How is Champagne made?

Champagne is made using a specific process known as the méthode champenoise (or traditional method), which involves several key steps. Here is an outline of how Champagne is produced:


1. Grape Harvest and Pressing

  • Grape Varieties: Champagne is made primarily from three types of grapes: Chardonnay (white), Pinot Noir (black), and Pinot Meunier (black).
  • Harvest: The grapes are hand-picked to avoid bruising and oxidation, typically around September.
  • Pressing: The grapes are gently pressed to extract juice without color from the black-skinned Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes.


2. First Fermentation

  • The juice, or must, is fermented in stainless steel tanks or oak barrels to create a base wine. At this stage, the wine is dry and still (non-sparkling).
  • Blending (Assemblage): Different base wines from various grapes, vineyards, or years are blended to achieve the house style. Non-vintage Champagne is a blend of multiple years, while vintage Champagne is made from grapes of a single exceptional year.


3. Second Fermentation (Bottling and Prise de Mousse)

  • Liqueur de Tirage: A mixture of sugar, yeast, and still wine is added to the blend, which is then bottled and sealed with a crown cap. This initiates the second fermentation inside the bottle, where the yeast consumes the sugar, producing alcohol and carbon dioxide (creating bubbles).
  • Aging on Lees: The wine is aged in the bottle on the yeast sediment, or "lees", for a minimum of 15 months (for non-vintage) or 36 months (for vintage Champagne). This process, called autolysis, imparts complex flavors like brioche, toast, and nuttiness to the Champagne.


4. Riddling (Remuage)

  • After aging, the bottles undergo remuage, a process of gently shaking and rotating the bottles to gradually move the sediment toward the neck.
  • This can be done manually on A-frame racks (pupitres) or mechanically using a gyropalette, a machine that automates the riddling process.


5. Disgorging (Dégorgement)

  • Once the sediment is collected in the neck of the bottle, it is removed through a process called dégorgement. The bottle neck is frozen, and the frozen plug of sediment is ejected when the bottle is uncapped.


6. Dosage and Corking

  • Liqueur d'Expédition: After disgorging, a mixture of still wine and sugar (called the liqueur d'expédition) is added to adjust the sweetness level of the Champagne. This determines its style:
    • Brut Nature: no added sugar
    • Extra Brut: very dry
    • Brut: dry (most common style)
    • Extra Dry: slightly sweet
    • Sec, Demi-Sec, Doux: progressively sweeter
  • The bottle is then corked with a Champagne cork, which is secured with a wire cage (muselet), and labeled.


7. Bottle Aging and Release

  • After corking, Champagne is usually aged for a few more months to allow the dosage to integrate into the wine. It is then ready to be labeled, shipped, and enjoyed.

This meticulous, multi-step process results in Champagne's fine bubbles, rich flavors, and complex character, setting it apart from other sparkling wines.