What better time of the month to have wines with bubbles than the month of December where many celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas, Boxing Day and the countdown to the New Year. The history of sparkling wines go all the way back to the Champagne region of France, as early as the fifth century, when the Romans planted vines in the Northeast of France. It was not until the late 17th century, the Champagne craze started to take off. At that time, Champenois vignerons were trying to get rid of the bubbles in their wine. They failed to understand that the bubbles were caused by residual yeast that started re-fermentation in the bottle, thus, releasing carbon dioxide into the wine and causing bottles to explode violently. At the same time, the British started to fall in love with wines that had bubbles. It was very much enjoyed among the rich and noble class, leading to a whole new market of wines to be created. Vignerons were now deliberately trying to have their wines sparkle instead of remaining still.
As you pop open a bottle of sparkling wines, here are a few sparkling wine facts to pique the interest of your friends whom you share the bubbles with.
Fact #1
Champagnes are from France and sparkling wines from Australia are called sparkling wines.
There is sometimes a tendency for people to ask for Champagne when what they really are asking for is sparkling wine. What is the difference? None except for the differences in price. Champagnes are a lot more expensive than most Australian sparkling wines. The EU has a labelling agreement with other countries that they cannot label their sparkling wines as champagne unless it originates from Champagne in France. There are basic wine production laws in the Champagne region when it comes to the production such as a minimum aging period of 1.5 years for the secondary fermentation, which is the fermentation that produces the bubbles in the still wine. This time of 1.5 years is believed to be the minimum time taken for Champagne to develop its flavours. Unlike sparkling wines in Australia, the law requires Champagne to use primarily Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay grapes for production of the still wine. In Australia, we see a range of sparkling wines made from other grapes such as Muscat and even Shiraz.
Fact #2
There is no country in the world that is as well known as Australia for making Sparkling Shiraz.
This has now lead to a National sparkling red day in Australia to celebrate an truly unique Australian wine style first made by French winemaker, Edmund Mazure in Adelaide in 1982.Today, we have winemakers such as Peter Rumball who makes some of Australia's most excellent sparkling reds using the same techniques as the French Champagne Houses.Flavours of Sparkling Shiraz are reminiscent of sarsaparilla, jam, blackcurrant with chocolate nuances.
Fact #3
Drinking a glass of sparkling wine gets you drunk faster than still wine.
A study has confirmed that the fizz speeds up the absorption rate of alcohol into the
bloodstream. Drinking two glasses of sparkling wine could make you go over the drink
driving limit.
Fact #4
The amount of pressure in a sparkling wine made by méthode champenoise, also called the traditional method, whereby the bubbles are created in each bottle through a secondary fermentation, is calculated to be between four to six atmospheric pressure, which is the pressure you can find from the tires of a double-decker bus.
This is also why sparkling wine bottles are heavier than still wine bottles because stronger bottles are needed to withstand the pressure inside. They also come with the punt so that the structural integrity of the bottle is increased and the pressure in the bottle is distributed more evenly. The punt has another purpose which is to provide a way for champagne or sparkling wine producers to perform riddling, which is a process of twisting the bottle slightly on its sides so that the sediments in the bottle will slide closer from the bottom of the bottle to the
neck for removal. With such huge amount of pressure in there, this makes the cork fly out of the bottle at up from 60 to 160 km per hour. Watch where you are pointing!
Fact #5
Sparkling wines are best served between 6 to 8 degree Celsius.
If it is a high-quality sparkling wine, a vintage champagne or a sparkling red, it is better to serve it from 9 to 12 degrees so that the matured and complex aromas are able to escape from the glass more easily. When drinking sparkling wines, it is better to use a flute or th champagne glass than a normal glass. This is because the surface area is reduced so that the bubbles can be retained much longer and dissipate quickly. Drinkers should hold the stem of the glass if they want their bubbly to not warm up too fast.
Fact #6
Bubbles are formed due to the rough parts of the glass.
The process of bubble formation is called nucleation and the rough parts are nucleation sites. In some champagne flutes, you can find a small indent at the bottom of the some champagne glasses to allow the formation of bubbles and observe its journey from the base of the glass all the way to the top. A little bit of dust sticking onto the sides of the glass acts as a nucleus for bubble formation. When you clean your glass too well or worse, leave a layer of detergent in your glass, you are interfering with the bubble formation process!
Fact #7
According to a study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, pouring sparkling wine down the side of a glass in the same way you do with beer reduces the loss of bubbles and flavour by half compared to pouring it straight down to the bottom of the glass at 5 degrees Celsius.
At room temperatures, it does not matter which way you pour it in as both methods will still make the sparkling wine become flat quickly. Thus, the lower the temperature of the sparkling wine served, the less bubbles will be loss during the pouring process.
Below are some recommended wines for the season:
Pizzini 13.5%, Brochetto 2009, King Valley, Australia $22.95
A wine with pale onion skin colour and a slight fizz to it. Refreshing aromas of raspberries and strawberries with hints of soapy characters and litchee. It is sweet, crisp, and finishes with flavours of berries.
Lahfrte frères 12%, NV, Champagne, France $59.95
A pale green tinge with a steady stream of bubbles. Aromas of green apples, pears, freshly baked bread and dough. The palate is also doughy with good acid structure and green apple flavours. Beautiful biscuity finish. Best served at 10 degree Celsius.
Château de Beauregard 12.5%, Chenin Blanc & Chardonnay NV, Saumur, France $34.95
A light-coloured wine with aromas of nuts, kumquats, and dough. Good acid, dry and finishes with a nutty back palate. Best served very chilled and taken with something sweet.
All wines are purchasable at The Oak Barrel, 152 Elizabeth Street, Sydney 2000
This article is written for the Sydney Online Street Press and is repoduced on this website. It is available at the http://www.thesydneyonlinestreetpress.com/Culture.html.
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