Crémant
Also known as: French sparkling wine
In short
Crémant is the French sparkle outside Champagne: bottle fermentation like the great model, from regions like Alsace, the Loire and Burgundy. We explain the method and why crémant is the pro tip for cocktails.
In depth
What is crémant?
Crémant is French sparkling wine made in the traditional method: fermentation happens in the bottle, as with champagne, but the grapes come from regions outside the protected champagne area. Crémant d'Alsace, crémant de Loire and crémant de Bourgogne are the well known representatives, and every region has its own rules for harvest and aging.
The pro tip
For cocktails with sparkle, crémant is the pro tip: quality from bottle fermentation, without the champagne price tag. For classics like the French 75 from our brut entry, the bottle does not have to come from Champagne. How sweet it is says the scale from our brut entry: "The aperitif makes the beginning, brut makes the sparkle."
Remember this one
"Fermier means the farm, the cuvée the marriage, the crémant the sparkle from the regions."
At our lounge
Ask about the sparkle of the evening: the regions have a lot to say.