CRISTAL LINE

MAKING SPARKLING WINES: FROM THE BASE WINE TO PRODUCING SPARKLING WINE

The term “sparkling” covers a wide range of wines, including all the production methods used to make these wines. There are primarily two well-known methods: the traditional method and charmat. In any case, making sparkling wine means the process of creating bubbles and the typical mousse in the wine. Before the second fermentation phase, you need to make a base wine or “vin clair” which can be made with grapes from the same year (millesimati) or by blending wines made from different harvests (cuvée), guaranteeing a recognisable identity for the sparkling wine in each year of production. After re-fermentation (in the bottle or airtight tanks), the sparkling wine undergoes an ageing process, depending on the method used. Sparkling wines are generally characterised by the formation of bubbles upon opening, caused by the release of carbon dioxide produced during fermentation.

BIOTECHNOLOGIES AND PROCESSING AIDS FOR THE RE-FERMENTATION OF SPARKLING WINES

The new Cristal line involves carefully selected biotechnologies and processing aids created for making sparkling wine, and includes yeasts, nutrients, fermentation activators, fining agents and tannins which can guarantee the production of fine sparkling wines. Certified and authorised by the Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne for production using the méthode champenoise, Levulia Cristal is a selected yeast perfect for the first and second fermentation, and ensures a very low production of volatile acidity. Furthermore, thanks to its excellent resistance to alcohol, it guarantees the perfect re-fermentation in the bottle. The Oenolia brand line also includes Levulia Probios, an organic yeast strain suitable for making sparkling wines, as well as Levulia Agglo an agglomerating strain that helps reduce riddling times. For a quick start to fermentation, we have Enovit Perlage: the perfect nutrient for second fermentation, it guarantees good cell viability while limiting the production of ethanal and volatile acidity. Furthermore, its composition helps produce the perfect sediment inside the bottle, making riddling easier.

Once again in order to make riddling easier and to reduce clarification times, we have created two riddling processing aids: Adjuvant Cristal A perfect for automatic riddling, and Adjuvant Cristal T, which can either be used for manual or automatic riddling. Both of these processing aids help produce fast clarification after re-fermentation while respecting the wine’s analytical and organoleptic characteristics. The range is completed by Fortifia Cristal, a selection of oak and chestnut tannins that can stabilise redox potential during second fermentation and increase the size of deposits, making them easier to remove. It helps prevent reduced notes and improve the oxidising-reductive capacity of wines during refining on the lees.