Course:FNH200/Projects/2020/Champagne

Introduction

A Typical Glass of Champagne.

Champagne is a French sparkling wine that comes from Champagne, a province in northeast France. It is technically illegal for a sparkling wine to be labelled Champagne if it does not originate from the French region as it deviates from the strict set of guidelines in European law. Champagne comes in a variety of different styles and tastes. The most common ones are dry (aka. not sweet) which includes Brut Nature, Extra Brut, and Brut. The sugary taste of champagne are more rare and harder to find. These are the Extra Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec or Doux.

The reason that champagne is so expensive really comes down to the way it is made. Climate and other environmental hazards like frost, rain and hail pose a potential threat to the vines during growing season and might result in lower yields during harvest. Controlling its environmental conditions and picking grapes during the right harvesting conditions is very labour intensive and much more expensive. Another factor that affects the high costs are in the production of Champagne. The grape juice is fermented into a base of the wine and bottled. Then the winemakers add a mixture of sugar and yeast to start a secondary fermentation in the bottle. This secondary fermentation creates carbon dioxide that gives the drink its sparkle. After the fermentation process, the drink must age for another 15 months for non-vintage, or a minimum of three years for vintage Champagne.

It is important to make a clear distinction between Sparking Wine and Champagne. To put it simply, it comes down to the preparation process. In Sparking Wine, for example, the secondary fermentation process occurs in large pressurized tanks as opposed to in the bottle as in Champagne. This results in a slightly less fizzy nature than traditional Champagne and hence why sparkling wine is much cheaper. Moreover, Sparkling Wine production is done on a mass scale by machinery and is less labour intensive than Champagne which also contributes to a much lower price and quality of taste.

The history of Champagne all began with an accidental invention by Dom Pérignon - a 17th century monk whom played the most significant role in perfecting the drink.

History

Dom Pérignon

In the 18th century, Champagne in north-eastern France was gaining a new and unique reputation as the home of a delicate sparkling white wine. The bubbles were formed from a natural phenomenon. In cold weather the yeast which turned grapes into alcohol stopped fermenting but began again when the weather was warmer. The carbon dioxide produced during this secondary fermentation created bubbles within the sealed bottles. This process could occur with any wine, but it happened particularly in champagne because the region's chalky soil contains large amount of carbon dioxide.

Of all the winemakers, Dom Pérignon - a 17th century monk is credited with playing the most significant role in perfecting the drink. Dom Pérignon was cellar master of the Abbey of Hautvilliers- in the champagne district, close to Reims and east of Paris. The champagne region was abundant in black-skinned Pinot grapes that yielded white juice; white wine made from these grapes were traditionally a yellow straw colour. Dom Pérignon worked over the years and unlocked the secret of making a completely clear sparkling white wine that did not quickly discolour from black grapes. To ensure the perfection of champagne Dom Pérignon had strict production rules such as no wine should be made out of white grapes because they tend to enter re-fermentation, and harvest should be done in cool, damp conditions with every precaution being taken to ensure that the grapes don't bruise or break.

For decades, sparkling wine was regarded as inferior to still wine and in Champagne the worry was that the new drink would harm the region's winemaking reputation; however, it slowly won admirers in cultured Parisian circles. The first firm to produce the new wine was formed in 1734 by Jacques Fourneaux in Reims. In 1743, Claud Moet, who owned vineyards, established the House of Moet in Epernay. In history, Champagne was first enjoyed by the King of France, Hugh Capet, and it was later served to royal visitors to the region. Champagne has ever since become an iconic drink for people with higher social status, and is described as the "centrepiece of bourgeois society".

Champagne Barrels

How Champagne was placed in bottles.

