Champagne

Champagne in traditional wine glass. Some specialists advise the traditional glass of wine - sirah type - since its height avoids the rapid disparation of aromas and its width facilitates the aeration, oxygenation or oxidation that expands the nuances and Open up. wine. If the cup is very high it is recommended to be tulip-shaped to allow the evolution of CO2 bubbles and the opening of aromas. The flat and wide cup is discouraged or pompadour, since its big mouth facilitates the loss of bubbles and aromas and in it the champagne warms quickly.

The champagne or champagne (in French, champagne) is a type of sparkling wine made according to the champenoise method in the Champagne region of north-eastern France. It is protected within the European Union as a protected designation of origin. Champagne is a sparkling white or rosé wine made from a blend (coupage or assembly) of Chardonnay, Meunier, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Arbanne and Petit Meslier grapes.

Although the name of champagne is exclusive to the Champagne region protected by quality regimes in the European Union, the term champagne is popularly used to refer to sparkling wines made in many regions of the world, including cava.

It is recommended to drink the champagne at a temperature between 5 and 7 degrees, in a wine glass or a tall glass in the shape of a tulip, the flat pompadour type glass is not recommended.

History of champagne

The name comes from the Champagne region, in northwest France, although it was already known by the Romans as vinum titillum. In the 15th century it was known by this name in Paris, though not in its region of origin where the term champagne designated wastelands.

During the XVII century it became popular in the English and French courts thanks to the encouragement of some families from this region. Around 1660 it began to be bottled shortly before the end of the first fermentation, in order to better preserve its aromas, but as a result, bubbles appear, especially in pale wines, of low alcohol content and bottled on the spring equinox. This effervescence was, at first, a source of concern for the producers who called it devil's wine and jump-caps, since the bottles burst and the caps popped out. Thanks to its popularity in England, its production was not abandoned and solutions were sought to control its strength in the bottle.

In 1670, the monk Dom Pérignon, from the Benedictine abbey of Hautvillers, introduced a series of changes, such as the selection of the grape, the conical cork fastened with a metal clamp and the thicker glass bottles that prevented bursts and that the plugs popped. Despite the monk's many efforts, the origin of the bubbles remained a mystery until Louis Pasteur studied fermentation in the 19th century.

There is evidence that the first champagne firm was founded by Nicolas Ruinart in 1729 in Épernay: maison Ruinart. Throughout the 18th century, champagne began to acquire international renown, thanks to the promotion made by producers such as Claude Moët or Florenz-Louis Heidsieck. In the 19th century producers such as the Bollinger family or Pierre-Nicolas-Marie Perriet-Jouët were added. Some ladies continued production work after the death of their husbands, including Mrs. Pommery, Mrs. Terrier and Mrs. Clicquot -Veuve Clicquot, known as the "Grande Dame de Champagne"-, which also contributed to the notoriety of champagne. Even Talleyrand (Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord) described it as the "wine of civilization".

Double fermentation (champenoise method)

The Champenoise method is characterized by double fermentation, the first in a tank or vat and the second in the bottle.

First fermentation in vat

The first fermentation is done in vats like the fermentation of all wines between 18 and 20 degrees. During fermentation, the must or grape juice is converted into an alcoholic beverage. During the fermentation process, the yeast interacts with the sugars in the wort to create ethanol—ethyl alcohol—and carbon dioxide (as a byproduct). In fermentation the temperature and rhythm are decisive together with the oxygen levels present in the must at the beginning of the fermentation. The fermentation process can be carried out in stainless steel tanks, in open wooden vats, inside a barrel and also inside the bottle, as is the case in the production of many sparkling wines.

Second fermentation in the bottle and disgorgement

Bodegas or cavas from the famous Reims champagne. Second fermentation in the bottle before degüelle or dégorgement which allows the removal of the sediments.

To reactivate the fermentation in the bottle, sugar is added and, where appropriate, yeast. Since the fermentation produces CO2 and the bottle is closed, the gas dissolves into the liquid. You have to dose the amount of sugar well because if you can't burst the bottle. This process is similar to that used in some types of beer. This second fermentation produces sediments and in order to eliminate them, the bottles are placed with their necks downwards and at an angle that varies between approximately 20 and 70 degrees on some desks - perforated boards where the bottles are inserted at an angle. Two movements are carried out for several weeks: a) each bottle is rotated a quarter of a turn a couple of times a day, and b) the bottles are placed in cavities of the desk with more degrees of inclination. In this way, two objectives are achieved: that the yeasts travel throughout the "base wine" inside the bottle, and at the same time that the sediments gradually accumulate in the neck of the bottle, next to the stopper.

