Beginning in Italy with Prosecco. Or not…

Rivolto Zanotto Vino Bianco Spumante Extra Dry NV, Veneto, Italy (£10 Vino Beano)
Fresh, satisfying fizz, not massively complex but scores for its dry caramel and green apple flavours, dangerously moreish… B+

And another Italian I didn’t film…

Il Serraglio Saliceto Buzzalino Lambrusco di Sorbara Vino Frizzante Secco NV, Emilia Romagna, Italy (£15 Vino Beano)
Very pale pink, gently perfumed with hints of rose and violet, lightly cooked Bramley apple flavour and a crisp finish with a stony/mineral note. S(-)

Now a couple of Southern Hemisphere sparklers

Laborie Blanc de Blancs Brut MCC 2010, Western Cape, South Africa (£15.95 Slurp, SH Jones)
Lots of character here, with no lack of toasty brioche, caramel, pineapple and mandarin orange flavour, but there’s also zesty acidity to keep it all fresh and clean. Dangerously drinkable. S(-)

Brown Brothers Pinot Noir/Chardonnay/Pinot Meunier Brut NV, King Valley, Australia (£18 Sandhams Wine Merchants, Derventio Wines, drinksdirect.co.uk)
More fruit forward than the above, and younger too, again with mandarin flavour to the fore, with a lightly creamy/cheesy note in support. Good, but I’ve had better bottles of this… B+

And finally, Cava, English & an Aussie red

Tempus III Cava Brut NV, Valencia, Spain (£10.99 Virgin Wines)
Yeasty and mature, with a preserved lemon character and a hint of toffee wrapped round a savoury/saline backbone. S-

Vilarnau Brut Reserva Cava NV, Catalonia, Spain (£11.99 Booths)
Similarly salty, and again with yeasty, biscuity notes, but the fruit here is riper, fresher and more boisterous. Which for me makes it different rather than better (or worse). S-

Greyfriars Sparkling Fumé NV, Surrey, England (£15 from the vineyard)
A wine with almost too much flavour and character – the bubbles accentuate an underripeness in the fruit, bringing ‘green’ notes of things like celery and asparagus to the fore. For me, ‘interesting’ rather than good… C

Dowie Doole Moxie Sparkling Shiraz NV, McLaren Vale, Australia (£20.16 Armit Wines)
Another in the ‘unusual’ bracket, but I want to drink this. A nice mix of soft, toffee’d maturity with quite bold, liquorice-tinged dark plummy berry fruit and a touch of tannin. Would love to try this with roast goose. S