Big fan of your winecast, great job. One small remark: besides Franciacorta you may also consider another Italian traditional method sparkling: Trento DOC. If I remember correctly it's the second DOC-level appellation for sparkling wines ever established in the world, (after Champagne, and because Franciacorta DOC was initially open to still wines but the DOCG now is only for sparkling). Bottom line I invite you to check out Trento DOC yourself and form your own opinion about it =) famous producers include: Ferrari, Letrari, Ceasarini Sforza, Rotari and Cavit
Thanks for the comment! Trento slipped my mind so thank you for giving it the shout out it deserves. Thanks especially for recommending producers; that's really helpful when figuring out what to try first. Cheers!
If you spent more then about 10-12€ on a bottle of German Sekt, you will most certainly get a sparkler, made in the méthode traditionelle. If that is the case the producer will (usually) indicate that as “Flaschenvergohren” (bottle fermented) or “traditionelle Flaschengährung” (traditional bottle fermentation). Due the big industrial producers having quite a strong lobby, there probably won’t be a change to German wine-law in the near future.
I love all of your posts, however little slower and more descriptive images requested (etc: how such a technique applied step by step by images), if it is possible for each post, then the quality will surely increase more. Many thanks :)) keep posting pal
Great video! I make my own sparkling wines at home this way but don’t disgorge the yeast plug but I still add sugar to feed the yeast and make bubbles. Would it still be called the Traditional Method?
Hello, I just discovered this great channel, I'm impressed. I'm also a vinyl records collector and I think your voice is familiar. It reminds me of a sixties music lover that, a few times, received and shows a box full of rarities. Am I completely off?
thank you always a pleasure , very easy to understand , i have only one question , with the step 1 , the wine base is made with the chardonnay, pinot noir, pinot meunier at the same time or separate
The different grapes are pressed separately and then fermented into separate base wines that are then blended. Blending is very precise and central to the practice of making Champagne and fermenting the different varieties together wouldn't give the blenders the control they need (and want) over the process. Cheers!
I really wonder how could it be possible to produce sparkling wine with the traditional method back in the 19th century, the "degorgement" step seems very technological to me. Did they drink the champagne with the lees ? It's bugging me. Any idea? Great cast, thank you. The bonus part was very interesting. :)
In some ways, the riddling rack was the most “technological” piece of equipment (and it’s just a piece of wood with holes in it). Freezing the riddled lees just involved an ice bath, and the technology for the rest (topping off and corking) had been around for a while. If you want to see an approximation of what manual disgorging looked like, just search for that phrase on RUclips. A lot of houses still do it for the tourists! Cheers!
Hi, thanks for you casts! Very informative. Just a quick question: Do they add the tirage to the cuvee and then bottle it for second fermentation or do they first put the cuvee in the bottle and then add the tirage? And is the vintage champagne base wine fermented in oak barrels (is it regulated or is it winemakers desicion)? Thanks!
The liqueur de tirage is added to the cuvee while it's in tank. I don't think this is regulated, it's just more efficient and consistent than trying to add the liqueur to individual bottles. Once the liqueur is added, though, it goes into bottle pretty quickly. Oak isn't closely correlated to vintage vs. non-vintage. I would say most top level (tête de cuvée) bottlings never see oak. But there are producers that do use it -- both new and neutral and in both vintage and non-vintage wines. Billecart-Salmon comes to mind as a house with a good reputation for using oak and vinifying their wines "sous bois." There's no regulation concerning the use of oak in vinification (as far as I know, any way). Hope this is helpful. Great questions! Thanks for asking and for watching.
If a wine is labelled "Méthode Champenoise" and is a rosé, is the only way to do this according to the traditional method by adding red wine to the dosage? Is acceptable to create a base wine with limited skin contacted to produce a traditional method rosé? For example, if we consider a Saumur mousseux rosé--required to be at least 60% cab franc-- is that always a base wine of no less than 60% blanc de franc and then coloured with a red wine dosage?
After the second fermentation in the bottles are done and then adding additional sugar, how they can be sure there is no live yeast left in the bottle? I have found information there are about 90 - 400 yeasts cells per cubic centimeter left in the vine after disgorgement. Or do they add additional sulphites to kill any live yeasts left?
