Cartouche

The raised glass logo or emblem embossed on a bottle of wine, most often found on the wines from the region of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. A cartouche is added to a wine bottle by pressing a mold filled with molten glass to the already-finished bottle. The word cartouche comes from the oval symbol used in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics to indicate that the name written within the oval was a royal name.

Carbonic maceration is a process that is widely practiced in which French winemaking region?

A. Provence

B. Burgundy

C. Alsace

D. Beaujolais

The wine Beaujolais (the region of the same name in France) is made using carbonic maceration. The process enhances fruity aromas and fruity flavors in the wine. This, along with gamay grapes, gives Beaujolais its distinctive and expressive fruitiness. During this process, entire clusters of grapes (often hand-harvested so that the clusters are rot-free and perfectly intact) are put whole into the fermenting tank. The grapes on the bottom, crushed by the weight of the grapes on top, release their juices, which immediately starts fermenting naturally due to wild yeasts on the grape skins, bathing the grapes on top in carbonic dioxide gas (a by-product of fermentation). Those top-layer grapes eventually explode from the pressure of CO₂, exposing them to yeasts in the tank and thus causing them to ferment as well. Carbonic maceration could theoretically be used with any grape, but it is particularly successful with ultra-fruity grapes like gamay.

Bivalves, Meet Bubbles

Why are sparkling wines and oysters such a fine match? One reason is that their flavors are both complementary and contrasting. Oysters of course have a distinctive briny, saline quality that comes from the seawater… Continue reading

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