Disgorgement in champagne production is?

• A. Adding sugar to dosage
• B. Removing yeast sediment from the bottle
• C. Primary fermentation
• D. Filtering the wine

Answer: (B)

Disgorgement is the removal of the yeast sediment from the bottle after the wine has spent time aging on the lees. During the second fermentation in the bottle, yeast cells die and form lees, which can cloud the wine and influence flavor if left in the bottle. Through the riddling process, these lees are gathered near the neck. Disgorgement involves freezing a small plug of this sediment in the neck and then removing it under pressure, which ejects the plug and the lees from the bottle. After this, the dosage is added to adjust sweetness and the bottle is sealed with a cork. This is why disgorgement is specifically about removing the lees, not about adding sugar, primary fermentation, or filtering.