18 best champagnes to make celebrations go off with a bang, from supermarket to luxury fizz

This might look like a recognisable classic champagne bottle from one of the most well-known and revered champagne houses, but it's actually had a new recipe since 2017.

Made from predominantly chardonnay grapes (usually around 55 per cent), the ‘la cuvée’ in the name refers to using the first press of the grapes, and therefore the premium juice. It's an excellent, well-rounded champagne that everyone who helped me test ranked very highly.

It has light floral notes with a biscuity touch and a light mousse (how the bubbles feel in your mouth). It's one to save for a celebration such as the aperitif on Christmas Day.

Coming in at a snip under £16 for a champagne is nothing short of impressive, and it's even more so when it both looks and tastes this good.

It's elegant with notes of freshly cut apples and fleshy peach. While on the palette, there's plenty of baked apple crumble notes along with nutty hints and buttery brioche, too.

It's become a go-to bottle for in-the-know consumers, and at this price, it's another one to stock up on, especially as it's often on sale. So keep your eyes peeled for that and buy this bottle by the case-load.

As Aldi doesn’t offer online purchases, you’ll have to head in-store to make the most of this good-value champagne.

Not many French champagne houses have an organic range, so it's a welcome tonic to see Lanson, which dates back to 1780, as one of the few in its category to create an organic variety of champagne.

Happily, it turned out to be one of the most interesting wines we tasted in this list. Following biodynamic and low intervention practices, the wine gives a true expression of the terroir where the grapes were grown, which is a 16-hectare vineyard on chalk, limestone and marl soil in Vallée de la Marne.

It has a slightly more honey appearance than others, and has notes of baked apple and slight grassy notes on the nose. It's complex and has more earthy aromas than any others on the list, from its biodynamic practices. There are notes of delicious berries, it's soft, mellow and quite fruity. It's from the 2018 harvest and has been aged for four years, which helps give it complexity. As it's an extra brut, it also has a very low dosage, too.

Another excellent English sparkling wine made from vines in Somerset, at Durslade Farm, is the Maid of Bruton. The vines here have been planted on former ancient Roman wine terraces, and the grapes are pressed and fermented just five miles away from the vineyard at Bagborough vineyard.

It's full of delicate light red fruits, with hints of strawberry and stone fruits and a little orange blossom. It finishes with a touch of sweetness, and there's a lovely mousse fizz to it.

This is an English sparkling wine that's from the first French champagne house to plant vines in England. The 100-acre vineyard, Pinglestone Estate in Hampshire, was planted in 2017 by Louis Pommery and makes use of the similar chalky soil that runs from France's Champagne region north into southern England.

Pommery labels it as an English sparkling wine, and it's been made using the traditional method in collaboration with Hattingley Valley using its winery. Pommery plans to make its own wine on-site in the next few years.

It's pale yellow in colour and is fresh and elegant. There are notes of peach, melon and apple, plus a hint of that chalkiness, giving it a nice saline finish.

This bottle from Devaux champagne house, which dates back to the 19th century, focuses on sustainable practices and is exclusively sold at Majestic. It's from the Frances Côte des Bar region, best known for its pinot noir grapes, but as this is a blanc de blanc, it's made entirely from chardonnay.

This is a well-rounded champagne, and has been aged for at least three years. There are notes of apple, pear and a hint of lemon, and it has a pleasing minerality to it, too.

After almost a century since it began, Taittinger is still owned by the same family, which is now increasingly a rarity in the champagne world. Some of the vineyard includes where 18th century monks had previously planted vines, giving the area new life.

Another classic champagne that's almost too easily drinkable. It's light, with slight honeysuckle notes and a lively mousse, with a crisp finish. If you can't take our word for how good it is, then maybe the fact it was Bond's choice of champagne in the original Ian Flemming novels might sway you.

Made using the traditional method, this vineyard in Somerset has been making both still and sparkling wines here for more than 50 years now, making it one of the oldest in the UK, so they certainly know a thing or two about what they're doing.

Nicknamed the Somerset sparkling wine, it's full of apple and has notes of pear too and a little sweetness of candied lemon. There's also a delicious sharpness to it. It's a vibrant and balanced sparkling wine that's reminiscent of summer.

