Other traditional method sparkling wines of France Flashcards
(42 cards)
1
Q
What is Crémant?
A
- Some (not all) regional French traditional method sparkling wines made outside the Champagne region.
- Crémant PDO created to protect champagne
- used to be semi-sparkling style within Champagne, but because of change in law - 1985 EU banned “méthod champenoise” - Crémant took on current meaning.
- More regions created a Crémant (now 8)
2
Q
How many Crémant appellations are there in France?
Name the 3 largest
A
- 8 Crémant appellations in France:
- Three largest
- Alsace
- Bourgogne
- Loire
3
Q
What are the six common features for all Crémant wines?
A
- Whole-bunch pressing (so hand-harvesting)
- Max yield at pressing of 100l per 150kg grapes
- Min 9 mths lees ageing during 2nd ferment in bottle
- Min 12 mths maturation between tirage and release (includes the 9mths lees ageing)
- Max 13% abv in finished wine
- Min 4 atmospheres pressure
4
Q
What is the (2017) annual production of France’s major sparkling wine regions?
A
- Champagne 300m bts
- Loire total (Cremant, Saumur, Vouvray) 36m (check)
- Alsace 35m (check)
- Bourgogne 20m
- Cremant de Loire 17m
- Saumur 11m
- Vouvray 8m
5
Q
Define Crémant d’Alsace
A
- Sparkling wine made in the traditional method, mainly Brut
- Main grape Pinot Blanc (though 5 others allowed: Auxerrois, Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir)
- Medium intensity, ripe, apple and pear fruit, medium+/high acidity, light/medium bodied
- Longer lees-aged wines medium intensity biscuit, autolytic notes
- Rosé must be 100% Pinot Noir, v good quality med/(+) intensity red berry fruit
6
Q
Climate in Alsace
A
- Vineyards 200m-400m on eastern flanks of Vosges foothills (Vosges shelter from prevailing westerlies)
- Climate sunny, semi-continental, often dry/hot during growing season
- Hot days, cool night: fruit ripeness, retains acidity: ideal
- Possible problems
- No irrigation permitted: water can be problem
- Spring frost (esp earlier springs/ earlier bud break) leading to reduction in yields
7
Q
How significant is Crémant for Alsace?
A
- 25% of total wine production
- 500 growers (often alongside still production)
- 3,600 hectares vineyard area +15% in last 10 yrs
8
Q
Where is Pinot Blanc grown in Alsace for sparkling wine production
A
- Vineyards generally sheltered by Vosges
- Best sites usually reserved for noble varieties for still wines (eg Riesling)
- Pinot Blanc grown on lower elevations, fertile soils (not suitable for top quality)
- Also on cooler sites in higher valleys where grapes for still wines would struggle to ripen (eg Munster Valley, where cool airflows retain acidity in grapes)
9
Q
Pinot Blanc’s importance to Crémant d”Alsace?
A
- 20% of total Alsace vineyard area (includes Auxerrois, as not distinguished in record-keeping, most are P Blanc)
- PROS
- Inexpensive
- Early budding & ripening, so picked much earlier than other varieties (useful to spread out harvest)
- floral, green apples, high acidity
- CONS
- early budding = spring frosts
- prone to fungal diseases
- simple quality (top growers use Pinot Gris instead)
10
Q
What are the grape varieties permitted in Crémant D’Alsace?
A
- SIX:
- Pinot Blanc (main grape)
- Auxerrois
- Chardonnay (only Alsace appellation allowing it)
- Riesling (preferred for still wines)
- Pinot Gris (used by better producers for Pinot B)
- Pinot Noir (ONLY grape for Cremant D’Alsace rosé)
- NOT allowed - Gewurztraminer, Muscat
11
Q
Harvest of Cremant D’ Alsace
A
- early (end Aug/early Sept) for just-ripe fruit/high acid
- By hand, whole berry mandatory for high quality juice low phenolics
- Greater crop load than for still wines, as base wines don;t need high flavour concentration
- max yields 80hL/ha v champagne 65-75 hL/ha.
