Champagne, Prosecco, Cava and other sparkling wines

Here at Fancifull we have developed a reputation of finding quality-focused individual products. When it comes to Champagnes, assembling a range of sparkling wines that represent good quality for the price often requires a bit of creativity on our part.

The recipe for choosing a good sparkling wine is the same as for still wine: good producers, healthy fruit and quality vineyards. True Champagne, from the French region of Champagne, is produced from the fruit of the numerous grape-growers there. Some champagne producers own their own vineyards and some do not. The best wines are made with the combination of generations of experience, traditional vinification methods and again, quality grown fruit from choice vineyards. True Champagne comes with a higher price tag than what is bottled and labeled elsewhere as "Sparkling Wine." By law, a sparkling wine can be called Champagne only if it is from the region of Champagne in France.

So how does one choose a quality sparkling wine on a budget? The best examples are Prosecco, Cava, and the various Cremants of the Loire and Bourgogne. Again, the producer is of an even greater importance. Prosecco is produced in the Veneto, a cool-growing area in Northern Italy, and at it's best it is inspirational, crisp and lively. However, I can say to you that I have tasted many a Prosecco that is hardly any better than a semi-sweetened generic fizzy-Muscat, or mass-produced domestic product like Korbel or Cooks. Yet, in the hands of a dedicated craftsman the quality is consistantly superb. Especially notable are those Proseccos from the Valdobbiadene region. We always carry some good ones in our shop.

Cava is another top value in the Sparkling Wine arena. Produced in various parts of Spain, the best examples are made in Penedes, the northeast area, where, as in the Veneto and Champagne, there are cooler climates that are ideal for sparkling wine production. Marques de Gelida is available on our wine gifts page in various gift baskets, it is crisp with more of an attack of citrus, white flowers and pear.

At finally, there is Champagne. It goes without saying that we are partial to the very high-quality cuvees produced by the houses of Louis Roederer and Henriot. With Roederer you will find various choices, Roederer Estate (the California brut), Brut Premiere NV (the always delicious "house" style), Vintage Blanc-de-Blanc (100% Chardonnay vintage) and Cristal (the famous golden-transparent wrapped bottle). We will also have several from Henriot (established in 1806), including their non vintage brut and Blanc-de Blanc.

To wrap up here, I finish with a mantra to remember: top producers & prime vineyards = the best wines/champagnes. I hope this will help you somewhat to understand the range of styles of sparkling wines and their relativity to value when choosing your sparkling wine gifts. As always, I am available to assist you by phone or email here at Fancifull.

*CUVEE: a blend or special lot of wine.