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69 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
List the regions in France that make sparkling wine.
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Champagne
Loire Valley (Sparkling Saumur, Cremant de Loire, Sparkling Vouvray) Alsace (Cremant d’Alsace) Burgundy (Cremant de Bourgogne) Languedoc-Roussillon (Blanquette de Limoux) |
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What is the name for the sparkling wine of Spain?
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Cava
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What regions of Italy make sparkling wine?
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- Asti
- Prosecco |
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What is the German term for sparkling wine?
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Sekt
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What countries of the New World make sparkling wine?
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- Australia (Tasmania & Yarra Valley)
- California (Carneros) - Oregon - New Zealand (Marlborough) - South Africa |
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Describe the Traditional Method for making sparkling wine.
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1. Hand-picked grapes; weighed
2. Press 3. First fermentation 4. Blending 5. Liqueur de tirage 6. Bottling (crown cap and plastic cup) 7. Second fermentation 8. Materation in bottle > yeast autolysis 9. Riddling 10. Disgorgement 11. Dosage 12. Corking and dressing |
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What is sparkling wine known as in France and Luxembourg?
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Cremant
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What is sparkling wine known as in South Africa?
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Cape Classique
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What is the goal of the first fermentation of still wine?
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Crisp to high acidity with moderate alcohol
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What vitification methods can be used for the still wine to produce sparkling wine?
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- Some can ferment some of base wine in old oak casks; stainless steel is more common.
- Wines can undergo ML |
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What is assemblage?
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Blending
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What is non-vintage wine?
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Goal: reflect house style; consistent over the years
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How is consistency maintained for NV wine?
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Proportion of production may be stored in bulk as a reserve to be used in the future.
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What percentage of wine must come from a particular year if the year is stated on the label? Are there any restrictions for vintage wine? What are the characteristics for vintage Champagne?
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100%
- Even in best years, must not sell no more than 80% of crop as vintage wine; reserve for future blending - Fuller, more fruit intense, toastier |
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What method(s) are used to produce rose wine?
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- Outside Champagne: saignee method
- In Champagne: Blend red and white base wines (up to and including the time of adding liqueur de tirage) |
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What is the saignee method?
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Remvoing must after a very short period of skin contact
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What are the flavor characteristics of Blanc de Blancs?
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Crisp and light in body with fresh citrus and apple fruit.
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What are the flavor characteristics of Blanc de Noirs?
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Full-bodied, with rich fruit and a long finish.
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What is liqueur de tirage?
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- Cocktail of wine, sugar, yeast nutrients, and a clarifying agent
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What sets off the second fermentation?
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Liqueur de tirage
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What flavor characteristics does yeast autolysis impart?
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Yeast, bread, biscuit, and toast notes
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How long does autolysis last?
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- 4 - 5 years typically
- Can last for as long as 10 years |
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What is the minimum time NV Champagne needs to remain on the lees?
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15 months
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What is the minimum time vintage Champagne needs to remain on the lees?
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3 years
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What is the minimum time Cava and New World quality sparkling wine need to remain on the lees?
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9 months
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What is riddling?
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Moves the sediment in the bottle to the neck
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What happens during the second fermentation?
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- Carbon dioxide dissolves into the wine.
- Dead yeast cells break down and release compounds that contribute to flavor of wine. |
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What is remuage?
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Riddling
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What is the relationship between time spent on lees and aging when disgorged?
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The longer the wine spends on its less, the quicker it will age when disgorged.
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What is disgorgement?
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- Neck of bottle frozen in brine solution
- Ice holds sediment in place - Crown cork removed and plug of ice is ejected - Plastic cup is retained |
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What is liqueur d'expedition?
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Mixture of wine and cane sugar solution used to replace wine lost because of disgorgement.
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Dosage
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- Sugar used in the liqueur d'expedition
- Amount used influences sweetness of final sparkling wine |
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What are the terms used to describe sweetness of sparkling wines (total sugar content of finished wine)?
