Champagne

Champagne is a pale gold wine that is produced by blending together white table wines from selected varieties of grapes and made effervescent by a second fermentation by special 'champagne' yeast in the presence of some added sugar. This second fermentation is carried out in special containers that prevent the escape of the carbon dioxide produced, which is therefore dissolved under pressure requiring bottles of thicker glass and corks wired in place. Champagnes are normally labelled 'brut' when free from sugar, 'sec' for semi-dry, or 'doux' for sweet.

Sherry, a fortified wine

Sherry was originally made only in particular areas of Southern Spain or in Portugal, which have soil of a particular type on which the white grapes suitable for its production are grown. After fermentation of the grape juice and conversion of all the sugar present to alcohol, more alcohol is added to between 15 and 18 per cent. Depending on the brand, this may or may not be further aged and finally filtered, clarified and bottled.