Champagne is France's most northerly Appellation Contrôlée area, where the climate is such that grapes struggle to ripen and the basic wines that are produced are extremely thin and acidic. In fact, if the wines from the region were not sparkling, Champagne would hardly figure on the world wine map.
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Location
The most northerly major wine region in France, situated north-east
of Paris.
Grapes
- Chardonnay (white): gives elegance
- Pinot Noir (red): gives
weight
- Pinot Meunier (red): gives softness
Look Out For
- Blanc de Blancs: made only from
white grapes (Chardonnay). Usually light, creamy, fruity, and
elegant.
- Brut Rose: pink-coloured Champagne, tinted by the
red skins of Pinot Noir and/or Pinot Meunier.
- Blanc de Noirs:
pale sparkling wine from Pinot Noir and/or Pinot Meunier. Full-bodied
and punchy, less elegant than Blanc
de Blancs.
- De-luxe Cuvées – Very expensive vintage
Champagnes, costing 2 or 3 times as much as fine vintage Champagnes.
They
are usually made with grapes from Grand Cru vineyards and are
suitable for cellaring.
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In order to qualify for the Champagne appellation, a sparkling wine must fulfil the following three requirements:
- Be produced in the Champagne district,
- Be produced from the Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and/or Pinot Meunier grapes grown there, and
- Get its bubbles via the methode champenoise (Champagne method).
The slopes of Montagne de Reims accommodate some of the best vineyard sites in the Champagne region. The Côtes de Blancs grows mostly Chardonnay, and the Aube, 100 miles further south, grows mostly Pinot Noir. There are approximately 300 Champagne villages in the district, with 17 of them designated as Grand Cru vineyards. The best known of these are Le Mesnil, Aÿ, Bouzy, and Sillery. Although there is no Grand Cru classification for Champagne itself, the luxury Champagnes will usually contain a higher proportion of grapes from these Grand Cru vineyards.
Methode Champenoise
The Champagne method, as described in our earlier section on Winemaking (click here), is a labour-intensive and expensive way of naturally carbonating a wine.
- The wine is made from local grapes. This is not easy in itself, as the vineyards of Champagne lie so far north that achieving full ripeness can be an issue.
- After clarification and ageing, the wine is put into thick Champagne bottles, along with enough yeast and sugar to initiate a second fermentation.
- The second fermentation adds the fizz - the carbon dioxide cannot escape, so it dissolves in the wine.
- After aging the dead yeast is removed. This is done by coaxing it into the neck of the bottle by gradually tilting the bottle a little bit each day until it is inverted. The dead yeast is then carefully removed.
- Finally, the bottle is topped up and adjusted for sweetness with the addition of a mixture of wine and sugar syrup known as the dosage.
The base wine for Champagne is very acidic and thin, but using a combination of the best grapes and gentle pressing will result in pure base wine that will make the finest Champagne. It is whilst the wines lie in the cool chalk cellars during the second fermentation, that Champagne begins to fill-out and transform. It is kept for a minimum of 18 months 'Sur Lie', gaining weight and complexity from the lees and adding yeasty, toasty, biscuity flavours.
The key to the flavour of good Champagne is that it doesn't taste obviously fruity. Instead it should mingle fruit flavours with biscuits, fresh bread, nuts or even chocolate. With maturity it will mellow to a wonderfully nutty complexity.
However, not all Champagnes are successful. If the summers are cold and wet, then the resulting wine will be green and unripe-tasting.
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The degree of sweetness in champagne is denoted
by the following terms:
- Extra (Ultra) Brut: very dry - less than
6g sugar/litre
- Brut: dry - less than 15g sugar/litre
- Extra Dry: dry/off dry
- 12-20g sugar/litre
- Sec: off-dry - 17-35g sugar/litre
- Demi-Sec: medium sweet -
33-50g sugar/litre
- Rich or Doux: sweet - more than 50g sugar/litre
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Vintage
Most Champagne is non-vintage (NV), which means that it is a blend of several years. All champagne houses keep stocks of older vintages so that they can blend to a consistent style year by year. Non-vintage champagne can be drunk as soon as you buy it, although it will benefit from a further six months' aging, which will give it an extra roundness.
Vintage Champagne is made from wine from a single harvest, and is only made in good years. They should be richer and more flavoursome than non-vintage, with extra depth, character, complexity and weight. They will need to mature for at least a decade to taste their very best.
Still Wines
The Grand Cru vineyards of Bouzy produces a still red wine from the Pinot Noir grape, called Bouzy Rouge. It is lighter in style than the Burgundy Pinots, and is made for early drinking.
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