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Brut Nature = bone dry (0 - 2 g/l)
Extra Brut = very dry (0 - 6 g/l) Brut = very dry to dry (0 - 15 g/l) Extra-Sec/Extra Dry = off-dry to medium dry (12 - 20 g/l) Sec/Dry/Secco/Seco/Trocken = medium-dry (17 - 35 g/l) Demi-Sec/Riche/Halbrocken/Semi-Dulce/Abbocato = sweet (33 - 50 g/l) Doux/Sweet/Dolce/Doce/Dulce = luscious (50+ g/l) |
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What are the steps of the transfer method?
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- Same as traditional method up to the stage of riddling
- Entire contents opf bottle are disgorged into tank under pressure - Filtered in bulk - Rebottled into a fresh bottle |
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Why are sparkling wines produced under Transfer Method less expensive than those made with traditional method?
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- Large batches can be easily tested > easier to ensure quality
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What are the disadvantages of the Transfer Method?
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- Quality of the bubbles may be affected
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Describe the Tank Method.
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- Second fermentation takes place in sealed tank
- Dry base wine is placed with sugar, yeast, nutrients, and clarifying agent in tank - Sediment removed by filtration under pressure - Wine is bottled |
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What are the advantages and disadvantages of the Tank Method?
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- Reduced production costs
- Produces larger, uneven bubbles - Do not have flavor from yeast autolysis (this may be desirable for sparkling wines made from aromatic varietals such as Muscat and Riesling and for fruitier wines such as Prosecco) --- No tank method sparkling wine can be of AC status in France |
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Describe the Carbonation method.
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- Carbon dioxide from a cylinder is injected into chilled vat of still wine
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What are the characteristics of sparkling wine made by Carbonation?
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- Bubbles are large and disappear quickly
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What is cuve close?
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Tank Method of making sparkling wine.
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Describe the Tank Method.
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- Second fermentation in sealed tank rather than in bottle
- Dry wine placed with sugar, yeast, nutrients, and clarifying agent in tank - Sediment removed by filtration - Wine bottled |
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What are the advantages and disadvantages of the Tank Method?
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- Reduced production costs
- Larger, more uneven bubbles - Does not have flavor imparted by autolysis (could be advantage: sparkling wines from aromatic varietals such as Riesling and Muscat; fruitier sparkling wines such as Prosecco) |
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What sparkling wines typically use the Tank Method?
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- Prosecco
- Sekt |
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What is the Asti method?
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- Variation of Tank Method
- Does not involve production of still base wine - Sweet juice from pressed grapes fermented and chilled and filtered to stop fermentation - Sugar and yeast added to must - Put into sealed tanks to continue fermentation - Wine chilled - Filtered to remove live yeasts - Bottled under pressure |
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What is Sekt?
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Wine that has been made sparkling in Germany. May or may not come from German grapes.
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What is Deutscher Sekt?
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Sekt that has come from German grapes.
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What varietals are used to make Deutscher Sekt?
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- Best from Riesling
- Some from Muller-Thurgau - Increase in Chardonnay, Auxerrois, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Noir |
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What is Deutscher Sekt bA?
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Deutscher Sekt if all grapes come from one of the 13 anbaugebiete.
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Name the main Champagne regions.
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- Marne Valley
- Montagne de Reims - Cote des Blancs - Sezanne - The Aube |
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What is the climate like in Champagne?
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- Marginal climate
- Cold winters - Warm summers [Difficult for grapes to achieve full ripeness > light, crips wine, high in acidity and low in alcohol > ideal base wine] |
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Describe the soil in Champagne.
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- Subsoil mainly chalk
- Kimmeridgean marl in Aube (retains water well -- low average rainfall) |
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What grape varieties are used in Champagne?
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- Chardonnay (lighter than in Burgundy, acidity, floral, citrus fruit; adds freshness and finesse)
- Pinot Noir (great body and length; backbone) - Pinot Meunier (late budding and early ripening; easy to drink, fruity) - Montagne de Reims: Over half Pinot Noir - Vallée de la Marne: Over 60% Pinot Meunier - Côte des Blancs: Over 95% Chardonnay |
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What is echelle des crus?
