Not All Bubbles Are Created Equal

By Leticia Borges.

Every Borges family celebration I can remember involved a cork popping. To this day, that sound still makes me smile. Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and engagements were occasions to cheer, but our family finances restricted us to beverages we could afford. That’s where Spanish sparkling cider came into play. We could always count on that $2.75 bottle of Sidra La Gaita my mother had in the pantry waiting for the right occasion. As a kid, I would join in on the celebration. I bragged about having the coolest parents on earth because they allowed me to drink Spanish sparkling cider in a grown-up glass. When I discovered they were giving me glorified fizzy apple juice, my world came tumbling down. I still don’t know what was more devastating; learning about Santa Claus or alcohol-free cider. Therapy has helped.

Where’s the good stuff?

I was turning 21 the first time I stood in front of the Champagne wall at my neighborhood wine store. My plan was to splurge on something semi-decent, but finding the good stuff was more complicated than I expected. “Are you looking for anything special?” asked the friendly wine store employee that came to my rescue. All my being wanted to scream “Sidra La Gaita please!” but I knew that wasn’t the right answer. I was dumbfounded by all these options, not to mention the prices. Why was this so complicated? What were the differences? Who made the best version?

I left the store $12 poorer, with a bottle of cava and wondering why cava wasn’t called champagne.

At home, after smiling with the cork pop, I took my first legal sip. It was so much better than sparkling cider that I drank the entire thing. My hangover told me so.

I’ve put a decent amount of time and energy into understanding sparkling wine and it all started with that bottle of cava. We’ve been in a relationship ever since.

I’ll spare you the research

Through gallons of research, I’ve come up with a way to simplify this for you. Think of bubbles as soccer teams. Several countries have a team good enough to take them to the Sparkling Wine World Cup. Among those, a handful of teams rise to the top.

France has been recognized as one of the best teams in the world, but Spain and Italy are a close threat.

France

Their best players come from one specific region in France called Champagne. Grapes must be grown in that region and wine must be produced there for it to be called Champagne. Producers must follow very detailed regulations and use a specific fermentation process called method champanoise for the end product to be called Champagne. Here are other fun facts about France:

• Champagne is so uptight about how they produce their wine that only seven types of grapes can be used to make Champagne. The most common are Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay.
• The process they follow hasn’t changed in centuries and still is very labor intensive. This usually translates to higher cost.
• Other teams in France are just as good. The problem is they don’t come from the Champagne region, so they cannot use that name. Instead, they’re typically called Cremant and they produce a sparkling wine that uses the same method used to produce Champagne.
• Bottom line: If you are looking for good French sparkling wine and budget is a concern, buy Cremant.

Spain

Team Spain is a very strong contender in this imaginary Sparkling Wine World Cup. Spanish fun facts include:

• They use the same production method used in Champagne but, since they’re not in Champagne, they need another name for their team. That’s why team Spain is called Cava.
• Team Cava uses a different combination of grapes to produce their sparkling wine.
• They also figured out how to mechanize some of the manual process required in the method champanoise and that’s why Cava is less expensive.
• Most of the best Cava comes from Penedés in the region of Catalunya.
• Bottom line: Cava is an excellent option if you’re looking for good quality sparkling wine within a budget.

Italy

Team Italy also qualified for the Sparkling Wine World Cup. They have two teams. One is called Prosecco. The other, Franciacorta.

• With Prosecco, team Italy produces high quality less expensive sparkling wine by altering the classic fermentation process used in Champagne. Instead of finishing fermentation inside the bottle (method champanoise) the Italians bottle the sparkling wine after it has fully fermented.
• The Franciacorta team decided to go against the Prosecco trend and produce a sparkling wine using the classic Champagne method. The majority of Franciacorta produced is sold in Italy, but Japan, the US and Germany are important export markets.
• Bottom line: If you’re looking for the traditional method, buy Franciacorta. If you’re looking for a deal, Prosecco is a sure bet.

The other teams

Other less known sparkling wine regions provide varying degrees of quality. For example, Germany produces fantastic sparkling wine called Sekt. In fact, the Germans consume most of the Sekt they produce so they have the highest consumption of sparkling wine per capita. South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom all have their own versions as well. American sparkling wine has also entered the race with a vengeance. California is leading the race by producing a variety of sparkling wines. The best come from the cooler locations like Anderson Valley and Carneros.

What have I learned?

I’ve spent a great deal of time and money exploring different sparkling wine methods and regions. I have two things to say: 1) Anything is better than Cider. 2) Unless you’ve been tasting and comparing the different types of sparkling wines around the world, you might be unable to tell the difference between Champagne and a California sparkling wine.

When it comes to sparkling wine, go with the option you can afford. Buying alcohol shouldn’t be the cause of stress. I believe bubbles were put on this earth to help celebrate occasions and create –or erase– memories. Go to the liquor store and skip the Cider aisle. Everything else is fair game.