The various brands of champagne we are familiar with cannot, in reality, be classed as true champagne - as they are not made in the true methode champagnoise, as used by French winemakers. Instead, mass-produced sparkling wine as we know it is made and fermented over a short period of time in stainless steel vats. Carbon dioxide is pumped into the wine to give it that characteristic `sparkle` - a process mimicking the one that soft drinks go through!

The birth of `the bubble`
The story of the first true French champagne has its roots in a little French village called Champagne. The local monks had been making wine again, but the weather had turned so unseasonably cold that the fermentation process had stopped prematurely - before all the sugar had turned completely into alcohol. They bottled the wine anyway and stored it in their cellars. As the seasons changed and it became warmer, the wine started to ferment all over again, releasing more gas into the tightly corked bottles. One day, strange sounds were heard issuing from the cellars and one brave monk, Dom Perignon, went down to investigate.....this was the birth of true French champagne.

True champagne is more acidic and dry than other sparkling wines we know, and it has very few bubbles. Historically, fermentation took place in casks of oak over a period of time. The winemaker would taste and blend a selection of his wines in order to produce a flavour that stood out amongst others as his specific house-style. After bottling, a tiny amount of cane sugar was added and the bottle was sealed with a temporary, yet sturdy cap. Sugar was added to ferment the wine, as it raised the alcohol level of the wine and released carbon dioxide gas. If left to ferment slowly, the wine would be of better quality. Every six months the bottles of wine would be shaken to free the sediment that formed in the process - the combination of cool cellar and slow fermentation produced wine of exceptional flavour and aroma, with few bubbles.

A lengthy procedure
The next step was called `remuage`. In this process, a trained remuer would shake and turn each bottle daily until, eventually, all the sediment had slid down the bottle into the neck. After this, the bottles were left to age for a period of between one and three years. This was to ensure that the yeast cells in the wine started to decay, as they are responsible for giving the wine its unique flavour and bouquet. Finally degorgement took place, where each bottle was dipped, neck first, into a barrel of freezing brine. The cap was removed and a plug of frozen sediment would be forced out of the bottle under its own pressure. The wine was then topped up with some wine from another bottle, sugar was added and the bottle was corked, being left to age further. This process has not changed for centuries.

The price of perfection
South African champagne, made in true French style, is dubbed the methode du Cap classique. Unfortunately, the best way to find out whether you are buying good champagne or not is to look at the price - the higher the price, the better the champagne! True champagne is delicately sparkling and exceptionally dry. The sweet sparkling wines we know are mass-produced, designed to meet the tastes of the general public - not the connoisseur. Experts know that adding sugar only masks the true flavour of the wine!

Article source: LifeWorld