Sparkling Wines
Typical Flavors
 Citrus |
 Apple |
 Pear |
 Strawberry |
Fermentation Flavors
 Vanilla |
 Bread |
 Nuts |
Citrus, Apple, Pear, and Strawberry are typical flavors.
Fermentation notes of Vanilla, Yeast and Nuts.
French Sparkling
Italian Sparkling
Red Sparkling
| Barbera Frizzante (Italy) |
| Brachetto Frizzante (Italy) |
| Brachetto Spumante (Italy) |
| Lambrusco (Italy) |
| Sparkling Shiraz (Australia) |
Champagne Sugar Levels
| Regulation EC 607/2009 |
Sugar gram/litre |
Calories /glass |
| Brut Nature (Brut Zero) | 0-3 | 3 |
| Extra Brut | 0-6 | 5 |
| Brut | 0-12 | 7 |
| Extra Dry (Extra Sec, Extra Seco) | 12-17 | 10 |
| Dry (Sec, Seco) | 17-32 | 20 |
| Demi (Semi) | 32-50 | 30 |
| Doux (Sweet, Dulce) | 50+ | 30+ |
Food Pairing
 Aperitif |
 Salads |
 Tapas |
 Sandwitch |
 Seafood |
 Oysters |
 Salmon |
 Sushi |
 Fries |
 Chicken |
 Turkey |
 Pork |
 Egg Dishes |
 Pasta |
 Risotto |
 Soft Cheese |
You can drink sparkling wines to almost everything:
Fried Fish. Smoked Salmon. Sushi.
Serrano or Prosciutto Ham.
Potato Chips. Pancakes.
Méthode Champenoise
Méthode Champenoise is the method used to produce French Champagne.
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| Pressing | 1st Fermentation | Blending | 2nd Fermentation |
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| Riddling | Disgorgement | Dosage | Aging |
With Méthode Champenoise, the first fermentation takes place in a tank, and a second fermentation takes place in the bottle.
The second fermentation starts by adding yeast and sugar to the bottle, and after about 1 year, the bubbles are completely developed.
The legend tells the story that a Benedictine monk (Dom Pérignon 1639-1715) invented sparkling wine when he bottled a wine too early, but the oldest recorded sparkling wine is Blanquette de Limoux (1531).
French Sparkling
Champagne
Champagne is associated with nobility, royalty, parties, money, and victories.
According to EU restrictions, Champagne is reserved for French wines from the Champagne region.
"The King of Bubbles" is made from the grapes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier, and comes in both white and rosé styles.
Crémant
The production method of Crémant is he same as Champagne, but often with other grapes.
These are the AOCs (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée):
- AOC Crémant de Bourgogne
- AOC Crémant d'Alsace
- AOC Crémant de Jura
- AOC Crémant de Loire
- AOC Crémant de Limoux
Mousseux
Mousseux is a sparkling wine, made either by the Charmant metod (Secondary Fermentation in a tank), or by adding Carbon Dioxide - CO2.
These are some AOCs:
- AOC Blanquette de Limoux. (Languedoc)
- AOC Bourgogne Mousseux. (Burgundy)
- AOC Bugey Mousseux. (Savoie)
- AOC Saumur Mousseux (Loire).
- AOC Vouvray Mousseux (Loire).
Spanish Sparkling
In Spain, Sparkling wine is called Cava, which means "Cellar".
Cava used to be called "Spanish Champagne", but this is no longer permitted in EU, since Champagne is a protected French name.
The production method is the same as for Champagne, but with other grapes:
- Macabeu
- Parellada
- Xarel-lo.
Cava is an important part of the Catalan and Spanish tradition. It is consumed at any celebration (baptisms, marriages, banquets, dinners, and parties).
Cava DO (Denominación de Origen) is not region based. Cava can be made anywhere in Spain, as long as it follows the production rules.
Anyway, 95 percent of all Cava is made in the Penedès wine region in Catalonia.
Cava has 3 aging styles:
- Cava
- Cava Riserva
- Cava Gran Riserva
Italian Sparkling
In Italy, Sparkling wines are called Frizzante or Spumante.
| Frizzante Light bubbles (2.5 - 3.5 bars of pressure) |
Spumante Fully sparkling (4 - 6 bars of pressure) |
| Prosecco | Prosecco Spumante |
| Moscato d'Asti | Asti Spumante |
| Pignoletto Frizzante | Pignoletto Spumante |
| Lambrusco |
Italian Metodo Classico DOC(G)
Metodo Classico is the Italian name for wines produced the same way as Champagne.
| DOC(G) | Grapes |
|---|---|
| Trentodoc DOC (1993) | Chardonnay, Pinot Nero, and Pinot Bianco |
| Franciacorta DOCG (1995) | Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, and Pinot Nero. |
| Greco di Tufo DOCG (2003) | Greco (main grape) |
| Oltrepò Pavese DOCG (2007) | Pinot Nero (main grape) |
| Alta Langa DOCG (2011) | Minimum 90 % Chardonnay + Pinot Nero |
Trentodoc was the first area in the world (after Champagne) to get a DOC for Traditional Method wines.
Sparkling Sekt
In Germany and Austria Sparkling wines are called Sekt.
Sekt is a sparkling wine that is primarily produced in Germany and Austria, where it has the role as an alternative to expensive Champagne and Spanish Cava.
Normally, Sekt is made using the "Charmat" method, like Prosecco, but some producers also use the "Champagne" method to produce high quality Sekt.
German Quality Grades
| Name | Description |
| German Sekt |
Lowest quality Sekt using German grapes |
| Sekt A |
Medium quality Sekt using grapes from one of 13 named regions |
| Winzersekt |
High quality Made with the "Champagne" method Sekt made with single origin Riesling Aged in the bottle on the yeast for minimum 9 months |
The most common grape is Riesling.
Austrian Quality Grades
| Name | Description |
| Austrian Sekt |
Lowest quality Sekt using Austrian grapes |
| Klassic |
Good quality Sekt using grapes from a major wine region Aged in the bottle on the yeast for minimum 9 months |
| Reserve |
High quality Made with the "Champagne" method Harvested and pressed in a single wine region Aged in the bottle on the yeast for minimum 18 months |
| Grosse Reserve |
Best quality Made with the "Champagne" method Harvested and pressed in a single municipality Aged in the bottle on the yeast for minimum 30 months |
The most common grapes are Gruner Veltliner and and Blaufrankisch.
Portuguese Sparkling
In Portugal, Sparkling wine is called Espumante. It has 3 quality levels:
VEQPRD
(Vinho Espumante de Qualidade Produzido em Região Determinada).
Método Tradicional wines, marked with the year of harvest, and stamped as VEQPRD. These wines are only produced in Bairrada DOC, south of Vinho Verde.
VFQPRD
(Vinho Frisante de Qualidade Produzido em Região Determinada).
Regional sparkling wines made with the Traditional, Charmat, or Transfer Method, in Douro, Ribatejo, Minho, Alentejo or Estremadura.
VQPRD
(Vinho de Qualidade Produzido em Região Determinada).
Sparkling wines made by the Traditional, Charmat, or Transfer method, anywhere in Portugal.
Espumoso
Espomoso is a low level sparkling wine, made by adding Carbon Dioxide - CO2.