A Quick Guide to Champagne Sweetness and Bottle Sizes

There's no real difference between sparkling wine and champagne, other than that authentic champagne comes from the Champagne region of France. As far as alcohol content and production, it's the same stuff. From driest to sweetest, the common names on champagne labels run: Extra Brut, Brut Sauvage, Ultra Brut, Brut Integral, and Brut Zero; then Brut; then Extra Dry and Extra Sec; then Sec; then Demi-Sec; then Doux. Brut is the most popular style, and often the best grapes are reserved for it.

Because sparkling wine should be consumed once it's opened, size matters. Champagne comes in "splits," perfect for one or two, all the way up to the enormous Nebuchadnezzar (508 fluid ounces). For more than a single bottle, there are showy magnums (nearly 51 ounces, or two bottles), Jeroboams (4 bottles), or even a Balthazar (16 bottles) — and those huge empty bottles make great souvenirs.