I'm in the riddling stage right now, but im not seeing much sediment in each bottle. Could the alcohol content have been to high and a second fermentation never took place? Does leaving on the lees longer create more bubbles?
Sure. Look for a cast in the near future on methods other than the Traditional Method, and I'll cover it then. Thanks for watching and for the suggestion!
I see often "California Champagne", even on very cheap labels and it makes me so upset that US wineries are using a French name. Champagne has work hard for centuries and do not deserve to have their names stolen. I would really like to see US develop their own name for sparkling wines that they can proudly stand behind just like Cava and Prosecco. What would we call a US sparkler? Liberty Pop? idk.
Haha. It is sad that it's usually only the cheap producers that still use the "California Champagne" loophole. Quality producers with grandfathered labels have usually opted not to use them as a sign of solidarity. Cheers!
Its legal to do so, helps sell more wine and i see no reason to deny it, just like Zinfandel is an american name for the varietal and the italians use it over primitivo cause it sells nobody knows primitivo everyone knows zinfandel.
I'm really surprised that the E.U. allowed the usage of the word Champagne on anything that wasn't Methode Champenoise. I agree with Kevin Brown that we should have, at least by now, taken it upon ourselves to properly name and distinguish our sparkling wines accordingly. It is an insult to the tradition of wine making to use labeling like 'California Champagne' with fine print and disclosures on the bottle. I understand that lesser quality wines, of all varietals, need to exist for budget and everyday drinking reasons, but don't cheapen the industry with marketing ploys. :)
This is definitely very informative and helpful. Looking forward to more of your videos.
Thanks for the pairing tip, potato chips and trad met sparklers, it worked a treat for the Ernest Wein blanc de blanc I just finished 😁👌
Big fan of your winecast, great job. One small remark: besides Franciacorta you may also consider another Italian traditional method sparkling: Trento DOC. If I remember correctly it's the second DOC-level appellation for sparkling wines ever established in the world, (after Champagne, and because Franciacorta DOC was initially open to still wines but the DOCG now is only for sparkling). Bottom line I invite you to check out Trento DOC yourself and form your own opinion about it =) famous producers include: Ferrari, Letrari, Ceasarini Sforza, Rotari and Cavit
Thanks for the comment! Trento slipped my mind so thank you for giving it the shout out it deserves. Thanks especially for recommending producers; that's really helpful when figuring out what to try first. Cheers!
Well structured, informative and easy to understand cast. Thanks 😊👍
You're the best as always!
Thank you for that. In-depth explanation and easy to understand format. Cheers!
Really informative and very well explained. Thank you.
Finally explained that 'dry' labeling.. Thanks again!
It was mysterious to me, too, until I did the research for this cast. Glad it was helpful. Cheers!
you are genius sir,,,,,,
Thank you! That's very kind. Cheers!
Thanks for the informative production 👍
If you spent more then about 10-12€ on a bottle of German Sekt, you will most certainly get a sparkler, made in the méthode traditionelle. If that is the case the producer will (usually) indicate that as “Flaschenvergohren” (bottle fermented) or “traditionelle Flaschengährung” (traditional bottle fermentation). Due the big industrial producers having quite a strong lobby, there probably won’t be a change to German wine-law in the near future.
I love all of your posts, however little slower and more descriptive images requested (etc: how such a technique applied step by step by images), if it is possible for each post, then the quality will surely increase more. Many thanks :)) keep posting pal
I would love to watch a sake cast.
Great video! I make my own sparkling wines at home this way but don’t disgorge the yeast plug but I still add sugar to feed the yeast and make bubbles. Would it still be called the Traditional Method?
Hello, I just discovered this great channel, I'm impressed. I'm also a vinyl records collector and I think your voice is familiar. It reminds me of a sixties music lover that, a few times, received and shows a box full of rarities. Am I completely off?
thank you always a pleasure , very easy to understand , i have only one question , with the step 1 , the wine base is made with the chardonnay, pinot noir, pinot meunier at the same time or separate
The different grapes are pressed separately and then fermented into separate base wines that are then blended. Blending is very precise and central to the practice of making Champagne and fermenting the different varieties together wouldn't give the blenders the control they need (and want) over the process. Cheers!
