Simply put, sparkling wine is a wine with bubbles. Red, white, or rosé, a wine with fizziness and effervescence, and often sealed with a caged, poppable cork, bottles of bubbly are produced all over the world. Wines from the Champagne region are the most recognizable and revered of these sparklers, but regional sparklers are made everywhere from Northern Canada to South Africa and Australia. French wines (and some California sparkling wines) are often referred to by the level of residual sugar left, with extra brut (meaning extra dry) followed by brut, sec, and demi-sec. Spanish Cava, Italian Prosecco, and German Sekt wines have their own terms but mainly don't address the sweetness in the name.
What are the best sparkling wines?
While France has the longest officially documented sparkling wine tradition in Champagne, there are many winemakers outside the Champagne region that use the "Méthode champenoise "or "Champagne method" for making carbon dioxide. These wines are called "Crémant." Wines to look out for include Crémant d'Alsace, Crémant de Bourgogne (Burgundy), and Crémant de Loire (which uses Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, and Cabernet Franc, among other grapes). Moscato, Franciacorta, and Prosecco, among other Italian sparkling wines, primarily gather carbonation in a different method which affects the texture.
What are the tasting notes of sparkling wine?
More than any other wine, enjoying sparkling wine is a sensory experience, encompassing sight, sound, smell, taste and mouthfeel. A brief inhale from the top of a glass or flute sends fizzy tingling through the nose, and the first sip brings pleasant little prickles to the tongue. The secondary flavors that come from the fermentation process are often described as "bready" or "toasty" and as tasting like Champagne lees. Whether you are drinking a fruity Blanc de Noir made from Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, a Blanc de Blanc made with only white wine grapes, or a Riesling Sekt from New York State, the best sparkling wines are a celebration of life.
Want to learn more about sparkling wine?
Want to learn more about sparkling wine? Check out Firstleaf's Ultimate Guide to Sparkling Wine.