What Gives Champagne Its Bubbles? The Science of Bubbly This New Year's (VIDEO)

This New Year's, people around the world will be popping open bottles of champagne to celebrate the stroke of midnight. But what's the best way to pour this bubbly beverage, and what gives it the bubbles in the first place? They're good questions, and can all be explained by one word: science.

What is known as champagne is a sparkling wine. It differs from other wines not only due to its bubbles, but also because it's made within the Champagne region of France. It's said that it was first created by the monk, Dom Pierre Perignon, who discovered the best way to ferment champagne so that it formed its bubbles.

Champagne mostly relies on Henry's Law, which states that the pressure of a gas above a solution is proportional to the concentration of the gas in the solution. In the case of this particular beverage, carbon dioxide gas is in equilibrium in the space between the cork of a bottle of champagne and the liquid. Uncorking the bottle releases the gas and throws off equilibrium. The resulting bubbles that are released from the uncorking then reestablish equilibrium.

But how do the bubbles form in the first place? Unlike normal white wines, champagne undergoes a second fermentation process within the bottle.

You'll want to preserve those bubbles, too. The gas carries the complex smells of the champagne to your senses. By pouring champagne on an angle, you can preserve twice the CO2 bubbles as you would pouring down the middle of the glass.

Want to learn more? Check out the video below, courtesy of YouTube.