Every Type Of Champagne Explained

It's hard to think of a type of wine more revered than Champagne. Produced in northern France in the region of the same name, the sparkling beverage is simultaneously a symbol of celebration, luxury, and patience. Its winemaking process is not one to be rushed, and the most basic styles require a 15-month aging period (via Comité Champagne).

With such a meticulous approach, it's no surprise that Champagne garners international recognition and is regularly a source of inspiration for sparkling wine producers worldwide. Indeed, many viticultural regions create high-quality bubbles following the same technique used in the alcoholic beverage, also known as the traditional or champénoise method. This entails making a still wine and then having it undergo a secondary fermentation in the bottle to create bubbles. To determine the final flavor and sweetness level, a liqueur de dosage — essentially cane sugar and wine — is added before bottling.

No matter the similarities in method or grape varieties, the Champagne region stands out as a leader in all things bubbly. With so many options — not to mention price points — on the market, it's worth breaking down what distinguishes one bottle of Champagne from the next.

If you took these terms at face value, it would be natural to assume that dry (also labeled as "sec") and extra dry Champagne describes wines with low sweetness levels. However, the former consists of residual sugar levels between 17 and 32 grams per liter, whereas the latter sits between 12 and 17 grams (via Comité de Champagne). Confusing, indeed. As it turns out, the reference point is a little distorted since it was originally used to label wines that were considered dry back when sweet Champagne was the norm.

If you're in the market for slightly sweeter bubbly wine to serve as an apéritif, with spicy food, or as a light dessert, these styles are a good midpoint between doux or demi-sec and brut. That said, you might find it tricky to track down a bottle, as these sparking beverage types don't represent a large portion of the market. Still, reputable houses such as Champagne Taittinger, Veuve Clicquot, Champagne Pommery, and Champagne Lanson release them every now and then.

Champagne zealots often swear by brut nature, aka dosage zéro styles, for the purity of flavor. Per the term "dosage zéro" — or zero dosage — no sugar is added to the wine before bottling, leaving it as high-acid as ever. Brut nature Champagne may still have up to three grams of residual sugar. However, the amount is negligible and naturally occurs from ripeness in the grapes.

That's not to say the wines are unbalanced or sour — merely that they are the epitome of refreshing crispness. As long as the Champagne is properly made with ripe fruit that expresses aromas specific to the vineyard, the result is pleasant and a favorite for an increasing number of people. Still, you need to be on board with tart flavor profiles to enjoy these particularly dry bubbles.

Many people are firmly rooted in the brut nature camp, especially those in the wine industry. Popular among sommeliers and natural wine enthusiasts, zero dosage follows the same philosophy of not adding anything to a wine. As Beverage Journal reports, exports of brut nature were up by more than 30% in recent years.

Most Champagne produced is non-vintage, consisting of wines blended from various vintages. As sommelier Victoria James explains, you're typically looking at a composition of three to five vintages in a bottle (via VinePair). Since weather conditions can be unpredictable in the north of France, it is risky to place production solely in the hands of one harvest. To guarantee a steady flow of bubbles and some uniformity, non-vintage Champagne is produced by combining assorted base wines before they undergo the secondary fermentation process.

Given this careful craft, non-vintage styles are typically fruity, well-balanced, and easy crowd-pleasers. The wines must be aged for a minimum of 15 months before release, though they often exceed this time. As the primary production of the area, non-vintage Champagne is often created in brut styles, which round out the flavors while maintaining a bright freshness on the palate (via Comité de Champagne). With a more modest price tag and greater volume on the shelves, a non-vintage bubbly is an excellent option for celebrations, day-to-day drinks, and pairing with food.

On the other end of the spectrum, blanc de noir means "white of black." This style of Champagne is just as golden as you'd expect, but it's made with red wine grapes, commonly referred to as "black" due to their deep, dark color. In the pressing stage of winemaking, careful attention is required to ensure that the grape skins have minimal contact with the juice collected to retain a pale hue.

The two grapes used in blanc de noirs are superstar pinot noir and lesser-known pinot meunier. Bottles can be single varietals or showcase a balanced blend of the two grapes. Even though you probably wouldn't be able to identify a blanc de noir by looking at a glass of it, a couple of sips should lead you in the right direction. The red grapes tend to exude more weight and body on the palate, making this a bolder, more structured style of Champagne.

Aromas of stone fruit, red and black berries, citrus, and tropical fruit are often present. Additionally, notes of spice and flowers are commonly detected. Given its heftier body, blanc de noir is a great option to pair with food, including meat and bold cheeses.

If you think rosé Champagne is a frivolous style only intended for people who want something pink and bubbly in their glass, think again. It is often one of the most prestigious types of Champagne, not to mention among the most expensive due to the multilayered winemaking process. Although a wine connoisseur might scoff at you for speculating that rosé is made by mixing red and white wine, that is, in fact, totally acceptable in Champagne (via Comité Champagne).

In these instances, white wine is produced and blended with 5 to 20% pinot noir (or occasionally pinot meunier) wine. Alternatively, the rosé can be made following a maceration method which entails leaving the skins to mingle with the juices for up to 36 hours. In both cases, the resulting wine is varying shades of salmon, pink, or raspberry. Given the presence of red wine or contact with the grape skins, rosé Champagne is often fuller-bodied with a bolder flavor profile. Still, it is bright, fresh, and fruity, making it an excellent apéritif or pairing with food. Unlike the image it conveys, rosé Champagne tends to be crisp and dry, rarely displaying perceptible sugar.

If you've tasted your way through the major Champagne house styles — or stopped after a few because you weren't satisfied — consider picking up a bottle of grower bubbly next time you're at the wine shop. This classification refers to sparkling wine made by the farmers who grow the grapes. In other cases, growers sell their fruit to Champagne houses or to cooperatives that produce the final sparkling wine product (via Wine Folly).

Grower Champagne typically comes from a small plot of vines tended to and harvested by the growers themselves. Once the fruit is picked, the growers produce Champagne following the same process as larger establishments. That said, yields are much smaller and concentrated in a specific area, making these wines an excellent reflection of the terroir. Bottles are commonly labeled as "RM," which stands for "récoltant manipulant" and translates as "grower producer."

While grower Champagne doesn't denote a quality level, it is certainly more of an artisanal product made on a smaller scale. If those are features you're seeking, and you want to step outside the usual bubbly lineup, it is an excellent category to explore. Keep in mind that marketing budgets will by no means match those of large Champagne houses, so you may need to do some research to track down producers.