On Food and Cooking

bubbles form wherever the liquid comes into
contact with a microscopic air pocket into
which the dissolved carbon dioxide can
diffuse. In the glass, the bubbles form on
scratches and other surface imperfections. The
refreshingly sharp prickle in the mouth comes
from the irritating dose of carbonic acid that
the bubbles deliver as they redissolve into the
unsaturated layer of saliva.
Many countries have their own versions of
sparking wine, which range from the carefully
crafted to the mass-produced. The best-known
example of a sparkling wine is Champagne,
which strictly speaking is the wine made in
the region of that name east of Paris, and
accounts for less than a tenth of the world’s
production of sparkling wine. From the late
17th century to the late 19th, Champagne
evolved to become the most refined
expression of this style. The French invented
the method of inducing a bubble-making
second fermentation in the bottle, and this