Franciacorta is located in the province of Brescia within the region of Lombardia in northern Italy. Its special location south of the Alpine foothills and in the presence of large lakes make for a mild climate and, together with its glacially formed soils and rolling hills, make it an area ideal for winegrowing, particularly for sparkling wines. In our humble estimation, Franciacorta is Italy's most elegant answer to Champagne — around here, Contadi Castaldi Franciacorta has come to resonate as the best answer to ultra-fine high-quality bubbles without the attendant high price tag. Produce of 65% Chardonnay and 35% Pinot Nero, Contadi Castaldi Brut Rosé is pre-Alpine fresh and cool on the nose with suggestion of foccacia biga and nocciola, a whiff of Alpine herb, red berry and spice; gently frothy, delicate, almost creamy in texture with ultra-refreshing flavors that seem almost to melt, slow, cool and mouthwateringly into the tongue. We simply adore this sparkling wine. Come grab a bottle or two or six and find out why!

The Loire Valley is also known as the garden of France. For those of us keen on the best in bubbles but not always wanting to spend the bucks for Champagne, the Loire Valley also represents among the best places to seek high quality suds. Domaine d'Orfeuilles Vouvray Brut is a luminous yellow-gold with reflections of silver in color with a bevy of fine persistent bubbles; classic aromas suggestive of toast, brioche, citrus preserve and freshly dew-moistened chalky limestone; at once vivid and crisp and full and round on the tongue, with depth and length of flavor that belies its friendly price.

Garbèl, which in ancient local dialect means a dry, crisp, pleasantly tart wine, is produced from the hilly vineyards in the Colli Trevigiani area, where the cool nights and hot days are ideal for expressing the typical fruit notes of the Prosecco grape. A wonderfully versatile sparkler, Garbèl’s 13 grams of residual sugar place it between the Brut and Extra Dry styles: lucid, platinum in color; vibrant and fresh aromas pull one in with suggestion of orchard fruits like yellow plum and pear (it is, of course, the Prosecco grape); vivid, frothy, crisp and mouthwatering on the tongue with just a hint of minerality; leaves the palate fully refreshed and ready. Unpretentious, unaffected, engaging and refreshing, Adami Garbèl is our go-to Prosecco.

Produce of Pinot Blanc, Pinot Auxerrois, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir fruit harvested from on average 20 year-old vines planted to the clay and limestone soils of the Rouffach area in southern Alsace — its origins lending citrus and yellow fruit aromas and a fine structure to the finished Crémant. Persistent string of fine bubbles around the glass; aromas hinting at of apple, tilleul, vanilla and cinnamon; round and easy on the tongue, with a fresh and lasting finish.

Roederer Estate was founded in 1981 by France's Champagne Louis Roederer in Mendocino County's cool, fog‑shrouded Anderson Valley. The "multi‑vintage" Anderson Valley Brut debuted in 1988 to great acclaim. The unchallenged favorite 'round here among California bubblies, Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut well reflects its Champagne origins, too. This is a new world wine to be sure, but mirroring the style of its sister house in Champagne with its use of oak‑aged reserve wines, Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut strikes an elegant balance between fresh and vivacious and bold and richly flavorful.

Since its founding in 1840, Simonnet-Febvre has specialized in the production of sparkling wine from Chablis, or Crémant de Bourgogne. This Crémant is produced in the méthode traditionelle also once known as the méthode Champenoise, as in Champagne. The Chardonnay and Pinot Noir fruit are hand harvested from vines averaging 20 years in age. The grapes are whole-cluster pressed and fermented in stainless steel tanks. Select wines from multiple vintages are then blended and bottled with the liqueur de tirage which causes the secondary fermentation to take place in the bottle, giving the wine its magnificent mousse and sparkle. After three years of aging, the bottles undergo remouage and disgorgement, and a dosage is added to the then finished crémant. The result is a sparkling wine quite similar to Champagne, fresh and vivacious on the nose, with suggestion of toast, citrus, flesh of green apple and just an inkling of freshly rain-soaked limestone; delicately frothy, crisp and refreshing on the tongue, round and tantalizingly flavorful to the finish.