When you sit down and buy wine online you’re assaulted with a whole range of options: where a wine comes from, how it is grown, who produces it, what grapes it uses and so on. So what do we do? We go with the names that are most familiar to us. Is Champagne not the go to substance when it comes to celebrating anything from Christmas to Graduation to Hanukkah? Well, there are some issues to consider when choosing a sparkling wine. You may think just because you’re shelling out a typically higher sticker price that you’re getting the best sparkler out there: but the name really isn’t everything.
Champagne is top of the list of sparkling French Chardonnay wine, but there aren’t just other sparkling wines out there: other Chardonnay and French sparkling wines are always worth a look. Champagne isn’t Champagne because it’s made to a certain recipe: the main stipulation is that Champagne must be produced in the French region that bares the name. Even the finest champagne competitors don’t see quite the same ceremonial use and abuse. The reputation Champagne has is almost built upon a century of smears on a ship’s hull and a fleet of drenched motor mechanics! But like anything sold on the strength of its name, quality isn’t so very important. It has been necessary therefore for other sparkling wines to maintain their high quality in order to establish themselves as Champagne beaters.
The issue isn’t one that burdens the sparkling wine market alone, of course. Many a glass of Nebbiolo wine will be un-quaffed while the products of more well known grapes fly off the shelf. But among sparkling wines, it would be a shame to ignore what isn’t labelled ‘Champagne’ just because of a name. With a great wine on the table and in your glass, no guest can really complain. After all, it all goes down the same way and has the same pleasing effects. Whereas ‘rustic’ tasting Champagnes are just an exercise in name picking laziness, you’ll find the ‘lively and refreshing’ taste of its competitors a hit with every one who samples their delights.
