It's a time-honored New Year's Eve tradition: The clock is nearing midnight, you're trying to remember the words to Auld Lang Syne and somebody nearby is pouring bubbly in preparation for a toast.
No New Year's celebration would be complete without the clink of flutes full of sparkling wine.
But it doesn't have to be champagne in those glasses in order to kick your year off right. There are a ton of other sensational sparkling wines out there! Afterall, New Year's is all about turning over a new page.
The following are a few of the finest fizzes to look for at your local supermarket, wine store or at that corner shop down the street from your hotel somewhere abroad:
Crémant
France is home to several varieties of sparkling wines, it's just that none have managed to capture the world's imagination like Champagne. Crémant might be the one to change that for good.
French for "creamy", Crémant is sparkling wine produced in the same method of Champagne but made outside the namesake region. And it's starting to catch on big time. The grape makeup varies depending on the region it's made in-crémants from the Loire region will often feature chenin blanc while gewürztraminer and pinot gris star in crémant from Alsace.
Bottom line: With crémant, you're getting quality close to Champagne at a fraction of the price.
Lambrusco
Once seen as an old-fashioned sort of wine only served in Italian restaurants with red-check tablecloths, lambrusco is having a renaissance. A semi-sparkling wine from Italy's foodie heaven Emilia-Romagna region, lambrusco will usually have a dark rose color and notes of red fruits.
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