The Truth About Champagne
10 Facts That Everyone Gets Wrong
Hi friends,
If you read last week’s newsletter, you know I’ve been deep in Champagne land—and still thinking about it. After tasting across so many villages and styles, I was reminded of just how much nuance there is in this region that so often gets flattened into one idea.
So I thought I’d share ten practical tidbits that many people don’t know about Champagne… but that help make everything sparkling start to click (and will absolutely impress your friends at cocktail hour).
Even better, they’re a perfect jumping-off point for Thursday’s discussion…
If you haven’t heard, I started a monthly tasting club that meets virtually to talk and taste through a specific region. Next up is - you guessed it - Champagne, and our call is this coming Thursday (May 7th) at 6pm PST.
The tasting club is only $10/month, and is half masterclass, half guided tasting. You bring your own wine and I host the party. I hope you’ll consider joining us on Thursday!
1. Brut doesn’t mean dry
Brut doesn’t mean what most people think it means. In Champagne, it’s a category that can include up to 12 grams per liter of added sugar after fermentation (called dosage). And a lot of the most popular, big-name bottles sit right at the top of that range—which explains why people think Champagne gives them headaches! For something drier, look for Extra Brut (0–6 g/L) or Brut Nature (no added sugar at all).
2. Red grapes make white wine
A lot of Champagne is actually made from red grapes (Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier). The juice inside is clear—the color only comes from the skins—so if you press them gently enough, you get a white wine. That’s how Blanc de Noirs (“white from black”) is made, and why it often feels a little richer and more structured. On the flip side, Blanc de Blancs (“white from white”) is made from Chardonnay and tends to be more citrusy, lifted, and linear in style.
3. It’s made twice
That’s right: the wine so nice, they made it twice! First, Champagne grapes are made into a still wine (like any other), fermented in tank or barrel. Then that still wine (called vin clair) is bottled, along with a kickstarter of yeast and sugar to initiate a second fermentation inside the bottle. Because it’s crown-capped, the carbon dioxide that gets released during fermentation has no where to escape, so it gets trapped inside the wine—creating those beautiful bubbles we know and love.
4. It’s not just three grapes
Everyone says Champagne is made from three grapes—Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Meunier—and those three do dominate most blends… But there are actually four white grapes others allowed: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Arbane, and Petit Meslier. You’ll find these mostly in smaller, more experimental bottlings and they are used to add acidity, texture, and a little extra personality.
5. There are really two Champagnes
Historically, Champagne was divided into two factions: farmers that grew the grapes, and big houses that bought the fruit and made it into wine. That’s the model that has dominated for the last century, and where most of the famous houses you recognize come from. But over the past two decades, there’s been a shift toward grower-producers: small farmers who keep their fruit and make the wines themselves. Those wines tend to be more expressive and site-driven—rather than the consistent ‘house styles’ larger brands strive to replicate year after year.
6. Most Champagne isn’t vintage
Historically, most Champagne was non-vintage, meaning it’s made from a blend of grapes from multiple years of harvests. That was a safeguard against the region’s unpredictably cool climate, allowing producers to pull from reserve wines to create something balanced and consistent. But now, as the climate warms and more grower-producers are focusing on terroir-driven bottlings, there are increasingly more vintage Champagnes… those made from a single year (or vintage). But they’re still the exception, not the rule.
7. It starts underground
The soils of Champagne are famously chalky—the result of ancient seabeds filled with fossilized seashells—and they play a huge role in how the wines taste. Chalk is incredibly well-draining while also retaining water deep below the surface, which encourages the vines to root deeply and stay balanced through the growing season. That combination helps preserve the naturally high acidity Champagne is known for. And many people swear you can taste it in the glass—that signature minerality, where the wines feel less about fruit flavors and more about texture, tension, and salinity.
8. Why it tastes like bread
That brioche, toast, almost pastry-like flavor in Champagne comes from the wine aging on its lees—the dead yeast cells left over from fermentation. Because the second fermentation happens in the bottle, those lees get trapped inside with the wine. The longer a winemaker chooses to leave the wine ‘on the lees’ (referred to as aging sur lie or the period the wine is en tirage), the more it develops those rich, yeasty, almost bread-like flavors and that creamy texture.
9. Why it’s expensive
Champagne is one of the most labor-and time-intensive wines in the world to make. By law, non-vintage wines must age for at least 15 months (and vintage: at least 3 years), but most quality producers go far beyond that, often aging for years on the lees. Add in multiple steps—first fermentation, blending, second fermentation in bottle, aging, riddling, disgorgement, and dosage—and you start to see how much time and effort go into every bottle. So the higher price starts to make a lot more sense!
10. Champagne isn’t just one thing
Once you start to see all of this, it’s hard to think of Champagne as just one style. It’s not just the big houses, not just Brut, not just the three classic grapes… it can be mineral, savory, fruity, delicate, powerful, and everything in between. The range is so much wider than most people realize, and that’s exactly what makes it so fascinating to explore. And honestly, the best way to understand it isn’t by reading about it—it’s by tasting it!
If this sparked your curiosity at all, I hope you’ll taste with us this week!
Our Champagne tasting is this Thursday, May 7th at 6pm PT. We won’t be back in this region again for a while, so if you’ve ever wanted to understand Champagne on a deeper level, this is the moment.
I’ll guide you through a deep dive on the region, and then we’ll taste our respective bottles together and compare notes on what we’re experiencing. There’s plenty of time of questions, pairing ideas and quick tips.
The tasting club is $10/month (or $100/year), and that includes the replay, so if you can’t make it live, you can always watch it back later.
Thank you to all of you who are already in the club - it’s quickly become my favorite way to connect with you!
Hope to see you there 🥂