Champagne alternatives

Adam Lechmere dips into the world of sparkling wines, and finds that many of them offer more bang for your buck than the traditional bottle of bubbly

There are many easier things to write about than alternatives to champagne. If I was doing a column on German riesling alternatives, for example, I could mention the great Australian versions of the grape, among others. Bordeaux blends that don’t come from Bordeaux? Easy – from China to South Africa, there are wonderful wines being made from cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc and the like. But substitutes for champagne? It’s a bit like suggesting substitutes for foie gras. Surely you either drink champagne or not, and anything else is either second best or just a different thing altogether?

Well, up to a point. Of course, there are champagnes that can’t be bettered – a couple of weeks ago, I tried a 2002 vintage from Henriot, a wine that costs no more than about £25, that was as sublime a sparkler as I’ve tasted for years. At this time of year, supermarkets are falling over themselves to discount champagne simply to get you through their doors so you’ll buy their mince pies and Roses chocolates. But there are many, many common, overpriced champagnes whose sales rely on the fact that they belong to one of the world’s most-known generic brands.

So before you reach for the champagne, think of the great strides the sparkling producers of the world have made. Remember also that many sparkling wines are champagne in all but name – made with the same grapes (pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay), using the champagne method (with a second fermentation in bottle), in which case you’ll see ‘traditional method’ on the label.

I’ve talked about English sparkling wine before – again, a drink that barely featured 10 years ago. But now, as Mike Roberts of multi-award-winning Ridgeview points out, English vineyards have won no fewer than nine top international awards. They are on the map, and there’s no better proof of that than the fact that supermarkets are listing English sparklers as fast as they can. Waitrose is the leader, but Sainsbury’s is following suit.
Seek out the Coates & Seely below – it’s a smart, beautifully made traditional-method wine with a very English heart. I last tasted it at a trade fair in Bordeaux, and its delicate hint of sweet summer hedgerow flowers transported me straight home.

Prosecco is another great example. Ten years ago it was hardly known outside northern Italy, where it is made. But in 2011, for the first time, more prosecco is being drunk abroad than at home. The main reason for its popularity is because it doesn’t taste like champagne. Made with the glera grape, it is lighter, fruitier and sweeter with a more effervescent mousse. The best, like Bisol Jeio, has a very definite acidic backbone: it’s not a lightweight wine. But it is very agreeable.

Most importantly, don’t judge a wine’s quality by its name. Take for example, Jacob’s Creek. It won Silver at the Decanter World Wine Awards last year for its ‘creamy, characterful sophistication and lovely mineral element’. Many champagne houses would kill for such a billing.