With Christmas a short day away, and New Years hot on its heels, everyone should be stocking up on the bubbles for the festive occasion!  Whether it’s Cava, Prosecco, Cremant, Champagne, Sparkling Wines, look for YOUR perfect bubbly for this next week of festivities!

Let’s have a brief lesson: (and we’ll go through the picture from left to right)

– Prosecco is from ITALY, typically fermented in a tank, leading to fresh citrus and green apple flavours with a sharp mousse (in otherwords, the bubbles kind of explode in your mouth!)  Try the Canella…great value at $23! Buon Natale!

– Cava is from SPAIN, and made in the traditional method.  Which means it’s made exactly the same way as Champagne, but with the traditional Spanish grapes, Maccabeo, Paralleda and Xarel-lo.  This particular Cava from the large producer Codorniu, happens to the biggest selling Cava in Spain, and also has some Chardonnay in it.  And the super fun thing about THIS Cava, is that you get to DRAW on the bottle! Comes with a fun gold pen and you can go crazy!  Who wouldn’t want to draw on their bubbles bottle? 😀 At $17 a bottle, why not buy 2??? Feliz Navidad!

– The Cremant de Vouvray is from…well, Vouvray in the Loire Valley. Also made in the Traditional method (2nd fermentation occurs in the bottle that you actually buy off the shelf) but made with the Chenin Blanc grape.  I LOVE this Cremant!  Beautiful, off dry flavours and GREAT acidity, the mousse is creamy and smooth.  This one goes down a little too easy!  If you want to try something different from Champagne, this is your baby!  $26 on the shelf. Joyeux Noel!

– Piper Heidsick Champagne – a TRUE Champagne made from the region.  Made mostly from Pinot Noir with some Pinot Meunier on the side. Light and refreshing with flavours of pear, citrus and hints of star fruit with a smooth creamy finish. Not a big Champagne fan, but this one I would drink if someone offered it to me!  And look!  The packaging is WAY cool with the lid of the box transforming into a tealight holder!  Oh the marketing promos they come out with for Christmas!  Not your most famous Champagne, but a lovely one for $63!  And for all you points seekers…93 points on Wine Spectator.

Buon Natale, Feliz Navidad and Joyeux Noel!  Merry Christmas folks and the happiest of celebrations as you prepare for the coming of 2015.  Cheers!