Sparkling red

Lambrusco and other red sparkling wines

Sparkling red is red wine made sparkling or semi-sparkling; the best known example is Lambrusco from Emilia in Italy.1 EU sparkling categories allow red wine in general, but Crémant and Champagne may only be white or rosé.2,3

Where red is allowed

EU law does not reserve sparkling wine for white and pink. Red is permitted in the sparkling categories in general; the term Crémant, however, is limited to white or rosé wines.2 Champagne is limited in the same way by its own specification: it covers only white or rosé sparkling wines.3

Lambrusco

The Consorzio Tutela Lambrusco presents six denominations, and all of them list red and rosé types, with sweetness from dry to sweet. The Modena DOC explicitly includes a spumante type.1 Each denomination has its own grape rule:

DenominationGrape rule
Lambrusco di Sorbara DOCAt least 60% Lambrusco di Sorbara, up to 40% Lambrusco Salamino; max 180 quintals/ha
Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro DOCAt least 85% Lambrusco Grasparossa

Source for the table: Consorzio Tutela Lambrusco.1 See also Lambrusco Salamino di Santa Croce.

The consorzio mentions the traditional method (metodo classico) as used for some sparkling Lambrusco.4 For the other ways of making wine sparkling see tank method and the EU sparkling wine categories.

Sparkling Shiraz

Sparkling Shiraz from Australia is a further example of the style. No Australian legal or industry source was reviewed for this page, so no production rules are given here.

See also

Lambrusco di SorbaraRegionsLambrusco Grasparossa di CastelvetroRegionsLambrusco Salamino di Santa CroceRegionsLambrusco di SorbaraGrapesRosé sparkling wineStylesEU categories of sparkling wineMethodsfrizzanteGlossary

Sources

  1. Consorzio Tutela Lambrusco. Denominations
  2. legislation.gov.uk (copy of EU OJ text). Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33, Article 53 (terms referring to certain production methods), original version as adopted (2018-10-17)
  3. Cahier des charges de l'AOP « Champagne » - modifications approved by the INAO national committee on 11 September 2024 (national opposition procedure text) (2024-09-11)
  4. Consorzio Tutela Lambrusco - home

Facts checked on 2026-10-19