France - Champagne Flashcards
Climatic influences
The region of Champagne is located between the 48th and 49th parallels with a mean annual temperature of only 50ºF or 10ºC.
Frost, rain, fungal disease and hail are a serious concerns for growers.
Rain often interrupts flowering resulting in a bouvreux, or second crop, that rarely ripens and is left on the vine.
Permitted grape varietals for AOC Champagne
- Chardonnay (provides elegance and longevity)
- Pinot Noir (supports the wine’s structure, richness and body)
- Meunier (lends a youthful fruitness and approachability)
- Pinot Blanc
- Pinot Gris
- Arbane
- Petit Meslier
- Voltis
Soil characteristics
- Porous Belemnite chalk subsoil
- Absorbs heat to protect the vines
- Provide excellent drainage
- High limestone content, which allows vine roots to dig deeply and is linked to increased acidity
- Second layer of Micraster chalk
- A thin layer of clay and sand covers much of the chalk in Champagne.
- The Aube to the south clay is the dominant soil type
Yields and extraction amounts
- Maximum Yields: 10,400 kg/ha
- Maximum Press Yield: 102 liters/160 kg (additional pressed juice is rebêche, and must acount for 0-10% of the total and may only be used for distillation)
Define: Marc of grapes
The amount (4.000kg) held in a traditional Coquard basked press
Break down the extracted juice from a Coquard Press
- Vin de Cuvée (first 2,050 literes)
- Vin de Taille (following 500 liters, richer in pigment and tannin)
- Rebêche (1-10% of the total used for distillate)
Bottle sizes & Volumes
The names of large bottles, from Jeroboam forward, have Biblical connotations.
Sweetness Levels for Champagne
Brut Nature: 0-3 g/L, no added dosage
Extra Brut: 0-6 g/L
Brut: 0-12 g/L
Extra Dry: 12-17 g/L
Sec: 17-32 g/L
Demi-Sec: 32-50 g/L
Doux: 50+ g/L
What is the designation for sparkling wines withouth any added dosage?
Brut Nature
Non-Dosé
Brut Sauvage
Ultra Brut
Dosage Zéro
Sans Sucre
Pas Dosé
Champagne Regions and Sub-Districts
Regions and sub-districts
* Montagne de Reims (Sillery, Puisieux, Beaumont-sur-Vesle, Verzenay, Mailly-Champagne, Verzy, Louvois, Bouzy, Ambonnay, Tours-sur-Marne)
* Vallée de la Marne (Aÿ-Champagne)
* Côte des Blancs (Chouilly, Oiry, Cramant, Avize, Oger, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger)
* Côte de Sézanne
* Côte des Bar
Notable vintages
2002
2004
2008
2012
2015
What is the dominant grape in Montagne de Reims and the Côte des Bar?
Pinot Noir
What is the dominant grape in Côte de Sézanne and Côte des Blancs?
Chardonnay
What is the dominant grape in Vallée de la Marne?
Meunier
Steps for the Méthode Champenoise
Grapes pressed > Vin Clair > Assemblage > Liqueur de tirage > Second fermentation > Riddling > Disgorgement > Liqueur d’expédition > Cork
Define: Débourbage
Period of time where the grape juice is allowed to settle at a cool temperature for eight to fifteen hours to separate the remaining solids (bourbes) in the must by racking prior to fermentation
Define: Vin Clair
High-acid base wines with an approximate alcohol content of 11%
Is Chaptalitzation allowed in Champagne?
Yes, the grape juice is often chaptalized and then, will undergo primary fermentation
Define: Assemblage
Blending process of base wines from different grapes, growing areas and vintages to achieve consistency in style from year to year.
Define the Non-Vintage style of Champagne
Cuvée generally brut in style. Represents a house’s signature style, and the blender’s job is to ensure its consistency from year to year.
Non-vintage Champagne makes up at least three-quarters of the market.
Example: Billecart-Salmon, Brut Réserve
Define the Vintage style of Champagne
100% of the blend must come from the stated vintage, yet a maximum 80% of a year’s harvest may be sold as vintage Champagne.
the better houses declare a vintage only in exceptional years.
Example: Pol Roger, Brut Vintage 2016
Define the Blanc de Blancs style of Champagne
Only white grapes are permitted, but they are not always sourced from the Côte des Blancs.
They may be vintage-dated or NV.
The BdB category represents some of Champagne’s most ageworthy bottlings; while austere and often steely in youth, better examples develop an intense bouquet with maturity.
Example: Billecart-Salmon, Brut Blanc de Blancs NV
Define the Blanc de Noirs style of Champagne
White wine produced solely from black grapes
The wine usually displays richness, intensity and weight, although it can lack the supreme elegance and finesse of Blanc de Blancs
Example: André Clouet, Un Jour de 1911
Define the Prestige Cuvée style of Champagne
Also known as Tête de Cuvée
Usually the finest and most expresive bottling that a house offers, the prestige cuvée is typically vintage-dated and aged for a number of years prior to release
Prestige Cuvées are usually only released in superior vintages, and may undergo more traditional vinification procedures, such as barrel fermentation, riddling by hand, and cork-finishing during the second fermentation.
Many of the large houses produce prestige cuvées from their own vineyards, even single vineyards in exceptional cases
Prestige Cuvées may be Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs or Rosé in style
Example: Louis Roederer, Cristal Brut Vintage
Define the Single Vineyard Champagne style of Champagne
May be produced by a large house or a smaller grower-producer, and may or may not be advertised as a prestige cuvée.
Single Vineyard wines are not required to carry a vintage date, although they invariably do, and the style represents a stark departure from the blending philosophy of the region.
Example: Philipponnat, Extra-Brut Clos des Goisses
Define the Special Club Prestige Cuvée style of Champagne
Estate-bottled, vintage-dated wines that represent the pinnacle of each individual grower’s style and production
Special club bottles and labels share identical design
Current members include Marc Hébrart, Pierre Gimonnet, Paul Bara, J. Lasalle and Gaston Chiquet
Example: Marc Hébrart, Brut Special Club 1er Cru 2018
Define the Rosé Champagne style of Champagne
May be Vintage, Non-Vintage and Prestige Cuvées produced in pink versions
The traditional saignée method, in which the wine gains its hue through extended skin contact, is less common than blending
Champagne is the only AOP in France that allows a rosé to be produced by blending red and white wine
A rosé prestige cuvée, a novelty in years past, is usually the most expensive and rare product a house offers
Example: Billecart-Salmon, Brut Elisabeth-Salmon 2012
