Quick: what wine do you most associate with special occasions and the holidays? Chances are, you answered Champagne. (If you answered First Growth Bordeaux, you enjoy obscene wealth and inhabit another reality.)
Indeed, we all recognize the significance of Champagne, but what many do not realize is that Champagne is not so much a style of wine as an actual place renowned for making sparkling wine, a.k.a. bubbly.
Without getting into the intricacies of French wine law, Champagne is a strictly defined geographic region in northeast France governed by rigid rules regarding the production of sparkling wine. Because of the appellation's historic reputation, the name Champagne has become synonymous with this particular style of wine. To be clear, though: only sparkling wine from Champagne can legally be called Champagne; everything else must go by another name, be it Cava in Spain, Prosecco in Italy, or sparkling wine in the New World. Woe to the imitator who infringes on Champagne's good name; their lawyers are on par with Disney's.
Notwithstanding Champagne's deserved brand name, the appellation accounts for only one bottle in 12 of worldwide sparkling wine production. That's because there is no law prohibiting the making of sparkling wine in the painstaking traditional method. Winemakers outside France also have a freer hand to experiment with grape varieties and cost-saving techniques. The result is a diverse range of sparkling wines, many of which are affordable to the average consumer:
Jaume Serra Cava Brut Nature (Penedes, Spain)
750 mL, 11.5 per cent alcohol by volume (ABV), $15
If France has a reputation for the most expensive sparkling wine, Spain has made a name for the most affordable.
Straw coloured in the glass, this Cava has pronounced grapefruit notes on the nose and crisp tartness on the palate, with lots of effervescence in the mouth. It's not the most complex sparkling wine, but a definite crowd pleaser. And at this price it's hard to beat.
Par脙漏s Balta Cava Brut (Penedes, Spain)
750 mL, 11.5 per cent ABV, $20
This is a much more refined Cava for a modestly higher price. Pale gold in colour, it has aromas of fresh dough, flowers and citrus. On the palate, it has a creamy mouthfeel that finishes with a hint of honey, making you glad you spent the extra $5.
Blue Mountain Brut Sparkling Wine (Okanagan Valley)
750 mL, 12 per cent ABV, $30
A number of sa国际传媒 winemakers have a reputation for excellent sparkling wines. One is Blue
Mountain Vineyard and Cellars in Okanagan Falls. Its Blue Mountain Brut pours pale gold in the glass with a yeasty nose that also hosts a hint of cheese, melon and tropical fruit. On the palate, there is lots of tart green apple and a hint of lemon in a medium finish.
Adriano Adami Bosco di Gica Prosecco (Valdobbiadene, Italy)
750 mL, 11 per cent ABV, $30
Pale straw in the glass, this Prosecco wafts aromas of honeysuckle, melon and tropical fruit that combine with flavours of fuji apple and Japanese pear. Creamy and elegant on the palate, it leaves a trace of honey in a medium finish.
Bird in Hand Sparkling Pinot Noir (Adelaide Hills, South Australia)
750 mL, 12.5 per cent ABV, $31
Made from 100 per cent Pinot Noir, this salmon-coloured sparkling wine has plenty of red fruit on the nose, noticeably strawberry and cherry, that reappear in a creamy mousse that also
tastes of pear and red apple skins.
Lucien Albrecht Cr脙漏mant d'Alsace Brut Ros脙漏 (Alsace, France)
750 mL, 12 per cent ABV, $30
Like Bird in Hand, this Brut Ros脙漏 is 100 per cent Pinot Noir. However, this wine is decidedly different: dull copper in colour, it has more yeast on the nose and - believe it or not - a whiff of hair salon about it. Not in a bad way, though. Soft and creamy on the mouth, it has subtle red fruit flavours and a medium finish.
Henriot Brut Souverain Champagne (Rheims, France)
750 mL, 12 per cent ABV, $71
You'll be rewarded if you splash out with this Champagne over the holidays. Bright gold in colour, this wine has classic aromas of brioche, lemon zest, apple and stony minerality that are revealed on the palate in a crisp and creamy mousse that leaves an elegant aftertaste you'll be daydreaming about well into January.
