Champagne bubbles for more than tickling on the tongue

2009/09/30 Lakar Iraizoz, Oihane - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Teknologia
• Kimika

In champagne bubbles and sparkling wines there are many more odor compounds than in liquid. To this conclusion, the French researcher Gerard Livi-Belair and his companions investigated five champagnes and wine foams.

By using an ultra-high resolution mass spectrometer, bubbles coming out of champagne have studied aerosols that come out above the surface of the beverage at burst and have observed that in them the concentration of aromatic compounds or precursors of aromatic compounds is 30 times higher. Therefore, bubbles contribute more than tickling the tongue. These bubbles store the essence of drinks.

According to researchers, these compounds accumulate around the bubbles. Thus, when the bubbles rise in the glass, they carry them with them and, when they burst, release them as aerosols.

Image courtesy of: Alain Cornu/CIVC collection