- Growers must declare in July if they are going to make Crémant
12
Q
Winemaking for Crémant D’Alsace
A
- as pot alcohol low (min 8.5%), must often chaptalised
- Then traditional method for fully sparkling
- Wines 100% single vintage - no reserve wines
- Time on lees during second fermentation us 12 mths, so primary green apple fruit
- Top producers age longer on lees (eg Cave de Turckheim co-op 2 years for least expensive), giving biscuit, autolytic notes.
- Brut
- Rosés macerate on skin 12-24 hours for colour
- Dosage 8-10g/L range with sugar balancing high acidity
13
Q
Crémant d’Alsace Emotion
A
- 2012 prestige category for Alsace sparkling
- min 75% Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay & Pinot Noir, separately or together
- min 24 mths on lees
- Some v good wines (Dom J-C Buecher), but new category not popular
14
Q
Wine Business structure of Cremant D’Alsace
A
- Production
- 43% cooperatives
- 37% merchant houses
- 20% independent growers
- Largest company is co-op Maison Bestheim, makes sparkling & still wine from 1400 ha, owning half the vineyards, the rest from 450 growers
15
Q
Cremant D’Alsace sales and production
A
- Production more than doubled between 2000-14
- 80% sold in France, but exports rising with world demand
16
Q
Cremant de Bourgogne in one card
A
- Sparkling wine trad method
- Chardonnay (most), Pinot Noir and <20% Gamay
- 10% of total wines of Burgundy
- Production doubled since 2000 (to 19.5m bts)
- Range of styles, white Brut most common with med(+) acidity. Lightly fruity to richly toasty. Med intensity is green apple and lemon (cool) to apricot (warm) with brioche autolytic notes.
- Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs and rosé also made.
17
Q
Where grapes grown for Cremant de Bourgogne
A
- Appellation boundary as per Bourgogne AOC - fruit from any Burgundy departéments: 250km from Chablis to Beaujolais; can influence style
- Main sources
- Maconnais (Chardonnay eg Cave de Lugny co-op)
- Cote Chalonnaise, esp rund Rully
- Beaujolais
- Chablis area in Yonne dept and Chatillon-sur-Seine (just South of southernmost Champagne)
- Hauts Cotes de Beaune & Hauts Cotes de Nuits
- flatlands on Cote D’Or
- These are cooler and/or cheaper
18
Q
Largest single producer of Cremant de Bourgogne?
A
- Veuve Ambal
- owns 6 diff vineyards, supply grapes for 30% of their production volume
19
Q
Why is there a varied climate in Cremanty de Bourgogne?
A
- Because region 250km North to South
- NORTH cool climate - no hot dry summer. Vines need S or S-E for warmth & light. High acid, light body wines
- CENTRAL continental. Low, oft freezing winter, dry, sunny summers. Just-ripe fruit, high acid. Yet still wines worth more on Cote D’Or, so little goes into Cremant
- SOUTH (Maconnais, Beaujolais) mediterranean, high summers, riper fruit, lower acid. Risk summer storms
20
Q
Yields and declarations Cremant de Bourgogne
A
- Max yield 80-90 hL/ha depending on panting density
- Must declare fruit is for Cremant before end of March
21
Q
Grapes for Cremant de Bourgogne (7)
A
- Those grown for still.
