Sometimes we need a refresher on certain wine terms. This list can be your go-to when reading an article and needing a quick explanation of certain words.
Champagne Glossary Terms
The following terms refer exclusively to champagne.
🍾 Balthazar: name of a champagne bottle with 12L, equivalent to 16 standard bottles.
🍾 Blanc de Blancs: the literal translation is "white of whites". Champagne with this label is made by using white grapes only, meaning chardonnay.
🍾 Blanc de Noirs: the translation here is "white of blacks". This champagne is made using black skin grapes only: pinot noir and pinot meunier.
🍾 Brut: refers to the sugar content in the champagne. Brut champagne is dry (not sweet) with high acidity and lively bubbles. The sugar content for a Brut champagne is from 0-12 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Brut Nature/ Zéro Dosage: this champagne has the least sugar of them all. The sugar content for a Brut Nature or Zéro Dosage is 0-3 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Cru: means village. There are several villages in the Champagne appellation. Some grow a specific grape, others grow all 3.
🍾 Demi: a half bottle of champagne with 375ml.
🍾 Demi-sec: champagne with medium sweetness, it has more sugar than a brut and a sec. The sugar content for a Demi-Sec champagne is 32-50 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Disgorgement: after the bottle has been riddled, the neck is frozen to facilitate the ejection of sediments. The crown cap is removed and it ejects a chunk of ice that is made by the sediment and wine. This process is called disgorgement.
🍾 Dosage: sediments (lees) in the bottle can make wine hazy and need to be ejected. Along with the sediments, we eject some wine so the bottle needs to be topped up. The Dosage is a mix of wine & sugar that is added to the bottle once the lees is expelled. The dosage determines the sweetness of the champagne.
🍾 Doux: this champagne is sweet. The sugar content for Doux champagne is 50+ grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Extra brut: champagne that has less sugar on it. It is drier than a Brut because it has less sugar. The sugar content for an Extra Brut champagne is from 0-6 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Extra sec: This one is sweeter than a Brut because it has more sugar. The sugar content for an Extra Sec champagne is 12-17 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Grand Cru: this term means that this champagne was produced exclusively from vineyards that are in one of the 17 villages that boast a Grand Cru status. The name of the village will be in the bottle (for example Äy) along with the I legend.
🍾 Grapes in champagne: There are 3 grape varietals that are used to make champagne: chardonnay, pinot noir & pinot meunier.
🍾 Gyropalette: machine used to riddle several bottles at a time.
🍾 Jeroboam: name of a champagne bottle with 3 L, equivalent to 4 standard bottles.
🍾 Lees: Once the second fermentation is completed in the bottle, it creates a sediment that is called lees. It originates from the yeast and sugar added to the base wine before the second fermentation.
🍾 Liqueur d'expédition: mix of wine and sugar used to top up a bottle during the dossage stage. See dossage definition to understand the full picture.
🍾 Magnum: name of champagne bottle with 1.5L, equivalent to 2 standard bottles.
🍾 Maison: house.
🍾 Methusalah: name of champagne bottle with 6L, equivalent to 8 standard bottles.
🍾 Millésime: French term for vintage champagne.
🍾 Nebuchadnezzar: name of champagne bottle with15L, equivalent to 20 standard bottles.
🍾 Premier Cru: there are 42 villages with this status. In terms of prestige, Premier Cru will be slightly under Grand Cru.
🍾 Quart: name of a champagne bottle with 200ml.
🍾 Riddling: short, calculated, rotation movements to move the sediments down towards the neck of the bottle with the object of expelling them. This is done to have a clear & bright wine.
🍾 Salmanasar: name of champagne bottle with 9L, equivalent to 2 standard bottles.
🍾 Sec: this champagne is sweeter than a brut. The sugar content for a Sec is 17-32 grams of sugar per litre.
🍾 Standard bottle: name of a champagne bottle with 750ml.
🍾 Terroir: refers to the geographical area, climate, soil, winemaking rules, tradition and knowledge of the region.
🍾 Traditional Method: also called method traditionnelle or champenoise. The creation of sparkling wine requires 2 fermentations. In the traditional method, the second fermentation must take place inside the bottle. For more information on this method read this article.
🍾 Vintage: is champagne made with grapes harvested in a single year -the year on the label- and it’s only made when the conditions in the terroir were extraordinary. In French is called millésime. Not every year produces a millésime champagne. This is why vintage champagne is so precious.
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