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Champagne Making Method

Méthode Champenoise (Champagne making method)

The oldest and most traditional way to make sparkling wine was supposedly developed by Dom (Pierre) Perignon, a Benedictine Monk in the Champagne district of France, born in1638, and is known as Méthode Champenoise. Therefore only the sparkling wine from this region can be called champagne

Fig.4.4 Méthode Champenoise (Traditional Champagne making)

A blend of a number of wines is used to achieve consistency year after year. The wines are assembled into a "cuvée", which just means a blend of wines.

The "liquer de tirage"(yeast and sugar) is added to the cuvée, bottled, stoppered, and laid up "en tirage" to trap the carbon dioxide gas produced by the yeast as it reacts with the sugar in the wine.

The wine is then fermented "en tirage" until the yeast has reacted with all of the sugar and produced the tiny CO2 bubbles.

At the end of this fermentation in the bottle, the wine will clear and leave a deposit of yeast. It is now ready for "riddling"

The bottles are kept in "riddling racks” in an upturned position. The process known as "remuage," is the where the yeast deposits into the neck of the bottle. This takes several weeks to several months.

The bottles are then set in a freezing brine solution to freeze the yeast sediment and form a "plug" at the neck of the bottle. This is then ejected. This process is called “disgorgement”

“Dosage” is the next step in the process. Here, sugar is added to the wine if a sweeter wine is required. Typically sparkling wine is Brut (very dry), Sec (dry), Demi Sec (semi-sweet) and Doux (sweet)

Corking is done next and a wire cage in place to prevent any possible premature de corking from the high pressure contained in the bottle.

This is the traditional method of making Champagne. This is an expensive and time-consuming method. Sparkling wines can also be made where secondary fermentation takes place in the tanks itself, or by carbonating the wine and then bottling.

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