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| THE DIFFERENT STEPS : RIDDLING |
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Riddling is an essential step in the production of Champagne. It is performed by hand on slanted racks called "pupitres" for bottles labeled Millesime and Prestige, and for demies and magnums form factor. For other labels automated gyropalettes are used. After harvesting we prepare a "tranquille" wine (non-sparkling). Then come the various blendings to obtain specific cuvées (blanc de blanc, rosé, cuvée prestige, millésimes, etc...). This wine is bottled and yeasts are added to trigger a second fermentation in which carbon dioxide will appear. |
| Riddling by hand on slanted racks | Unattended riddling using gyropalettes | |
A few weeks later, yeasts have exhausted the sugars and die, leaving sediments. After several years have passed, we move the bottles to the slanted racks and riddling can start. Daily, each bottle is slightly tilted in order to help sediments slide towards the neck of the bottle. Then comes ... |
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| DISGORGEMENT : | |
The disgorgement operation removes the plug created by the accumulation of sediments in the neck of the bottle. In the past, disgorgement was carried out exclusively by slowly straightening the bottle and opening it. Due to the pressure inside, cap and sediments would be evacuated at the precise time when the air bubble reached the neck. Except for the larger size bottles, this method is no longer used. Nowadays, we simply freeze the sediments by plunging the neck of the bottles in brine maintained at -30°C. Sediments become solid and easier to extract in one piece when the flask is opened. |
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| The result is unclouded Champagne that is crystal clear. When removing sediments some liquid is lost. We make up for it by adding some "liqueur d'expédition" or "liqueur de dosage" (wine mixed with cane sugar). Quantities added determine the nature of the Champagne: 5 to 15g per liter to obtain the BRUT variety, 3 to 50g per liter for the DEMI-SEC. At LACOURTE GUILLEMART we use exclusively high quality corks. They offer the best protection to the aromas and flavours that took us so long to craft. |
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| BOTTLE DRESSING : | |||||||||
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This step is the last before releasing our products to the market. Before dressing, bottles get washed and dried. Then, they successively receive:
Some bottles are still dressed by hand: That's the case for Prestige bottles, demies bottles, magnums and jeroboams. |
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Dressed in this beautiful way, some higher-end bottles get further wrapped in muslin paper or cellophane, before being packed head to tail by 6, in boxes or cartons, awaiting our private customers. For our bigger customers, we keep shrink-wrapped palettes, ready to be shipped in Europe and overseas. We have a range of "coffrets-cadeaux" and pouches that can embellish even more our Champagne that is meant to be given as a gift. For some shipments, we use traditional wooden crates. |
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IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT CHAMPAGNE |
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The wine of Champagne |
If you're curious about all things "Vin de Champagne", this page is made for you Want to know more about its history? Or get all the technical data? Or the nuts and bolts of its fabrication? Then follow this link: www.1-champagne.com |
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