Bubbles 101

As it turns out, I’ve never written a primer to sparkling wines. How did that happen? I thought I could just recycle an old column and spend this time doing my day job, but I get to take you back to the basics. I’m sure many of you have some bubbles on your shopping list for their big night. Maybe this column will help you make your choices. Here we go- Sparklers 101. 

As you may have learned, sparkling wine was a happy accident by a 17th century monk named Dom Perignon in Champagne, France (though there is evidence that the English created “fizz” 30 years earlier). When wine does not complete its fermentation before being bottled, it does so in the bottle which leads to the creation of bubbles and exploding bottles. Once tamed by creating really strong bottles, this became the iconic wine of Champagne and eventually creating a whole new category of wine. Any wine can be made into sparkling wine, which is why you see them in all different colors from every wine-producing region. But only bubbles from Champagne can be called Champagne.

Sparkling wine (SW) can be made in a few different ways, but I’ll cover the 3 most common here. The best is made in the traditional method (or methode Champanois) where the 2nd fermentation takes place in the bottle. This method is labor intensive involving riddling where upside down, tilted bottles are rotated by hand or machine every so often so that all residual particles from the fermentation process make their way down to the bottle’s neck. When this step is complete, the bottle is disgorged by freezing the bottle neck. When the cap is removed the fermentation waste pops out. This is replaced by the dosage, a sugary wine mixture. The familiar cork and cage go on the bottle and then it’s off to age, or not, depending on the desired end result. Most important in this process is the dosage. The dosage creates the level of dryness or sweetness in the wine. SW grapes are picked early before much sugar is developed. A very dry (Brut, Extra Brut) SW will have very little sugar in the dosage, while something like a Moscato may have quite a bit of sugar in the dosage (though you can have dry Moscatos and they are excellent). Most Rosè SW is made in the dosage process by adding a sugary red wine mixture to the wine. You pay much more for a Rosè SW that started out as a Rosè. The Charmat method is the 2nd way SW is made. In this case, the wine goes through the 2nd fermentation in a stainless steel tank. The dosage is added and then the wine is bottled and heads to the local wine store. In California many of the less expensive SWs are made in this manner, but in Italy it is widely used, most notably in Prosecco. The advantage to this method is that wine is fresh and fruity, taking on fewer of the brioche/bread/yeast notes that come from the traditional method. The 3rd method I’ll discuss here is gaining popularity due to the natural wine trend: Petillant Naturales. Here the 2nd fermentation takes place in the bottle, but then production stops. There is no dosage and no cork- just a cap that looks like it came from a coke bottle. This wine will have all the byproducts of fermentation floating around at the bottom of the bottle. These are “wild” wines with all kinds of fruit and musky flavors. Just be careful that you don’t get the last swig. These aren’t meant to age, so drink them right away. 

Now you know how SW is made. Maybe the hardest part is to figure out what to buy, in large part because of all the different names/terms on the label. Traditionally, SW had one of 3 terms on the label to note the level of dryness in the wine: Brut, Extra Dry and Sec. Ironically, Extra Dry was sweet and Sec (sweet in French) was even sweeter. But now you might also see Extra Brut (really dry) or see none of these terms at all. Instead, you might see Blanc de Blanc (white from white, usually all Chardonnay) or Blanc de Noir (white from black, made from Pinot Noir grapes), or a whole host of other terms: Sparkling Chardonnay, Sparkling Pinot Noir, Rosè. Or perhaps whole other grapes completely (think Moscato, which is a grape). The traditional grapes of SW are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Petit Meunier, the last one may also be on the label. 

So, we have sweetness and varietal covered and now we turn to location. Prosecco is made from the Glera grape in northeastern Italy. It was always a white wine, but with the huge popularity of Rosè, there is now Rosè Prosecco, made by adding in a little Pinot Noir. Right now, your Trader Joe’s probably still has the Encanto Prosecco for $11.99 in the magnum. Buy some up before it goes away until next year. It’s the best deal in wine. A little further south in Italy they make Lambrusco, either in a dark style or a lighter Rosè style. My wine club will see one of these in their February shipment. These have a bad rep from the Cold Duck days, but they are great food wines, especially the red ones at a BBQ on a hot day. In the North near the Lakes they produce Franciacorta, which is made in the Champagne style- using the traditional grapes. I love this wine; if you find one try it. Over in Asti, they produce Asti Spumante. Another wine with a bad rep, but there are fine ones out there. If you like Moscato and want to up your game try one of these. They are also made of Moscato, but are drier. If you want to ensure quality on any of these Italian SWs look for the letters DOCG on the label. I also want you to learn about Crèmants. This is the term used in France for SWs that are not from Champagne. These are fantastic wines to try and then stock on a regular basis. The word Crèmant on the label will usually be associated with a location in France. For example, a Crèmants de Bourgogne comes from Burgundy and is made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and likely a little Aligotè (another white native to the area). I love the Louis Bouillot line that is always at Total Wine, where you can get a lovely Rosè for under $20. Crèmants de Loire features Chenin Blanc, a wine that Loire is known for. Crèmants de Alsace has the traditional grapes, but also might bring in Riesling or Pinot Gris to the party. Essentially a Crèmant is made of a blend of grapes traditional to the region. There are also ones from Limoux, Bordeaux, Jura, Die- but these aren’t widely available. Because there are always exceptions, you may see Brut SW on a label, like the other big bottles at Trader Joe’s for the holidays. I especially like the L’èclat de 1990 Brut Rosè. Lastly, Cava is the SW of Spain. It’s harder to determine quality levels here (Riserva might be on the label) and I think it’s harder to find a good one, so go on the recommendation of your local wine store. There are SWs from New Zealand (made of Sauvignon Blanc), from Germany (Sekt), Australia and virtually everywhere else wine is made. 

Of course, in California we make many SWs. Many are U.S. ventures of French Champagne houses: Domaine Carneros (Tattinger), Domaine Chandon (Moet Chandon), Mumm Napa (G.H Mumm), and Roederer Estate (Louis Roederer). The Spanish have Gloria Ferrer (Frexinet) and Artesa (Cordoniu) But we also have our originals: Schramsburg, Iron Horse, or Flying Goat, and many wineries are adding a Sparkler to their portfolios. Even New Mexico has a U.S outpost of Gruet. This is a tremendous value and is always on hand at your local BevMo, sometimes under that 5-cent sale! Whatever you choose to drink on NYE, I hope it’s a good one and I’m wishing you a festive and healthy New Year!