GLOBAL SPARKLERS GUIDE

10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE WORLD OF BUBBLY WINE

- ALISON NAPJUS

Whether it's a soft sigh or a loud and lively pop, the signature sound of opening a bottle of sparkling wine is always well-received. Wine lovers continue to embrace sparklers for life's important events, from weddings and anniversaries to birthdays and more. But bubbly has also found a place amid more everyday moments: at Sunday brunch, during dinner prep, while you wait at the bar for a table to open up, or when you linger over a meal with friends you haven't seen in far too long.

Winemakers around the world have answered the call, producing an impressive array of high quality and stylistically diverse sparkling wines. At Wine Spectator, we have reviewed nearly 475 sparklers in the past year, from six different countries encompassing 17 distinct wine-growing regions.

This wide array of offerings runs the gamut from crisp blancs de blancs to brambly Lambruscos, with price tags ranging from $6 to nearly $1,000 per bottle.

If you're a sparkling wine lover looking to dive even deeper into your next glass of fizz, use this guide to answer the most common questions about bubbly, to find specific recommendations at any price point and to glean insights from top sparkling winemakers around the globe.

1. How does sparkling wine get its bubbles?

Bubbly is one of the most technically complex wines to produce. Sparkling winemakers go through all of the phases of still wine production, but their work is only getting started when the first fermentation process ends and a still wine is produced: For a sparkling winemaker, the defining bubbles are yet to come.

2. What is the difference between Champagne and other sparkling wines?