"In victory you deserve it, in defeat you need it." —Anonymous Whether it's Champagne (France), Cava (Spain), Franciacorta (Italy), or simply sparkling wine, the allure and appeal of tiny bubbles is universal.

With the traditional "pop" of the cork, the holidays begin, the celebration gets under way and somehow the mood always becomes festive.

The season of bubbly is upon us. Chances are very good that sometime between now and Jan. 1, you will tip a glass of chilled and effervescent wine to your lips, and if you hang around me, you'll tip several. In the glass this drink looks magical, as miniature legions of bubbles rise endlessly and you enjoy.

But what makes a sparkler sparkle? The hallmark of fine sparkling wine is silky, tiny bubbles (also called "pearlage") that tickle your lips and delight the senses. This magic is the product of secondary fermentation and is the key to the "Methode Champenoise," the traditional way sparkling wine is made in the region of Champagne, France.

All bubbly begins its life as still (not sparkling) wine and is generally the combination of three grapes: chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier. Chardonnay brings elegance to the wine, pinot noir lends backbone and longevity and pinot meunier gives the mix an immediate appeal and fullness. How much of each is put into the blend is the decision of the winemaker and determines the style and flavor profile of the wine.

After this beginning as a still wine, a mixture of sugar and yeast is added to the bottle to kick-start the secondary fermentation process. The bottles are cared for very specifically during this time, for it's at this time that the wine turns effervescent. After six to nine weeks, a thick deposit collects at the base of the inverted bottles and needs to be released. This disgorgement is accomplished by freezing the neck of the bottle, then uncorking it quickly. Out flies the deposit as one frozen chunk! The bottles are then topped off with a bit of still wine blended with sugar, recorked, caged and prepared for labeling and aging. Obviously, this description regarding the Champagne process is shamefully abbreviated, but it gives you an overview of the process.

The language of sparkling wine is also very important. Styles range from bone dry to dessert sweet and from creamy white to rose or salmon colored. The following is a bubbly primer and can be used as exceptional trivia this holiday season.

Champagne: Sparkling wine from the specific region of Champagne, France, which is 90 miles northeast of Paris and consists of three towns: Epernay, Reims and Ay.

Methode Champenoise: Sparkling wine (regardless of where it is made) that is created in the traditional method developed in Champagne, France.

Vintage or nonvintage: Wine that is exclusively from one harvest will have a year listed on the label. If it is from multiple years, it will not have a specific year on the label and might have the term "multivintage" or "NV" present. Often a nonvintage sparkling wine will be as good as a vintage wine because the winemaker can blend several ordinary vintages into one great nonvintage. Vintage Champagne from extraordinary years is extremely special and expensive and ages wonderfully. Recent great vintages include 1988, 1989 and 1990.

Blanc de blanc: A sparkling wine made from chardonnay grapes only.

Blanc de noir: A sparkling wine made from black grapes only (pinot noir and/or pinot meunier).

Rose: Champagne or sparkling wine that has 10 to 15 percent of still red wine added or is fermented with the skins of the black grapes for an extended period of time. It is often assumed that rose wine is sweet, but rose sparkling wine can be sweet or dry, just as a blanc de blanc or blanc de noir can be.

Brut: Bone dry (no sweetness at all).

Extra dry or extra sec: Dry.

Sec: Slightly sweet.

Demi-sec: Sweet.

Doux: Very sweet (dessert wine).

Cremant: Slightly less bubbly or the finest wine a producer makes.

While Dom Perignon, a Benedictine monk in a small town east of the Champagne region, is often credited with the invention of the Methode Champenoise in the early 1700s, historical records have revealed to us that there were instances of sparkling wine production that clearly pre-date him. What we can give him credit for, however, is as important as the invention of bubbles itself. Dom Perignon was the first in viticulture to employ blending and the first to seal glass bottles with corks.

It's no surprise that more sparkling wine is sold in December of each year than in any other month. But who made the decision that Champagne was only a special-occasion wine to begin with? In my book, Friday is a very special occasion and deserves the musical sound of a cork popping joyfully. What also might be a surprise is that sparkles go very well with a myriad of foods, from raw oysters and sushi to spicy Asian cuisine.

Bubbles lift the spirit and invite frivolity. This year, pick up a few extra bottles to put away for post-New Year to help you remember your blessings and forget how silly you acted on New Year's Eve.

Cara Finn is the owner of The Grapevine, a fine wine and cheese store and tasting bar. She can be reached at 408.293.7574 or at info@grapevine-wg.com.