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How Champagne Is Made

The traditional method in a few clear steps: from picked grapes to a bottle you can open at dinner.

Published 2026-06-01

Champagne is made by the traditional method — a two‑stage fermentation, with the second fermentation happening inside the bottle you eventually buy.

Base wine

The harvest is pressed gently, fermented like a still wine, and blended. This base wine is the producer's expression of the year.

Second fermentation

A small amount of yeast and sugar is added, the bottle is sealed, and the yeast converts the sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide — trapped, this becomes the bubbles.

Ageing and disgorgement

The bottle rests on its lees for months or years. It is then riddled so the sediment collects at the neck, frozen, disgorged, topped up with a small dose (the dosage), and corked.

Macro photograph of golden bubbles rising in a champagne flute.

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What Does Brut Mean?

Brut is the most common dryness level in champagne — but it is not the driest. Here is what the label is telling you.

Unlabelled sparkling wine bottles resting on a wooden rack in a stone cellar.

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How Long Can Champagne Be Stored?

Most non‑vintage champagne is best drunk within a few years of purchase. Vintage bottles are a different story.