Champagne Vs. Sparkling Wine – Characteristics & Recommendations

• Champagne • Fine Wine Blog • Sparkling Wine

When it’s time to celebrate, the first beverage that comes to mind is something bubbly, elegant, and festive.
But how do you know whether to reach for the Champagne or the Sparkling Wine? Even more importantly – do you know the differences between the two?
One of the easiest to spot and biggest differences is the price – Champagne is almost without exception more expensive than the rest of the sparkling wines. But that is definitely not the main difference. Let’s explore what is!

Sparkling Wine

Sparkling wine is made through ordinary winemaking techniques (combining sugar in the form of grapes and yeast, which results in alcohol and CO2), but is made special by not allowing the resulting gas to escape.
When wine is created by fermenting in a closed environment, the CO2 gas returns into the wine, creating sparkling wine. This gas is released in the tell-tale sparkling wine bubbles after popping the cork.
Sparkling wine is created in regions throughout the whole world, everywhere from Champagne to Tasmania and Austria to Oregon.
But the only sparkling wine that can be called Champagne is produced in the Champagne region. Even French sparkling wine produced outside the region of Champagne cannot be called Champagne.

3 Most Popular Sparkling Wines That Are Not Champagne

The most popular non-Champagne sparkling wines are Cava, Prosecco, and Cremant.

1. Prosecco comes from the Veneto region in northeastern Italy, and is produced mainly from the prosecco or glera grape.

2. Cava comes from Spain, and is produced mainly in the Catalonia region with macabeo, parallada, and xarel-lo grapes.

3. Cremant comes from France (like Champagne), but is produced in the regions of Alsace, Bordeaux, Bourgogne, Jura, Limoux, and Loire.

It is made from a wide variety of grapes including pinot blanc, auxerrois, pinot gris, pinot noir, and Riesling. The production process is quite similar to Champagne’s, however the result is less bubbly.
An excellent example of a great Cremant is this Cremant de Limoux Rose. At only £14, this sparkling wine is an absolute steal and an excellent value!

Champagne

All Champagne falls into the broad category of sparkling wine, however not all sparkling wine can be called Champagne.
Champagne is only the sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region of France, where the Méthode Champenoise unique method of winemaking started being used in the 19th century (see the oldest champagne bottle).
Champagne is, therefore, a sparkling wine categorized by two main factors: the region where it is produced (called Champagne) and the special wine making process used to make it (called Méthode Champenoise).

Champagne Grapes & Recommendations

Authentic Champagne can only be produced within the Champagne region of France, and must be made with chardonnay, pinot noir, and/or pinot meunier grapes.
This Tattinger Comtes de Champagne, 2004 is an excellent example in terms of value (priced at just £60), while this Krug, 1996 and this Dom Perignon Rose, 2002 are fine examples of exceptional quality Champagne.
The historical beverage of choice for kings, the Champagne Cristal is yet another example of exceptional quality. You can find more fine champagne recommendations in this article.