Champagne

I think that we have all had a glass of sparkling wine at one time or another. Generally it is brought out at special occasions, like weddings or New Years Eve events, but I enjoy sparkling wine year round. Actually, next to Pinot Noir it probably tops my list of favorite wines.

 There are several types of sparkling wine made throughout the world, but the most widely recognized is Champagne. Champagne is actually a region in Northwestern France where grapes are grown to produce this bubbly concoction. It is governed by law as to the way the grapes are grown, how large the harvest can be, what type of grape varieties can be used, the fermentation process, and aging recommendations. First of all, Champagne can only be legally called Champagne if it comes from this delineated area of France. If sparkling wine is made outside of this area in France, it is simply known as cremánt, followed by the region from where it is produced. Example Cremánt d'Alsace, which is another region in France.

Sparkling wine is known by different names in other countries such as Sekt in Germany, Prosecco or Franciacorta in Italy, Cava in Spain, and simply Sparkling wine here in the United States. All have their own styles and types of grapes that are used.

Champagne can only use three different grape varieties by law, they are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. These grapes are also only permitted to grow in the five districts of Montagne de Reims,   Valle de la Marne, Cote des Blancs, Cote de Sézanne, and Cote des Bars (Aube district). The grapes grown from these three regions are further classified into different status levels, based on the best land for growing conditions. This can also be part of the determining factor on the price that you pay for a finished bottle of wine. 

Bubbles are created in wine by trapping the by products of alcoholic fermentation, which are carbon dioxide and ethanol, in a closed atmopshere. The carbon dioxide is then forced to integrate into the wine.There are also different ways in creating the bubbles in Champagne and Sparkling wines that are relevant to quality. The first and most tedious is known as Traditional Method. This is where a secondary alcoholic fermentation takes place in the same bottle in which it is sold as a final product. Other production methods are secondary fermentation taking place in a pressurized tank, and simple carbonation injection. The Traditional Method wines are always more developed and complex due to extended aging, and bottle fermentation, allowing the carbon dioxide to dissolve more thoroughly into the wine. This is also an obviously more expensive process than simple tank fermentation. Your most inexpensive bottles will generally employ the tank method, and the really cheap wines that you may see are more than likely simply carbonated, just like soda.

All sparkling wine is made in one of these general categories with a few exceptions such as Transversage, which is used for different bottle formats, Partial Fermentation Method for low- alcohol, sweet sparkling wines such as Moscato d' Asti (this is also tank method), and lastly, the Ancestral Method which is rarely encountered.

Sparkling wine is also made in a variety of sweetness levels to enjoy:

Brut- dry

Extra Dry- off dry

Sec- slightly sweet

demi-sec- sweet

Doux- very sweet

The next time you reach for a beverage try something sparkling- it has a way of bringing a special occasion to any day!

Making the Most Out of Wine

Do you ever wonder what makes a wine great or not so great? Well there are no rights or wrongs when it comes to the appreciation of wine. The most important aspect of any wine is that you enjoy it. However, there are certain concepts that you can apply to allow yourself to better appreciate what you are drinking while assuring an accurate assessment to the type and quality of the wine.

We tend to think of wine in terms of the way it smells and tastes when in fact the distinction of the two is very vague. The taste of the wine is actually an impression that we make by our sense of smell; we do this through our noses and our mouths. Without the sense of smell we are unable to appreciate what we are drinking. Taste is actually a misleading term that we think of as being connected with our mouths. In actuality we have four very basic senses directly associated with our palate; sweetness, sourness, saltiness, and bitterness. There is also another that is debated called "umami", a savory component of which sodium glutamate is an example.

Sweetness in wine, detected on the tip of the tongue, is the residual sugar that is left in the wine after fermentation has stopped. This can vary from bone dry to very sweet. Most inexpensive bottles- outside of dessert styles- have higher amounts of residual sugar left in the wine as this is a sure fix for hiding imbalances, making the wine easier to enjoy while masking poor quality.

