Franciacorta – are unripe grapes really the key?

Like anyone with a keen interest in wine, I couldn't help noticing the excitement generated by the 2018 vintage in Champagne and the super-ripe grapes it has produced. I admit I tend to see champagne as a manufactured wine that is manipulated in the cellar (chaptalisation and blending with other vintages) to compensate for the lack of ripeness and high acidity in most years, a practice which, over centuries, has been refined to an art form. So a hot vintage resulting in low acid levels in the grapes surely...