Although the consumption of Champagne in Africa is still relatively low compared to the rest of the world, with an estimated consumption rate of only 1.24% of the global volume consumed in 2019 according to Ecofin magazine, there has been a clear increase in the consumption of Champagne on the continent for several years.
This notwithstanding, many terms around the marketing of champagne have become very popular in Africa but are equally difficult to explain by many of those who use them. This leads to the question of how well these expressions are explained to the consumers who commonly use them! We will try to answer this question in this article.
Champagne Sec, Demi-sec, Brut... what does it mean exactly?
It is important to know that champagne has 7 levels of sugar content:
Champagne Brut Nature: less than 3 g of residual sugar
Champagne Extra-Brut: 0 to 6 g of sugar per litre
Champagne Brut: 0 to 12 g of sugar per litre
Champagne Extra Dry: 12 to 17 g of sugar per litre
Champagne Sec/Dry: 17 to 32 g of sugar per litre
Champagne Demi-Sec: 32 to 50 g of sugar per litre
Champagne Doux: more than 50 g of sugar per litre
Demi-Sec and Sec champagnes are very popular in Africa because of their high sugar content, which makes them easy to drink for both men and women. The success of Moët et Chandon Ice and JP Chenet (although it is a sparkling wine) are a perfect illustration. Alongside this, we have the Brut champagnes which are also very successful in Africa as they are neither too sweet nor too acidic, offering a happy balance which seems to appeal to consumers. In this category we can mention classics such as Moët et Chandon, Veuve Cliquot or Nicolas Feuillatte.
I love Blanc de Blancs... but why not Noir de Noirs ?
Champagne can be made from either white grapes (chardonnay) or black grapes (pinot noir or meunier) or both. Thus we have 3 categories of Champagne:
- Champagne Blanc de Blancs: made with 100% white grapes
- Champagne Blanc de Noirs: made with 100% black grapes
- Champagne Rosé: made with a mixture of white and black grapes or made by maceration (we'll come back to this!)
The vast majority of champagnes are Blanc de Noirs, therefore you will very rarely see this specification on a bottle. However, when it is a Blanc de Blancs, it is usually indicated for marketing reasons, and it works very well in Central and West Africa. Indeed, the Blanc de Blancs in these two regions of Africa is so successful that today, who says Blanc de Blancs says...Ruinart.
Cheers !!!
Mathieu NLEND, l'oenophile Bantou
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