Shampagne showdown!

Cremant bursts prosecco’s bubble as imports soar 95%

IT’S the fabulous festive fizz from France that’s about to burst the prosecco bubble.

Cremant, a French sparkling wine made the same way as champagne but selling at half the price, is being described by industry experts as ‘one of the best-kept secrets in wine’.

But with word now getting out, sales are rising. Total exports of cremant to Britain have almost doubled in a year, making it an increasingly popular alternative to champagne and other sparkling wines for bubbly-loving Britons.

In fact, cremant producers in the Loire say that their exports to the UK have risen by 95 per cent in the year to June.

Sainsbury’s has seen sales of its Taste the Difference Cremant de Loire rise by 50 per year on year, while Majestic Wine says its sales of cremant are up by 26 per cent from last year and are set to increase further over Christmas.

The Mail on Sunday’s wine critic Olly Smith says cremant offers ‘prestige for pennies’ at your Christmas party.

Like champagne, cremant is made by fermenting grape juice twice – the second time under pressure to capture bubbles in the liquid – but it tastes younger and lighter. It also comes from different parts of France, including Alsace, Bourgogne and Limoux – unlike its more celebrated relative, which must be produced in the Champagne region.

Italian prosecco and Spanish cava remain the cheaper choices of fizz – the average price for a bottle of either is just over £7. In contrast, an averagely priced bottle of cremant at Majestic will set you back nearly £12.

But experts believe cremant is seen as a classier alternative.

Drinks expert Rebecca Dunphy said: ‘Cremant is a direct competitor with prosecco and on a blind test you’ll prefer the cremant. At Christmas, people don’t want to be seen bringing something cheap and prosecco is seen as being at the lower end of the market.’

Majestic’s trading director Rob Cooke added: ‘With cremant you’re getting fizz made with champagne methods but at prosecco prices.

‘The people buying it have often been brought into the sparkling wine category by the success of prosecco over the past ten years or so.

‘They are now looking for something new, something exciting. And cremant could well be the answer without having to break the bank.’

Italian producers have said the prosecco market in UK has dropped by 2.8 per cent, and is forecast to fall by six per cent by the end of the year.

The rise in sales of cremant comes as figures show a reduction in the total sparkling wine market in the UK. Wine Spirit and Trade Association figures reveal that for the 12 months to June, 12.2million bottles of champagne were sold in the UK, down seven per cent, while 117.4million bottles of sparkling wines were sold, down four per cent.

The association’s chief executive Miles Beale said: ‘The lion’s share of sparkling wine sales in the UK is from prosecco, but those sales have slowed markedly, with drinkers exploring other offerings.

‘Consumers now have a far greater range to choose from than ever before, including world-class English sparkling wines, and also cavas and cremants.’