Initially the setting aside of a portion of the young wines as an insurance policy against future disasters that might reduce yields. However, it has now become the system of storing reserve wines to enable vintage variation to be reduced by blending for non-vintage wines.
What latitude is Champagne?
Just south of 50th parallel
How far does Champagne extend?
150km N-S and 120km E-W.
What are the sub regions of Champagne
Montagne de Reims Vallee de la Marne Cote des Blancs Cote de Sezanne Cote des Bar
What is the climate in Champagne?
Cool continental, with some oceanic influence
What is the rainfall in Champagne
700mm per year
What is the average annual temperature in Champagne
11C
What are the common soils in Champagne?
Chalky soils with limestone subsoil and chalk itself
What is seem as beneficial in the production of high-quality Chardonnay?
High chalk content soils.
What is seem as beneficial in the production of high-quality Chardonnay?
High chalk content soils.
What altitude are most Champagne vineyards?
90-300m
What is Montagne de Reims best known for?
Black grapes.
What are the Grand Cru villages in Montagne de Reims
Aÿ, Mailly, Verzeney, Ambonnay, Bouzy
The major plantings of Vallée de la Marne are east of what city?
Epernay
The major plantings of Vallée de la Marne are what varietal in what soils?
Meunier in clay, marl and sandy soils.
Where is Cote des Blancs?
South of Eperney, at right angle to Vallée de la Marne
What is the major varietal of Cote des Blancs?
Chardonnay (95%)
What are the Grand Cru villages of Cote des Blancs?
Cramant, Avize, Oger and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger
Cote de Sezanne is mainly planted with… ?
Chardonnay, on warmer SE facing slopes (leading to riper grapes)
Cote des Bar soils are ..?
Kimmeridgian calcareous marl (like nearby Chablis)
Nearly a quarter of Cote des Bar is planted with ..?
Pinot Noir
Nearly a quarter of Cote des Bar is planted with ..?
Pinot Noir
What are the permitted Champagne varietals?
Chardonnay Pinot Noir Meunier (Pinot Meunier) Pinot Blanc Arbanne Petit Meslier Fromenteau
What are the 3 major varietals and the % of planting?
Pinot Noir (38%) Meunier (31%) Chardonnay (30%)
What is the total vineyard area in Champagne
35000 ha
Describe Meunier
- A black grape, also called Pinot Meunier.
- A mutation of Pinot Noir
- Has white hairs on its leaves giving it a ‘floury’ appearance (meunier means ‘miller’ in French)
- Buds early, though later than Pinot Noir, so less prone to spring frosts and coulure in the cool Vallée de la Marne.
What does Meunier contribute to Champagne?
Fruit and softness (important for NV wines aged for less time)
What is the spacing regulations and average planting density in Champagne?
0.9-1.5m inter-row spacing
8000 vines/ha
Why can grapes be grown at high yeilds for sparkling wines?
Because it is not necessary for tannins to be ripe or flavours and colours to be particularly concentrated.
