No wine has been as successful for associating itself with special events and holidays as Champagne; but it wasn't always held in such high acclaim. Champagne, actually a region of France roughly 90 miles north of Paris, is a cold and cloudy place of long cold winters and a fairly short growing season. The best grapes are grown on chalky soils due to its ability to reflect the sun light back to the grapes. Understandably, these are only marginally ripe grapes that create wines of lower alcohol and high acidity. When the crushed grapes were put into the cellar during the cold winters the fermentation stalled in December and then restarted in April, causing bubbles in the wine. Originally thought to be a fault, the winemakers of Champagne finally decided to embrace the bubbles and tout how this made the wine special and worthy of serving at celebratory occasions. No wine marketing campaign has been more successful. Today sparkling wines (the actual wine style) are made throughout the world, but the great ones all have the same basic characteristics and profiles, which are discussed below. There are many great ones being made in California today by some of the most famous producers of Europe. In the Napa and Napa Carneros region both Moet & Chandon and Taittinger (premier Champagne houses from France) own Domaine Chandon and Domaine Carneros respectively and the famous Spanish Cava producer, Codorniu, owns Artesa, to name just a few. The sparkling wines of California have gained recognition as the wineries learn which grapes and styles work best where, producing award winning wines of superior quality.

The Wine:A standard bottle of fine Champagne has been calculated to have roughly 56 million bubbles, a figure that is hard to comprehend. That bubble count is impacted by a number of different things, such as how long the wine aged, the temperature of the aging cellar, the type of grapes used was and what style of winemaking was used. To achieve the wonderful bubbles and yeastiness two things are required, the wine must age sur-lee (age on the spent yeast cells) and a second fermentation must take place. Where this happens determines how fine the wine. In the traditional method, or Methode Champenoise, the wine ages for a while in barrels, but then the wine is placed in bottles, a slight amount of yeast and sugar added and then goes through a second fermentation in the bottle, creating CO2 gas. To remove the spent yeast from the wine to improve clarity the wine is moved slowly from horizontal to vertical by a fraction each day until they are upside down (called riddling) and the yeasts have slid to the top of the bottle. The neck of the bottle is then frozen, the bottle turned upright, the bottle cap removed and the frozen yeast cells shoot out of the bottle, the bottle is topped off with more wine (dosage) and then the bottle is recapped. In the charmat or bulk process the second fermentation takes place in large tanks and the cheapest method of making sparkling wine there is no second fermentation, the wine is injected with CO2 gas. Champagne style wines are made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes generally blended into a golden colored wine. There are three less common versions that are made: Blanc de Blancs, basically a white wine made from white grapes (Chardonnay) ; Blanc de Noirs, white wine made from red grapes (Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier) or Rose, made either by aging the wine shortly on the grape skins or by adding a bit of Pinot Noir still wine prior to fermentation.

Flavor Profiles: Sparkling Wine has a very distinct profile from any other wine, and when tasting the first consideration is appearance. This is a wine where bubbles are critical, and the size of the bubbles is a big indicator of quality; the smaller and more plentiful the better. The wine should not only be clear, but absolutely brilliant in appearance. When tasting the wine the piercing acidity should be balanced on a knife's edge with the creaminess created by the bubbles and foam. It should almost feel that they are in a tug-of-war contest for supremacy, with neither winning. The flavors should be clean and never muddled or course, there should never be any syrupy sweetness and the finish should be long, fresh and palate cleansing. The fruit impressions can range from tart citrus fruit like lemon, grapefruit or lime to a ripper orange, or even orange peel. Apple and pear are very commonly found, but can be green or golden. There is often tropical fruit present, but it can often taste unripe and there can be a hint of quince. Rose style wines can often present raspberry, cherry and strawberry. Non-fruit flavors can cover a broad range of aromas from a wet stone or mineralilty character to butter and fresh baked bread. Vanilla, toffee, honey and brioche can be credited to the sur-lie aging as well as that great baked pie that can be present. But don't be surprised by a little impression of damp earth or mushrooms; not uncommon in a European version. There are multiple different sweetness levels found in sparkling wines that can tell you what to expect in the way of sugar levels. The most acceptable qualifiers are: Extra Brut which is very, very dry; Brut which is very dry; Extra Dry, which is actually off dry, or slightly sweet; Sec, softly sweet; Demi-Sec, sweet; Doux, very sweet.

Wine Pairing Considerations: This is probably the most under rated food wine around. The effervescence texture with the high acidity and creaminess make this an absolute dream to pair with most fatty, salty and smoky foods. It loves shellfish, but is just as much at home with most meats. Just remember to pick the Blanc de Noir or Rose for meats, possibly the blanc de blancs for fish and shellfish fish. If you have that wedding cake you are still fine, just pick a sweet sparkling wine like a demi-sec or doux, but never a dry style.