Date of disgorgement (dégorgement)

To remove the sediments, the neck of the bottle is frozen at about 20 degrees below zero, and the throat is disgorged or slit (dégorgement). In this process, the bottle is uncorked and the gas pressure expels a strip that has previously been frozen and is where the sediments are found. The bottle is then filled with the same champagne (brut nature) or with the expedition liqueur, which gives it the desired sweetness (brut, semi-dry, etc.) and is covered again with the special stopper with which it arrives on the market.

The date of disgorging (opening for cleaning during the second fermentation) is an important indicator. In young champagnes -with a minimum of 9 months of aging- it must not be more than a year or a year and a half prior to the date of consumption; in the reserva -from 15 months of aging- they can be up to 2 or 3 years prior to the date of consumption and in the gran reserva -from 30 months breeding- can be up to 5 or more years from the date of disgorging until consumption.

Characteristics of champagne

Designation of origin and quality

In the French law of 1927, the type of traditional Champagne grapes was restricted: pinot noir, meunier and chardonnay, pinot blanc, pinot gris, arbanne and petit meslier. During the years 1931 to 1935 there was a crisis of overproduction and therefore a drop in sales that plunged the price of the grape, which is why the Champagne producers promoted the decree of September 30, 1935 that established quality rules in relation to:

• Maximum limited yield in the harvest - it would go every vintage, so in 1997 it was 10 000 kilos and in 1999 of 13,000-.
• Minimum alcoholic grade.
• Performance in the press.
• Ageing.

Of every 4,000 kilos of grapes, only 2,666 liters will make it to champagne. Of every 160 kilos of grapes, about 102 liters of must are allowed, which after vinification and decapsulation losses leave about 100 liters of wine, that is, 133 bottles of 75 cl.

Champagne is characterized, in relation to other wines, by the habitual combination of different types of grapes and vintages that seek uniformity in oenological qualities and < i>organoleptic. You can indicate the vintage but it is not mandatory, when only wines of the same year are mixed, which only happens with high quality ones. Champagne is the only rosé wine in which it is allowed to mix white and red wine. Rosé champagne can also be obtained by allowing the red wine must to lightly color with its skins.

The bottle can indicate the year of harvest, the terroir (grand cru, premier cru) as well as the disgorging date (cleaning during the second fermentation)

Grape varieties in the production of champagne

Champagne blanc de blancs.

Champagne is made from many types of grapes. The use of arbanne, petit meslier, pinot de juillet, pinot gris, pinot rosé and pinot blanc and chenin blanc is testimonial and three types of grape stand out, which due to their quality make up the majority of the production:

Chardonnay

• Chardonnay: it is a white grape and represents 26% of the cultivated area mainly located in the Cote de Blancs, associated with calcareous soils. Provides fine wines, elegance, nerve, minerality. It is a variety that confers on potential storage champagnes. The chardonnay grape gives the champagne the finest. If champagne is young, floral notes are appreciated. It admits a very good evolution that favors the aging of wines.

Pinot noir

• Pinot noir: is a white pulp ink grape that represents 37% of the cultivated surface, and which is the one used for Burgundy dyes, is the main variety in the Reims Mountain and in the Cote des Bars, but we can also find it in the Marne Valley. The pinot noir grape brings the aromas of red and ripe fruits and gives body and power to mixtures or assemblies.

Pinot Meunier

• Pinot meunier: another white pulp ink that represents another 37% of the cultivated surface, we find it mainly in the Marne Valley and in the Saint Thierry Massif. The grape pinot meunier facilitates mixtures, has fruity and intense aroma and evolves faster than the chardonnay.

Blend, assembly or coupage - blanc de blanc and blanc de noir

In the mixture, coupage or assembly there are three parameters to take into account: the terroirs or areas, the vines and the years.

Normal blend

Most champagnes are made from a blend of chardonnay and pinot noir, for example 60%/40%. The blanc de blanc (white of white) champagnes are 100% chardonnay. Possibly the most exquisite of them, and also the most expensive, is the one made in a single Premier cru vineyard in Le Mesnil-Sur-Oger for Salon. Blanc de noir (white from black) champagne is made from 100% pinot noir or red grapes, using special rapid pressing, so that the color of the skins does not stain the vin de presse (must). pressing).

• The pinot noir gives the wine aromas of red fruits; the strain is the one that contributes to the body assembly and power.
• Meunier is flexible and fruity. Its buqué is intense; it evolves more quickly in time and provides round wine.
• The chardonnay is the strain of fineness. When young, it offers floral notes and sometimes minerals to wines. Its slow evolution makes it an ideal complement for wine aging.

Exceptional blend: millésime, cru

When one of the characteristics that make the wine make it exceptional, be it the year, the vine, the terroir or cru, you can point out that exceptionality and dispense with blends.

