Lees Aging & Dosage

Riddling—the daily turning of the bottles—and disgorging, removing the lees, are unknown to tank-fermented wine. The lees stay in the tank until the end and are then filtered out before the wine goes clear into the bottle. The wine rests only a few weeks to months on the fine lees, since its appeal lies in the fruit, not in bready notes.

The regulations don't require years in the cellar for this tank-fermented sparkling wine. In this short time, the lees also impart only a hint of the pastry aroma that comes from yeast autolysis—the breakdown of yeast cells, which releases amino acids and aromatic compounds. With bottle fermentation, this shows up as brioche and bread crust; here, it remains just a trace.

It's different with Sui Lieviti. The lees stay in the bottle, settling as a fine sediment and clouding the wine when disturbed. Before opening the bottle, it's best to let it stand upright and undisturbed for a while, then decide whether you want the sediment in your glass.

After that comes the sweetness, the dosage: before bottling, the house decides how much residual sugar the wine should retain. The permitted levels range from Brut Nature to Demi-Sec. Brut has less than 12 grams of sugar per liter, Extra Dry 12 to 17, Dry 17 to 32. Extra Dry is therefore not drier than Brut, but sweeter.

Cartizze is often found at the Dry level, meaning 17 to 32 grams of sugar per liter. The sweetness supports the fruit and softens the acidity. The sweetness level appears as a word on the label, such as Brut or Extra Dry. A Rive may not go on sale before March 1st of the year following harvest.