Cellar Princess: Sparkling Around The World – CHAMPAGNE

A new series by Cellar Princess – Sparkling Around the World and today starts with Champagne.

Champagne – the quintessential celebratory beverage – is probably the most famous of all sparkling wines, but also the most misunderstood.  Wait, what?!  Champagne is a sparkling wine?  Yes, it is.  But all sparkling wines are not champagne.  And that’s the first thing you should know about it.

The next thing to know about Champagne is that it’s a region in France first, where its eponymous sparkling wine is produced.  Only sparklers that hail from this region are allowed to be called champagne, as mandated by French law.  This has come under fire in recent years and the French are fierce to protect the “champagne” name from being used willy-nilly by any sparkler with bubbles;  I’m a purist, so I really hope that
“champagne’s” name is protected.

Champagne Region of France (Photo from www.nga.gov)

There are only three main grape varietals that go into champagne production:  chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier.  The latter two are red grape varietals and this may come as a surprise to most since most champagne is not red!  But some of those famous names that we love to toss about, Veuve Clicquot, Dom Perignon, Ruinart and Pol Roger, produce pink champagne.

Variety of Mumm Champagne (Photo from www.wine-pages.com)

Why do we mostly associate champagne with celebration?  Well, for one, it’s the BUBBLES:  those effervescent balls of fizz that delightfully hiss at us upon pouring.  But what’s really interesting about those bubbles is how they got into the bottle.  One of the production methods for champagne is the methode champenoise (or the champagne method) to obtain that fizz.  That means that after a first round of fermentation, another round of fermentation occurs inside the bottle when yeast and sugar are added;  and that combination is explosive, so to speak, because carbon dioxide gas is produced, and upon contact of the glass or flute, the bubbles appear.  Opa!

Note:  Champagne must age for a minimum of 18 months before release.

Your Cellar Princess promises to make all your wine selections royal!  Follow her on facebook and twitter.