New test marks out a true champagne

[Boris_A]

NewScientist: New test marks out a true champagne

Developed by researchers at the University of Seville in Spain, the test proved to be 100 per cent accurate in determining which of 35 samples of sparkling white wine were cava and which were champagne. It works by recognising characteristic concentrations of the complex mix of trace metals in the wine.

The trace metals come from the soil where the grapes were grown. Ana Maria Cameán and her colleagues analysed the concentrations of 16 metals in 18 samples of cava and 17 samples of champagne.

The cava was produced from grapes grown in the Penedés region in north-eastern Spain, while champagne has to be made from grapes grown in France's Champagne region.

....

Tests like Cameán's will cut down on general fraud such as selling table wine as Rioja or adding grapes from outside the designated area to produce wine that is labelled as appellation controlée, says Tom Stevenson, author of the New Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia. "Three-quarters of the wine sold as 'Italian' in the US is not Italian," he says.

Interesting times ahead, maybe.

[Brad Ballinger]

"Three-quarters of the wine sold as 'Italian' in the US is not Italian," he says.

Well, there's a shock. Has he heard about the Lindbergh baby?