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PRODUCTION
OF
CHAMPAGNE
Champagne
is
produced
in
the
Department
of
Marne,
where
grapes
were
cultivated
as
far
back
as
the
sixth
cen-
tury.
In
the
last
will
and
testament
of
Remy,
Archbishop
of
Rheims,
dated
A.
D.
530,
he
bequeathes
to
the
clergy
of
his
diocese,
vineyards
situated
in
the
neighborhood
of
that
city.
The
growth
of
the
Champagne
district
has
continu-
ally
increased
since
the
tenth
century,
and
viticulture
has
become
a
very
important
industry.
The
real
development
of
champagne
dates
from
the
eighteenth
century,
when
Dom
Perignon,
a
monk
of
the
Abbey
of
Hautvillers,
near
Eper-
nay,
discovered
the
method
of
making
sparkling
cham-
pagne.
The
Champagne
district
seems
to
have
a
special
influence
over
the
fruit
grown
upon
it,
for
the
grapes
possess
a
perfume
and
other
qualities
not
found
in
grapes
grown
any-
where
else.
The
soil
is
composed
of
chalk
with
a
light
covering
of
earth,
which
gives
the
grapes
their
distinctive
qualities,
producing
a
sparkling
wine
which
cannot
be
equalled.
Many
people
think
that
champagne
is
made
from
a
white
grape,
but
not
more
than
one-quarter
of
the
grapes
grown
in
the
Champagne
vineyards
are
white,
the
rest
being
black.
Great
precaution
is
taken
not
to
crush
the
grapes
when
gathering,
the
bunches
being
detached
from
the
vine
one
by
one,
and
carefully
sorted
according
to
their
ripeness,
and
in
some
locations
every
individual
grape
is
examined.
The
grapes
are
pressed
daily
in
a
large
press,
worked
by
hand,
and
the
must
(juice)
is
separated
at
once
from
the
stalk
and
skin,
which
contains
the
coloring
matter.
This
liquid
is
almost
colorless,
and
after
fermentation
becomes
still
lighter
in
color.
The
juice
obtained
from
the
press
by
three
consecutive
pressings,
gives
the
cuvee,
and
it
is
this
liquid
which
has
the
necessary
qualities to
make
a
tine
wine.
The
wines
obtained
by
subsequent
pressure
are
called
vins
de
suite,
and
are
inferior
in
quality,
and
cannot
be
used
for
choice
champagne.
As
the
must
runs
out
of
the
press,
it
is
put
into
vats,
where
it
is
left
to
settle
for
twelve
hours
to
allow
impurities
to
settle
at
the
bottom.
It
is
then
drawn
ofif
into casks,
the
cleanliness
of
which
is
scrupulously
looked
after.
A
few
days
later
fermentation
commences
and
changes
the
sweet
liquid
into
an
alcoholic one,
which
is
wine.
When
cold
weather
sets
in,
the
wine
becomes
clear
and
is
drawn
off,
the
lees
remaining
in
the
cask.
The
wine-producing
district
of
Champagne
may
be
divided
into
three
regions.
First,
the
mountain
country
of
Rheims,
where
the
grapes
possess
the
distinctive
qualities
of
vinosity
and
freshness;
second,
the
Avize
district,
notable