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2 days ago
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Costellore Diamond Prosecco, Veneto Italy NV (£8.99, Aldi) In a sense, sparkling wine no longer has quite the sheen of glamour it once had. Thanks to the prosecco-led boom in fizz production and consumption that has been going on for the past couple of decades, it’s no longer considered decadent to open a bottle of bubbly of an ordinary drinking occasion, and it’s also become much more common to drink fizz with food. But there are still moments that would feel somehow less special without it – moments when even those of us who don’t bother with it the rest of the year feel the need to have at least a glass or two – and this Tuesday is very much one of them. As someone who considers themselves (rather pompously I’m told) largely immune to the influence of packaging and marketing, I have to admit there’s a rather fun, glittery, glamorous feel to my first pick for this year’s NYE; and the smart, pleasingly geometric, cut-glass bottle of the Costellore contains a very attractive, fresh, subtly, but not cloyingly, sweet prosecco, too.
Les Pionniers Brut Champagne, France NV (£22.75, The Coop) Aldi also does a nice line in budget examples of the more savoury, champagne-like crémant sparkling wines that are made in France outside its most famous fizz centre: the retailer’s toasty-creamy Specially Selected Crémant du Jura NV (£8.19, Aldi) is outstanding value, but, so, too, is Burgundy’s gently honeyed Cave de Lugny Crémant de Bourgogne NV (£15, or £12 with a Clubcard, at Tesco; Waitrose), while a long-term favourite from the Loire, Bouvet Ladubay Saumur Brut NV (£14, or £10 as part of a mixed six, majestic.co.uk), is as brisk and crisp with green and red apples as ever. When it comes to good-value versions of champagne, meanwhile, it’s hard to look past The Coop’s remarkable, perennial prize winner Les Pionniers made by Champagne Piper Heidsieck, which offers classic brioche matched with luminous brightness and fine mousse, while Codorníu Ars Collecta Blanc de Blancs Cava Reserva 2021 (£18, ocado.com) is a richly flavoured but very refined example of Spain’s unjustly maligned, traditional-method sparkling wine.
Christophe Mignon ADN de Meunier Brut Nature Champagne, France NV (£40.95, leaandsandeman.co.uk) Some of the most exciting and intriguing bottles in Champagne today are the work of small growers such as Christophe Mignon, producer of the pristine, scintillating, dry ADN, one of a growing number of champagnes made from the least renowned of the region’s traditional trio of grape varieties, (pinot) meunier. On this side of the Channel, English sparkling wine also continues to add new names to its upper echelon of producers, and I was impressed by the second release from a winery that makes much of its lofty position on the highest point of the South Downs national park in West Sussex: The Weyborne Estate Oriana 2019 (£48, hawkinsbros.co.uk) is a complex mix of nutty patisserie and bright orchard fruit with classic tingling English acidity. For English sparkling value, meanwhile, Waitrose has a very tempting offer for the flagship cuvée from one of its most established producers: East Sussex’s Ridgeview Estate Bloomsbury NV is £22.99, down from £34.99 until New Year’s Day, which is great value for delicious combination of apricot Danish richness with citrus raciness.
