The Best Sparkling Wine

Sparkling wine comes in many different varieties and forms - from red wines like Brachetto and Lambrusco - to all the different forms of rosé and white sparklers - Spanish Cava; Italian Asti, Franciacorta and Prosecco; French Cremant and Champagne; and everything in-between. The one thing all these varieties have in common is, of course, those delicious bubbles.

French Champagne is probably the most recognizable of the bunch but it's also the most expensive. Many other wines are made using the same method, "methode champenoise" - where secondary fermentation happens in the bottle versus in large tanks like Prosecco, and offer great value, they just carry a different name.

Only wines made in Champagne, France can carry the Champagne name (with the exception of an old loophole that allows a few California producers to label their wines as "California Champagne", much to the chagrin of the French).

Click here to get a printable shopping list of the best sparkling wine!

Sparkling wine is a tremendous pairing with salty and fatty foods like many of our favorite appetizers and even potato chips. There are also quite a wide range of sweetness levels in sparkling wine with names that are a bit confusing.

The driest is called "Brut Nature" or "Brut Zero" and has less than 3 g/L of residual sugar. This is followed by "Extra Brut" (0-6 g/L of residual sugar), then "Brut" (<12 g/L), then "Extra-Dry" (which is actually slightly sweet at 12-17 g/L of residual sugar), "Sec" (17-32 g/L), "Demi-Sec" (32-50 g/L) and finally the sweetest level "Doux" (>50 g/L of residual sugar).

With so many different styles and sweetness levels, not to mention all the different grape varieties used, sparkling wine offers a whole world to explore!