Blending

There are many different blends made in a sparkling house, each requiring their own mix of properties.

These are:

Vintage: the primary label of the house. Made exclusively from the grapes of a single year, wine must spend at least three years aging on lees before disgorging.

Prestige: special reserved bottling. Wine should be extraordinary in quality compared to the vintage and maybe of different grape varietal percentages.

Non Vintage (NV): is a blend of wines from multiple years to achieve a specific house style. NV Champagnes can be blended from 30 to 40 different vintages. They tend to be softer on the palate and very drinkable off the shelf. The aging period is usually shorter than a vintage cuvee.

Blended wine is bottled with a mixture of yeast and sugar, capped with a crown cap and held in tirage.