Sparkling wine - festive, sparkling & classy

Monks of Saint-Hilaire Abbey invented sparkling wine

According to tradition, sparkling wine was invented around 1540 by Benedictine monks from the abbey of Saint-Hilaire in Limoux, in the Aude valley in the south of France. They were the first to come up with the idea of bottling incompletely fermented wine, sealing it with oak corks secured with cords at the neck of the bottle. This was necessary because the wine fermented in the bottle, carbonic acid formed and thus pressure was built up. This pressure increased the longer the monks let the wine ferment in the warm spring. Since the carbonic acid was trapped in the bottles, it turned the wine into a wonderfully mousse-like drink. The first sparkling wine was born!


German winegrowers refined the production process

Until about 1730, sparkling wine was produced as a product of natural secondary fermentation in the bottle. Over time, however, resourceful winemakers and monks in Champagne refined the process further. Their aim was to get even more carbon dioxide in the bottles and thus into the wine. With the consequence that many bottles were broken. Often up to 80 percent of the bottles shattered, which led to considerable price increases for sparkling wine and in the end only the rich could afford the remaining champagne.

Not only aristocrats were interested in champagne

At the end of the 18th century, word of the special French production process had spread and winegrowers from all over the world set off for Champagne to gain experience with this new type of drink. At that time, sparkling wine was produced on French wineries owned by nobility. They were pleased about the lively interest from abroad and were willing to let themselves be looked at the cards. This not only contributed to the fact that sparkling wine became more and more famous, it also helped to gradually refine and perfect the production process.


Sparkling wine bottles take a bath in the sandbox

The biggest problem was the unsightly dead yeast in the bottles. At first it was difficult to remove it from the sparkling wine. Therefore the champagne bottles were put head first into a sandbox to move the dead yeast into the bottle neck. Around 1818, the famous widow Clicquot invented the shaker together with her German cellarmaster Antoine Müller. The shaking of the bottles to remove the yeast sediment still plays an important role in champagne production today.


Variants of sparkling wine production

The 'original method' of sparkling wine production from the 16th century is now known as the 'méthode ancestrale'. At that time there was no method of removing the yeast sediment from the bottles and sparkling wine was rather cloudy. So the yeast sediment in the bottle found its way from the glass into the mouth of the connoisseur. You want to know how it tasted? No problem, try a Blanquette de Limoux. Five percent of this sparkling wine is still produced today by winegrowers using the method of the resourceful monks in the style of the 16th century.

The sparkling wine is shaken for 21 days

In addition, there are today other different methods of sparkling wine production. The traditional bottle fermentation is still part of the classic process. The winemaker allows the wine to ferment in the bottle for at least nine months. Afterwards the bottles with the sparkling content are shaken daily for exactly 21 days. In this way the yeast settles and slides to the bottle mouth. In order to remove it, the bottle is immersed in a deep-freeze bed - degroged, as the technical term for it is called.

The cold makes everything very simple: in the ice bath the yeast turns into an ice plug and this can now be removed without any problems. The winemakers replace the missing wine in the bottle with the dosage, which is a wine mixed with sugar. Et voilá, the traditional sparkling wine ( Méthode Champenoise) is ready to be enjoyed.


Dosage for the special sweetness in sparkling wine

In the transvasier method, the base wine is first fermented in bottles for at least two months. Then, unlike the classic method, it is transferred to large tanks and filtered at the same time. The winemakers then let the wine ferment for one month in the large-capacity barrels before bottling the sparkling wine again. Dosage is also added here.

No matter which method is chosen, all wineries are equal in that only wines gently pressed from healthy grapes may be sparkling. In order to ensure that the quality of the sparkling wines is right, the winemaker makes sure that the acidity of the grapes is optimal already during the harvest. For champagne the grape varieties Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunir are used.  They are usually harvested earlier than grapes for other wines, which guarantees the right acidity. It alone is decisive for a well-balanced taste. A sparkling wine is also optimized by combining different base wines. In the end, the sparkling wine should contain at least ten percent by volume.

And today, just like almost 500 years ago, the cork is fixed to the bottle with a wire frame called Agraffe.

