The town of Chatillon-sur-Seine (21 Cote d'Or, Burgundy) is the host to this year's "Printemps du Cremant" on 18th and 19th March 2006 - another chance for the locals to dress up in silly costumers, but more importantly it provides you with the opportunity to do some serious tasting of the bubbly Cremant de Bourgogne. Cremant is a term originally used for a Champagne bottled under a lower pressure (50-60%) of that for Champagne proper, but as it has largely passed into history in Champagne it is now the official term for 7 Cremant appellations - d'Alsace. de Bourgogne, de Loire, de Bordeaux, de Limoux, de Jura and de Die.
In Cremant de Bourgogne the grape varieties used are similar to those for Burgundy wines - Chardonnay, Aligote, Melon, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Gamay. Although technically the pressure can be lower than Champagne, they are often vinified to produce more bubbles and a better "mousse", and can be extraordinarily good. Just avoid the cheapies in the supermarket which can be a bit thin and dull. For more info on the Printemps du Cremant Festival see http://www.mairie-chatillon-sur-seine.fr/
A good producer we can recommend is the Cave de Lugny, and their Cremant is stocked by Haynes, Hanson and Clark (http://www.hhandc.co.uk/) who have branches in London and Stow-on-the-Wold as well as nationwide delivery.£8.45 per bottle by the case.
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