When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
food / travel

Italian Prosecco Leads France's Champagne In This Year's 'Bubbly' Battle

Early export stats suggest that so far this year, Italy's Prosecco variety of sparkling wine is outselling Champagne, its better known - and generally more expensive - French counterpart. A victory for the underdog? Not so fast, says France. Chri

Prosecco on ice (James Cridland)
Prosecco on ice (James Cridland)
Alberto Mattioli

PARIS - With the countdown to 2012 officially on, one question looms large - at least in France and Italy: Prosecco or Champagne? For people outside of Europe, choosing which sparkling wine to toast the new year may seem like a minor issue. For Italians and French it is a matter of national pride.

Going into the holiday season, Prosecco - the sparkling wine produced in northwestern Italy - seems to have the edge this year, according to Coldiretti, Italy's largest farming group. Coldiretti reported that in the first nine months of 2011, 200 million of bottles of Prosecco were exported, versus "only" 192 million of bottles of Champagne.

Italians are already claiming victory for its "underdog" Prosecco, which doesn't enjoy the same global name recognition as its more expensive French counterpart. France's Champagne makers, however, aren't quite ready to concede.

"Italians are crowing over a victory. They say their sparkling wine is exported more than Champagne is," read a recent article in the French newspaper Le Parisien. "But French wine makers dispute these data," the paper added.

"We are comparing two wines that cannot really be compared," says Thibaut le Mailloux, communications director for the Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne, an organization that involves many of the Champagne industry's major players. "Spumante is an obscure denomination of sparkling wine, while Champagne has a guarantee of origin, and is produced in a specific and unique way," he added.

France is also quick to point out that Coldiretti's export stats don't include the final two months of the year, when according to Le Mailloux, 30% of Champagne business takes place. The battle over the New Year's toast, in other words, is not over yet. France's pricier bubbly might still rise to the ocassion.

Read more from La Stampa

Photo - James Cridland

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Society

Is Disney's "Wish" Spreading A Subtle Anti-Christian Message To Kids?

Disney's new movie "Wish" is being touted as a new children's blockbuster to celebrate the company's 100th anniversary. But some Christians may see the portrayal of the villain as God-like and turning wishes into prayers as the ultimate denial of the true message of Christmas.

photo of a kid running out of a church

For the Christmas holiday season?

Joseph Holmes

Christians have always had a love-hate relationship with Disney since I can remember. Growing up in the Christian culture of the 1990s and early 2000s, all the Christian parents I knew loved watching Disney movies with their kids – but have always had an uncomfortable relationship with some of its messages. It was due to the constant Disney tropes of “follow your heart philosophy” and “junior knows best” disdain for authority figures like parents that angered so many. Even so, most Christians felt the benefits had outweighed the costs.

That all seems to have changed as of late, with Disney being hit more and more by claims from conservatives (including Christian conservatives) that Disney is pushing more and more radical progressive social agendas, This has coincided with a steep drop at the box office for Disney.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest