D4 Sparkling Wine Flashcards
Most common temperature for primary fermentation
14-20 °C
Why are buttery aromas not present after malo?
Diacetyl produced by malo is metabolized by yeast during second fermentation
French term for secondary fermentation
Prise de mousse
Parts of liqueur de tirage
wine/must sugar cultured yeast yeast nutrients clarifying agent (bentonite or alginate)
Temperature for secondary ferment
10-12°C
cooler ferment = more complexity
Length of second fermentation (traditional)
4-6 weeks
Temperature during lees ageing
around 10 °C
When is autolysis starting to be noticeable?
after 15-18 months
How long does autolysis continues
for 4-5 years on average
French name for riddling
Remuage
Explain Maillard reaction
Sugar reacts with compounds formed during yeast autolysis
roasted, toasted vanilla aromas
Explain Ancestral method
Partly fermented must is put into bottles and remaining sugar is converted into alcohol and CO2
Tank method:
1) temperature to stop fermentation
2) temperature to stabilize wine
1) 2-4°C
2) -2°C
How are wines made by tank method filled into bottles
Through counter-pressure filler
First fills bottle with CO2 under pressure. The bottle is then filled with chilled wine replacing the CO2
EU Sweetness levels
Brut Nature/Bruto Natural/Naturherb/Zéro dosage 0-3 g/L
(no dosage added)
Extra Brut/Extra Bruto/Extra Herb 0-6 g/L
Brut/Bruto/Herb 0-12 g/l
Extra-Sec/Extra Dry/Extra Trocken 12-17 g/l
Sec/Secco/Seco/Dry/Trocken 17-32 g/l
Demi-Sec/Semi-Seco/Medium-Dry/Abboccato/Halbtrocken 32-50 g/l
Doux/Dulce/Sweet/Mild 50+
Factors affecting the mousse
- Amount of sugar available to be turned into alcohol and CO2
- The capacity of CO2 to be dissolved in wine (depends on grape variety and health of the grapes – botrytis reduces amount of bubble formation)
- The length of time on the lees = more lees ageing less but longer lasting bubbles
- How well the disgorgement process is carried out
- Time in the bottle and type of the closure
- The size and shape of glasses, temperature of the wine and how the wine is served
Champagne - ways to produce rosé
Rosé d’assemblage = blending red wine with white
Rosé de saignee = skin maceration of black grapes
AOC in Champagne for still wines
AOC Coteaux Champenois (still red, rosé or white)
AOC Rosé des Riceys (rosé from Pinot Noir)
When were the current Champagne boundaries established
1927
Name of Champagne rating system for villages
Échelle des Crus
Soils in Champagne
Chalky soils with limestone subsoil and chalk
Porous and store water well
5 Champagne sub-regions
- Montagne de Reims
- Vallée de la Marne
- Côte des Blancs
- Côte de Sézanne
- Côte des Bar
Montagne de Reims
- Known for black grapes (GC Mailly, Verzenay, Verzy, Ambonnay, Bouzy = on chalky soils)
- Wide plateau, top villages facing north (but more frost prone)
- Very high acidity, austere in youth
Vallée de la Marne
- Mainly Meunier on clay, marl and sand (fruity), early drinking style Chardonnay
- Frost prone valley (Meunier buds latest)
- GC Aÿ
Côte des Blancs
- 95% Chardonnay – purest form of chalk
- GC Cramant, Avize, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger
- Great intensity and longevity but austere in youth
Côte de Sézanne
- Continuation of Côte des Blancs, mostly clay and silt with pockets of chalk
- Mostly Chardonnay (fruitier, riper, lower quality)
Côte des Bar
- Large area in the south, ¼ planted with Pinot Noir on Kimmeridgian calcareous marls
- Steep slopes, stony limestone with excellent drainage
- Ripe PN for non-vintage blends
Champagne grape varieties
Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Meunier
Pinot Blanc, Arbanne, Petit Meslier, Fromenteau
Planting density in Champagne
Max inter-row spacing of 1,5m
Max intra-row spacing of 0,9-1,5m
Max total spacing never reaching more than 2,5m
Density of around 8.000 vines per ha
Max number of fruiting buds per square meter in Champagne
18
Champagne training systems
- Taille Chablis
• Best for Chardonnay, 3-4 cordons (up to 5), at the end of each cordon is a spur with up to 5 buds.
