Usain Bolt VS a Champagne Cork – Who's Faster?

Quick quiz.

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How fast does a Champagne cork explode from a bottle? Up to 40 km per hour.

That's slightly quicker than Usain Bolt's 100-meter and 200-meter gold medal runs at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

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(To be fair to Bolt, his top speed is 44 km/h.)

Anyway, German scientist Friedrich Balck did many -- no doubt delicious -- tests to determine this cork speed.

Thank you, Mr. Balck, now we can focus on drinking that bubbly.

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So, how do bubbles get into wine and give it such explosive results for both cork and taste buds? Thanks to microorganisms called yeasts.

The most famous way to make sparkling wine is the 'Champagne method', a two-course meal for yeasts.

First, the yeasts gobble up the sugar in the grape juice like it's an all-you-can-eat-buffet. This is typically done in big stainless steel tanks. It turns grape juice into alcohol – wine! – and carbon dioxide, a gas that escapes. 

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Second, this wine goes into bottles with more sugar, and the yeasts feast again. The gas is trapped this time and gives the wine bubbles.

There are other methods to get bubbles into wine – such as using big stainless steel tanks instead of bottles for that second step – but they aren't quite so romantic.

Champagne is the most famous, expensive and protected sparkling wine – the region has launched thousands of legal actions over the years to protect its name. But many other worthy bubblies exist.

Bernard Remy Champagne Prestige

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Prosecco (Italy) typically is made using the tank-method and is light-bodied and slightly sweet. (Combine Prosecco with Aperol, club soda and an orange slice, and you have a tasty spritz.)

Costaross Prosecco Treviso 

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Cava (Spain) uses the Champagne method and tends to be drier and finer than Prosecco. It offers good value versus Champagne.

Bonaval Cava Brut

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And Crémant describes bubbly that uses the Champagne-method but is made in other parts of France – and is cheaper. It can be fun to explore Crémants from around France as they can use different grapes and have different characters.

If you are new to bubbly, your best bet is to start with one of each main style and see where your taste buds lead you.

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By Jim Boyce, Grape Wall of China 葡萄围城

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Buy any 2 or 3 bottles and get 20% or 25% off respectively on your order. Tap the picture below and save the link to grab this special deal from tomorrow on – free delivery across China on orders over CN¥200.