20.2 Wine 927Table 20.25.Composition of liqueur wines
Extract Alcohol Sugar Glycerol Tritratable acid
(g/l) (g/l) (g/l) (g/l) (g/l)aMalaga 159. 2 143. 4 135. 85. 05. 3
Portwine 67. 6 166. 547. 02. 84. 5
Madeira 129. 0 149. 5 107. 5
Marsala 81. 0 150. 452. 26. 25. 9
Samos 119. 0 152. 082. 07. 56. 8
Tokay essence 257. 584. 4 225. 34. 16. 5
Rheingauer top quality 140. 6 107. 799. 414. 310. 2
Pfaelzer (Palatinate) top quality 171. 686. 7 121. 310. 511. 6
Sauternes top quality 127. 8 101. 282. 70. 3
aExpressed as tartaric acid.
20.2.9.1 Bottle Fermentation
(“Méthode Champenoise”)
In the production of sparkling wine, young wines
from suitable regions are used since fermentation
of their grape juice in casks provides the special,
fresh, fruity bouquet (“cuvé”) desired. Blending
of wines (“coupage”) from different localities, of-
ten with older wines, is aimed at obtaining a uni-
form end-product. In this way clarified wine is
then converted into an effervescent beverage by
subjecting it to a second fermentation. Sugar is
added (about 20–25 g/l) to wine, together with
a pure yeast culture, for the purpose of attaining
the desired final alcohol content (85–108 g/l) and
carbon dioxide pressure (4.5 bar at 20◦C). Spe-
cial yeasts are selected which, in addition to being
good fermenters and insensitive to carbonic acid,
sediment as a firm, grainy precipitate (“depot”)
after fermentation is complete.
The wine is bottled (“tirage”) in such a way as to
leave a small headspace of air and is then corked
with a natural or plastic cork or, very often, with
“crown” caps. The cork is finally and firmly se-
cured with an iron clamp (“agrafe”). The bottles
are stacked in cellars at normal temperatures
(9–12◦C). The fermentation lasts several months
while the build-up of carbonation may go on
longer, perhaps for up to 3–5 years. During this
time, the carbon dioxide pressure within the
bottle rises considerably. The sparkling wines are
classified in France depending on the pressure:
“grand mousseux”, high pressure (4.5–5 bar);
“mousseux”, intermediate pressure (4–4.5bar)
and “cremant”, low pressure (below 4 bar).
At this stage the sparkling wine is ready for yeast
removal (disgorging). The bottles are restacked
upside-down. Then the contents are repeatedly
shaken until the yeast is loosened and settles
on the cork. After 6–8 weeks the bottles are
placed upright and the cork is removed using
disgorging pliers. Simultaneously, the yeast is
pushed out by the pressure from within the bottle.
In order to simplify this production step, which
is considered the most difficult step, the neck
of the bottle is frozen to about− 20 ◦Candthe
yeast is forced out as an “ice” plug. Because of
this time-consuming, costly procedure, the loss
of wine, and other problems inherent in clearing
the bottle of its yeast deposit, a “transfer system”
has been introduced. The raw wine which has
fermented in the bottle is emptied into a tank.
The measured wine is filtered from the tank
under pressure into a shipping/export bottle.
The sparkling, yeast-free wine (“vin brut”, dry
wine) is then, depending on the market demand,
supplemented with “liqueur” (dosage), quite
commonly a plain solution of candy in wine.
The bottle, with a headspace volume of 15 ml,
is then corked and the cork is wired down. For
further build-up of CO 2 , the finished sparkling
wine needs to be stored for an additional 3–6
months.20.2.9.2 Tank Fermentation Process
(“Produit en Cuve Close”)With the aim of simplifying the costly and
time-consuming classical process, much of