10 best pink champagnes, proseccos and sparkling wines for Valentine’s Day (and beyond)

Stick to homegrown pink fizz and you definitely won’t be disappointed. More than a match for its more famous French counterpart, this English sparkling comes from Simpsons’ Wine Estate on the North Downs of Kent. This was set up by Charles and Ruth Simpson in 2012 when they returned to the UK after a decade spent making award-winning wine at their vineyard in southern France. The protected chalk slopes in Kent proved the perfect spot to make stand-out sparkling, having first been planted with vines when the Romans invaded England in AD 43.

Made from 100 per cent exclusively estate-grown, hand-picked pinot noir grapes, this rosé sparkling is simply the taste of summer in a glass. Unmistakably pink, it’s chock-full of rose and strawberry aromas, like a sunny English garden, and has a palate of wild berries with a twist of almond, to ensure it doesn’t ever taste too sweet. A lingering finish will have you reaching for that second glass every time.

Pink prosecco may not yet be as wildly popular as the usual white version but this one definitely makes it worth making the switch. Light and balanced, it’s created from glera and pinot noir grapes from the village of Rai, 30 miles north of Venice, and has already picked up awards, including a bronze medal at the Decanter World Wine Awards 2021.

It’s a pure delight to drink, too, like devouring a bowl of strawberries and cream. Every mouthful reveals something unexpected, including the tang of cranberries, the juiciness of ripe raspberries and even a note of spicy pepper that makes this pink fizz a real Italian triumph.

If you’re really looking to win someone over, this is the only bottle to reach for. Taittinger is one of the best-known names in champagne and is also one of the last great independent champagne houses, owned and managed by the Taittinger family themselves. Lauded around the world for their exceptionally elegant champagnes, they have made an equally celebrated pink version that is deliciously crisp to drink.

Perfect served with oysters for extra wow factor, it has a striking salmon-pink colour and a rush of red fruit flavours, including strawberry and raspberry. Expect hints of lemon and honeysuckle, a delicate mousse and a lingering spicy finish from the pinot noir that adds surprising body. Pure pink paradise.

We’d buy this cava for the gorgeous bottle alone, inspired by the architecture of Gaudi in Vilarnau’s home city of Barcelona. The winery is known for its vegan-friendly sparkling wines and is just outside the city, less than 20 miles from the Mediterranean Sea, with idyllic mountain views.

Made using the same traditional method as champagne, this cava is a gorgeous pale pink and packed with fine, delicate bubbles that really make drinking it feel like a celebration. It’s produced from a blend of grenache and pinot noir grapes and brims with the ripe red flavours of summer fruits, including strawberry and raspberry, to make this a true Spanish stunner.

If you’re splashing out on champers for someone special, this rosé from Champagne Piaff will really feel like a treat. It’s made using the traditional method, with a minimum of two years on lees, and is produced from a blend of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier grapes grown in France’s Marne River valley. Yet winemaker Maxime Mansard has brought a modern twist to his bubbly, making a bright, sun-baked wine full of mouthcoating bubbles and with a satisfying depth. It explodes with fruity flavours, including strawberries, red apples and cherries, with toasty biscuit notes and a wonderful creamy finish we loved.

It’s easy to pick up a cheap bottle of pink prosecco but this one is a cut above the average supermarket offerings, yet still with a good price tag. A gorgeous light blush colour like a Provençal rosé, it has a beautifully balanced acidity and is surprisingly full-bodied. Though there’s definite fruity notes of peach and lemon on the nose, we especially liked the fact this pink fizz replaces the typical red fruit flavours for a more floral finish, which we found worked well with a creamy pasta. For this price, you won’t need to wait for a special occasion to drink it either. However, if you do want to splash out, we also rate Adnams Selection rosé champagne (£33.99, Adnams.co.uk) for its red berry elegance.

It’s no surprise Chapel Down is now firmly established as the UK’s leading wine producer. Its vineyards in the North Downs of Kent have a similar terroir to those in Champagne, with south-facing chalk soil and warm sea air helping to produce award-winning sparkling wines that are served by the likes of the Royal Opera House and Ascot.

This delightfully crisp rosé brut is produced using the traditional method made famous by champagne but using 100 per cent pinot noir grapes grown in Kent, Sussex and Essex. Its lip-smacking strawberry and cherry flavours, delicate bubbles and shortbread notes make it ideal to serve after a meal with a showstopping tart or meringue piled high with fruit and cream.

You stand a good chance of finding a great bottle of bubbly if you choose one labelled premier cru – a historic term awarded to superior-quality vineyards in some of the best areas of the Champagne region. This one is produced using a blend of 50 per cent chardonnay, 40 per cent pinot noir and 10 per cent of a grand cru red wine from Verzenay.

It’s a real treat to drink, too, with a good acidity and sharp dryness that makes it work well with all sorts of food, including traditional fish and chips. Fruit flavours, including raspberries and cherries, are well balanced with a hint of nuttiness and a pop of citrus, to keep things interesting. A seriously superior sparkling.

A pink champagne with a difference, this bubbly is made using the more unusual saignée method, where the wine gains its colour from contact with the skins rather than adding red wine to white. It’s produced using 100 per cent pinot noir grapes grown in the chalk clay soil of the Charlemagne vineyards in Sezanne and aged for at least two years in underground cellars.

The pinot noir means this pink champagne has more muscle than we expected, too, with a fuller flavour and deeper colour than most of the others we tested, plus a palate-pleasing freshness we loved. Serve it alongside salmon sandwiches and scones smothered in strawberry jam during afternoon tea, and you’ll be in heaven.

This prosecco-style pink fizz is just as chic as the embossed bottle it comes in, which is actually a map of the canals of Venice. Made with 10 per cent pinot noir added to the glera grapes that always make prosecco, it’s fantastically fruity, bursting with strawberry and raspberry flavours with an unexpected note of rose. There’s a definite touch of sweetness in the mix that makes this ideal to drink on its own as an aperitif but the dry finish and balanced acidity means it would also work a treat with seafood pasta or even a selection of sushi. Plus, the bottle will look great out on the dinner table.