I was thinking about what I should write about this week and had a thought. There are some things I feel like I know so well, I can’t even remember when I learnt them. But that isn’t always the case for everyone, and at the point in time when I needed to know certain things about wine, I wish there had been a blog I could go to that gave me everything I needed to know. And as I started researching this article, I learnt some new things myself!

There are so many different types of wine, it can be hard to know what makes them different if you haven’t experienced them before. This is particularly relevant when it comes to sparkling wine. Despite there being wines that are just sparkling wines, there are also many varieties of sparkling wine that differ. It can be confusing to know what each one is, and why it is the way it is.

Even if you do know the basic differences, there are still some distinct characteristics that set them apart that aren’t common knowledge. So I thought it might be helpful to share with you what these are. Hopefully this way the next time you go to the bottle store, or you are in a conversation about wine, you can lay down a bit of your knowledge!

Sparkling wine

The first thing you have to get your head around when it comes to bubbles, is that technically any wine with bubbles in it can be sparkling wine, regardless of any of the other labels or rules. It is more of a category of wine, like red and white. However, more confusingly, sparkling wine can also be red, white or pink too!

Sparkling wine can come from all around the world, and although it is usually made using chardonnay and pinot noir grapes, it can differ. I remember when I first started seeing sparkling wine labels how confused I was by the type of grapes in it. I didn’t love chardonnay at the time so I always thought it was going to taste terrible. I soon realised that this wasn’t the case, and most sparkling wine you can get is made using these grapes.

Sparkling wine can be made in a variety of ways: through carbonation, via a tank (the charmat method) or the traditional method aka the Champagne method. Yep, this is when it gets really confusing, because you can have a sparkling wine that is made exactly the same as the wines that are made in Champagne, but it will have to be labelled sparkling wine. More on that below. So you’ll often find a lot of Australian and New Zealand sparklings will be labelled ‘Sparkling wine’ because of where the grapes are grown.

So think of sparkling wine as what you can call the category, or wines if you’re feeling a bit nervous about getting the variety right. You’re pretty safe to assume if the wine is bubbly you can call it sparkling wine, so you won’t have too much trouble! But the other thing about sparkling wine is that it tends to be a bit of a catch all for all those wines that don’t quite fit into a specific variety, but are still bubbly. Don’t discount these gems, because you can get a cracker of a wine that is just waiting to be popped open!

Champagne

Now onto the fancy stuff. There is a reason Champagne holds such a high price tag. To be called a Champagne, a sparkling wine can’t be just any old sparkling wine. Now it isn’t about how good the wine maker is, it is all about location. In order to be classified Champagne the grapes must all be grown in the Champagne region, which is comprised of about 84,000 acres of vines.

Now that might seem like a lot of vines, but when you think about how much Champagne must be consumed around the world, it begins to seem smaller. On top of that, it is a finite resource in that you can only plant so many vines in Champagne (it is an actual rule), so there is no room to grow. What happens when something is in short supply? The price goes up! This is why you can easily pay $60-$100+ for a bottle of semi-decent Champagne.

It is also the prestige that Champagne has always held. We keep buying it because it has been branded as something unique and special, and oh so very French. The process of creating the Champagne, from the grapes being grown, to the Champagne method (methode traditionelle), to the individual hand turning of the bottles as they age, is something that is heavily mandated. It’s actually really interesting to read up on the process of Champagne if you have time. I myself am amazed that it is someone’s job to turn each bottle as the yeast ferments. What a job!

So you’ll know if you are buying Champagne that you are generally looking at a higher price tag. You can get ones that are cheaper however, if you look around. We found some great smaller brands when we were in the region, but sometimes you can’t go past the big Champagne houses! They may charge a lot, but you know you are in for something special. After all, you can only get Champagne from Champagne!

Prosecco

And now we get to the fun stuff, at least I think so! It’s no secret that prosecco holds a special place in my heart, you just have to look at how much I drink it! And it isn’t just because of the appealing price tag, although this is part of it. There is definitely more to this love affair, and I can’t completely assure you its not because I am obsessed with all things Italian. Ok so I’m a little biased, but here me out!

Prosecco has made it’s name as the sparkling from Italy, but unlike Champagne, you can get prosecco from anywhere technically. I guess the Italians are a bit more free with their grapes than the French. This is good for us here in Australia, because it means that there are some incredible proseccos you can get from our wine regions, in particular King Valley which is renound for these wines.

So the confusing thing about prosecco is that it is a mix of the sparkling wine rules and the Champagne rules. What I mean is, you can have a prosecco from any region around the world if it is made using the Clera grape. But if you want authentic prosecco, you can also get prosecco that is from the original Prosecco region. I have recently learnt this, and I’m not sure why I haven’t booked my flight to the town of prosecco yet. What on earth am I waiting for? Surely all their fountains spurt sweet, sweet prosecco and they drink Aperol Spritz all day whilst consuming pasta and gelato. Sounds like my idea of heaven.

So if you want an authentic prosecco from the Prosecco region, you need to look for wines with the DOC or DOCG label on them. DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which is their system for defining wine regions and names. DOCG is for the good stuff, the superior examples of the regions wine. This goes for any Italian wines, so make sure you are on the lookout!

Regardless of where it comes from, the great thing about prosecco is that you can get a decent bottle of it for a really great price. This includes the Italian varieties which you can sometimes pick up for even cheaper than the Australian ones! I also find it can be more refreshing than other sparkling wine as it is usually quite zingy and fresh in its flavour. Plus it has less alcohol in it, which means you can enjoy more of it! Or pair it with some Aperol for a nice refreshing Aperol Spritz. I’m hoping you are beginning to see why I am so obsessed with prosecco!

Cava

Cava is definitely the least well known sparkling wine in Australia at least, so I thought it was worth putting it on this list. Like Champagne and prosecco, cava is the sparkling wine of Spain. It is traditionally from the Catalonia region in Spain, and it made using the traditional method. If you remember from earlier in the article, this means that it is made using the same method as Champagne, but can’t be called Champagne because it isn’t from there.

There is definitely a lot less of this sparkling wine out there, but you can usually find a couple of bottles here and there, even at chain bottle stores. The great thing about it is that it is so unknown, that it is quite cheap! In fact, you can usually pick up a bottle for cheaper than prosecco these days. How good is that?

If you don’t like your sparkling too sweet, cava has got you. It is definitely in the middle between prosecco and champagne in terms of flavours. You won’t get your zingy, fruit flavours here! But you will get a great, refreshing drink on the cheap that sort of reminds you of some Champagne, but doesn’t come with the price tag.

The final word

So there you have it. I hope this post has helped shed a little light on the differences between these sparkling wines. I know most people know the differences, but it never hurts to read up on your wine. I know I learnt a few new things whilst researching this article, even about my beloved prosecco!

No matter what you choose, as long as it is to your taste, you’re going to have a good time. Sparkling wine is made for celebrating and enjoying life, whether you are sipping on a$60 bottle of Champagne, or a $15 bottle of prosecco. Each has its own unique traits that make it what it is, and they are so much more varied within each category than we give them credit for.