Refreshing and flavoursome, sparkling wine is a very popular type of wine. Produced in countries around the world from New Zealand to Italy, sparkling wine is very diverse. Sparkling wine differs from regular wine in that it is much fizzier, as it contains high levels of carbon dioxide. This level of carbon dioxide is achieved in a number of different ways. High levels can be achieved through injecting carbon dioxide or through natural fermentation.
One of the most well-known sparkling wines is Champagne. Often the terms sparkling wine and Champagne are used interchangeably, which is incorrect. Champagne is only one type of sparkling wine, which is from the Champagne region of France. Sparkling wine is produced in many different regions in countries all over the world. Some of the most well-known regions are Cava in Spain, Asti in Italy, and Blanquette de Limoux in Southern France, but there are many more regions around the world that produce high quality sparkling wine.
In Italy, the generic term is Spumante, the Sekt is the generic term for sparkling wine in Germany, and in France, sparkling wine produced outside of the Champagne region is known as Mousseux or Crémant.
