How does Champagne get its bubbles, and did Dom Pérignon invent them?
The monk said to have invented Champagne was actually told to get rid of its bubbles, because the bottles kept exploding.
▶ Start the storyChampagne gets its bubbles from a second fermentation inside the bottle. After the first fermentation and bottling, yeast and sugar are added to the bottle, and a second alcoholic fermentation takes place there. That secondary fermentation is what creates the carbon dioxide bubbles that sparkling wine is known for. Sealed in glass, the gas has nowhere to go.
Did the monk Dom Pérignon invent them? No. Contrary to legend, Dom Pérignon did not invent sparkling wine, though he made important contributions to the quality of both still and sparkling champagne. The oldest recorded sparkling wine is Blanquette de Limoux, invented by monks near Carcassonne in 1531. And the English scientist Christopher Merret documented adding sugar to finished wine for a second fermentation before Dom Pérignon came to Hautvillers, presenting it to the in 1662.
The truth is stranger than the legend. Dom Pérignon's superiors at Hautvillers originally told him to get rid of the bubbles, because the pressure made many bottles burst in the cellar. In the early 18th century cellar workers wore heavy iron masks, since a single bursting bottle could set off a chain reaction, and cellars routinely lost 20 to 90 percent of their bottles. People called the early fizzy wine the devil's wine.
20–90%
The best-known quote, "Come quickly, I am tasting the stars!", fits the myth beautifully, but it seems to have first appeared in a print advertisement in the late 19th century.
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Recap
The bubbles come from a second fermentation in the bottle, and the legend of Dom Pérignon the inventor is a myth.
💡 A trick to remember it · A sealed bottle is a gas trap: the yeast breathes out, and the fizz stays in until the cork goes.
Surprising fact · Dom Pérignon was told to get rid of the bubbles, since bottles were bursting in the cellar.
Sources (3)
No source, no claim. Every fact in this lesson (13 claims) cites at least one of these.