With Christmas and New Year’s right around the corner, what better way to help your customers celebrate (and drum up business) than to host a sparkling wine tasting event? Keep reading to find out what you need to know to make your event a sparkling success!
Planning Your Event
First things first! When it comes to putting together a successful tasting event, it’s important to hammer out a few foundational elements, including:
Define Your Goal: Whether you’re hoping to parlay your wine tasting event into more sales or use it to launch a loyalty program, determining your “why” will help you set specific, measurable goals and help you determine the success of your efforts.
Determine Your Approach: Tasting events can range from casual, free samplings to elaborate, reservation-only productions or anything in between. Let your goals for the event guide its size, vibe, and focus. Be sure to consider your space, budget, and experience level.
Dive in to Planning: The world of sparkling wine is fascinating and (of course) delicious. With so much for your guests to learn and experience, we suggest structuring your event using one of three formats: By region/style, production method, or sweetness level.
Region/Style
Sparkling wine as a category isn’t tied to a particular grape and can come in white, rosé, and red varieties. One option for your tasting event is to take your guests on a journey across the different sparkling wine producing regions. The largest/most popular include:
Champagne: Champagne originates exclusively from the Champagne region in northeastern France and is characterized by its delicate effervescence, fine bubbles, and a harmonious balance of citrus, orchard fruit, and brioche-like notes.
Crémant: Crémant, made in French regions outside of Champagne including Alsace, Burgundy, and the Loire Valley, is known for its elegant effervescence and fine bubbles. Its flavor profile ranges from crisp and citrusy to creamy and toasty.
Franciacorta: Franciacorta hails from the Lombardy region in northern Italy. Like Champagne, it’s renowned for exceptional quality and rigorous production standards. Delicate floral notes, vibrant acidity, and hints of fresh fruits are hallmarks of its flavor profile.
Prosecco: Another Italian sparkler, Prosecco hails primarily from the Veneto region and offers an approachable, affordable, easy-drinking style, often with notes of fresh apple, pear, citrus, and gentle florals.
Cava: Cava originates from the Catalonia region in Spain. Known for its fine bubbles, citrus notes, and crisp finish, Cava has gained international recognition as a high-quality, highly accessible sparkling wine.
Sekt: A variation of sparkling wine renowned for its crisp acidity, vibrant aromatics, and refreshing effervescence, Sekt originates from Germany and offers a versatile drinking experience with its lively bubbles and nuanced flavors.
American Sparkling Wine: American sparkling wine is produced across various regions of the US. Depending on where and how the wine is made, it can feature an array of grape varietals and wide spectrum of styles and flavor profiles.
Sparkling Red Wines: While sparkling white and rosé wines are the most common, it’s worth adding some red bubbles to your tasting lineup, too. Popular options include sparkling Lambrusco and Brachetto d’Acqui (both from Italy), Brugey-Cerdon from France, and bubbly Shiraz from Australia.
Production Method
Another approach to sparkling wine tasting is to focus on production method. Simply put, sparkling wine is any wine that has bubbles (aka carbon dioxide) added to it. While this definition is a simple one, the process of making sparkling wine is not. Adding carbonation involves a highly technical dual fermentation process, while most non-sparkling wines only require a single fermentation.
Various techniques exist to create sparkling wine, with the most common being:
Traditional method: This method involves a secondary fermentation in the wine, resulting in finer bubbles and complex flavors. While it is mostly associated with Champagne production, Crémant, Cava, and Franciacorta can also be made using this classic method.
Tank method: Widely used for Italian sparkling wines such as Prosecco, this method involves conducting the secondary fermentation in a pressurized tank, leading to larger, frothier bubbles and a fruit-forward profile.
Transfer method: This method is mainly used for non-standard sized bottles. Like the traditional method, it employs a a secondary fermentation in a bottle. The wine is then transferred to a pressurized tank, where it’s filtered and rebottled in the appropriate retail bottle.
Sweetness Level
Another tasting consideration is sweetness level. Bubbles can range from very dry to very sweet, so here’s a quick breakdown of the terminology:
Extra Brut wines have the least amount of sugar at only 0-6 grams per liter. These wines are bone dry with high acidity. Extra brut is used in most languages, but on German labels you might see Extra Herb.
Brut (sometimes labeled as Bruto or Herb) wines are the most common and include less than 12 grams of sugar per liter. They’re also very dry and acidic, with little noticeable sweetness. Champagne and Cava are typically Brut wines.
Extra Sec (or Extra Dry) sparkling wines have 12-17 grams of sugar per liter. At this level tasters will begin to notice a hint of sweetness. Extra sec wines aren’t dessert wines by any means, but their fruity characteristics are more distinct.
Sec sparkling wines have 17-32 grams of sugar per liter. Drinkers will definitely notice a nice sweetness in these wines, but not so much that they taste like dessert or candy. Other names for Sec wines include Trocken, Seco, or Dry. This sweetness level matches well with spicy and slightly sweet foods, such as Asian and Mexican dishes.
Demi-sec sparkling wines have 32-50 grams of sugar per liter. They are noticeably sweet and usually more fruit forward. This level pairs well with spicy foods and is also excellent alongside semi-sweet desserts such as tiramisu.
Doux sparkling wines are sweet dessert wines, with more than 50 grams of sugar per liter. They are best enjoyed with desserts or as the dessert itself.
Whatever format you choose for your tasting event, remember that the best events strike a balance between being informational, comfortable, and fun. Armed with a solid plan and plenty of sparkling wine knowledge, your Christmas or New Year’s tasting event is sure to be a success worth celebrating!
