Sparkling wine

Sparkling wine is a wine with a significant amount of carbon dioxide in it, which makes it fizzy.

The 'sparkling' nature of wine was known throughout the history of winemaking and was noted by ancient Greek and Roman writers. However, the reason for this mysterious appearance of bubbles was not understood. In ancient times, there were theories about the changing phases of the moon, as well as the intervention of good or evil spirits. 'Sparkling' was considered an extremely harmful property - exploding bottles could trigger a chain reaction, destroy a lot of product and hurt people. The problem was substantial and winemakers tried to find a solution. Among them was the monk Don Perignon, who is sometimes mistakenly called the inventor of champagne. It is believed that the first to produce sparkling wine were the inhabitants of the French city of Limu in the middle of the 16th century, and later in the province of Champagne. The English were the first to appreciate sparkling wines from Champagne. During the 17th century, English glass production used coal-fired ovens and produced stronger and more durable glass bottles than French craftsmen. As a result, bottles and corks could withstand the pressure of the gases in these wines. The cause of the fizziness of sparkling wines was also solved in England. In the 18th century, Champagne was already shipping tons of sparkling wine to English customers. Interestingly, in the province itself, this drink was long considered primarily an export product. Only by the middle of the 19th century sparkling wine ousted traditional wine in this region. In the 19th - 20th centuries, the production of sparkling wines also learned beyond France.

The initial stage of sparkling wine production is the primary fermentation of wort - the preparation of a base wine with the required acidity, sugar content and other parameters. In some cases, to achieve the desired taste characteristics, several base wines are mixed. Then they continue fermentation or apply repeat fermentation of the base wine (mixture of wines) in hermetic conditions to collect and hold CO2. Depending on the method, do this in separate bottles or in one large hermetic reservoir.

The most famous sparkling wines : Cremant, Limu, Champagne, Brachetto, Prosecco, Soviet champagne.