Sparkling wines are made in many countries of the world, and some examples are listed below with their grape varieties. Champagne, on the other hand, may be produced only in the Champagne region of north-eastern France. Although there are various different ways of making sparkling wines, the bubbles are all created in the same way: by trapping carbon dioxide (CO²) in the wine.
   As with still wine, the quality of the grapes is crucial to the quality of the finished wine. In general, the better wines are made in the same way as champagne, i.e. by what is known as the traditional method. This involves adding yeast and sugar to the still base wines to provoke a second fermentation in the closed wine bottle. Many less expensive wines are made by what is known as the tank method, whereby the second fermentation takes place in a tank before the wine is bottled under pressure. A third method is simply to inject CO² into the finished wine.
   The bready, yeasty smell of some champagnes and sparkling wines is due to the time the wine spends on the yeast lees (the sediment created by the dead yeast cells). The length of time spent on the lees is determined by regulations which may be national, regional or specific to an individual wine. For example, basic cava spends a minimum of nine months of the lees, champagne spends a minimum of 18 months and vintage champagne at least three years.
   Although the majority of sparkling wines are white, rosé champagnes and sparkling wines are becoming more popular. Most are made by leaving the juice in contact with the skins of the red grapes long enough to extract a little color. Exceptionally, rosé champagne may be made either in this way or by adding a small amount of red wine to the blend.
   Sparkling red wines are made in various parts of the world but the most famous and serious example today is sparkling Shiraz from Australia. Red champagne is not permitted, though there is no restriction on how dark a rosé can be.

Styles of sparkling wine

Most champagnes and sparkling wines are non-vintage. This means they usually contain wine from more than one vintage and producers are therefore able to maintain a consistent style from year to year, even if the vintage conditions vary. Vintage wines tend to be made in the best years and should show characteristics of that vintage.
   Champagne and sparkling wines range from dry to sweet, and some of the words used on the label to describe this aspect of style are confusing. However, the terms (in various languages) are regulated by the EU so they are at least consistent. These are the main categories from bone dry to sweet, defined by the amount of residual sugar.

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