1. Standard options in sparkling winemaking Flashcards by Shaun Walton

What is the typical ABV of most sparkling base wines?

9-11%

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Why is a low alcohol base wine necessary in wines undergoing secondary fermentation?

Secondary fermentation produces an additional 1-2%.

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When does Chardonnay ripen?

Early in cool conditions.

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When does Chardonnay bud?

Early.

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What three weather and viticultural hazards is Chardonnay susceptible to?

1) Spring frost
2) Coulure
3) Millerandage

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What three disease pressures is Chardonnay susceptible to?

1) Powdery mildew
2) Botrytis
3) Grapevine yellows

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When does Pinot Noir ripen?

Early.

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When does Pinot Noir bud?

Early

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What two weather/viticultural hazards is Pinot Noir susceptible to?

1) Spring frosts
2) Coulure

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What five disease pressures is Pinot Noir susceptible to?

1) Downy mildew
2) Powdery mildew
3) Botrytis
4) Fan leaf
5) Leaf roll

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How does Chardonnay respond to autolysis?

By becoming creamy.

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How does Xarel-lo respond to autolysis?

By becoming toasty and smoky.

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Why is clean fruit a priority? (2)

1) The perception of off flavours from diseased fruit can be enhanced by effervenscence.
2) The enzyme laccase released by botrytis-infected grapes can cause oxidation

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Why is whole-bunch pressing often practised for premium traditional method sparkling wines? 2 reasons.

1) It is one of the gentlest forms of pressing.
2) The stems create a network of channels through which the juice can flow easily, minimising the pressure required.

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What is a drawback of whole-bunch pressing?

Fewer bunches can be loaded into the press at any one time compared with de-stemmed fruit.

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What are two common types of press used in sparkling wine production?

1) Pneumatic
2) Basket press

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What is the typical fermentation temperature range?

14-20 celcius.

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Cultured yeasts are used in sparkling wine production because they can reliably ferment in environments with the following five conditions:

1) Low pH
2) High pressure
3) High alcohol
4) Low temperatures
5) Poor nutrient availability

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What are two types of cultured yeast suited to use in traditional method sparkling wines?

1) LALVIN DV10
2) EC1118

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Why are the buttery flavours found in still whites that have undergone MLC not typically found in sparkling wines that have?

Diacetyl is metabolised by the yeast during secondary fermentation.

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What are the seven aims of assembalge?

1) Balance
2) Consistency
3) Style
4) Complexity
5) Fault minimisation
6) Volume
7) Price

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Liqueur de tirage is a mixture of what five components?

1) Wine/must
2) Sugar
3) Cultured yeasts
4) Yeast nutrients
5) Clarifying agent

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What two clarifying agents might be used?

1) Bentonite
2) Alginate

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Why is a clarifying agent added with the liqueur de tirage?

To aid sediment flocculation.

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What is a common amount of sugar added as part of liqueur de tirage?

24 g/L

24 g/L sucrose converts to approximately how much alcohol?

1.5%

What is the French term to which secondary fermentation is commonly referred?

Prise de mousse/capturing the sparkle

The CO2 converted from sugar in liqueur de tirage by yeast produces what approximate pressure?

6 atmospheres/a bar

Once liqueur de tirage has been added how are bottles stored? (2)

1) Sur latte/horizontally 2) 10-12 celcius

For approximately how long does secondary fermentation last?

4-6 weeks.

After how long ageing on lees do autolytic characters become detectable?

15-18 months+

The longer a wine is matured on lees, the faster its evolution once disgorged. Why?

The older a sparkling wine becomes, the less it can withstand the sudden shock of oxygen at disgorgement.

What is a 'pupitres'?

A timber riddling rack.

How long does manual riddling take?

Up to eight weeks.

How long does riddling with a gyropallete take?

3-4 days.

Explain the six disgorgement steps.

