Saturday, December 31, 2005

Alameda Sun Article on Sparkling Wines

Sparkling Wine 101

Most of us associate sparkling wines with festive occasions - especially the traditional New Year’s Toast. So what better time to discuss Champagnes and their relative sparklers than right now?

Almost all the world's winemaking regions produce sparkling wine from a wide variety of grapes. Champagne is a region in France, and only sparkling wines from there should be called Champagne. In Italy it’s called Spumante; in France, it ‘s Crémant or Blanquete; in Spain, Cava; in Germany, Sekt, and in the US, Canada, South Africa and other winemaking areas it’s called Sparkling Wine.

Pairing food with sparkling wines is easy. Caviar, oysters and other shellfish are classic matches, but you'll find that white sparkling wines go well with just about anything in a creamy sauce, all sorts of vegetables, breads, and cheeses. Rosé and red sparklers also do well with fish and white-meats, fruit desserts, and even some of the darker meats (grilled beef, tuna, swordfish and other Bar-B-Que are outstanding with any sort of red bubbly). Sweet sparklers are best alone or with fruit desserts.

There are three methods of making sparkling wines: Méthode Champenoise, the Transfer Method, and Méthode Charmat. Méthode Champenoise is the most complicated (and most expensive) method, and involves two separate fermentations. The grapes are picked earlier than those used for table wines, and then fermented in large tanks. When fermentation is complete (when all of the sugar has been converted to alcohol), the wine is allowed to rest for several months.

During this time, solids and particles (the lees) settle to the bottom of the tank, and the clear wine is siphoned off and blended with wine from previous vintages (for non vintage champagne) in order to make a consistent house style or cuvée. The wine is then poured into heavy bottles with sugar and yeast (called liqeuer de triage) added to start a second fermentation. The bottles are capped with a soda cap, and allowed to rest from one to three years. Since fermentation always produces carbon dioxide, and the champagne bottles are sealed, the wine becomes bubbly.

This secondary fermentation also produces sediment. The wines are stored at an angle (neck down) and turned a bit every day, to encourage the sediment to settle at the neck. This is called riddling. After several weeks, the vintner freezes the neck and uncaps the bottle. The pressurized wine forces the sediment out of the bottle (disgorgement).

Since the bottle is no longer full, a bit of wine and sugar is added to fill up the bottle. This is called dosage. The amount of dosage added will make the wine extra brut, brut, extra dry, dry, demi-sec, or doux, depending upon sugar levels. The bottle is then recorked with a wire cage closure to prevent accidental opening, boxed and shipped.

The Transfer Method follows Méthode Champenoise up to the point the secondary fermentation. However, the secondary fermentation doesn’t take place in the bottle that is sold to the consumer. The fermentation bottles are emptied under pressure, and the wine is then filtered and then bottled under pressure into a new set of bottles. This eliminates the riddling, disgorgement and dosage processes, which are time consuming and expensive.

Méthode Charmat uses a glass-lined, pressurized tank for the secondary fermentation. Filtering and bottling are also done under pressure. This is the least expensive of the three, and can take as little as ninety days from first fermentation to bottling.

By law, Champagne is always made using Pinot Noir, Chardonnay or Pinot Meunier grapes (or a combination of them). Sparkling wines in California are also made using just those varietals. Other winemaking regions use a wide variety of grapes, most of which are native to the region. Generally speaking, Sekt is Riesling; Cava is Maccabeu, Mazeula or Parellada (although traditional Champagne varietals are being used with some of the higher end producers); Spumante is Prosecco, Lambrusco or Moscato Bianco, Crémant de Loire is Chenin Blanc; Blanquette de Limoux (the first sparkling wine ever produced) is a blend of Mauzac, Chenin Blanc, Clairette, and sometime Chardonnay), etc., etc., etc.

Red sparkling wines are made in Australia, Italy, and elsewhere. For a sparkling red, the skins are left in the fermenting juice, just as they would be for a still wine. Sparkling reds are generally more tannic than sparkling white wines. Rosé sparkling wines are made by adding a little red wine juice to the white base wine before secondary fermentation.

Generally speaking, sparkling wines have higher acidity, lower alcohol content and more delicate flavor than their still counterparts. They’re a great match with many foods, and they just seem more fun and festive to drink than a regular table wine. You can find sparkling wines at every price point - from the $5 range all the way up to $200 plus per bottle. Try some today!

Freelance writer Jeff Diamond owns and operates of Farmstead Cheeses & Wines, a fine wine and cheese store located on The Island in the Alameda Marketplace on Park Street. He can be reached at Jeff@FarmsteadCheesesAndWines.com.

Posted by Farmstead :: 11:31 AM :: 0 comments

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