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- System to rate each village in Champagne for quality on a percentage scale.
- Whole village is rated - Not all plots within a village rated 100% will be of a high level of potential - Will be some outstanding sites within villages that have low ratings |
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What are the levels of echelle des crus?
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- Grand Cru: 17 villages rated 100%
- Premier Cru: 43 villages rated 90% - 99% - Lowest rating is 80% (most outside of Marne) |
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Describe the viticulture for Champagne.
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- Vineyard rows planted maximum 1.5m apart
- Vines planted 0.9-1.5m apart - Pruning: Taille Chablis for Chardonnay; Cordon Royat for Pinots - Both have a lot of old wood to help frost resistance, grow second crop - Vines trained low and spur pruned |
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How is Champagne vinificated?
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- All grapes picked by hand
- Immediately taken to press-house and weighed - Pressed quickly - Amount of juice that can be extracted is strictly controlled - Cuvee and taille from each variety and village stored and fermented separately - Fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats or in new oak barrels - Second fermentation in chalk cellars (with constant, cool temperature of 10 - 12 degrees Celcius) |
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What is the relationship between the pressure of which grapes are pressed and the final characteristics of the sparkling wine?
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- The harder the grapes are pressed, the harsher the tannins.
- Gentle pressings rich in sugars and acids. |
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What are the two classes for the juice from pressing of the grapes used to make Champagne?
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- Cuvee (first 80 liters of any 100 pressed)
- Taille (the balance) - Any juice after taille must be sent for distillation |
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What is Prestige Cuvee?
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Produced from highest quality base wines; blended with great care; may or may not be vintage wines; aged longer before release and support further aging
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What are the characteristics of the Champagne trade?
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Growers:
- 5000 growers represent 3% of sales - In best villages will have “cru” term on label - Also sell their grapes to cooperative cellars or to Champagne Houses Cooperative Cellars: - Process at some stage over half of Champagne’s wines - Only 7% sold under co-op label Negociant Houses: - 264 Houses, own 12% of vineyard area, 97% of export sales - One of these houses alone represents 13% of that volume - MOET - Top brands referred to as “Grande Marques” |
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What do RM, RC, CM, NM, and MA mean if appear on bottle of Champagne?
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- RM = made by the grower
- RC = co-operative member who sells a co-operative produced Champagne under his own brand name - CM = co-operative cellar (group of growers who produce Champagne under own brand name) - NM = Champagne house (buys grapes in bulk; most well-known brands) - MA = brand name not owned by the producer (owned by a supermarket or wine merchant) |
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Why have Champagne houses established wineries in other regions?
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- Production of Champagne is limited because of the geographically constrained vineyards
- Is a luxury product and many governments strictly limit importation |
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Describe Cremant wines.
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- Sparkling wines made by Traditional method that are not produced in Champagne region
- Controls on yields of juice, time spends on lees, and proportion of grape varieties in blend. |
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What varieties are used to produce Cremant?
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- Alsace: Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay (Muscat and Gewurztraminer forbidden)
- Bourgogne: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay; can use Aligote - Limoux: Mauzac, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc - Loire: Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc - Saumur: Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc - Vouvray: Chenin Blanc |
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Where is Cava made?
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- Majority in Penedes in Catalunya
- Some made in Rioja and Navarra |
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How is Cava made?
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- Made by traditional method
- Must spend 9 months in bottle before disgorgement |
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What are the flavor characteristics of Cava?
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Dry and low in acidity with some characteristics inherent from yeast autolysis.
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What grapes are used to make Cava and what are their characteristics?
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Xarel-lo:
- Adds body and power - Provides earthy tones Parellada: - Adds softness and aroma - Classic apple character Macabeo (Viura): - 50% of the blend - Provides lift to the fruit, but is neutral itself - Chardonnay may be used for fruit and acidity |