A Sparkling Guide to Christmastime Bubbles: From Budget Bottles to Luxurious Labels

Discover the best sparkling wines for Christmas, from budget Cava and Prosecco to English sparkling and luxurious Champagne. 

A festive guide to bubbles for every celebration and budget.

Few things mark the start of the festive season quite like the pop of a cork. 

Whether you’re hosting a Christmas Eve gathering, toasting with family on the big day, or welcoming in the New Year, sparkling wine adds instant celebration to any occasion.

And with more choice than ever, from bargain-friendly Cava to world-class English sparkling wine and truly indulgent Champagnes, it’s easier than you think to find the perfect bottle for your Christmas festivities.

Here’s your guide to choosing bubbles for every taste and every budget.

Budget-Friendly Sparkle (£6–£12)

Christmas can be an expensive time, so it’s reassuring that the lower end of the sparkling wine market is better than ever.

Cava (Spain)

If you want Champagne-style complexity without the price tag, Cava remains one of the best-value sparkling wines on the shelf. Traditionally made, aged on the lees, and often delightfully dry, Cava brings crisp citrus, toasted notes and fantastic consistency.

Perfect for:

Larger gatherings

Party punches

Christmas morning mimosas

Italian Prosecco (Extra Dry or Brut)

Prosecco continues to be a crowd-pleaser, lighter, fruitier and often slightly sweeter than Cava or Champagne. Choose Brut for a drier style or Extra Dry if you enjoy a touch of festive sweetness.

Perfect for:

Aperitifs

Festive grazing boards

Those who prefer softer bubbles

The Mid-Range Magic (£12–£28)

Stepping up the price ladder brings more depth, finesse and character, ideal for dinners and toasts.

Crémant (France)

Crémant is one of the sparkling wine world’s best-kept secrets. Produced in several French regions (Alsace, Loire, Burgundy), these wines use the same method as Champagne but offer tremendous value.

Expect elegant, fine bubbles and a refined finish, ideal for serving with smoked salmon starters or Christmas canapés.

English Sparkling Wine (Non-Vintage)

England’s chalky soils and cool climate are producing some of the world’s most exciting sparkling wines. In fact, some have beaten Champagne in blind tastings!

Bright acidity, orchard fruit and a yeasty richness make English sparkling an elegant festive choice, and a brilliant way to support local producers.

Perfect for:

Christmas Day lunch

Small, special celebrations

A proudly British festive table

Premium Bubbles (£30–£60)

Champagne (Non-Vintage)

If Christmas isn’t a time for a little indulgence, when is? Non-vintage Champagne remains the gold standard for predictable quality and sophistication. Expect flavours of brioche, lemon zest, almond and tiny, delicate bubbles.

Top names such as Taittinger, Piper-Heidsieck, and Pol Roger frequently appear in Christmas offers, making them perfect for:

Formal celebrations

Toasting on Christmas Eve

Pairing with seafood, pâté or festive cheese boards

For the Ultimate Treat (£60–£200+)

Vintage Champagne

Vintage Champagne is made only in exceptional years and aged longer, giving it extraordinary depth and elegance. These bottles aren’t for mixing or casual sipping—this is the moment to pour a glass, sit back, and savour.

Flavours range from honeyed citrus and toasted brioche to baked apple and almond praline.

Perfect for:

Christmas Day decadence

Impressing guests

New Year’s Eve grand countdowns

Prestige Cuvées

Think Dom Pérignon, Cristal, Bollinger La Grande Année. These are the world’s most celebrated bubbles, crafted with meticulous detail and meant to be enjoyed slowly.

If you’re marking a milestone, an engagement, a new arrival, or simply a year well-lived—these bottles deliver fireworks in a glass.

Choosing the Right Sparkling wine for Your Festive Plans

Occasion Best Choice Why

Large festive party Cava or Prosecco Affordable, crowd-pleasing and versatile

Christmas Day lunch nEnglish sparkling or NV Champagne Elegant, food-friendly, celebratory

After-dinner toast Crémant or NV Champagne Balanced, refined, not too sweet

New Year’s Eve countdown Vintage Champagne or Prestige Cuvée Luxurious and memorable

Cocktail making Prosecco or Cava Keeps cocktails fresh without overspending

From cheerful bargain bottles to once-in-a-lifetime Champagnes, there’s a sparkling wine for every Christmas moment. The key is matching your bubbles to your plans, whether you’re hosting the whole family, welcoming neighbours in for nibbles, or raising a quiet glass by the tree.

