Champagne and Its Origins - Essay Example

26 March Technology of Champagne Secondary fermentation of wine over the years has helped to produce one of the most widely consumed formsof alcohol globally – champagne. The production of this sparkling wine first began in a region in France also called Champagne, and thus its name also takes it origins there. Just like wine, the process of making champagne includes the use of a number of different varieties of grapes, namely Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. It was first started to be consumed by the royalty of France; the Kings and the Queens began drinking it as a symbol of holding a great amount of luxury and power. Champagne was produced in order to be served to only noble and royal people all throughout the 17th to the 19th century and only after this period did it begin to circulate around the world and be used by other sections of society as well. Gradually, more and more people began consuming champagne; the middle classes thrived and tried to move themselves to the upper sections of society, and the use of champagne helped them achieve a similar status. With the help of better packaging and advertising, the drink began to reach a wider market or more number of people and was used at parties, festivities and any other kind of celebratory events by different kinds of people. From even before the 5th century began, it was found that Romans had planted a number of vineyards in and around the Champagne region of France, leading to the production of a vast variety of grapes which later came into use for the purpose of fermentation and formation of alcohol. A number of these vineyards were grown in churches as the wine was used for religious purposes too. The climate in this northern region was also suitable for viticulture or study and production of grapes and made a difference to the kind of wine that was being produced. The people in the southern regions of France soon also started to develop and undertake the production of grapes for the purpose of producing wine and champagne however the results they achieved brought about a difference in colour and taste due to the difference in temperatures. The oldest existing proof of the production of champagne, from grapes and wine, dates back to the famous ‘Blanquette De Limoux’. This was made in the year 1531 by Benedictine Monks in the Abbey of Saint Hilaire near Carcassonne. After this, many methods were applied in the process of fermentation and famous people like Dom Perignon produced some of the finest champagnes introduced to the world. The creation of champagne is a scientific process which was perfected by physicists’ world over; fermentation was perfected by adding sugar and other substances in order to make the champagne taste sweeter. Dom Perignon also made a few inventions like the making of the muselet for the purpose of holding the cork to create pressure in fermentation on the drink and thus perfect it further. It was also only bottled after the process of fermentation was completely over, just like the proper rural method to create it. Well within the 19th century, the production of champagne broke into the figures of millions of bottled being produced all over the world each year. Champagne production requires at best at least one and a half years getting a good bottle of the sparkling wine. Methode Champenoise is known as one of the most traditional methods of obtaining and producing champagne. First, fermentation is allowed to take place within the bottle. This is the process where a catalyst acts upon the grape solution and converts it into an alcoholic beverage for the purpose of consumption. It is said that the amount of fermentation that takes place makes an effect on the drink; an older and more fermented drink is said to have better taste and structure than anything fairly newer. A second round of fermentation takes place within the bottle with an addition of substances like some grams of yeast and rock sugar after which a long time is required for the flavour to pull and settle inside the bottle. It is said that vintage bottles of champagne are better in demand as compared to the normal and cheaper ones because of its authenticity and more genuineness. Due to the built in pressure within the champagne bottle and the fermentation that takes place within it, champagne creates a wild effect when poured out. People usually shake it and let the cork fly open because of in built pressure. When opened, it must be poured in special glasses made from stemware. Stemware may be made either of glass or other materials like ceramic or metals, and is a piece of drink ware that stands on a stem above its base. When champagne touches dry glass after opening, a chemical reaction in the form of effervescence takes place, and these bubbles begin to have an effect on the glass fibres or cellulose fibres. They begin to form imperfections on the glass which the surface tension then helps to smoothen. That is why; champagne glasses are usually etched with lasers or acid in order to keep the bubble formation going. Initially, Perignon was made to figure out a way to stop this formation of bubbles due to the bursting of a number of champagne bottles on occasion, randomly inside the wine cellar itself. That is why, when heavy champagne production began in the 18th century, the workers and champagne makers had to constantly keep wearing heavy masks in order to protect their faces from any kind of sudden burst that might take place due to the extra active bubbles inside the bottles. The name, ‘The Devil’s Wine’ was thus coined for the bottles of champagne because they had mysterious properties held by the carbon atoms within it to suddenly burst or cause or harm in the process to people around them. Even in popular culture, today, there have been a number of instances where the cork just flies open due to more pressure caused by shaking the bottle of champagne before opening it. Four main methods of champagne production have taken precedence over the industry of this beverage over the last few centuries. The first or main method would include the simple transfer or injecting of carbon