I really wonder how could it be possible to produce sparkling wine with the traditional method back in the 19th century, the "degorgement" step seems very technological to me. Did they drink the champagne with the lees ? It's bugging me. Any idea? Great cast, thank you. The bonus part was very interesting. :)
In some ways, the riddling rack was the most “technological” piece of equipment (and it’s just a piece of wood with holes in it). Freezing the riddled lees just involved an ice bath, and the technology for the rest (topping off and corking) had been around for a while. If you want to see an approximation of what manual disgorging looked like, just search for that phrase on RUclips. A lot of houses still do it for the tourists! Cheers!
Hi, thanks for you casts! Very informative. Just a quick question: Do they add the tirage to the cuvee and then bottle it for second fermentation or do they first put the cuvee in the bottle and then add the tirage? And is the vintage champagne base wine fermented in oak barrels (is it regulated or is it winemakers desicion)? Thanks!
The liqueur de tirage is added to the cuvee while it's in tank. I don't think this is regulated, it's just more efficient and consistent than trying to add the liqueur to individual bottles. Once the liqueur is added, though, it goes into bottle pretty quickly. Oak isn't closely correlated to vintage vs. non-vintage. I would say most top level (tête de cuvée) bottlings never see oak. But there are producers that do use it -- both new and neutral and in both vintage and non-vintage wines. Billecart-Salmon comes to mind as a house with a good reputation for using oak and vinifying their wines "sous bois." There's no regulation concerning the use of oak in vinification (as far as I know, any way). Hope this is helpful. Great questions! Thanks for asking and for watching.
If a wine is labelled "Méthode Champenoise" and is a rosé, is the only way to do this according to the traditional method by adding red wine to the dosage? Is acceptable to create a base wine with limited skin contacted to produce a traditional method rosé? For example, if we consider a Saumur mousseux rosé--required to be at least 60% cab franc-- is that always a base wine of no less than 60% blanc de franc and then coloured with a red wine dosage?
After the second fermentation in the bottles are done and then adding additional sugar, how they can be sure there is no live yeast left in the bottle? I have found information there are about 90 - 400 yeasts cells per cubic centimeter left in the vine after disgorgement. Or do they add additional sulphites to kill any live yeasts left?
I'm in the riddling stage right now, but im not seeing much sediment in each bottle. Could the alcohol content have been to high and a second fermentation never took place? Does leaving on the lees longer create more bubbles?
what makes non vintage not preferable to be aged longer as opposed to vintage?
"vintage" wines are produced during exceptional years. They're better wines and therefore will benefit from ageing.
@@liamblake937 hmm some some wines benefit from ageing while others even though from same producer may not do so well?
@@ARCSTREAMS yes
will u plz explain charmat method?
Sure. Look for a cast in the near future on methods other than the Traditional Method, and I'll cover it then. Thanks for watching and for the suggestion!
I see often "California Champagne", even on very cheap labels and it makes me so upset that US wineries are using a French name. Champagne has work hard for centuries and do not deserve to have their names stolen. I would really like to see US develop their own name for sparkling wines that they can proudly stand behind just like Cava and Prosecco. What would we call a US sparkler? Liberty Pop? idk.
Haha. It is sad that it's usually only the cheap producers that still use the "California Champagne" loophole. Quality producers with grandfathered labels have usually opted not to use them as a sign of solidarity. Cheers!
Its legal to do so, helps sell more wine and i see no reason to deny it, just like Zinfandel is an american name for the varietal and the italians use it over primitivo cause it sells nobody knows primitivo everyone knows zinfandel.
I'm really surprised that the E.U. allowed the usage of the word Champagne on anything that wasn't Methode Champenoise. I agree with Kevin Brown that we should have, at least by now, taken it upon ourselves to properly name and distinguish our sparkling wines accordingly. It is an insult to the tradition of wine making to use labeling like 'California Champagne' with fine print and disclosures on the bottle. I understand that lesser quality wines, of all varietals, need to exist for budget and everyday drinking reasons, but don't cheapen the industry with marketing ploys. :)