If you subscribe to the view that a bottle of bubbles should be saved for a special occasion, then Valentine’s Day, balanced between New Year and Easter, is the perfect excuse. Make it a sparkling bottle of rosé, and you’re most certainly on to a winning Valentine’s combination. Here are our top five picks, ranging from a sub £10 sparkling wine and culminating in a bountiful Bollinger.
Fleurs de Prairie Sparkling Rosé
£8.75
If you’re looking for a Valentine’s rosé that is more budget-friendly than a high-profile champagne, this pretty little offering could be one for you.
Made using a blend of grenache, cinsault and muscat grape varieties, this French sparkling rosé is pale in colour and presented in an embossed bottle which depicts the wildflowers that carpet the vineyards of southern France, and after which it is named. Once opened, the red berries and sweet strawberries are evident. Once on the palate, there are floral notes, too, which means the sweetness doesn’t become overwhelming. The fine bubbles make it a light and refreshing glassful, which will be a nice accompaniment to a meal, or if you skip straight to dessert and chocolates, a great match for that, too.
Calvet Crémant de Bordeaux Brut Rosé
£12
Calvet was founded in 1818 in Bordeaux, France, and creates a range of wines, including this Crémant de Bordeaux Brut Rosé. Traditional methods are used in the making of this wine, with cabernet franc and merlot grapes being manually harvested, pressed and settled before being fermented at low temperatures. It is then bottled, and the second fermentation, lasting for nine months, makes it sparkling.
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, this sparkling wine has an intense rose colour and, once uncorked, is aromatic from the off, with red soft fruits tempting you in. Strawberries and raspberries develop on the palate, with a hint of vanilla and biscuit coming through. Fine, persistent bubbles give it a great mouthfeel, and while there is a hint of acidity, it is well-balanced. The finish is long and well-rounded, but if you aren’t a fan of dry wine, this might not be to your taste. It won’t cost you the earth to find out, though, so give it a try.
Domaine du Météore Le Cratère Sparkling Rosé
£30
Domaine du Météore has created this organic sparkling rosé using syrah grapes grown within the 200-metre-wide, ten-thousand-year-old meteorite crater from which the house takes its name. Time-honoured, traditional methods are used during the process, which sees the pressed juices being carefully selected to ensure that only the most aromatic juices make it into the stainless steel vats for fermentation. The wine is then bottled, with yeasts added for a second in-the-bottle fermentation period, which is when the wine becomes finely sparkling. The final stage sees the bottles racked — the process of removing the yeasts — and a liqueur is added to enhance the final flavour before it is corked.
The result is a pale pink sparkling wine which has delightful copper tones in the right light. It is delicate and light, with the aromas of summer fruits, with strawberries and redcurrants wafting up to greet you. There is a hint of citrus acidity and peppery spice, too. Once on the palate, those red summer berries give a vibrant sweetness, balanced well by that hint of acidity, keeping things in check. The fine bubbles are playful on the tongue; a touch of salinity heralds the finish.
Hambledon Classic Cuvée Rosé NV
£37
If you’re unfamiliar with English sparkling wines, where have you been? What better time than the present, and Valentine’s Day, to pop that particular cherry, and what better example than Hambledon’s Classic Cuvee Rose NV.
Hambledon Vineyard is located in Waterlooville, Hampshire, and is the oldest commercial vineyard in England, with the first vines planted in 1952. The vineyard produces a variety of sparkling wines, and this particular award-winning bottle is made from 86% chardonnay and 14% pinot noir wines, the majority of which are from the 2016 harvest, with tank-aged reserve wines added. It is aged for a minimum of 45 months, creating a delightful, aromatic glassful.
Pop the cork, and the alluring smell of floral notes and red berries arises from the vibrant pink liquid within. Once on the palate, it is crisp and sweet all at once, with a hint of lemon peel creating balance and harmony. The finish is long and clean, with a touch of yeast coming through at the end.
Bollinger Rosé
£70
If you really want to push the boat out this Valentine’s Day, then a bottle of Bollinger Rosé should definitely be on your shopping list.
Made from a blend of pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay, it gives a beautiful pink hue to the glass that won’t fail to win over your Valentine. From that first pop of the cork, there are enticing aromas of cherries and summer berries, and once the delicate bubbles hit the palate, the fruits are joined by just a hint of warming spices. The fine bubbles are a joy, too, creating a creamy texture in the mouth. This sweet, spicy, velvety champagne will be the cherry on your Valentine’s celebration.
