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Champagne is one of the most special products that you can buy. Champagne is one of the few products that symbolise quality and decadence and does so all over the world its appeal is truly universal. The producers of champagne have to go through a painstaking process in order to maintain the quality and appeal of their product.

Champagne is one of the most special products that you can buy. Champagne is one of the few products that symbolise quality and decadence and does so all over the world its appeal is truly universal. The producers of champagne have to go through a painstaking process in order to maintain the quality and appeal of their product.

There are 9 essential steps that are followed so that they can create high quality Champagne. The steps are - picking the grapes, 1st fermentation, blending, bottling and 2nd fermentation, aging, racking (remuerurage), degorgement, liquour d'expedition and corkage.

The grapes used for Champagne are usually Pinot noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier grapes. However, producers are allowed to use the following 7 grape varieties to make their champagne should they wish to: Arbanne, Chardonnay, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, and Pinot Noir The grapes used to make champagne are strictly controlled and have to be grown within the Champagne area of France.

To make good Champagne it is very important that the skin pigment does not get into the juice and stain it. To achieve this grapes have to be carefully picked and gently handled until they have been pressed. Only the juice from the initial pressing can be used.

The first fermentation is carried out at 18-20C (64-68F) in stainless steel vats. After a few weeks, the resulting Champagne wine is sampled and blended by the chef de caves and their cellar team. The blended Champagne wine has the liquer de tirage added to it and is bottled and left to ferment for a 2nd time. How long the 2nd fermentation takes depends partly on the vineyard and the kind of Champagne wine they produce. By law the minimum fermentation and aging period is 1 year for non-vintage champagne and 3 years for vintage champagne.

Once aged the champagne is disgorged, which means that the cork is struck off, the gas that has built up in the bottle bursts out expelling the sediment that has built up in the wine in the process.

A mix of sugar, brandy and reserved wines are put into the Champagne to make it sweet enough. After this the cork is put in and the Champagne bottle is enclosed with foil. The Champagne Wine then goes on sale to the general public.