Holy moly, how can it already be February?
Hopefully, you are on track with your Valentine’s Day preparations. If not, and you are still looking for the perfect bubbly to impress your Valentine, don’t worry. I have you covered.
Contrary to popular believe, I don’t mind popping open an exquisite bottle of rosé champagne or sparkling wine on any day of the year. However, if there is one day that definitely requires to drink pink, it is Valentine’s Day.
On a side note, I’d like to remined everybody about the many excellent sparkling wines made around the world that can easily rival a champagne. This means, you don’t need to spend a fortune and can still impress your significant other half popping open an exquisite bottle of pink bubbles on Valentine’s Day.
Below, I have listed my favourite pink sparkling wines for Valentine’s Day that are not champagne.
Graham Beck Cap Classique Brut Rosé
South Africa in recent years has established itself as a leading destination for sparkling wines. Called Methode Cap Classique (MCC), these are made in the same way as Champagne. However, since they are not coming from the Champagne region in France, they are required to be given a different name.
Luckily, there are many Cap Classique bubblies that can easily rival a good Champagne, and they come at a significantly lower price.
One of the leading producers of sparkling wines across the South African winelands, Graham Beck looks back at more than 50 years in the bubbles business.
This elegant and structured rosé MCC exhibits a pale silver-pink with a lively mousse. On the nose, it displays notes of raspberries, cherries and a few secondary whiffs of minerality. On the palate, subtle red berry flavours are enlivened by bright acidity.
By the way, both Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama served Graham Beck bubbly at their respective inaugurations. Now, if that is not going to impress your Valentine, I don’t know what is.
Anthonij Rupert L’Ormarins Brut Rosé
You probably get the idea that I love South African wine here … and with the large choice of excellent bubblies made across the Winelands, I had to put another Cap Classique on this list.
Among the many excellent sparkling wines coming out of the region, the L’Ormarins range is definitely among the best you can find.
If South Africa is on your bucket list and you are planning to visit some of the local wine estates once the time is right to travel again, the beautiful L’Ormarins estate, part of Anthonij Rupert, should be definitely on your list. It is one of the oldest wine farms in the Franschhoek area, and the wine tasting at the stately manor house on the premises will be no doubt a highlight.
The L’Ormarins Brut Rosé displays elegant hues of light salmon pink. It offers whiffs of strawberry and raspberry aromas along with a light tinge of peppery spice.
Louis Despas Rosé Crémant de Loire Brut AOP
A sparkling wine from the beautiful Loire Valley in France, the most important region for sparkling wines in France after Champagne, but at a significantly lower price tag.
This Crémant de Loire is an elegant, refreshing sparkling wine made exclusively from Cabernet Franc grape. In the glass, it displays an intense rosé, almost pinkish colour and delivers beautiful aromas of strawberry, raspberry, currant, grapefruit and citrus along with light notes of brioch.
On the palate, it convinces with subtle notes of red berries and a citrusy freshness.
It’s the perfect bubbly to be accompanied by amuse-gueule and hors-d’oeuvre and is also very versatile with meat and poultry so you could also sip it for dinner.
Tissot-Maire Brut Rosé Crémant du Jura AOP
If you want to impress with your wine knowledge, I definitely recommend this beautiful bubbly from the French region of Jura. It is one of the latest up-and-coming wine regions in France, sandwiched between Burgundy and Switzerland.
Wines from the Jura offer a unique and unusual style which is owned by the harsher weather conditions in this cool-climate region along with the distinctive local grape varieties of Savagnin, Poulsard and Trousseau along with the better-known international varieties of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Crémant du Jura, the local sparkling wines made according to the traditional method (the same as Champagne), offer an excellent quality and typically sell at very competitive prices.
Tissot-Maire brut rosé is made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It displays aromas of strawberry, cranberry, citrus and apple. On the palate, it offers a fresh, expressive nose, with notes of small red berries.
Val d’Oca Punto Rosa Spumante Brut Millesimato Rosé
If in doubt, chose a Prosecco. It always works well.
However, not all Prosecco are the same. And celebrating a special occasion, it needs to be one of the best of course.
Therefore, whatever Prosecco you chose, it should be one of the Valdobbiadene DOC bottles.
Val d’Oca, the wine consortium of more than 550 wine growers, nestled between Asolo and Conegliano, is said to be one of the most scenic wineries of Veneto. It is also only a short drive away from Venice; so why not offer the bottle with a little travel voucher for a future romantic weekend getaway?
Coming from the best vineyards of Valdobbiadene, the Val d’Oca Millesimato rosé displays a pale pink colour and offers whiffs of peach along with light notes of raspberry and strawberry.
Cava Pere Ventura Primer Rosé Semi Sec DOP
Sparkling wines from Spain – Cava – are typically also high up on my list if it comes to bubbles.
The majority of Cava are made in the beautiful Penedes region of Spain, not too far away from Barcelona.
Cava is another sparkling wine made in the traditional method (the Champagne method if you like). However, Cava is made with local grape varieties, including macabeu and parellada for the white Cavas whilst the rosés are made with black garnatxa, monestrell, pinot negre and trepat.
Pere Ventura was founded in 1992 in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia and exclusively makes a range of excellent sparkling wines.
The Primer Rosé Semi Sec is made exclusively from the trepat grape which gives the wine its lively colour along with a full-bodied aroma and freshness.
https://pereventuragroup.com/our-wineries/
Emil Bauer Let’s talk about Pinot Rosé Sekt Baby!
Sparkling wines from Germany are the new big thing. In fact, the segment has gone through a real revival in recent years, with many traditional and new players on the market producing excellent sparkling wines using the traditional method.
Popping open a bottle of still or sparkling wine from Emil Bauer always guarantees a fantastic experience. But certainly, this bottle screams to be opened on Valentine’s Day.
Made from Pinot Noir, in the glass the Pinot Rosé Sekt displays a pale salmon pink and offers aromas of strawberry and citrus. On the palate, expect a subtle interplay of acidity and sweetness.
Schlumberger Rosé ICE Secco
The beautiful Rosé ICE Secco from Austria’s long-standing sparkling wine house Schlumberger is a highlight on the table in its own right and absolutely perfect to adorn your Valentine’s Day setup.
The refined, Schlumberger Secco range includes three different varieties, the Gold, White and Rosé Secco. They are made to be enjoyed either pur or on ice, which is particularly perfect on a warm summer day.
An intense fruity scent of red forest berries along with a delicate Burgundy note on the nose, this rosé from Pinot Noir, Zweigelt and St. Laurent grapes displays a flowery-forward taste profile.
https://www.schlumberger.at/de/rose-ice-secco-193206
Bouvet Ladubay La Petite Raine Jus de Pomme Petillant
Considering the growing quest for healthy lifestyles and considerate drinking, I had to add a no-alcohol bubbly as well.
The Petite Raine Jus de Pomme from the Loire Valley is a Crémant made from three varieties of apples (!) which at the end of the 18th century were brought to the court of Versailles from the Calvados region in France by order of Marie Antoinette.
In addition, Le Petite Raine falls into the Pet Nat (petillant naturel) category, the strongly growing segment of ‘naturally sparkling’ wines. Which means, it was produced according to the ‘ancestral’ method, the oldest version of sparkling wine. It is bottled before first fermentation has finished which allows the process to be completed in the bottle.
Reddish-golden in the glass, Petite Raine displays scents of ripe apple along with hints of raisin, marzipan, tangerine and orange. On the palate, it convinces with a light sweetness which is countered by a crisp malic acid.
Carrots and Tigers 