While price is not an indicator of wine quality it is true that at the lowest price points taxes take up an inordinate amount of a wines price. This is especially true for fully sparkling wines in Ireland where we are unjustly penalised by a doubled excise simply because the wine has bubbles in it!

Point to note: not all bubbly wines are fully sparkling!! This explains why a frizzante Prosecco (low pressure) is less expensive than a Spumante Prosecco (full pressure). All Champagnes and Cava are fully sparkling.

At Aldi price is most certainly not an indicator of quality as its Veuve Monsigny Champagne Brut is a fine drink at only €19.99

… and how about a No Alcohol At All Sparkler … Aldi has brought us the ZeroPointZero range at the very honest price of only €3.49 … after all if there’s no alcohol there’s no excise duty either!! and there’s only 35 cals per serving..

Time for a few nibbles …. got to be a good sparkling match in here somewhere … bite size snacks begin at only €2.49 .. I fancy the King Prawn selection at €3.49 .. ‘coated in crispy coconut and mango, sesame breadcrumbs and tempura batter with a sweet chilli sauce‘ .. Christmas really is great fun!