Apr. 25, 2017

SUNTORY TOMI NO OKA WINERY "From the Site of Viticulture"―Riddling (Remuage), the method of manually removing sediment from sparkling wine after secondary fermentation in the bottle.

The process of making sparkling wine involves secondary fermentation in the bottle.
Although there are various methods to carbonate sparkling wines, we use this one, common mostly for champagnes, to achieve the quality of the “Tomi no Oka Sparkling Koshu”.

In the bottle aging warehouse, wine yeast breaks down sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide within the bottles. Once fermentation is complete, the yeast sinks to the bottom of the bottle as sediment and lends flavor to the wine by producing amino acids via autolysis. Aging period is an important factor in obtaining the required taste of the wine. It refers to the period for which the wine is left in contact with the yeast sediment. The standard aging period at Tomi no Oka is 18 months (an aging period of 15 months or more is stipulated by law for non-vintage champagnes). Having fulfilled its roles, the sediment is then removed from the bottles.

The process of removing the sediment comprises shaking, rotating and changing the angle of the bottles every day so that the sediment in the wine collects in the neck of the bottle. This step is known as “remuage” (riddling). At Tomi no Oka, every bottle is turned by hand, a procedure performed with great care to ensure that all the sediment in the bottle gathers toward the neck.

Pupitre racks are indispensable to “remuage”. Each side can hold 60 bottles

The sediment is extremely fine. Simply inverting the bottle does not result in its spontaneous accumulation in the neck. To achieve this, bottles are first set into pupitre racks at a gentle angle and then shaken and rotated every day, gradually tilting them further.

Each bottle is carefully turned at ninety degrees once every day

Every time the bottles are rotated, a mark is put at the bottom as a reference for the next day

Each bottle of in-bottle secondary fermented “Tomi no Oka Sparkling Koshu” is created carefully by hand. For this reason, only a small amount can be produced every year. Yet, it has received a lot of appreciation, including the silver prize* at the Japan Wine Competition 2015.
* Suntory Tomi no Oka Winery Koshu Sparkling 2012 received

Suntory Tomi no Oka Winery Koshu Sparkling(sold out)