Processing and Manufacturing

1. Harvest: Different types of grapes may be used depending on the region the champagne is being made. A combination of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier is usually used. The harvesting of grapes is strictly controlled. The best time to pick grapes is between August and October, depending on how ripe the grapes are in that season. Note that the grapes must be picked by hand so that only the best ripened grapes will be used to make champagne. After picking the grapes, they are carefully pressed before starting the first fermentation.
2. First fermentation: All kinds of Champagne processing start with making an acidic still wine, which lacks sparkling and effervescent properties due to the absence of carbon dioxide. The still wine is made by putting the juice into a tank where the first fermentation takes place.
3. Assemblage: This process is also called blending, which usually occurs 5 months after the harvest. The still wine produced from the first fermentation is carefully blended with other reserve wines to create a unique taste of the particular Champagne house. This blended product serves as the base wine for Champagne.
4. Second fermentation: This is where the Champagne gets its sparkling and effervescent properties. A mixture of sugar, yeast, and yeast nutrients are added to the wine, then the wine is bottled and sealed with a crown cap. These bottles are then placed in a cool cellar for the yeast to slowly convert the sugar into carbon dioxide and alcohol. The carbon dioxide is trapped in the bottle as sparkling bubbles.
5. Aging: As the fermentation proceeds, lees are produced inside the bottle. These are spent yeast cells, which the wine will now age on for some time before they get removed. During this aging period, the lees give the wine a toasty and nutty taste. The time spent on the lees may vary depending on different production rules or different Champagne types (> 15 months for non-vintage/> 3 years for vintage-dated). This process completes the second fermentation.
6. Riddling: After the aging is completed, lees are removed through this process called riddling. The bottles are placed upside down in a holder with a 75° angle. Every few days, the bottles are turned a bit and given a small shake to move the lees toward the bottleneck where they are subsequently removed.
7. Disgorging: During this process, the lees are removed from the bottle. The bottle is kept upside down while the bottleneck is carefully dipped into a freezing solution, forming a plug of frozen wine containing sediments. The crown cap is then removed, and the internal pressure caused by carbon dioxide gas expels the frozen sediment along with a bit of wine, leaving behind a clear Champagne.
8. Dosage: A dosage, or a small amount of still wine with a particular level of sweetness is added in this process to replace the wine lost in the disgorgement. This procedure determines the sweetness level of the wine and decides how the product will be labelled (Brut Nature, Extra Brut, Dry, etc.). The unique toasty and nutty taste is often associated with champagne.
9. Corking: This is the last step of Champagne production. A cork is inserted into the bottle and wired down to help it to stay in place despite the high internal pressure of carbon dioxide.

Quiz Question

Question: Which of the following statement(s) is/are true for Champagne?

I) The process of secondary fermentation happens in the bottle

II) The harvesting of ripen grapes are mostly done by machinery

III) The types of grapes used is a combination of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier

IV) Champagne that has undergone secondary fermentation is stored and shipped in 30 days

V) The first fermentation of Champagne starts with acidic still wine where carbon dioxide is present

VI) The taste of Champagne is toasty and nutty

Answers & Explanations

✔︎ (I), (III), (VI) - Champagne, unlike sparkling wine, is made from a combination of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier Grapes which gives it a unique toasty and nutty taste. After the first fermentation, Champagne will obtain its sparkling and effervescent properties during the second fermentation process that happens within the sealed bottle.

✘ (II) - Grapes must be picked by hand to ensure the high quality.

✘ (V) - In Champagne making process all kinds of Champagne start with making an acidic still wine, which lacks sparkling and effervescent properties due to the absence of carbon dioxide unlike Sparkling Wine were it is already acidic prior to first fermentation.

✘ (IV) - As the fermentation proceeds the champagne needs to be properly aged for ≥15 months for non-vintage/ ≥3 years for vintage-dated to ensure proper completion of the second fermentation.

The Social Impact of Champagne

Martin Lampkin celebrates with Oriol Puig Bultó (right) his victory at the 1976 SSDT

When talking about Champagne, the first image that comes into mind is often associated with the rich and famous living flamboyant and extravagant lives. The music video of the American singer Ne-yo in his song "Champagne Life" is one of the examples that can perfectly illustrate the kind of luxurious lifestyles. This public impression of Champagne has to be credited to it's limited ingredients, strict production process, and successful advertisements.The province Champagne is responsible for the world's entire stock of true Champagne; therefore, it is the scarcity that makes it stands out from the other sparkling wines and contributes to the high price.

Celebrity endorsement really adds to the upsurge of Champagne starting in the old Hollywood times. Over the years, there are numerous movies scenes with Champagne involved: Marilyn Monroe started the trend of pairing Champagne with potato chips in The Seven Year Itch, James Bond opted for Pommery or Krug Champagne instead of his signature "shaken, not stirred" martini in Diamonds Are Forever, Leonardo DiCaprio toasted Champagne as he was introducing himself as "Gatsby" in The Great Gatsby etc. All these scenes left a deep impression to the audience and build up on the foundation of Champagne's superiority.

Different kinds of alcoholic drinks usually evoke a different sense of a person’s lifestyles and moods. Other than luxurious, Champagne also brings a triumphant and festive vibe. As "the Drink of Celebration”, the light-gold bubbly drink usually marks the joyful and significant moments in life such as engagement, wedding, birthday, New Year's Eve etc. In the 18th century, Champagne has gained popularity in the Festival of the Federation (Fête de la Fédération) where people toast to the victory of French Revolution. The etiquette of toasting has been established and people would purchase a bottle of Champagne to celebrate special occasions.

References

J. Robinson, ed. (2006). The Oxford Companion to Wine (Third ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 150–153. ISBN 0-19-860990-6.

Berry, C. (2019, October 31). This Is the Real Difference Between Champagne and Sparkling Wine. Retrieved August 04, 2020, from https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/what-is-champagne/

A., Hawkes, N., Lawrence, C., Dr, Walker, R., Dr, Mason, A., & Messenger, C. (1995). Creating the king of wines - How French Winemakers First Made Champagne. In Reader's digest how was it done?: The story of human ingenuity through the ages (p. 159). London: Reader's Digest.