CHAMPAGNE

香槟
The Champagne region is divided into four main areas:
向宾的 区分为 4 大部份 ：
• Valley of the Marne
• Côte des Blancs
• Mountain of Reims
• Côte des Bars
 Three Grapes used to make Champagne
用来制造香槟的主要 3 大葡萄：

PINOT NOIR 37% CHARDONNAY 26% PINOT MEUNIER 37%

grown grown grown
 Facts 不可不知
• In France, only sparkling wines that come from the region of
Champagne may be called “Champagne.” Some American producers
have borrowed the name “Champagne” to put on the label of their
sparkling wines. These cannot and should not compare with
Champagne from France.
• 在法国，只有有气白酒才能称为香槟。而且一定要是来自香槟地
区。有些美国酿酒厂借用 “香槟” 这两个字，以为会使销售量
提高。不过它们的素质是完全不同的。
 What are the three major types of Champagne?
有哪 3 种香槟
• Non-vintage: a blend of different years
- 由不同年份的葡萄酿制成 / 无年份
• Vintage
– from a single vintage
- 只限某一个年份
• “Prestige” cuvee
– from a single vintage with longer aging
requirements
- 来自某一个年份，但因葡萄条件比较好，所以可
享有更久一点的老化过程
When is Champagne ready to drink?

• As soon as you buy it. Champagne is something you

can drink right away. Non-vintage Champagnes are
meant to be drunk within two to three years, and
vintage and prestige cuvee Champagnes can be kept
longer, about ten of fifteen years. So if you’re still
saving that Dom Pérignon that you received for your
tenth wedding anniversary fifteen years ago, don’t
wait any longer.
 Champagne Bottle Sizes

• Magnum 2 bottles
• Jeroboam 4 bottles
• Rehoboam 6 bottles
• Methuselah 8 bottles
• Salmanazar 12 bottles
• Balthazar 16 bottles
• Nebuchadnezzar 20 bottles
 How’s Champagne made?
• A process called Méthode Champenoise （香槟区之法） ,
which begins with Champenois soil and climate, makes
Champagne. When a similar method is used outside La
Champagne, it is called Méthode Traditionnelle （传统之
法） or Classic Method （典型之法） or Método
Tradicional, etc.
• The use of the expression Méthode Champenoise is not
allowed in the European Union outside of Champagne.
香槟的制造法是不允许在香槟地区以外的欧洲联盟国家
使用。
 Harvest 收割

The normal harvest usually takes place in late

September or early October.

正常收割季节是在九月份或十月份
Pressing the Grapes 压榨葡萄
Only two pressings of the grapes are permitted.
压榨葡萄只限两次。

Prestige cuvée （高级香槟） Champagnes are

usually made exclusively from the first pressing. The
second pressing, called the taille, is generally blended
with the cuvee to made vintage and non-vintage
Champagnes.
高级香槟是从第一次的压榨而制造的。爹日的压
榨是用来制造无年份的香槟或是年的香槟。
 Fermentation 发酵过程
All Champagnes undergo a first fermentation when
the grape juice is converted into wine.
所有的香槟都会通过第一次的发酵过程。
Remember the formula:
Sugar + Yeast = Alcohol + CO2.
糖份 + 酵姆 = 酒精 + 二氧化碳
The carbon dioxide dissipates. The first fermentation
takes two to three weeks and produces still wines.
之后二氧化碳会消散。第一次发酵过程会维持 2
到 3 星期，而生产无气泡葡萄酒。
 Blending
The most important step in Champagne production is the
blending of the still wines. Each of these still wines is made
from a single grape variety from a single village of origin.
The winemaker has to make many decisions here. Three of
the most important ones are:
 Blending
1) Which grapes to blend – how much Chardonnay, Pinot
Noir and pinot Meunier?
2) From which vineyards should the grapes come?
3) Which years or vintages should be blended? Should the
blend be made only from the wines of the harvest, or
should several vintages be blended together?
 Liqueur de Tirage
• After the blending process, the winemaker
adds Liqueur de Tirage – a blend of sugar and
yeast – which will begin the wine’s second
fermentation. At this point, the wine is placed
in its permanent bottle with a temporary bottle
cap.
 Second Fermentation
• During this fermentation, the carbon dioxide
stays in the bottle. This is where the bubbles
come from. The second fermentation also
leaves natural sediments in the bottle. Now the
problems begin. How do you get rid of the
sediments without losing the carbon dioxide?
 Aging
• The amount of time the wine spends aging
on its sediments is one of the most
important factors in determining the quality
of the wine.
 Riddling
• Wine bottles are now placed in A-frame racks, necks
down. The remueur, or riddler, goes through the
racks of Champagne bottles and gives each bottle a
slight turn while gradually tipping the bottle farther
upside down, with the sediments resting in the neck
of the bottle.
 Dégorgement

• The top of the bottle is dipped into a brine solution to

freeze it, and then the temporary bottle caps are
removed and out fly the frozen sediments, propelled
by the carbon Dioxide.
 Dosage
• A combination of wine and cane sugar is
added to the bottle after dégorgement. At this
point, the winemaker can determine whether
the wants a sweeter or a drier Champagne.
 Dosage 不同种甜 度
• Brut Driest
几乎不甜，是原味的香槟（含糖分在 15 克以下）

