Our sparkling wines made using the traditional method need at least 24-36 months of ageing in our cellar. This method is unique, since the sparkling wine is sold to the consumers in the very same bottle it has been fermented and aged. The sediment is removed from the bottle by degorging. Characteristics: so-called yeasty taste and aroma due to a secondary fermentation and ageing.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: THE FIRST TIME THE SPARKLING WINE LEAVES THE BOTTLE, IS WHEN THE CONSUMER FILLS THE GLASS.
The Process
Base wine preparation and filtering.
Adding the tirage liqueur (the sugar content must be adjusted to 24 g/l; during fermentation, this creates an approx. 6.0 bar pressure. 4 g/l sugar = 1 bar increase in pressure).
Filling the 0.75 litre individual bottles, sealing with stainless steel crown cork (it used to be tirage cork (solid square cork) and agrafe (steel clasp))
Fermentation at 12-14 oC. It begins 2-3 weeks after the bottles were filled, and it takes 2-3 months.
Ageing in stacks for approx. 2-3 years. The stacks should be rearranged (re-stacked) every 1/2 year (the temperature within the stack is different in different places, so the bottles on the sides must be placed in the middle, and the front ones to the back and so on).
After ageing, the bottles are put on the shaking racks in a 30 degree angle upside down. The goal is to shake the sediment (devitalized yeast organisms) in the bottles onto the corks.
1/4 or 1/8 turn to one direction, 2 days of rest, then repeat to the other direction. The goal is to collect the sediment in a thin line on the inner surface of the bottle.
After 2 days of rest, the bottles are span while still tilted in an angle. The degree of spinning and tilting depends on the thickness of the sediment, its convergence and adherence. The sediment needs approx. 4 weeks of spinning to get to the bottle’s neck.
Giropalette: Automatized shaking process. The process is quicker and, most of the time, more effective.
The bottle neck is dipped in CaCl solution of –20oC, and, in about 8 minutes, the sediment is frozen within an ice cork.
Degorging (the frozen sediment is removed by taking the crown cork off the bottle, and the inner pressure pushes out the ice cork).
Dosage (removing max. 1-2 ml sparkling wine from the bottle if necessary, and adding expedition liqueur to fill the bottle to exactly 0.75 l). The final sugar content marked on the label is adjusted during dosage to fit the marked sweetness category.
Sealing the bottles with corks, fixing the corks with wirehoods.
Turning: the bottles are turned around, so that the expedition liqueur and the sparkling wine could mix perfectly.
The bottles are left to rest for at least another month, so that the sparkling wine and the liqueur have time to blend well. Microbiological examination.
Packaging: labelling, packing in crates.
The sparkling wines made by this technology are usually fermented and aged in 1.5 litre, so-called magnum bottles. The sparkling wine spends at least 9 months in the same bottle until the sediment is removed, but some items take even longer, up to 18 months.
Characteristics: its aroma and taste presents notes of bottle ageing.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: THE SPARKLING WINE FERMENTED AND AGED IN THE BOTTLES. AFTER THAT, THE CONTENT OF EVERY BOTTLE IS POURED INTO A TANK, WHERE IT IS EVENED OUT, SO THAT THE OVERALL QUALITY WOULD BE EXACTLY THE SAME.
The Process
Base wine preparation and filtering.
Adding the tirage liqueur (sugar: 24 g/l), adding yeast culture.
Filling into 1.5 l (Magnum) bottles, sealing with crown cork.
Fermentation at 12-14 oC. It begins 2-3 weeks after the bottles were filled, and it takes 2-3 months.
The ageing takes another 10-14 months.
The bottles are drained into a tank in a closed, pressurized system, keeping the carbon dioxide content intact.
Adding the expedition liqueur, adjusting the sweetness to match the level marked on the label.
Removing the sediment (devitalized yeast organisms) by filtering.
Filling the bottles, packaging
This technology allows us to manufacture larger quantities of sparkling wine of the same quality. Characteristics: light-bodied, fresh, fruity.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURE: A METHOD FOR MAKING LIGHT-BODIED, FRESH SPARKLING WINES. THE WHOLE PROCESS IS CARRIED OUT IN TANKS.
The Process
Base wine preparation and filtering.
Adding the tirage liqueur (sugar: 24 g/l), adding yeast culture to the tank.
Sealing the valves of the tank.
Fermentation at 14-16 oC for approx. 1-1.5 months.
Fermentation and ageing of quality sparkling wines take at least 6 months.
Adding the expedition liqueur, adjusting the sweetness to match the level marked on the label.
Filtering: removing the sediment (devitalized yeast organisms) by filtering.
Filling the bottles, packaging.