bottle pressure resistance

English · bottle strength

A Champagne bottle is built to withstand 12 atmospheres of pressure.1

Why so strong

The second fermentation in the bottle, the prise de mousse, brings Champagne to about 6 bar at 20 °C.2,3 The liqueur de tirage, about 24 g of sugar per litre plus yeast, gives roughly 6 kg/cm².3

For comparison, EU law requires at least 3.5 bar for quality sparkling wine.4 The cork is held against the pressure by the muselet, a wire cage.5 See pressure and the units atm and bar.

See also

CO2 and pressure in the bottleSciencePrise de mousseGlossaryatm (atmosphere)GlossarybarGlossaryMuseletGlossary

Sources

  1. Union des Maisons de Champagne (UMC). Second fermentation: capturing the sparkle
  2. Comité Champagne (champagne.education). Fiche Élaboration du Champagne (FR) (2024-05)
  3. Union des Maisons de Champagne. Tirage or bottling the blended wine
  4. legislation.gov.uk (copy of EU OJ text). Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, Annex VII Part II (categories of grapevine products), original version as adopted (2013-12-17)
  5. Union des Maisons de Champagne. Corking and muselage

Facts checked on 2026-10-19