Organic Sparkling Wine
There are numerous types of organic sparkling wine from Cava to Prosecco and other sparkling varieties. Though the most well-known variety to consumers may be Champagne, only sparkling wine made from that region of France can actually be called Champagne. Sparkling wines are produced in several styles and can be made from a wide variety of red and white grapes in many different countries. Our portfolio of organic sparkling wines includes Prosecco, Moscato, Rose Secco Spumante and Chardonnay Spumante from Cantina Pizzolato in Italy; Rosé Secco from Biokult in Austria, and Cava, Sparkling Rosé, and Sparkling White from Tarantas in Spain.
Organic Sparkling Wine Production
All methods of organic sparkling wine production begin with a base of still white wine. The different processes described below add alcohol as well as carbon dioxide (CO2) gas dissolved under pressure.
Bottle-Fermented Organic Sparkling Wine
The base white wines are blended, then a mixture of yeast and sugar is added before the wine is bottled, sealed and stored. A second fermentation takes place where the wine increases in alcohol and CO2. The CO2 cannot escape the sealed bottle and creates sparkling bubbles within the wine. During this process the dead yeast cells create a sediment in the bottle called “lees.” The lees add flavors to the sparkling wine as long as they continue to be present in the bottle. This is often referred to as being “on lees” and is a process called “yeast autolysis.” This is the process that creates the unique flavors within organic sparkling wines. The yeast is removed from the bottle by tipping and jiggling the yeast cells withing the bottle by hand (known as “riddling”), or more commonly done mechanically by a machine called a gyropalettes that holds many bottles of wine at a time. A plug of yeast forms at the neck of the bottle and is then frozen. The force of the CO2 within the bottle forces out the plug once the bottle is uncorked.
Organic Cava
Cava is the Spanish term for “Traditional Method Champenoise” bottle-fermented sparkling wines. The primary grape varietals are indigenous to Spain. Our Tarantas Cava includes Macabeo, Parellada, and Xarel-lo. The wine has lively fruity aromas and medium acidity. This sparkling organic wine is produced in the D.O. Cava in Spain. Our Tarantas Cava spends more than 9 months “sur lie” -in contact with the lees. Tarantas Cava is Brut, with no added “dosage” of sugar.
Italian Charmat Method Organic Sparkling Wine
Prosecco organic sparkling wine
In this production method, the secondary fermentation happens in a large stainless steel tank. The Glera grape, grown in the Prosecco DOC, is the only grape allowed to be used in an organic sparkling wine labeled as Prosecco. Fully sparkling Prosecco as labeled as Spumante and lightly sparkling is labeled as Frizzante. Our winery partner Cantina Pizzolato produces several varieties of Prosecco including Pizzolato Fields Brut Prosecco, Extra Dry Stefany Prosecco and NSA (No Sulfites Added) Prosecco. The NSA Prosecco is fermented directly from the grape must to reduce the risk of any contamination and contact with oxygen. The must remains in steel pressurized tanks, using the classic Italian Charmat method for 2 months.
Moscato organic sparkling wine
Italian Moscato is made from 100% Moscato (Muscat) grape, grown in the IGT Moscato. It is known for its intense floral and fruity flavor, with a slightly higher residual sugar content. Cantina Pizzolato Moscato is a dryer style sparkling Moscato.
Italian organic sparkling wine
Other grape varieties are also used in Italian sparkling wine production. Cantina Pizzolato produces Spumante sparkling organic wines from Chardonnay – Pizzolato Frederik– as well as a 95% Prosecco and 5% Raboso Extra Dry Rosé Secco Spumante called “Paloma Rose”.
Other organic sparkling wine
Many grape varieties from different countries can be used in sparkling wine production. Biokult in Austria produces a delicious tank-fermented organic sparkling Biodynamic wine Rosé Secco, from 100% Pinot Noir. Tarantas produces a Sparkling Rosé made with 100% Bobal and a Sparkling White from Macabeo and Airen.