# Base wine

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Product of early grape fermentation, used to make brandy

**Base wine** is a type of still [wine](/source/Wine) produced in the first stage of [fermentation](/source/Fermentation_in_winemaking) during the production of [sparkling wines](/source/Sparkling_wine)[1] and [brandies](/source/Brandies).[2] After the primary fermentation, base wine is first blended into a [cuvée](/source/Cuv%C3%A9e), then made into sparkling wine by further fermentation, or [distilled](/source/Distilled) into brandy.

The [grapes](/source/Grape) used in the making of base wine are picked when they are green, so that the grape skins do not break during handling and release as little [phenols](/source/Phenols) as possible. Excessive phenols in base wine result in partial oxidation, which impairs the flavor and aroma of the final product. Base wine generally contains smaller amounts (up to 20 mg/L) of [sulphur](/source/Sulphur) than regular wines, as it creates undesired [copper(II) sulfate](/source/Copper(II)_sulfate) in reaction with copper in the [pot stills](/source/Pot_still) during distillation into brandy. A quality base wine has an alcohol content level between 10% and 11.5%, and a slightly acidic [pH level](/source/PH_level).[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*]

## References

- [Wine portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Wine)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["What is Base Wine? - Definition from WineFrog"](https://www.winefrog.com/definition/1602/base-wine). *Winefrog.com*. Retrieved 31 October 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Effect of Juice Turbidity and Yeast Lees Content on Brandy Base Wine and Unmatured Pot-still Brandy Quality"](https://web.archive.org/web/20181031133300/http://www.sawislibrary.co.za/dbtextimages/32621.pdf) (PDF). *Sawislibrary.co.za*. Archived from [the original](http://www.sawislibrary.co.za/dbtextimages/32621.pdf) (PDF) on 31 October 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Base wine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Base_wine) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Base_wine?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.