I do, I do!

Many people (such as myself) don’t know the difference between sparkling wines. Here is a little breakdown of the different types of bubbles.

When I was young and naive, I assumed all bottles with bubbles were Champagne (French). It was not until I got a little older, that I learned there was a less expensive bubbly beverage, Prosecco (Italian vesion). Then when I got to college I was introduced to Cava, the Spanish version. Although here in the South of Spain Cava technically is considered to be a Catalonian wine. In Europe Prosecco and Cava are easily found in supermarkets for around 10EUR. however, when I went stateside to finish my Masters degree, I became quickly acquainted with Mimosas (champaign with orange juice), and I found that my tipycal bubbly drinks of choice were a bit pricy. So I had to find a more locally sourced options which is when I discovered sparkling wine.

I know I know…. why all the different names, and crazy different prices for a product that is essentially the same?
I recently attended a fabulous bubbly wine-tasting class by Phylicia Stitzel and I can tell you, like all wines although there is a little too much prestige and fanfare for my taste they have their reasons.

Here is a little shout out to Phylicia, she is a fabulous source of wine knowledge so if you are ever in need of any wine infor or have questions she is your girl., you can find her here at the Backpaker mom.

What Makes It Bubble?

The History Of Bubbles?

History tells us the very first bubble producers were the Romans and Greeks. However, these old-school winemakers didn’t know what they had. Whenever a batch of wine would come out with bubbles they would discard it as faulty.

Other historical data we have comes from two opposing stories, which are heavily disputed.

Supposedly in 1693, a French monk, by the name of Pierre Pérignon, created the Méthode Champenoise, a method still used today by many winemakers worldwide.

His famous quote:

‘Come quickly I am tasting the stars‘

Pierre Pérignon

The other story is that sparkling wine was established by Dr. Christopher Merrett in the 17th Century. He was a British physician, who wrote a paper documenting the deliberate addition of sugar needed to produce bubbles in sparkling wine.

This paper was then presented to the Royal Society 30 years prior to Pierre Pérignon’s development of the Méthode Champenoise method. He also invented the specific bottles needed to keep the bubbly liquid from popping.

The Different Types of Sparkling Wine

“Three be the things I shall never attain: envy, content, and sufficient champagne.”

Dorothy Parker

I am a huge Dorthy Parker fan and feel she is not quoted as much as she deserves to be, so here is a little shout-out to her.

Champaign

Let’s start with Champaign. First, it can only be called by this name if the grapes are grown and the wine is made in the Champagne region of France, or as I like to call it Champaign land.

The laws (many of which have been around since 1855) that surround the making of this beverage are crazy and force the winemakers to jump through many hoops. Due to this specific process of making and aging the wine, champagne’s bubbles are smaller than your average sparkling wine.

Fun Fact: Only chardonnay grapes can be used for Blanc de blanc champaign.
The same grapes that are used are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.

Prosecco

Prosecco is also only grown in a specific region of the world, specifically in the Veneto region in northeast Italy.

This bubbly is considered a cheaper wine because there are not so many rules and laws that surround it such as for Champagne. Fun Fact: 2021 was the first year the prosecco region was able to make a prosecco Rose.

It’s fermented in large stainless tanks, which has been dubbed the “tank method” therefore there is less pressure, which means the bubbles are a bit larger. Only one grape is used for Prosecco and that is the Glera grape.

Cava

Cava is made using the traditional champagne method. This is when the wine undergoes a second alcoholic fermentation in the bottle. Although the predominant region for cava is Catalunia, there are 6 other autonomous regions around Spain that can make Cava wine as well. Cava is usually made from three grape varieties: Macabeu, Parellada, and Xarello. It can be categorized into 4 classifications from Brut Nature (super dry) to Semi Seco (sweet).

Sparkling Wine

Sparkling wine is any wine with carbonation not categorized under the three bubbly wines mentioned above. There are different methods to make this kind of wine. The two most common are the ‘Traditional method’ AKA champaign style and the ‘Tank method’. There are also many different flavor profiles, from dry to sweet. They can also go by other names for example in South Africa it is called Cape Classique, in Portugal, Espumante, and in Germany and Austria, Sekt.

I could get into so much more details because there is a whole world behind sparkling wines.

But I will let you do your own research. Now, before I finish I do want to give a shout-out to one of my favorite sparkling wines. It is a local bubbly from right here in Cádiz Spain. Or what we like to call our own Cádiz Champaign.

Galanteria

Galanteria, is a sparkling wine. The only one of its kind, as it is the only sparkling wine in the world that uses ‘Palomino’ and ‘Moscatel de Alejandria’ grapes. These grapes are the same that are used to make Sherry wine. A fortified wine only found in the Cádiz region. It is a brut (dry) bubbly wine, made in the traditional Champaign style, which gives it its fine bubbles. This sparkling wine is also extremely special because it is made right here in our backyard by a small family-owned wine-making family.

It comes from the winery and vineyard Viña Balbaina.

If you are interested in a wine tasting that include a bubbly beverage from the region of Cádiz. Then check out our Wine tours here.