• Form of spur pruning, retaining large proportion of permanent wood (protects against frost)
• Spurs must be trained to a max. 0,6 m above ground (fruit gets benefit of solar energy reflection) - Cordon du Royat
• For Pinot Noir and Meunier
• Single cordon that is spur-pruned, shoots are vertically positioned - Guyot (single or double)
• Replacement cane system with VSP, permitted in lesser-rated vineyards - Vallée de la Marne
• Similar do Guyot but with higher number of buds (used much less now)
Upper EU limit for harvest (sparkling wine)
15.500 kg/ha
what is ‘marc’
Traditional unit loaded into basket press
4000 kg of grapes
Champagne fractions
Cuvée – first 2.050 l (per 4,000 kg of grapes) = free run juice
Rich in acidity, great finesse, long ageing potential
Taille – 500 l
Lower acidity, richer colour and phenolics, to make more expressive young wines
Higher proportion in NV
Max alcohol in Champagne
13% abv
Max yield in Champagne
79 hl/ha
can potentially be raised to 98% and surplus put into reserves
What is ‘perpetual reserve’
Proportion of wine is drawn off every year for blending and replaced by younger wine
Number of GC and Premier Crus in Champagne
Échelle des crus
– 17 GC
– 42 Premier cru
– 257 other villages
(status applies to the whole village)
Champagne average yield in last decade
10,500 kg/ha
Average price of 1 kg of grapes in Champagne
6,10 euro
1,2 kg of grapes needed for one bottle
Common features of Crémant wines:
Whole bunch pressing (hand harvesting)
Max yield at pressing 100 l per 150 kg of grapes
Min 9 months sur lie ageing
Min 12 months maturation between tirage and release (including the 9mths sur lie)
Max 13% abv
Min 4 atmospheres of pressure
Crémant d’Alsace grape varieties:
6
Pinot Blanc (20%) Auxerrois Chardonnay (1% Crémant only) Riesling (used more for still wines) Pinot Gris Pinot Noir
(Gewurz and Muscat not permitted)
Max yield for Crémant d’Alsace
80 hl/ha
Growers in Alsace must declare in:
July
Alsace winemaking
often chaptalized
single vintage usually
short time on lees (12 months)
Mainly brut
Rose by short maceration (12-24h)
Crémant d’Alsace Emotion
Prestige category launched in 2012 (so far not very popular)
Min 75% Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (separately or together)
Min 24 months on lees
Crémant de Bourgogne max yield
75 hl/ha
Producers in Burgundy must declare in:
before the end of March
Burgundy grape varieties:
7
Gamay Pinot Gris Pinot Blanc Pinot Noir Aligoté Chardonnay Melon
Crémant de Bourgogne Blanc requirements
min 30% Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc or Pinot Gris
Max 20% of Gamay
Crémant de Bourgogne Blanc de Noirs requirements
Pinot Noir only
Crémant de Bourgogne Eminent
Additional ageing on lees of min 24 months
Crémant de Bourgogne Grand Eminent
For whites: only Pinot Noir and Chardonnay
For rosé: 20% of Gamay is allowed
Vintage is optional but commonly used
Min 36 months of lees ageing and then min 3 months in the bottle before release
Brut designation only
Soils in Loire
Wide range – clay-limestone, flint-clay, sand, gravel and tuff
o More schist and limestone in Anjou
o More chalk in Touraine
Loire grape varieties (8) and requirements about blends
Chenin Blanc (mainly) Cabernet Franc Cabernet Sauvignon Grolleau Noir Grolleau Gris Pineau d’Aunis Pinot Noir Chardonnay
Max 30% of Cabernet Sauvignon and Pineau d’Aunis in blend (together or separately)
Loire max yield
74 hl/ha
Loire needs to declare in:
July
Use of reserve wine in Loire
Common only for premium wines
Prestige de Loire
2018 White only (made from Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir)
Min 24 months on lees
Must be vintage-dated and in Brut style (including Brut Nature and Extra Brut)
Producers must achieve set of environmental standards (sustainable viti within 5 years)
Saumur Mousseaux
Min 60% Chenin Blanc (up to 10% Sauvignon Blanc)
Rosé must be min 60% Cabernet Franc (and up to 10% Sauvignon Blanc)
Mechanical harvest allowed and more juice can be extracted (100 litres from 130 kilos)
67 hl/ha max
Vouvray Mousseaux
Chenin Blanc dominant (must make up majority), only other permitted variety is Orbois
Can be machine harvested and can have more juice extracted than Crémant
Tiny production of Vouvray Pétillant (lightly sparkling) and growing Pet Nat
65 hl/ha max
Cataluna Cava regions
- Penedès
- Lleida
- Tarragona
Penedès soils
Coastal vineyards
o Alluvial and clay soils
High altitude vineyards (200-300m but up to 800m)
o More granite sub-soils, poorer, higher acidity and more flavour, more ageing potential
Macabeo
Typically lower vineyards – 100-300m
Late budding, first to be picked, high yielding
Susceptible to botrytis and bacterial blight (warm, moist conditions, no cure)
Light intensity apple and lemon