French Wine Labels: How to Read a Champagne Label

A guide to reading the wine label on a bottle of Champagne, one of Europe's most prestigious forms of sparkling wine.

 

Champagne is the sparkling wine of choice for many. For most in Europe, it is the drink that is present when we come onto the earth and continues to play a role throughout the key mile stones in ones life. From graduations and wedding days to the big number birthdays, Champagne is sure to be there. Understanding a few of the key terms may however, give the drinker a greater understating of the drink and aid in the selection of a better bottle when appropriate.

Champagne – Dry Rating

Champagne is typically an exceedingly dry wine, the drink is in fact rated on a scale of six dryness ratings given below (driest first):

• Extra Brut – A very dry wine, 0 - 0.6% residual sugar present.
• Brut – A dry wine, this is the most common rating, less than 1.5% residual sugar
• Extra Dry – 1.2 - 2% residual sugar
• Sec – A slightly sweeter Champagne with 1.7 - 3.5% residual sugar
• Demi-Sec – A sweeter Champagne with residual sugar levels rising to 3.3-5%
• Doux – The sweetest grade with residual sugars rising above 5%

Key Elements on a Champagne Label

• Producer – This is for many the most important part of a Champagne label and will usually feature on the centre of the bottle. Famous producers include Bollinger, Krug, Ruinart, Laurent-Perrier and Moet & Chandon.
• Vintage – Champagne is made in both vintage and non-vintage formats. If the Champagne is of a vintage variety then the year will be added to the label in a prominent place. Otherwise the wine will display “non-vintage”, “NV” or simply omit a reference altogether.
• Blanc de Blanc – If a wine is labelled as Blanc de Blanc, this indicates that the wine is made from 100% Chardonnay as opposed to the usual mix which contains Pinot Noir.

Small Print on a Champagne Bottle

Every bottle of Champagne will contain one of 6 two lettered designations as follows:

NM – Negociant-manipulant, a Champagne house which buys in its grapes to make a wine.

RM – Recoltant-manipulant, a producer which grows their own grapes for wine production and is only allow to buy in an addition 5% of grapes for the blend.

RC – Recoltant cooperateur, producers who make and sell Champagne in collaboration with cooperatives.

CM – Cooperative-manipulant, a collection of producers selling Champagnes on behalf of their members.

MA – Marque d’acheteur, a third part brand not owned by the wine maker directly.