And remember: the best sparkling wine is the one you enjoy. So pick a bottle (or several), chill it well, and let the celebrations begin!

Morrisons cuts price of classic Christmas veg to just 10p to help all customers tuck into a full roast

Morrisons is cutting the price of vegetables that are a vital part of any Christmas dinner to ensure all customers can enjoy a full, hearty roast on the big day.

Morrisons More Card holders can pick-up British Carrots (1kg), British Parsnips (500g), British Brussel Sprouts (500g) and a British Whole Swede for just 10p each from 18th December until 24th December.

And what's more, all customers can get British Best Potatoes (2kg) for half-price in store now, costing £1.15 until January 1st.

Morrisons is British farming’s biggest direct customer and recently announced it's to bring forward its planned financial support to better help the nation’s growers. 

Over £1.4 billion has been committed to British farming annually besides giving the 2,500 farmers who work with Morrisons a 5% discount to use in stores and online and a further 25% discount on all its café food and drink nationwide every Tuesday.

Fraser Lovatt, who is Category Director of Produce & Horticulture at Morrisons, said: “No Christmas dinner is complete without all the trimmings of the seasonal vegetables. 

"By reducing the costs of products such as carrots, parsnips, sprouts and potatoes, we're helping customers get all they need for the perfect festive roast without breaking the bank. Selling more of these products also stops them from going to waste and enables us to give more back to our important network of British farmers.”

With Christmas just around the corner, Morrisons is also slashing the cost of other festive favourites. Customers can save 50% on Market Street Whole Salmon, on offer at just £7.50/kg (usually £15/kg) from now until 5th January in-store nationwide. 

More Card holders can also benefit from a half price saving on Charles De Villiers Champagne Brut 75cl at just £12.50 (usually £25) until 1st January or pick up a bottle of Sorso Prosecco Spumante for just £4.75 (usually £6.50), perfect to accompany any festive celebration.

Female Entrepreneur Targets Hospitality Industry with Healthier Choice Prosecco Brand

33-year-old Kath Jones, from Aigburth, Liverpool says she is targeting high-end foodservice and hospitality venues with her products thanks to a huge shift in behaviour towards veganism, ketogenic lifestyles and a growing number of people  who are cutting sugar from their diets. 

ThinK Wine is an award-winning brand of prosecco and sparkling rose offering consumers a healthier alternative to its full sugar competitors without losing the taste or the percentage volume. And it has been wowing judges in blind taste tests.  

ThinK Wine has just 75 calories and 0g carbs, 0g fat, with 0.58g of residual sugar per 125ml (this is legally classed as zero sugar under UK standards), while still retaining an ABV of 11%. The product contains no artificial sweeteners or ingredients. 

So far, Kath has been selling direct to customers via the ThinK Wine website https://www.thinkwinegroup.co.uk, with the product available in a small number of exclusive, independent hospitality venues. 

Kath now aims to grow the trade side of her business after her own research discovered a gap in many premium restaurant and bar drinks menus for a luxury brand like ThinK Wine. Customer feedback also highlighted strong demand for it. Consumers would dearly love to see healthier alternatives on menus and in restaurants and bars where sugary, calorie-packed alcoholic drinks are often the only option. 

Kath says she wants her sparkling wines to be available in as many premium restaurants and bars as possible and has put in place a dynamic business development strategy to target the sector. 

“My customers want the same healthier choices they have at home, when they are out for dinner or on a night out. It's a premium product so we're hoping to target fine dining establishments, premium restaurants, luxury hotels and cocktail bars, initially.” 

“I know this concept is a winner,” Kath explains. “It's a hugely popular product.  

