Simply put sparkling wine is a wine which has significant levels of carbon dioxide in it making it fizzy. The bubbles are created by natural fermentation, either in a bottle, as with the méthode champenoise, or in a large tank as in the Charmat process).
Sparkling wine is usually white or rosé but recently there have been many examples of red sparkling wines such as French Bourgogne Moussex or Australian sparkling Shiraz.
The sweetness of sparkling wine is defined by the terms ‘brut’ – very dry ‘demi-sec’ – semi sweet and “doux” sweeter.
The classic and most famous example of a sparkling wine is Champagne, which can only be produced in the Champagne region of France from a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier varietals.
There are many sparkling wines produced in other regions, with the two most popular being; Cava in Spain, Prosecco and Asti in Italy (the generic Italian term for sparkling wine being Spumante The French terms “Mousseux” or “Crémant” refer to sparkling wine not made in the Champagne region. German sparkling wines are called Sekt.
The US is also a significant producer of sparkling wine and the UK, which produced some of the earliest examples of sparkling wine, is now producing award-winning sparkling wines and certainly comparable with champagne!
In vino veritas!
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