Champagne Blend Lambrusco White Bordeaux South Africa Western Cape

The sparkling wines of Champagne have been revered by wine drinkers for hundreds of years, and even today they maintain their reputation for excellence of flavor and character, and are consistently associated with quality, decadence, and a cause for celebration. Their unique characteristics are partly due to the careful blending of a small number of selected grape varietals, most commonly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. These grapes, blended in fairly equal quantities, give the wines of Champagne their wonderful flavors and aromas, with the Pinot Noir offering length and backbone, and the Chardonnay varietal giving its acidity and dry, biscuity nature. It isn't unusual to sometimes see Champagne labeled as 'blanc de blanc', meaning it is made using only Chardonnay varietal grapes, or 'blanc de noir', which is made solely with Pinot Noir.

Some grape species are distinct and unique varietals, clearly separate from each of their cousins. Others, like Lambrusco and Muscat, are more like umbrella terms, featuring several subspecies which show slight differences from each other from region to region. Indeed, there are astonishingly more than 60 identified varieties of Lambrusco vines, and they are almost all used in the production of characterful Italian sparkling wines. They are distinguishable by their deep ruby blush, caused by strong pigments present in their skins, and their intensely perfumed character.


Lambrusco vines are grown in several Italian regions, although we most closely associate this varietal with Piedmont and Basilicata. It has also been grown successfully in Argentina and Australia. The varietal suffered from a fairly lowly reputation in the late 20th century, due to bulk, low cost production of Lambrusco sparkling wines, aimed at markets across northern Europe and America. However, things are rapidly changing, and the older, more traditional methods of bottle fermentation are returning, along with a higher level of quality and expression, as consumers become more discerning and demanding. Many of the Lambrusco sub-varieties have their own established DOC, such as Lambrusco Salamino di Santa Croce, Lambrusco di Sorbara and Modena, where new regulations are keeping standards high and methods traditional.

France is widely known as being the home of many of the world's finest white wines, and within France, the name which rings out across the wine world and is always associated with excellence of quality and flavor is Bordeaux. The white wines of the magnificent Bordeaux region are typically blended, and rely on the winemaker's skill and expertise to achieve the fine balance between the primary grape varietals used. Most blended white Bordeaux wines are made up of Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle varietals, although there are actually nine grapes officially allowed by French wine law for the inclusion in Bordeaux white wines. The other six are Sauvignon Gris, Merlot Blanc, Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Ondenc and Mauzac, although the use of these other grapes has been in steady decline over the past century.

Situated on the very tip of the African continent, South Africa has proved itself over three centuries to be an ideal location for producing a wide range of wines. Benefiting from something not dissimilar to a Mediterranean climate, with long, hot summers complemented by both Atlantic and Indian Ocean winds, the grapes which grow on the valleys, mountainsides and plains of this fascinating country can ripen to their fullest capacity, producing wines packed full of fruity flavors and an array of interesting and enticing aromas. As a former colony, South Africa has long since been home to a range of different nationalities, who each brought something of their wine culture with them. As such, many European grape varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Riesling and others have been given time to flourish in South Africa, allowing the country to develop a diverse group of wine types which are proving increasingly popular around the world.