dioxide inside the bottle of champagne. This is similar to the method used for making carbonated drinks as well, thus helping in proper making of the bubbles. Grapes are picked at an earlier stage where they still retain some of their sweetness and they have fairly higher acid levels. Thus, natural sugar is converted to grapes and then into alcohol in the process of which the carbon dioxide is made to escape. This traditional method of producing champagne also includes crowning of the bottle with a cork or crown cap and then riddled for the lees to set into the neck of the bottle. This helps the lees to be forced out because of all the pressure inside the bottle at the time of opening so that the carbon dioxide stays back and may be enjoyed. Wine cellars are used for the storage of champagnes bottles that are fermented for the second time. These cellars contain old bottles which might even date back to three or four years depending on the genuineness of the vintage tag that it carries. Over time, the flavours begin to develop and the lees begin to age as well, creating flavour and better taste of the drink. Scientific processes of disgorging, remuage and dosage are put into use after the process of riddling the bottle, for the purpose of removing the cork for adding the sugar into the liquid. Sucrose and sulphur dioxide are added to the base wine as well to transform and create a taste inside the bottle. Again, the level of sugar contained within each bottle is different from each other ranging from doux or sweet to extra dry and even zero or no sugar. The Charmat process of making the sparkling wine was founded and perfected in Italy. In this process, fermentation of the wine is made to take place in large stainless steel tanks that are lined with vitreous enamel. The bottles are then pressured together rather than individually, and it is said that these tanks are very suitable to a large variety of grapes as well, making the job easier. This entire process is also less costlier as compared to any other process because fermentation and production takes place on a mass scale basis rather than individually in different and separate bottles. Champagne production has thus created a new technology unto itself; the entire process of fermentation has been perfected over history and better and more modern technology has been used for the purpose of making this beverage. The main difference in the production lies in the way the carbon dioxide is treated. In bigger industries, either tanks are used or a method called bottling is used. In both cases, the wine is fermented at different temperatures and then saturated according to the needs of the levels of sugar added to. As discussed above, the tank method, begun by the Italians, is more common due to its better affordability and cost effectiveness. Grapes that go into the making of wines and champagne have to be picked out with a great amount of care as well. These grapes must contain the required levels of moisture and flavour and each grape is scrutinized and picked by hand before it reaches the winery. The fine part of grape juice is then used for the production of wine. Sylphure Anhydride is added to the grape juice and it is allowed to macerate for a period of time under moderate and feasible temperatures so that the best part of the juice is soaked in and may be then added to the tanks for the purpose of fermentation. Yeast is then added to it which then helps to convert the sugars in the grape juice to alcohol with time. The process of making champagne has been slowly perfected over the years. A lot goes into its technology and production; for example the very use of different kinds of glasses for its consumption. Over the years, that has also become a business on its own and has led to the technology of champagne as an example of science and technology applied to other consumer products. "It's the first time that we have unravelled these fine chemical processes happening inside the tiny droplets ejected by the bursting bubbles [in champagne]," says study researcher Gerard Liger-Belaira of the Laboratory of Enology and Applied Chemistry at Reims University in France. Flute and coupe glasses allow people drinking to hold the glass without letting the temperature of the beverage interfere. These glasses have been designed in a manner that they retain the carbonation caused by champagne as the surface area contained by them is reduced at the end of the curved area of the glass. Most of these glasses also have a smoother surface which helps to reduce the amount of bubbles and also reduce the level of nucleation or carbonation that might take place, thus making the drink taste smoother. Double stemware was also invented for holding and drinking champagnes and other kinds of wines. These have an inner and an outer glass wall with a small gap of air in between separating the two in order to transfer the heat ‘from the drinker’s hand into the drink.’ Since then, many innovations and novelties have been brought about in the glasses used for drinking champagne. As a consumer product, champagne has created its own demand in the market since times immemorial. It began as a prestige good only affordable by royalty and people belonging to the noble and upper classes of society, especially in France. However with time, the quantity of produce of this product began to increase with a developed and better grasp over its technology. With more and more champagne being produced, the prices of the same have become affordable to even the middle and a part of the lower sections of society. This good continues to be in very high demand world over because it is used for celebrations. The better bottles and more vintage ones still are only afforded by the richer sections of society as they take more time to make and have more luxury value attached to them. Champagne has thus become a drink invented by pure science and used by almost all kinds of people beginning at a younger age as compared to any other kind of alcoholic beverage. Works Cited "Methode Champenoise (Champagne Method) | GreatGrub." Home | GreatGrub. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. . Read More