While sweetness is the most obvious of the four tastes, acidity is the key to the balance of the wine. Acidity is referred to as sourness- like a sour lemon. Sourness is noticed on the sides of your tongue. It is extremely important in winemaking to have acidity to balance out sweetness. Too much acidity can make the wine tart while not enough will make the wine seem flabby or flat. This is also important in the vineyard as grapes lose acidity as they ripen, therefore winemakers try to harvest at peak time when grapes are perfectly ripe and before the acid starts to drop. These two components are very crucial to balance in a finished wine.

Other basic tastes such as saltiness is rarely found in wine, while bitterness registers on the back of the tongue. Bitterness is less important than sweet and sourness but can be found in red wines from extraction of bitterness from the stems and seeds of grapes or from a particular grape variety. This is most seen in Italian red wines.

There are two more relevant sensations; tannin and weight. Tannin is derived from the skins, stems, and seeds in grapes or can be extracted from wood barrels during aging of the wine. Tannin is most noticeable in tea and walnuts outside of wine producing a dry chaffing sensation in the mouth. Wines that contain copious amounts of tannin in their youth are meant to drink in the future with the tannin acting as a preservative. Tannin will eventually break down in a wine allowing flavor elements of the young wine to knit together, producing over time a softer, elegant, and mature wine.

Last is the weight of the wine; this can be light to full bodied. A wines weight is the measure of how much extract and alcohol it has. A full bodied wine has alcohol levels of 13.5% and higher while a light bodied wine can be 8% alcohol and lower. This sensation can be detected in the mouth - does the wine feel heavy like cream or light and watery? Full bodied wines can also leave a burning sensation when swallowed so this too can be an important factor in the balance of the finished wine.

Since we have covered the basics and you can now assess a wines balance of sugar, acid, tannin, and body, what about the quality of the wine. The first is cleanliness- wine is described as clean if it has no faults. This is best detected by the way the wine smells. There are many common faults in wine but the best advise is that if it doesn't smell right don't drink it!

The second is quality which can be determined by the length or finish of a wine. This is the lingering flavor that stays with you after you have swallowed the wine indicating a wine that has been well made. A great wine can linger for a very long time furthering your enjoyment.

By applying these simple concepts you can become an excellent taster while getting the most from your next glass of wine.

Welcome to Wine Virtuoso

I have chosen to write about wine because it is part of my life.....

There are so many articles and blogs about wine these days it is hard to think of something original. I have worked in the wine distribution business for over eight years now with over a decade in the restaurant business to back that up and the subject of wine still entices me. There is so much to discover in a bottle of wine such as learning about the place in which it was made, the family history of the producer, and whether mother nature has put her stamp of approval on a particular vintage.

I have sampled countless bottles of wine and worked with producers from around the world and am preparing to sit an exam for a Certified Wine Educator. My aspirations are to help remove the mystique that often goes along with walking into a wine department or looking at a restaurant wine list and being able to choose a style of wine for yourself, or as a gift. Most importantly wine is meant to promote conversation around the dinner table, to relax, engage in great conversation, and to awaken the senses. I often have many requests to find that great bottle of wine that was enjoyed at a restaurant or while on a vacation, and often times it is not so much about the wine that they drank but the place and the time that inspired, mostly to relive that moment.

The history of wine spans over thousands of years and to truly understand and appreciate the culture I find it necessary to peel back the layers by talking about the history, discussing varieties and styles that are produced, to focus on specific producers, and to incorporate food and wine pairings to provoke your creative side. 

There is an extraordinary amount of information to cover when examining the grape including history, culture, chemistry, wine faults, viticulture, wine production, tasting, health, and wine etiquette and service. Along with areas of production to include France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Central and Eastern Europe, Eastern Mediterranean, United States and North America, South America, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. With each country incorporating specific laws of production and winemaking practices, all while creating their own unique style.

I am currently in the study mode for my exam and intend to cover varieties in this blog starting from the most common to the obscure with intentions of covering any topics that I stumble upon along the way.  I do believe that there is a style of wine out there for anyone who enjoys an adult beverage on occasion and hope to broaden the horizons for those who choose to follow this blog. So grab a glass and enjoy your favorite wine while you join me for a trip around the world.