1953 The U K B G Guide to Drinks

U. K. B. G. GUIDE TO DRINKS

sealed with a steel clamp called an agrafe. This clips under the lip of the bottle neck preventing the cork from blowing off. The bottles are then transported down into the cool underground cellars or caves which have been hewn out of the chalky subsoil which abounds in the area. The temperature in the cellars is about 50°F. The bottles lie in the cellars for anything up to ten years, being moved from time to time to prevent the forma tion of a"crust"on the sides of the bottles. If this crust were to lie undisturbed it would get hard and be difficult to remove later on. Although Champagne might lie in the cellars up to ten years, it is said to be at its best between ten and fifteen years, after which it goes on the decline, and is past its best. This does not mean that all Champagne more than fifteen years old is undrinkable, far from it, but it might throw another sediment or otherwise become unpalatable if not cared for properly. Before being required for sale, the sediment has to be removed, and this takes place upon a rack called a "pupitre ". In this rack the bottles are placed in an almost horizontal position, and gradually over a period of about two to three months the bottles are shaken gently and twisted and at the same time inverted very slightly, until at the end of the period of the treatment the bottles are.practically vertical in an upside down position. This allows the sediment to collect in the neck ofthe bottles, allowing it to be easily ejected, by either {a) freezing the neck of the bottle or [b) by a rapid careful handling and reinverting the bottle at the same time as the"agrafe" is removed. The small loss occasioned with the action of removing the sediment is made up from another bottle of the same wine, plus sweetening according to the market for which the wine is intended. The sweetening used is a sweet wine, a mixture of pure sugar (cane) and wine, and not a mixture of brandy and sugar as some people imagine. After the"dosage ", as it is known by, the bottle is corked,the type of cork depending upon the market for the wine, and the bottle is wired and"dressed" with label and foil, 170