Sparkling Wine From Italy and Around the World: Your Ultimate Guide (Including Recommendations from 6 Masters of Wine)
Whether it’s sparkling wine from Italy, France, USA, South Africa, it’s official: we love our bubbly. Sparkling wine sales now account for some 10% of all wine sales globally, meaning we are consuming approximately 2.5 billion litres of fizz every year. This figure is only set to increase, as more and more consumers become interested in premium wines. If there are bubbles to pop, we are popping them!
This is your ultimate guide for sparkling wine from Italy and beyond. Strap in - it’s going to be a bubbly ride.
Why are we buying so much sparkling wine?
Did we all become richer? Whether there’s more disposable income flying around or not, there is one thing that definitely has become richer - our mindsets. We have the kind of ‘aspirational’ mindset that has never been seen before (thanks Instagram!) and we want better, more awesome-looking lives for ourselves. We’ll have what they’re having!
We’ve also become “conscious consumers” - we want to spend money on premium products that are well-made and make us feel good. We like to align ourselves with brands and products that we feel represent us. If we’re like any kind of drink, we’re definitely the expensive one that sparkles, right?
Thirdly, we are becoming more educated about what we put in our bodies. Consumer awareness has increased and we want to know where our wine’s from, who made it, how it’s made and what the story is. This pushes us towards more premium products - after all, you get what you pay for.
Who is buying sparkling wine?
All of us! There is, however, a concentrated pool of bubble-lovers in Europe, as it’s the leading producer of sparkling wine: France makes the Champagne; Italy makes the Prosecco and Spain makes the Cava. There has also been a significant increase in demand for English Sparkling Wine in the UK, which is really exciting for those of us who live here - more about that later.
For years, Germany was singled out as the world’s biggest consumer of sparkling wine, but now the Brits and the Americans are fighting over the crown. There are also new sparkle fans around the world: China, Japan and South Korea, plus regions in Africa, South America and Russia.
It’s still true that sparkling wine is more popular among women (that is true of wine in general) and specifically there has been an emerging market of middle-class female sparkle-fans from Asia, North and South America, Africa and Australia. But, that is not to say that men don’t drink sparkling wine - far from it! In fact, the millennial age-group across the board love poppin’ bottles all over the place. Could it be something to do with rappers posing with bottles of Cristal and Krug? It can’t hurt sales.
> Read An Introduction to Grower Champagne
Our love affair with Italian sparkling wine in the UK
In 2018, almost 165 million bottles of sparkling wine were sold in the UK and 146 million of those were not Champagne. According to the WSTA, the majority of sales were for sparkling wine from Italy. In an article by The Drinks Business in 2019, they state that a whopping 62% of all sparkling wine sales by volume in the UK are accounted for by Prosecco!
Why do we love Prosecco so much? When this sparkling wine from Italy first stormed the UK market, it had a fun name and, judging by its easy-drinking nature, it was for a fun time. It wasn’t expensive, like the big Champagne brands, and it felt more special than Cava (unfortunately, most of the Cava that’s available in supermarkets in the UK falls short of the great quality Cava made and sold in Spain). This Italian sparkling wine made a glass of bubbles accessible to a huge market in Britain.
There is, of course, more to Prosecco than meets the eye. Sales have somewhat plateaued, as the preference becomes for more premium products, but this sparkler shouldn’t be judged too quickly. Like quality levels for any wine, there is Prosecco, then there is good Prosecco, then there is great Prosecco.
Prosecco is a region in Northern Italy, but more than that, it is a protected region. This is why not every sparkling wine from Italy is Prosecco - only the wines from Prosecco DOC, an area covering nine provinces in the Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia. Within the DOC (Denomination of Controlled Origin), there is a smaller area called Prosecco DOC Treviso, where the grapes are of a higher quality. Within this area, there are two even smaller areas, which are classed as DOCG (Denomination of Controlled and Guaranteed Origin): Asolo DOCG and Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG. It is in these places where Prosecco Superiore is made, from the highest quality grapes grown on the best sites in the entire region.
Of course, there are other sparkling wines made in Italy and one notable example is Franciacorta, from the Province of Brescia. This is a wine made in the Traditional Method (the same method used to make Champagne) from grapes local to the region. Franciacorta has had DOCG status (which is the highest designation of quality for Italian wine) since 1995 and the sparkling wines from there are superb.
Sparkling Wine Beyond Italy
Yes, there’s Prosecco and yes, there’s Champagne (where sales are still booming), but there are even more styles of sparkling wine out there begging to be discovered and devoured. English Sparkling Wine, Crémant, Cava, Sekt, Méthode Cap Classique wines, Corpinnat, Argentinian sparkling, Austrian sparkling, American sparkling, Méthode Ancestral (Pet Nat) wines - you name it, someone somewhere has got a secondary fermentation going on.