• Extra sec Dry to Medium dry

指的是“清淡甜”的香槟

• Sec Medium Sweet

含糖 17-35 克的香槟，指的是“淡甜”的香槟

• Demi-sec Sweet
中甜的香槟，含糖在 35-50 克之间

• Doux Very Sweet

甜的香槟，指的是具有甜点风格的香槟，含糖在 50 克以上。
 Recorking
• The wine is recorked with real cork instead of
a bottle cap
 What accounts for the different
styles of Champagne?
Light, Delicate: -
• A. Charbaut et Fils Jacquesson Lanson
Light to Medium
• Billecart-Salmon Deutz Nicolas Feuillatte
• Laurent-Perrier G.H. Mumm Perrier-Jouët
• Pommery Taittinger Ruinart Père & Fils
Medium
• Charles Heidsieck Moët & Chandon Piper-Heidsieck
• Pol Roger
Medium to Full
• Henriot Louis Roederer
Full, Rich
• Bollinger A. Gratien Krug
• Veuve Clicquot
HOUSE POURING
BRANDS
• CHAMPAGNES

Veuve Clicquot, Yellow Label (France)

Assembled from around 50 crus, and reserve wines. Pleasing nose of
white fruits and raisins, showing a fine balance between the fruity
and toasty aromas.

Veuve Clicquot Rosé (France)

With a unique luminous color with pink glints, this is elegant on the nose, with
aromas of fresh red fruit, and biscuity notes of dried fruits and Viennese
pastries

Moet & Chandon (France)

Typical straw/gold colour. The nose is characteristically yeasty with
hints of earthiness and citrus. On the palate the champagne is dry with
apple flavours and a good crisp acidity.
 RED WINES
Erath Pinot Noir, 2005 (USA)
Grapes: Pinot Noir
Bright, fresh fruit aromas of cherry, raspberry, and blueberry fill the glass.
Youthfully exuberant with lots of sweet fruit on the palate with hints of spice
and vanilla.

Mouton Cadet Reserve, Medoc, 2005 (France)

Grapes: Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon
A deep, brilliant ruby color and a rich, complex nose with suggestions of red
berry fruit. It displays very fine tannic structure in the mouth, solid, powerful
and long.
 RED WINES
Ridge, Lytton Springs, Zinfandel Blend, 2003 (USA)
Grapes: Zinfandel Blend

Lush, deep nose with intense briar/plum fruit. Flavours of briar, plum,
sweet cherry, blueberry; vanilla, smoke, mineral notes. Big and
concentrated. Chalky tannins. A long, complex finish. 90 Points Wine
Spectator

Quinta do Monte D'Oiro Seleccao Syrah, 2005

(Portugal)
Grapes: Syrah / Shiraz

Very ripe fruits, chocolate and pepper notes of the grape rise with great style
and finesse to produce of wine of complexity and elegance.
 Red Wines
Fox Creek Shadows Run, Shiraz Cabernet, 2005 (Australia)
Grapes: Shiraz Cabernet
Lifted spicy dark berry and savoury spices with sweet vanilla oak from barrel
maturation, entry shows rich spicy fruit drive with delightful raspberry and dark
chocolate flavours on the mid palate, leading to a soft luscious finish of good length.

Escudo Rojo, Carmenere/Cabernet Franc, 2004 (Chile)

Grapes: Carmenere, Cabernet Franc
An attractive, deep ruby red, opens on rich spice, toast and black cherry aromas to
which a touch of eucalyptus brings subtlety and aromatic refinement. Round and
smooth on the palate, powerful though not excessively so, it displays excellent
balance and poise.
 White Wines
Fox Creek Shadows Run, The White, 2005 (Australia)
Grapes: Chardonnay
Nose of fresh spice with gooseberry and tropical
fruits.This is a rich, soft and fruity wine with lychee &
fig flavours.

Mouton Cadet Reserve, Graves, 2006 (France)

Grapes: Semillon, Sauvignon, Muscadelle
Pale yellow color with greenish tinge. Aromas of mineral and white fruit.
A very supple wine with a sweet underlay. Flinty notes return on the long,
drawn-out finish.
 White Wines
D'Arenberg, The Olive Grove Chardonnay, 2004 (Australia)
Grapes: Chardonnay
Tight and direct with flavours of tropical fruits, pineapple, mango and
passion fruit which go right through to the finish of this wine. The fresh
structured mid-palate shows creamy barrel ferment characters and totally
integrated oak.

Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, 2007 (Sauvignon Blanc)

Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc
Mouth-watering aromas of passion fruit and lemongrass led with the
spiciness of just-picked tomatoes tossed with fresh basil. Many small
parcels of fruit, ripened under ideal conditions, bring layers of complexity
to the 2007 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. The palate has exceptional
richness, with ripe gooseberry flavors and a hint of fresh fennel leading to
a powerful, crisp finish.