Wine: Lovely bubbly

Supermarket champagne has come on leaps and bounds. But which are the best?

Thirty years ago the first ‘own label’ supermarket champagne emerged on our shelves. Today our supermarkets sell vast quantities in competition with big name brands – and their wine buyers exert considerable influence in the Champagne region in France.

Every year we hear of yet another blind taste test of supermarket champagne vs big name brands, with Tesco Premier Cru, Sainsbury’s Blanc de Noirs or Waitrose Brut NV scooping medals from under the noses of more expensive brands such as Moet & Chandon or Lanson. The implication is that the supermarket fizz is underpriced and much better value than “rip-off” brands.

Is this really the case? Or are we being conned by the supermarkets using these competitions as a way of enticing us into their stores? Tesco Premier Cru used to be a great bargain at £13.99 when it first started winning gongs, but has crept up to just under £20. The other annoying thing is that bottles of ‘award winning’ supermarket fizz have often mysteriously sold out when you try to buy them.

When I put supermarket own label fizz into ‘blind’ tastings for consumers, I find that 60 per cent of tasters prefer the better quality brand (I tend to use Pol Roger or Bollinger) as they like their champagne with more balance, character and complexity. The rest actually prefer their fizz easy, soft and slightly bland. Nothing wrong with that. They just don’t want their bubbly too intense – and are happy quaffing the light fruity supermarket cuvees – some of which can be very good.

Nowadays supermarkets have many more than just one style of own label champagne. Almost all have their staple brut non-vintage at £19 or less, competing with small grower champagnes or bigger brands on promotion. In addition they also have a never-ending range of own labels from Premier Cru Non-Vintage, Premier Cru Vintage, Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs, Vintage, Rosé to Rosé Vintage. Some of these cuvees are better than others. So which is the best? In our champgagne taste-off, only Asda won in two categories.

MORRISONS THE BEST BRUT NV (£19.99)

Light toasty notes, initially light creamy fruit, but a touch bland on the finish.

WAITROSE BLANC DE BLANCS NV

(£22)

Pretty classy, sleek stuff, if you like your champagne citric and minerally.

SAINSBURY’S BLANC DE NOIRS NV

(£17.69)

Biscuity, toasty, soft creamy palate: great value for money.

MARKS & SPENCER DE ST GALL PREMIER CRU NV (£27)

A clear winner – very creamy, rounded, complex and delicious; a bit pricey, but very well-made.

TESCO PREMIER CRU NV (£19.99)

An appealing all-rounder, but I preferred it when the price was lower.

ASDA LOUIS BERNARD ROSÉ NV (£22.97)

Fresh soft raspberry notes, refreshing, vivid with a good depth of fruit; clear winner in our supermarket rosé section.

ASDA VINTAGE 2002 (£19.07)

2002 was a cracking year with great depth of fruit, acidity and balance; can Asda keep up this quality with future (less good) vintages?