Rest after disgorgement

What the sources say

The Comité Champagne describes the end of production this way: after corking, shaking and inspection (mirage), the bottles are cellared for "another few months".¹ The purpose usually given is to let the dosage integrate with the wine. The Champagne cahier des charges, in the INAO draft under national opposition that was read, sets no minimum for this rest.²

The order at the end of production, as the Comité Champagne describes it, is corking, shaking (poignettage), inspection and then rest in the cellar.¹

Why it matters for the reader

Legal minimums in most appellations are counted from tirage or from the start of fermentation, not from disgorgement; see minimum ageing by appellation. The time between disgorgement and opening is therefore not set by law. In Champagne at least 15 months must pass from tirage before release, and disgorgement is allowed from 12 months after tirage.^2,3 Long lees ageing before a late disgorgement is covered in late-disgorged.

End of the process

This is the last step of the traditional method. The previous one is the cork and wire cage. After shipping, keeping the bottle well is a matter of storage.