“People are increasingly health conscious, they are more switched on to things like sugar addiction, additives and sulphites, but they also still want to be able to enjoy a drink now and again. With no palatable alternative available on the market, I felt moved to create something. That's how ThinK Wine was born, and we've been growing exponentially ever since.” 

Kath has been on a journey of discovery since she began her mission to bring ThinK Wine to fruition and as well as getting her products onto drinks menus is also keen to change people's perceptions of prosecco. She continues:  “Done right, prosecco is a premium product; it doesn't have to be filled with sugar, or worse, artificial sweeteners and sugar alternatives. The problem is much of the cheaper prosecco that's readily available uses lots of sugar to mask the quality of the grape. It's giving this fabulous drink a bad name; but it doesn't have to be that way.  

“We're not using sweeteners or artificial ingredients instead of sugar either, I want to be very clear on that. When you choose a premium quality grape, the natural flavour is all that you need. 

“Our customer feedback is that they love the product, and can't get enough of it, but they also want to keep their diet low carb, vegan or low calorie without having to forgo dinner dates and nights out, or having to switch to a drink that they don't like.  

“Unfortunately, at the moment, there just aren't enough viable healthier choice sparkling wines out there on menus and wine lists, that also deliver on taste. I want to change that.”   

ThinK Wine is available in a select number of independent restaurants including Pullman Hotel Liverpool, ACC arena Liverpool, Pendergast's Warrington, Castle Street Townhouse, Chester Townhouse and Hope and Smoke. 

The brand has continually outperformed its full sugar and non-vegan/organic competitors in blind taste tests and has won the following awards: People's Choice Wine Awards 2022 (silver), London Wine Competition 2022 (bronze), Glass of Bubbly 2022 (silver), The Drinks Business Global Pinot Grigio Masters 2020 (bronze) and Las Vegas Global Wine Awards (silver), as well as gaining a 4.96 rating on Judge Me. 

ThinK Wine – The Products 

Quality and taste is everything to the team at ThinK Wine, who believe being Prosecco drinkers has given them an edge over the competitors in creating the perfect blend of flavours for wines with a fresh and revitalising finish, despite the health-conscious benefits. 

The company is proud to say all of its wines are 100% vegan/organic and have low sulphites. As a business ThinK Wine operates as sustainably as possible and as of March 2023 ThinK Wine Group has been a certified B-Corporation. 

The brand currently has two main product lines, with more product development in the pipeline for 2024. 

ThinK Prosecco 

ThinK Prosecco is a vegan and organic sparkling wine with both reduced sugar and calories.  

It is made from the finest Glera grapes from the heart of Treviso, north-east Italy for a Prosecco that is fresh, satisfying and luxurious. Its appearance is fine and persistent perlage, straw yellow colour. On the nose its intense bouquet with light notes of green apple and citrus. The taste is fresh, aromatic and elegant, with light notes of bread crust and green apple. 

ThinK Prosecco is a delicious complement to fried fish, tempura vegetables, tofu and fine meat. 

ThinK Pink 

ThinK Pink is a Pinot Grigio Sparkling Rosé. It is a vegan and organic sparkling wine with both reduced sugar and calories. ThinK Pink is made from the finest Pinot Grigio grapes from the heart of Treviso, north-east Italy. Its appearance is fine and persistent perlage with a light pink colour.  

On the nose its refined bouquet is characterised by delicate hints of strawberry, gooseberries and pink grapefruit. The palate is fresh and delicate with a soft mousse. 

ThinK Prosecco pairs nicely with fish, vegetable and tofu dishes with light sauces 

After consulting with her client-base, some of the UK's biggest online influencers and celebrities, she confirmed that the idea was a winner.  

“I work with a lot of celebrities and influencers in my 'day job' and I honestly haven't found one of them that thinks having a healthier prosecco on menus is a bad idea. They have busy schedules and always out attending launches and events in the evenings; they all agree that a less calorific version of their favourite fizz should be an option. But we're not just reliant on word of mouth, as a brand we've conducted extensive market research, and the outcome is always the same. A resounding yes please!”  

“My job now is to raise the ThinK Wine brand's profile among the bigger players in the foodservice industry and hopefully bring some positive changes to wine lists across the country.”