1) Bottles are stored sur pointe so the lees remain in the neck. 2) Bottles are cooled to 7 celcius. 3) Necks are immersed in a bath of frozen brine. 4) The bottle is inverted and crown cap removed releasing the plug. 5) Liqueur d'expedition is added. 6) The bottle is sealed.

What is liqueur d'expedition?

A mixture of wine and sugar or RCGM.

What is the role of dosage?

To balance the acidity, particularly of young wines.

Why might wines that are older at disgorgement require a lower dosage?

The perception of acidity rounds out with age requiring a lower dosage to soften.

What is the Maillard reaction?

When the sugar in liqueur d'expedition reacts with compounds formed during yeast autolysis to create roasted, toasted vanilla aromas.

Why was the tank method developed?

To avoid the cost of manual riddling.

Besides cost, what two other advantages are there to the transfer method?

1) It reduces bottle-to-bottle variation. 2) It's easier to make final adjustments to the wine.

When is transfer method used in Champagne aka transversage?

To fill 37.5cl and 300cl bottles that are difficult to riddle.

What is transversage?

The process by which small- and large-format bottles of sparkling wine are filled. Using the traditional method of sparkling winemaking, standard 750ml bottles are riddled and then disgorged into a pressurized tank. Dosage is added and then the sparkling wine is transferred into other size bottles.

Explain the transfer method. (5)

1) Wine is chilled to 0 celcius. 2) The bottles are opened by a transfer machine and emptied into a pressurised receiving tank. 3) The wine is sweetened. 4) SO2 is added. 5) Sterile filtration is carried out prior to bottling.

How might the back label distinguish a transfer method wine from traditional method?

'Fermented in bottle' rather than 'fermented in this bottle'.

Explain the ancestral method.

Partly fermented must is put into bottles and the remaining sugar is converted into alcohol and CO2.

Is dosage added to ancestral method wines?

No.

What three other names is the tank method also known?

1) Cuve Close 2) Charmat 3) Martinotti

At what temperature range does the first fermentation take place during the tank method?

16-18 celcius.

Explain the tank method in three steps.

1) Liqueur de tirage is added and a second fermentation takes place in pressurised tanks. 2) The second fermentation is arrested once the desired pressure and r/s has been reached. 3) Wine might be removed from lees or remain.

Explain the two additional steps of the tank method if a lees-matured attribute is desired.

1) Temperature is reduced to 2-4 celcius. 2) Paddles within the tank stir the lees to maximise contact.

What is a disadvantage of lees maturing wine during the tank method?

The economic advantages are lost because the tanks are tired up for months.

Once fermentation or lees contact is complete, what six winemaking steps take place as part of the tank method?

1) Cold stabilisation 2) Centrifugation or filtration 3) Sugar, SO2 adjustments 4) Sterile filtration 5) Wine is chilled to -2 celcius 6) Bottled with a counter-pressure filler

What is a counter-pressure filler?

A system where the bottle is filled with CO2 then the chilled wine replaces the CO2, which prevents the entrance of oxygen/loss of CO2.

What is the Asti method?

A variation of the tank method that produces sparkling wine in a single fermentation.

Explain the Asti method.

1) CO2 is allowed to escape during the first stages of fermentation in tank. 2) Part way through the valve is sealed to retain CO2. 3) Once the desired r/s and pressure is obtained, fermentation is stopped by rapidly chilling the wine and filtering it under pressure to remove yeast.

What is the carbonation method?

The injection of CO2 under pressure.

The EU labelling terms for sweetness in sparkling wines permits a +/- tolerance of how many g/L r/s?

3 g/L

What is the typical composition of a sparkling wine cork?

A 31mm diameter agglomerate cork onto which two disks of natural cork have been glued.

The average inside neck diameter of a sparkling wine bottle is how wide?

18-21mm.

What other method of closure might be used?

Crown seal/cap.

Wines made from press juice tend to be faster maturing. Why?

Press fractions contain less juice and so contain less acid. Acid contributes to ageability and is found in greater concentration in free-run and first-press juice.