Champagne is the world leading French sparkling wine born from centuries of tradition, history and expertise. However, the most relevant question isn’t what is Champagne, but where is Champagne?
In fact, the sparkling wine carries the name of a local geographic region, la Champagne, which is 100 km (62 miles) east of Paris, France. However, the official wine-growing borders sprawl far beyond these regional boundaries covering a 84,000 acre landmass.
This is strictly defined by what is called an Appellation, a highly protective officially controlled designation of origin. This means that in order to be called Champagne, the sparkling wine has to follow specific production and geographical regulations.
Drafted in 1927, this Appellation consists of 320 official wine-making villages or communes often referred to as “crus”. Among them are three major commercial sites, Reims, Épernay and Aÿ. They form a so-called “golden triangle” at the epicentre of Champagne production.
Furthermore, the defined borders of Champagne consist of 5 wine-producing districts, which each have their own distinctive identities. In the north is the major Montagne de Reims, Vallée de la Marne sits to the west across from the Côte des Blancs in the east. Further away to the south-east you have both the Côte de Sézanne and the Côte des Bar.
Each are unique thanks to their individual geographies and micro-climates and these characteristics produce different tasting grapes. Champagne sites at the very northern edge of feasible wine-growing land with average 10°C (50°F) temperatures and regular rainfall. Rich and fruity grapes are grown by pushing the vines to their very limit in chalky, inhospitable soil.
How is Champagne made?
Champagne is made following a strict set of rules set out by the Appellation. The process is known as the Méthode Champenoise or Méthode Traditionnelle, but is often colloquially referred to as the “classic” method.
Unlike other sparkling wines, the method for Champagne ensures that no shortcuts are taken and no steps are skipped. This is one of the pivotal factors that makes Champagne an exceptional wine and the name ensures a guarantee of quality.
Pruning
The process of making Champagne starts during the cold winter month of January. With the popped corks celebrating Christmas and New Year long behind us, wine growers are back in their fields.
They will wait until the last frost has passed, which is usually the day of St Vincent on the 22nd January. However, sometimes this can be a little later. Growers will aggressively prune the vines almost down to the stump. The reason for this is if a vine is overgrown, it produces more albeit diluted fruit. The objective is to encourage the growth of rich, juicy grapes.
At springtime, growers will return to the fields for the liage or binding. This is a process where the newly grown shoots are tied back onto wires. This is so that they don’t break under the upcoming weight of grapes.
Around 100 days later in the early summer, flowers begin to blossom and a second round of clipping begins. Growers will preserve anywhere with signs of potential grape growth but remove any extra foliage or dead weight. This makes sure that the vine nourishes the grapes and doesn’t waste energy on useless greenery.
Harvest & Press
In the first week of September, workers mobilise for the harvest, which is known as the “vendange”. Interestingly, “vendange” is actually the origin of the word “vintage” as it is significant in a wine’s chronology.
The vendange must take place by hand, which is an arduous and physical process. However, great care is taken not to throw or damage the grapes. Furthermore, picking begins in the early hours of the morning so the grapes’ juice is fresh.
The grapes are taken straight to a “coquart” press. Here, they are quickly yet gently pressed to produce the juice. From 4000 kg (8818.49 lb) of grapes, no more than 2550 litres (674 US gallons) are allowed to be squeezed. The leftovers, known as the “moût”, are not wasted but instead used to make a liqueur called Ratafia.
The first 2050 litres (542 gallons) of this is what is known as the cuvée, which provides the purest juice. The remaining 500 litres (132 gallons) are squeezed separately. As a general rule, the clearer the liquid, the sweeter the juice.
This is undertaken with great haste to avoid the skins colouring the juice so that the wine stays white. However, specialty rosé Champagnes called “saignée” let the skins sit for a short while to literally “bleed” into the juice.
1st Fermentation
Now that the juice has been pressed, it is left to ferment in cuveries (steel vats) or sometimes oak casks. They ferment until dry, which means no sugar is left in the juice. Once this fermentation phase is over, it is decided whether the taille’s quality deserves being introduced into the wine’s base. However, the best Champagnes are made exclusively with the cuvée juice.
Assemblage
The assemblage is the pivotal moment where the chef du cave (cellar master) creates his secret blend. As Champagne must be consistent every year no matter the climate, master blenders have the skilled task of ensuring consistency. This is achieved by blending the base wines from all the different vineyards at their disposal.
The cellar master will not only blend current vintages but can sometimes turn to reserve wines that can go back as much as 30 years! This is what sets Champagne apart from other wines. In Bordeaux, for example, wine makers are obliged to use that particular year when creating their wines. In essence, a bottle of typical wine is an expression of its year’s climate.
Meanwhile, Champagne can use any year and any vineyard in their locality to recreate the same experience. Furthermore, older reserves can add an element of maturity and complexity early on in the maturation process. In order to check for consistency, they have “garde” wines. These are used as references to compare with the previous house releases.
However, vintage Champagnes are an exception to the above. These are wines blended from exceptional years where the harvest was particularly good. When this happens, the cellar master will only use that year’s base wines to create a blend that showcases its qualities.
2nd Fermentation
This is the moment where Champagne develops its effervescence. Once the blends have been assembled, they are bottled and tightly sealed with a crown cap. However, before being closed, what is known as a tirage will be added to each bottle.
This is a concoction of yeast, sugar and other wine liqueur that adds flavour. The chemical reaction between yeast and sugar creates a build-up of carbon dioxide, which is how the bubbles form. The pressure inside the bottles will reach as much as 6 bars. However, the days of exploding bottles are long gone as the glass can withstand up to 18 bars today.
The fermentation process begins “sur latte”, which means that the bottles are layered over wooden planks on their sides. The environment throughout the 2nd fermentation and aging process is very important. The artificial lighting is specifically designed to replicate candlelight to not damage the sensitive wine. The temperature must stay a constant cool 10-11°C and never peak to avoid spoiling.
Aging
As the fermentation process draws to a close, the bottles are placed on “pupitres”, wooden blocks with 60 holes cut at an angle. The ageing process will soon begin. These pupitres allow the bottles to be place at a 35% angle via the neck and slowly turned downwards. After about 3 weeks, the bottle neck is pointed down in a 75% gradient, it is then said to be resting on lees and aged “en pointe”.
Again, these cellars must maintain very low light levels and an ambiant temperature of around 10°C (50°F). Depending on its type, a Champagne will spend at least 15 months and as much as 10 years or more en pointe!
Once the Champagne has sufficiently aged, the bottles undergo what is known as “remuage” or riddling. The bottles are turned 1/8th of a revolution to encourage leftover dead yeast sediment called “lies” (lees) to fall towards the neck. Machines have largely taken over this tiresome job but a riddler could often turn as much as 30,000 bottles a day.
Disgorgement & Dosage
Once the sediment has completely fallen down to the neck, the bottle is plunged into a freezing brine solution. The crown cap is then removed as well as the lees sediment inside without losing pressure. This is known as the disgorgement.
Before the wine is corked, a liqueur d’expédition is added. It features the predetermined dosage of sugar that will be decide the Champagne’s final level of sweetness. In order to add the cork, it is exposed to 40°C (104°F) vapour that makes it malleable. It is then pushed halfway into the bottle and wrapped in a metal wire called the “muselet.”
Champagne is not a wine designed to be matured after corking. However, many enthusiasts have grown an appreciation for cork-aged Champagne. Nevertheless, it is released onto the market only when the house believes it is ready. Therefore, from this point on, the Champagne is ready to drink!
What Is Champagne & How Is It Made? Culture, History & More (bespokeunit.com)
