Wine101: The Champagne Series (Part 2)

Last week, I talked about the production of Champagne. Of course there is a lot more that goes into the production process but it should give you a basic understanding of what goes into your bottle of bubbly. This week, let's take a look at some of the terms you're bound to come across when shopping for Champagnes!

NV (NON-VINTAGE):
Most commonly used for Champagne, it is a product of blended wines from multiple vintages. Most of the base will be from a single year vintage. Producers will blend anywhere from 10-15% (or even as high as 40%) of wine from older vintages. This is a way for the estates to showcase their trademark taste and style year after year.

MILLESIME:
Wines from a single vintage. Reserved for top-Cuvée, and best years only.

PRESTIGE CUVÉE:
A cuvée de prestige is a proprietary-blend wine that is considered to be the top of a producer's range. Famous examples include Moët & Chandon's ‘Dom Pérignon’, Louis Roederer's ‘Cristal’, Laurent-Perrier's ‘Grand Siècle’, and Pol Roger's Cuvée ‘Sir Winston Churchill’. Perhaps the original prestige cuvée was Moët & Chandon's Dom Pérignon, launched in 1936 with the 1921 vintage.

DOSAGE:
The amount of sugar added after the second fermentation and aging varies from champagne to champagne and will dictate its sweetness level.

• BRUT ZERO: No sugar added.
• EXTRA-BRUT: less than 6 grams of sugar per liter  
• BRUT: less than 15 grams of sugar per liter 
• EXTRA-DRY: 12 to 20 grams of sugar per liter  
• DRY: 17 to 35 grams of sugar per liter 
• DEMI-SEC: 33 to 50 grams of sugar per liter 
• DOUX: more than 50 grams of sugar per liter 

 PREMIER CRUS AND GRAND CRUS: As in the neighboring Burgundy region, the Champagne uses classification to separate the best parcels/areas from the rest. They can be classified as Premier (1st) Crus (for the very good ones) and Grand Crus (for the very best). They have more drastic requirements regarding lower volume of production per hectare and work in the vineyards. Vintage Champagnes and Prestige cuvées are often made with grapes coming from the more reputed parcels.

Now that we've covered Champagne-speak and you talk about it like a pro, check out Part 3 to find out more about the different types of Champagne and producers.