- In practice Pinot Noir & Chardonnay for autolytic traits
- Also permitted Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Aligoté, Melon and Gamay
22
Q
risks/ hazards for Cremant de Bourgogne
A
- Same as for Burgundy as a whole
- Hail
- Spring frost
- Fungal diseases
- esca
23
Q
winemaking in Cremant de Bourgogne
A
- Base wine from early harvest
- Malo if desired
- Cremant de Bourgogne: Blend minimum 30% Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Blanc or Gris, either alone or in blend (in practice Chardonnay & Pinot Noir as very little Blanc or Gris planted), max 20% Gamay allowed
- Cremant de Bourgogne Blanc de Blancs Chardonnay and other whites permitted
- Cremant de Bourgogne Blanc de Noirs only Pinot Noir
- Cremant de Bourgogne Rosé only Pinot Noir, but small Gamay to help with colour if nec
24
Q
Structure of Wine Business of Cremant de Bourgogne
A
- 2/3 made by merchant houses
- 30% cooperatives
- 2% independent winemakers (cos expensive to make!)
- but may take grapes to specialist to make wine, get bottles back to sell
25
Sales of Cremant de Bourgogne
* Sales up 1/3 in decade to 2017
* top 10 companies (negociants and co-ops) 90% of volume.
* Jean Charles Boisset, Louis Bollot significant
* Exports 40% and growing, mainly USA and Sweden, rising rapidly in UK, Belgium & Germany
26
What two tiers of Cremant de Bourgogne wre recently introduced to develop quality heirarchy and improve returns?
1. **Cremant de Bourgogne Eminent**
* lees ageing minimum 24 mths
2. **Cremant de Bourgogne Gand Eminent**
* whites: Pinot Noir & Chardonnay only
* rosés : 20% gamay allowed
* vintage optional, but usual
* minimum 36 mths lees + 3mths in bottle pre release
* Brut only
27
why is sourcing grapes a poblem for Cremant de Bourgogne?
* General harvest yields (hail/frost)
* Grapes for still wines so valuable (esp Chard/ Pinot N)
* eg Rully growers used to grow for Cremant, but now get better prices for still wines
28
One card overview of Loire Valley for Cremant
* 7 sparkling appellations incl Cremant de Loire, sparkling Vouvray and sparkling Saumur
* Cremant de Loire production is sum of other two
* Total sparkling is 13% of all Loire
* Champagne houses own major cos: Gartien & Meyer owned by Alfred Gratien, Langlois-Chateau by Bollinger
* Historically Saumur is base, as caves suitable for ageing
* 90% white, Chenin dominated, Brut, high acidity
* med intensity green apple & citrus, light toasty autolytic. 2-3 years develop honeyed aromas.
* mainly Brut, some Demi-Sec, Brut Zero increasing
* mid priced, few premium
29
One card on Cremant de Loire
* Increasingly important, 1600 ha (2012) 2100 ha (2017)
* 500 producers, av annual production 17m bts
* Fruit only from middle Loire Anjou-Saumur and Touraine
* 200km stretch of moderating river/tributaries
* Zone S and S-W Saumur source of most fruit
* Flatter land suitable (lower ripeness OK), slopes for still wines
* Underlying tuff rock of Saumur excavated for buildings, leaving ideal maturation caves as constant temperature and humidity
30
Climate for Cremant de Loire
* Atlantic extemds cool, mild influence to E of Tours, centre of Touraine, covering most of Cremant de Loire
* Regular temps, no extremes, can grow grapes low alcohol in base wines, high acidity.
* Risks: Fungal diseases, untimely rain (flowering, fruit set and harvest)
31
Soils in Cremant de Loire
* Big area, wide range:
* clay-limestone, flint-clay, sand, gravel, tuff.
* more schist and limestone in Anjou
* more chalk in Touraine
* Overall key properties are good drainage and water characteristics of limestone
* Best-exposed sites used for still wines, so less exposed sites, ofetn more clay for sparkling. Too much clay declassified as too cold, lack drainage.