Recommendations from 6 Masters of Wine
I spoke to six MWs, who shared with me their favourite styles of sparkling wine. If you’re looking for something new to check out, here are some tips from the masters.
Lenka Sedlackova MW
“I have always been a huge fan of Gramona, formerly Cava but now part of the new Corpinnat category. Gramona is famous for long-aged sparkling wines - these are rich and supremely complex and help highlight the high quality and potential of the Xarel•lo grape.”
Anne McHale MW
“English Sparkling Wine, but it’s very hard to pick a favourite. A top contender is Gusbourne for consistently high quality of wines and great team of people working there.”
Anne Krebiehl MW
“I simply love well-made, bottle-fermented fizz: as long as there is high acid and good quality, I do drink it with pleasure. Do I have a favourite style? Well, the acid has to be there, but apart from that, I adore and revel in the creative latitude sparkling wine offers. I love the appley creaminess of Pinot Noir as much as the slender, salty zestiness of chalk-grown Chardonnay, I love racy, zero dosage Riesling, I love long-aged vintage cuvées with rounded complexity and spankingly fresh styles with exuberant fizz. All depends on mood, situation, season, food and company! Luckily there is fizz for every occasion.”
Madeleine Stenwreth MW
“‘Les 7’ Champagne Laherte Frères, which offers a unique field blend of the allowed 7 varieties, paying tribute to their patrimony. Will Petit Meslier become the future saviour of Champagne? It can counteract the effects of global warming with its very low pH, Granny Smith crunchiness and attractive toasty, flinty austerity.”
Sarah Abbott MW
I have “current obsessions”, or even “a mood” when it comes to wine: I’ve never been an “absolute favourite” kind of person, because the right or most memorable wine is all about context. My current obsession (given the sticky evenings) is very dry, single site, artisanal Prosecco from Conegliano-Valdobbiadene. They are breezy, joyous, stony mountain wines - still little-known outside of Italy, but becoming more familiar and available.
Alistair Cooper MW
“Itata Sparkling Moscatel from Chile. There are a handful of small producers making some utterly delicious simple sparklers from this fascinating region of Chile. Sparkling needn’t challenge you, but it must be refreshing (the first duty of every wine in my opinion) and this wine from 200 year old vines is very charming.”
Know your Champagne from your Cava: A run down of the world’s most popular sparkling wines
Champagne
Apparently discovered in 1667 by the French monk, Dom Perignon (although, controversially, some evidence suggests it was invented in England some 30 years before…), Champagne is the world’s number one premium sparkler. But. what makes Champagne Champagne? First of all, the method in which it’s made: the Traditional Method (aka Methode Traditionnelle, aka Méthode Champenoise). This means that the secondary fermentation (the first fermentation turns grape juice into a still wine, the second fermentation makes the still wine fizzy) takes place inside the bottle, rather than in a tank or any other recepticle. And what? Well, it means that each bottle contains an individual living wine, which continues to react with the yeast inside the bottle. The wine rests on a layer of dead yeast cells, which forms at the bottom of the bottle (or at the side of the bottle when it’s lying on its side). The longer it rests on these yeast cells (which is called the ‘lees’), the more yeasty (or autolytic) flavours are imparted into the wine. This makes the wine have notes of warm bread, brioche or biscuit. These are aromas and flavours unique to Traditional Method wines, which you don’t really get in tank fermented wines.
What else makes Champagne Champagne? Well, it has to be made in the Champagne region of France. There are other Traditional Method wines in the world (and in other areas of France) but these can’t officially be called Champagne because they were not made in the region of Champagne.
Thirdly, the grapes. There are three main varieties used to make Champagne, which are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. If it ain’t got these grapes in it, then it ain’t Champagne. There are four more grape varieties that often get overlooked, which are actually still Champagne varieties, and small amounts of them are vinified in the making of some Champagne: Pinot blanc, Pinot gris, Arbane, and Petit Meslier.
Why do we love Champagne so much? Some would argue there’s nothing else quite like it. You can get the same grapes, ferment them in the same method anywhere else in the world, but nowhere else shares the history, the prestige or the glamour. Perhaps Champagne is also a feeling, as well as being a delicious sparkling wine?
What does Champagne taste like? Of course, it depends on the producer and their style, and the grape blend. But, generally, look out for high acidity and some biscuity, bready notes. If the blend is primarily Chardonnay, it will taste more of citrus fruit and if the blend is primarily Pinot Noir, it will taste more of red fruit flavours.
Prosecco
Prosecco has fast become UK’s favourite fizz. This sparkling wine from Italy might be more easily accessible than Champagne, but it shouldn’t be seen as its cheap relative. It has its own story to tell.
As described above, Prosecco must come from the protected Prosecco region in Italy. But apart from location, is it basically the same as Champagne? The answer is no.
