during the holiday season than at

any other time of the year.

French law states that grapes

from the region of Champagne must

be used for a bottle of sparkling

wine to be called champagne.

But from a chemical perspective,

champagne obeys another law: Henry’s law.

This law says that the pressure

of a gas above a solution is

proportional to the concentration

of the gas in the solution.

Carbon dioxide gas is at the heart of

Champagne’s famous bubbly character.

In an unopened bottle of champagne,

carbon dioxide dissolved in the wine

is in balance – or equilibrium – with

gas in the space between

the cork and the liquid.

Uncorking releases the gas

and throws off the equilibrium.

According to Henry's law,

the dissolved carbon dioxide

leaves the champagne via bubbles,

which reestablishes the equilibrium.

Champagne makes its gas naturally during fermentation.

During this process, yeast gobble up

sugar molecules called glucose

and fructose in grape juice,

converting them into carbon

dioxide and ethanol — the type of

alcohol found in alcoholic beverages.

Unlike other wines, champagne undergoes

a second fermented in the bottle to

trap carbon dioxide gas, which dissolves

into the wine and forms bubbles.

Legend tells us that a French monk

named Dom Pierre Pérignon discovered

champagne in the mid-1600s.

In Perignon’s era, winemakers had a

tough time with that second fermentation.

Some bottles wound up with no bubbles at all.

Others got too much carbon dioxide,

and exploded under the enormous pressure.

And well, no one wants that.

More than 600 different chemical compounds

join carbon dioxide in champagne, each

lending its own unique quality to the

aroma and flavor of a glass of bubbly.

But even with all that flavor,

champagne would be just another

white wine without those tiny bubbles.

As the bubbles ascend the length of

a glass in tiny trains, they drag along

molecules of flavor and aroma,

which explode out of the surface,

tickling the nose and stimulating the senses.

The bubbly surface of champagne

is also a feast for the eyes,

especially under a microscope.

When an exploding bubble deforms its neighbors,

gorgeous “flower-shaped” structures

blossom and disappear in the blink of an eye.

So what’s the best way to pour a glass of

bubbly and maximize the sensory experience?

A study published in the American

Chemical Society’s Journal of Agricultural

and Food Chemistry answered that question:

Pouring champagne on an angle preserves up to

twice the carbon dioxide bubbles when compared

to pouring down the middle of the glass.

So pop some bottles of bubbly and enjoy

what’s left of the rest of the year.

As you’re drinking be sure to check out

some of our other videos such as

How Breathalyzers Work or Sexy Chemistry.

While you’re at it,

bring in the New Year’s

with hitting that subscribe button.

Happy Holiday’s from us here at Reactions!