Vinho espumante - the sparkling wine from Portugal

In Portugal, sparkling wines are called "Vinho Espumante". As their special name suggests, they are also a very special drink. As far as moussing is concerned, the traditional Portuguese winegrowers have developed their very own style over the centuries. The Portuguese sparkling wine is produced according to the Méthode champenoise and need not fear comparison with champagne. In Portugal, bottle fermentation is a standard method of sparkling wine production. In some sparkling wines, the wine ferments for up to 36 months in the bottle.

Finest sparkling wine from the Bairrada and Vinho Verde region
 

In Bairrada in the north of Portugal and in the Vinho Verde region, mainly local grapes are grown for the "Vinho Espumante". The conditions there are perfect for sparkling wine production. In the Bairrada wine growing region, rosé sparkling wine and red sparkling wine are produced in addition to white sparkling wine. And it has a particularly good quality because the vines find ideal conditions there. The climate is harsh and the soils are varied. Here, a multitude of delicious bottles of fermented sparkling wines are produced.

Pure Vinho Espumante from the Gouveio vine
 

The Vinho Verde area has a climate in which especially red vines thrive. And so the area is also famous for red sparkling wine. The red Touriga Nacional, Maria Gomes and Baga grapes are cultivated. White grape varieties used for "Vinho Espumante" are Chardonnay, Alvarinho, Antão Vaz, Fernão Pires and Arinto. Sparkling wines are usually a blend of several base wines. A special droplet is the sparkling wine from the Gouveio vine, which is produced in the Douro valley. This sparkling wine is even fermented for 40 months on the yeast in the bottle and can thus easily compete in the champagne class.

Bubbly is the name of a sparkling wine from South Africa

The tradition of sparkling wine production in the Cape region is still relatively young. In 1968 Frans Malan, owner of the Simonsig Winery in Stellenbosch, bottled the first cuvée of the base wines Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, modelled on champagne, and brought it to the second fermentation. Malan let it ferment for three years before he presented the first "Kaapse Vonkel" in 1971, which caused as much of a sensation then as the high-quality sparkling wines from the Cape today. Connoisseurs appreciate the fine droplets, which easily stand comparison with champagne.

"Cap Classique Assoziation" ensures high quality

After the first successful attempt, the South African vintners' interest in sparkling wine production was awakened. In order to expand their knowledge, to increase quality and to inspire a considerable number of winegrowers to produce sparkling wine, the "Cap Classique Association" was founded. Today the association has more than 60 members and a total of around 90 producers produce "Cap Classiques".


South African sparkling wine with fine perlage

For winegrowers in South Africa, the production of sparkling wine is a lengthy process: they let the wine ferment on the bottle for at least twelve months, wait until the sugar has turned into alcohol and carbon dioxide develops as a desired by-product, which then causes the fine perlage of a sparkling wine. However, the quality of South African sparkling wine does not only develop in the cellar. For the production of sparkling base wines, the grapes are harvested earlier than for a wine. The winegrowers also make sure that the grapes are healthy and have a low sugar content. Only in this way can the alcohol content remain moderate and only in this way can the fine fruit of the grapes develop fully in the glass later. In order to keep the tannin content in the sparkling wine as low as possible, the whole grapes are often pressed and only the first juice that comes off the press is used.

Pearly sparkling wine from the Western Cape

In the Western Cape the grapes for sparkling wines thrive under a bright blue sky. With sheltering mountain ranges behind them or overlooking the ocean, the wine-growing areas are not only beautifully situated, they also have the best conditions for the production of fine sparkling wine using the traditional method of bottle fermentation. In 1997 the first Cap Classique was created, a cuvée from the Pinot Meunier vine, which already as a base wine corresponds to the great models of champagne.

The limestone soils in Robertson are also ideal for the production of high-quality sparkling wines or the Franschhoek region with climatic and geological conditions similar to those in French Burgundy. High-quality sparkling wines are also produced in the Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Elgin, Bot River and Walker Bay regions. The vines of Pinot Noir, Pinotage, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay are often used.


Sparkling wines for special occasions or simply as a dining companion

Sparkling wines today are no longer just party wines or wines for special occasions. They are a perfect match for many culinary occasions. The best example of this is the famous Portuguese menu called "Leitão", where traditionally red sparkling wine is served with crispy roast suckling pig. Long matured sparkling wines develop aromas of nuts and smoke and together with their creaminess and high acidity they therefore harmonise very well with dishes with nutty and smoky flavours. Try sparkling wine once with a roasted goose, a sandwich with smoked ham or roast pork.