Prosecco is made differently to Champagne, from different grapes. All Prosecco must be made with a minimum of 85% of the Glera grape variety and the secondary fermentation takes place in a large stainless steel tank. Using the tank method (aka Metodo Martinotti or the Charmat method) makes production cheaper compared to the more labour-intensive Traditional Method.
What does Prosecco taste like? Youthful, fresh, medium to high acidity with flavours of green apple and melon.
English Sparkling Wine
A relative newcomer on the sparkling wine scene, English Sparkling Wine is fast becoming recognised for its high quality. With a cool climate and similar soils to that of Champagne (in fact, in Hampshire, many vines are grown on the exact same chalk ridge that used to be connected to the Champagne region), the grapes grown in England are perfect for making sparkling wine. The Champagne grapes (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) grow very successfully in the English climate and, as over 65% of English wines are made in the Traditional Method, you can get a very similar product to Champagne. In many blind tastings, English Sparkling Wines have been mistaken for Champagne and, on occasion, have scored more highly than the wines from established Champagne Houses.
But, the aim of English wine is not to be a copycat of Champagne. The English wine industry is finding its footing on the world stage and it has a startlingly unique opportunity to carve its own path and experiment with different grape varieties and styles. Exciting times!
What does English Sparkling Wine taste like? Generally speaking, it has high, crisp acidity, with flavours of citrus and crunchy Granny Smith apple. In Pinot Noir sparkling, the strawberries are just-ripe and fresh-tasting. As the vast majority of English Sparkling Wine is made using the Traditional Method, there will be some autolytic flavours of biscuit and bread.
> Read Winning Wines From Hambledon Vineyard
Cava
Cava deserves much more credit than UK supermarkets give it and it’s a shame that it is still shaking off its reputation here as a cheap fizz. Cava has a rich history dating back to the 1850s in Northern Spain, where it was known as ‘champán’, as it’s also made in the prestigious Traditional Method. Like English Sparkling Wine, Cava isn’t produced in one specific region of Spain - although 95% of Cava is from in Catalonia, it is also made in Navarra, Rioja and Valencia.
Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel·lo are traditionally the grapes used to make Cava, but it is not limited to these varieties.
What does Cava taste like? It’s very approachable and easy-drinking, with medium acidity and notes of summer fruits, flowers and a little toast character from the yeast autolysis. It’s usually dry but its sweetness scale goes all the way to ‘dulce’, which is really rather sweet!
Crémant
Many people think that Crémant is just great value Champagne which is made outside of Champagne, but this isn’t strictly true. Yes, it’s made using the Traditional Method (like Champagne) and it must spend a minimum of nine months on the lees, imparting that warm yeasty character, but the grapes used to make Crémant differ from region to region.
As Crémant can be made in a number of regions in France, it is typically made with the local grapes of those regions. Notable Crémant examples are Crémant d’Alsace, Crémant de Bourgogne and Crémant de Loire.
What does Crémant taste like? Well, crémant actually means ‘creamy’ and this is thought to relate to the creamy texture of the bubbles (or ‘mousse’) and perhaps the creamy taste from the yeast autolysis and malolactic fermentation. The taste depends on the grape, but the best Crémants will have high acidity, fresh fruit and some biscuit-y notes.
Sekt
Sekt is Germany’s answer to sparkling wine and, in fact, that’s what the word means - ‘sparkling wine’. It doesn’t have to be produced in one region of Germany and often the still base wines will come from France or Italy. The sparkle is added in Germany, using the tank method (like Prosecco). If the label says ‘Deutscher Sekt’, the grapes have been grown in Germany (the best are those made from the Riesling grape).
What does Sekt taste like? It depends on the grapes used, but a Riesling Sekt will have a racy acidity and laser-precise flavours of lemons and limes, with a subtle honeyed finish.
Asti
Asti is another wine, like Cava, that has suffered some unfair tarnishing to its reputation due to cheap exports post World War II, but the area of Asti is now actually classified as a DOCG (the highest designation of quality for Italian wine, remember?). Asti DOCG is located in Piemonte in north-west Italy and the grape used to make the wine is Moscato Bianco (also known as Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains), which is one of the oldest grape varieties in the region, if not the world! Asti is made using the tank method, so that the delicate fruitiness of the Moscato grape can be preserved.
What does Asti taste like? Asti is a youthful, sweet wine, with flavours of grape and peach, and aromas of white flowers.
There are many, many more sparkling wines in the world - here are just a few more for you to explore:
Méthode Cap Classique wines (South Africa)
Sparkling Samur (France)
Sparkling Vouvray (France)
Sparkling Grüner Veltliner (Austria)
Sparkling red wines (notably Australia and northern Italy)
Sparkling rosé wines (all over the world)
Pet Nat (Pétillant Naturel/Méthode Ancestral) wines
Now that you’re practically an expert in sparkling wine from Italy, France, England (and everywhere else), leave a comment to tell me what your favourite discoveries have been in the world of bubbles. Cheers!