* Clay-limestone, flint-clay produce most structure
* Rootstocks Fercal and Riparia Gloire de Montpelier used - lime resistant - protect from chlorois
32
(8) Grape varieties in Cremant de Loire
* the common grapes of the region
* Chenin Blanc (major in most wines)
* Cabernet Franc
* Cabernet Sauvignon
* Grolleau Noir
* Grolleau Gris
* Pineau d'Aunis
* Pinot Noir
* Chardonnay
* Max 30% Cab Sav and Pineau d'Aunis allowed in blend
* NO Sauvignon Blanc - too aromatic for trad method
33
Yields and declaration for Cremant de Loire
* Vines pruned to greater crop load than still
* max yield 74 hL/ha
* Producers declare in July to make Cremant
34
Wine making in Cremant de Loire
* Most common pneumatic press (quality/ low phenolic)
* Base wines stainless steel fermented (no oak flavours)
* Some premium Bouvay-Ladubay's Cuvee Tresor ferment in oak
* Malo varies: full, partial, none
* wines from different areas can be blended before second fermentation to maintain consistency of style
* timeon lees varies from min 9 mths (primary fruit) to 2 yrs for autolytic.
* Reserve wines more common in premium wines
35
What is the new top tier sparkling category in the Loire
* 2018 Prestige de Loire (wines back to 2010)
* aim to establish min prcie €10 in France
* applies across Loire, Anjou, Saumur and Vouvray
* White only
* Chenin, Cab Franc, Chard, Pinot N, singly or blended
* 24 mths on lees minimum
* vintage dated
* Brut style (\< 12g/L dosage, inc Brut Nature, Extra Brut)
* Producers must hit environmental standards to reach sustainable viticulture within 5 years
36
Structure of Cremant de Loire industry
* Production divided between
* 19 merchant houses, 10 co-ops, 400 producers
* 9 large houses = 80% production
* eg Ackeman, Bouvet- Ladubay, Gratien & Meyer, Langlois-Chateau
* Larger houses use own fruit and bought in
* eg Langlois-Chateau own 73 ha in Anjou-Saumur. 25-30% of their Cremant is own vineyard, rest bought in (as grapes, not must, so can check health and press according to requirements
37
Sales of Cremant de Loire
* Half domestic to France
* Half exported, main markets
* Germany
* USA
* UK
38
One card on Saumur Mousseux AOC
(Mousseux is generic term for sparkling)
* Sparkling wine in the traditional method, mainly Brut
* Saumur 60% sparkling, 40% still
* Deep cellars from tuff perfect for lees ageing in bottle
* Av annual production 10.6m bottles from 1,300 ha vines
* Minimum 60% Chenin with max 10% Sauvignon Blanc
* Rosés minimum 60% Cab Franc with max 10% Sauv Bl
* Higher juice 100l from 130kg (Cremant 100 from 150 kg)
* Mechanical harvest allowed (unlike Cremant), more wine can be made, but prob lower quality
39
One card on Vouvray Mousseux
* Sparkling wine in the traditional method
* Deep cellars from tuff perfect for lees ageing in bottle
* Av annual production 8.2m bottles from 1,200 ha
* Minimum 95% Chenin Blanc
* Tiny amount Vouvray Pétillant (lightly sparkling)
* Pet Nat becoming fashionable
* Higher juice 100l from 130kg (Cremant 100 from 150 kg)
* Mechanical harvest allowed (unlike Cremant), more wine can be made, but prob lower quality
40
Why is making sparkling wine instead of still wine an attractive option in Saumur and Vouvray?
* 20% greater yield (don't need fruit concentration)
* 65 hL/ha Vouvray, 67hL/ha Saumur
* pick earlier at lower ripeness so less risk of late season rain or botrytis spoiling/ reducing crop
41
Why is making Mousseux instead of Cremant an attractive option in Saumur and Vouvray?
* Mechanical harvest
* More juice permitted
* 130l from 130kg
42
Winemaking in Saumur & Vouvray
* Sparkling wine houses and cooperatives do everything in-house
* Still wine producers making mousseux will use specialists (who have the expertise and equipment) for bottling, second fermentation, lees ageing and disgorgement.
* Bottles returned to producer for labelling/distribution
* eg Berger Elaborateur in Saint-Martin-le-Beau best known
