Julie Harrison - Sparkling Wine

Last week we looked at how Champagne is made but what about other sparkling wines?  Many sparkling wines from other parts of France and around the world are made using the same process.  A French sparkling wine made this way outside of Champagne can be labelled Cremant, Mousseux or Methode Traditionnelle.  In New Zealand wines made in this way are also labelled Methode Traditionnelle.  Whilst most New Zealand producers stick to the traditional varieties of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, other countries like Spain and Italy tend to use local varieties.

Another method of production is called the Transfer Process.  The base wine is made in the same way as for Champagne but the secondary fermentation does not happen in the bottle that will go on to be sold to the customer.  The wine is bottled en tirage, however after the secondary fermentation the bottles are emptied under pressure and the wine filtered.  This cuts out the time consuming “getting rid of the lees” steps.  The dosage is added to the bulk wine which is then bottled under pressure into a new set of bottles. Wines made in this way will often have “Fermented in the bottle” on the label.

The other main way of putting the bubbles in the bottle (apart from the very cheap method of simply blasting Carbon Dioxide into a base wine) is called the Charmant process which was developed in Italy. In this process the secondary fermentation takes place in a tank.  The wine stays under constant pressure in bulk through the filtering and bottling processes, which can take as little as 90 days from picking to bottling.  This is usually how Asti, Prosecco and Sekt from Germany are made.  

So what is the difference?   Sparkling wines made in the Methode Traditionnelle way will have similarities to Champagne especially if they are aged on lees for a good length of time.  One of the big differences is the base wine.  The unique soil types and climate of Champagne will result in a base wine that is different from the wine produced from New Zealand fruit for example.  Whilst New Zealand wineries tend to stick to using the traditional Pinot Noir/Chardonnay blend, countries such as Spain often use local grape varieties which have different flavour profiles.

Cava most of which is produced in Catalonia, Spain is made in the same way as Champagne and is a great inexpensive alternative.   The main varieties used are Macabeu, Xarel.lo and Paralleda but all you really need to know is it is usually a dry, fresh wine often with brioche, apple and citrus notes

Italian Prosecco, made from Glera grapes grown north of Venice is not as closely related to Champagne being made with the Charmont method.   The juice is often not immediately fermented but filtered and stored at 0 degrees until required.   This maintains freshness and helps preserve the delicate, floral, fruity components of the Glera grape.  It can be made in a “bubbly” style described as Spumante or more spritzy and described as Frizzante.   Compared to Methode Traditionnelle wines the bubbles tend to be larger and less persistent.  It is often a little bit sweeter than Champagne or Cava and is traditionally used to make the Bellini cocktail.    Italy is also home of Asti Spumante the sweeter style Italian bubbly.

New Zealand of course makes some great sparkling wines.  Look out for the ones that are Methode Traditionnelle and you can have a very good and affordable alternative to Champagne.