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• Who Invented Sparkling Wines?

• 
  Elizabeth Riadi    Group moderator

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  Who Invented Sparkling Wines?

  
  
  In the 16th century, the county of Champagne in the northeast region of France was producing still wines. In 1531, several hundred kilometers south of Champagne, a humble monk from the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire, near Carcassonne, discovered that a few of his carefully corked wines had become bubbly. Thus, the first sparkling wine was born in the South of France! Today you can still taste this famous product produced in the same way as it was in the 16th century: The “Blanquette de Limoux - méthode ancestrale” (medieval production), begins by vinifying the riper grapes of Mauzac to produce a slightly alcoholic wine (5%), which is then corked during the descending moon of March (no scientific report has ever been published to explain this timing, but anyone who has ever tried doing it differently has failed!). During Spring, a second fermentation takes place in the bottle. The resulting sparkling wine has refined bubbles and 6 to 7 % alcohol. This light and very aromatic wine is greatly appreciated with desserts.
  
  
  • 27 Jan 2005, 4:25 pm
  Elizabeth Riadi wrote: > In the 16th century, the county of Champagne in the northeast region > of France was producing still wines. In 1531, several hundred > kilometers south of Champagne, a humble monk from the Abbey of > Saint-Hilaire, near Carcassonne, discovered that a few of his > carefully corked wines had become bubbly. Thus, the first sparkling > wine was born in the South of France! Today you can still taste this > famous product produced in the same way as it was in the 16th > century: The “Blanquette de Limoux - méthode ancestrale” (medieval > production), begins by vinifying the riper grapes of Mauzac to > produce a slightly alcoholic wine (5%), which is then corked during > the descending moon of March (no scientific report has ever been > published to explain this timing, but anyone who has ever tried doing > it differently has failed!). During Spring, a second fermentation > takes place in the bottle. The resulting sparkling wine has refined > bubbles and 6 to 7 % alcohol. This light and very aromatic wine is > greatly appreciated with desserts.
• 
  Cyril Delattre

  (not a XING member)

  Re: Who Invented Sparkling Wines?

  Dom Perignon is often said to have invented Champagne, a drink famous for its tiny bubbles. Wine producers in the area of champagne used to have great difficulties because their wines used to make a lot of bubbles, and they wanted to avoid this. What Dom Perignon really did was to stop trying to prevent bubbles from his wine and actually sell the wine with the bubbles... people liked the taste, and other wine makers in the area of Champagne decided to sell their wines with the bubbles too.
  This post was modified on 11 Jul 2006 at 11:05 am.
  • 11 Jul 2006, 11:03 am
  Cyril Delattre wrote: > Dom Perignon is often said to have invented Champagne, a drink famous > for its tiny bubbles. Wine producers in the area of champagne used to > have great difficulties because their wines used to make a lot of > bubbles, and they wanted to avoid this. What Dom Perignon really did > was to stop trying to prevent bubbles from his wine and actually sell > the wine with the bubbles... people liked the taste, and other wine > makers in the area of Champagne decided to sell their wines with the > bubbles too.