• The year: 'millésime' if it is considered exceptional.
• The strain: use of a single strain, either blanc de blancs of a single strain or blanc de noirs of a single strain.
• Small or area: Whether Great or premiere, it came from a single land, a municipality or a village, sometimes a single vineyard.

Classification by amount of sugar added in fermentation

The amount of sugar added after the second aging fermentation varies and will determine the level of sweetness of the Champagne.

• Brut Nature: up to 3 grams of sugar per litre.
• Extra Brut: up to 6 grams of sugar per litre.
• Brut: up to 15 grams of sugar per litre.
• Extra dry: between 12 and 20 grams of sugar per litre.
• Dry or Sec: between 17 and 35 grams per litre.
• Semi-seco, Semi-sec or Demi-Sec: between 33 and 50 grams of sugar per litre.
• Sweet or Doux: more than 50 grams of sugar per litre.

Bottle sizes

Balthazar, salmanazar, mathusalem, jéroboam on the ground.

The classic bottle is 75 cl. All champagne bottles are thicker and stronger than still wine bottles in order to withstand the pressure of the gas (CO2). The bottom of the bottle is reinforced for the same reason.

In the XIX century, merchants in the area normalized a series of bottles of different capacities, which were recently They have added the four largest sizes:

Only the half bottle, the bottle and the magnum are used in the second fermentation of the wine. The other formats are filled with already fermented wine. According to tradition, the ideal size is the magnum, being the size in which champagne ages best.

Sizes from Solomon and up are recent and considered extravagant. Sizes larger than the jeroboam are rare, because the bottles are unwieldy, fragile, and expensive to produce. The names of the bottles superior to the magnum come from kings of the Bible except for the sovereign and the primat.

The stopper

Champagne cap.

The stopper used to seal the champagne bottles after disgorging, which is the final one, is a special stopper, and is made up of two easily distinguishable parts:

• The head, which is made with cork agglomeration, is more economical than cork sheets.
• The body, which is made up of two rounds of cork glued together and to the head. This part is the one that enters the bottle's neck and its end is in contact with the wine.

The surface of the plug is usually superficially treated with paraffin to guarantee its tightness and facilitate insertion.

To guarantee the fastening before the high pressure that is inside the bottles, the stopper is reinforced by placing a circular sheet of stamped steel on the head, which serves to secure it by tying it under the projection of the neck of the bottle by means of of a morion—a kind of wire muzzle. These plaques, which are called capsules, are a collector's item, called placomusophilia.

The cap is cylindrical and larger in diameter before being compressed and inserted into the bottle. During its stay in it, it adopts the conical shape of its neck, and the head recovers its initial diameter, so that when it is uncorked it adopts its characteristic mushroom shape. Over time they end up fully recovering the shape and diameter they originally had.

Uncorked or uncovered

Although in many areas, to highlight the festive season, it is preferred to make a loud noise when uncovering the bottle of champagne (commonly called "el taponazo"), the rules of etiquette (especially in banquets or high-class establishments) suggest that the uncovering be as quiet (and perhaps suggestive) as possible. The basic rules for opening a bottle are:

• You must never shake the bottle.
• slightly tilt the bottle and disarm the wire loop that holds the plug on the bottle's neck.
• remove the wire muzzle next to the paper coating.
• place the bottle in a trajectory of opening of caps away from the diners.
• Holding firmly the plug with one hand and with the other the body of the bottle that is the one that should be turned to remove with maximum softness the cap without leaving the hand.

Champagne producers

Champagne production in France is mainly concentrated around the cities of Reims and Épernay. The big brands have large payments and a large production, which allows them very powerful export and advertising mercantile policies, among them are Moët et Chandon, Mercier, Ruinart, Pommery, Canard-Duchêne, Veuve Clicquot, Bollinger and Krug

There are many more artisan champagne producers, whose productions are much smaller but can reach a high quality.

Champagne in popular culture

Advertising in English magazine of 1915 showing a lady flying over a cork of Champagne

Champagne consumption is associated with celebrations. It is common to uncork a large-format bottle during the delivery of trophies in sports competitions. The first automobile competition where champagne was used was in 1907 in the Peking - Paris race. On this occasion the prize consisted only of a bottle of champagne. Later Moët & Chandon offered his champagne to the winner of the 1950 French Grand Prix, held in the province of Champagne-Ardenne. Dan Gurney started the tradition of showering the crowd and other drivers when celebrating his victory at the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans, although Graham Hill had done the same with sparkling wine at the 1966 Australian Grand Prix. Crashing is also traditional. a bottle of champagne against the hull of the ship at its launch to demonstrate its solidity; it is a bad omen that the bottle does not break. In the New Year's celebration it is toasted with champagne, although it is also toasted with Spanish cava or other sparkling wines made according to the champagne method.