M&S's food is renowned not only for its reliability, but also for its quality. It's always a safe bet, and when it comes to the wine, you know it will be far better than any average plonk.

From the supermarket’s own range, this bottle is a case in point. It’s a deliciously rounded champagne with plenty of fruity aromas from fleshy stone fruits, such as peach, apricot and nectarines, and finishing with some well as biscuity and brioche notes. There's also a hint of sharpness. It's a very elegant wine with a good mousse finish, making it another well-priced and balanced champagne that's great for parties.

This blanc de blanc (categorised by being made entirely from white grapes) is made exclusively using chardonnay grapes, creating a supremely elegant and silky champagne that's made for the biggest of celebrations.

The wine is produced by family winemakers Laurent Hostomme, who have been honing their craft since the 19th century and making wine for Fortnum & Mason for three decades. It's been aged for three years (15 months is the minimum for champagne), which has earned it such complexity. There are notes of pear on the nose, it's zesty and has great acidity, while it finishes with a lovely mousse and a real creaminess to it.

This champagne house has been making wine for more than 150 years and is based in the Montagne de Reims region, known for its quality pinot noir grapes. With a deep honey colour, this champagne only uses chardonnay and pinot noir, and has twice as many pinot noir grapes as it does chardonnay.

The result is a more bready-flavoured champagne with notes of brioche, along with freshly cut apple on the nose and a great zing. Though it's a brut, we found it to be on the slightly sweeter side.

From South Africa, this wine is made following the traditional method, and has lofty fans behind it as it was served not only at Nelson Mandela's inauguration, but also Barack Obama's, too.

It's so good that many people use it at weddings, as a cheaper French champagne alternative, and guests are none the wiser. It's well-rounded, with citrus lemony notes on the nose and plenty of citrus on the palate, along with plenty of bready, brioche and creamy notes too.

It's also often on offer, making it less than £15 a bottle, so stock up when it's on offer and you'll be whipping bottles out for any reason – which is exactly what we do.

As the only supermarket to have its own farm, Waitrose is always in a different league to its contemporaries. The Leckford Estate is in Hampshire and is home to the vineyards where the grapes come from for this brut from 2021.

It has been made by the team at Ridgeview Winery in East Sussex, and it's a superbly complex wine that makes an excellent aperitif. On the nose, it's fruitier, but on the palate, it has great notes of toasted brioche and has a long and delicious creamy finish.

This champagne has a deeper yellow in colour compared to many others on the list, and despite costing less than £15, this has an excellent depth to it, too.

With hints of apple, citrus, lemony notes, a rounded vanilla and honeyed sweetness to it and lovely effervescent light bubbles, it's far more complex than anyone might think, considering it's from a budget supermarket.

At this price (which isn't uncommon to see it on offer for less than £10), it's absolutely the one to take a couple to a friend's festive dinner party. If you want to stock up on this one, you’ll need to visit your local store as it’s not currently available to shop online.

Nicolas Feuillatte has just a short history of around 50 years, but within that shorter time frame and cemented itself as one of France's most popular champagnes.

A mellow yellow in colour, this dry champagne has a deep flavour which is owed to being aged for at least three years, compared to the minimum 15 months required.

It's chardonnay-heavy and has notes of stone fruits like apricot and a touch of pear. It's vibrant with intense notes of candied fruit and is quite full-bodied, meaning it can withstand more than just canapes and can be paired with stronger flavours like blue cheese.

This pale yellow champagne has a superb freshness to it, making it an excellent aperitif at any festive drinks party. It's fresh and zingy, with citrus notes. There's an excellent mousse, and the finish is a delicious, rounded flavour that's rich and creamy.

It's also the only one to come in a gift box, meaning this bottle immediately looks far more expensive than it is. Then add in the rather chic cream, black and gold design of the box, and it's absolutely fit for an excellent gift. This is another one you’ll have to head into Lidl to buy.

Think of Moët, and the classic brut with a golden foil wrapped around the neck and a red seal will come to mind. But this edition, the nectar-imperial, has a navy foil, and it's not just the appearance that's different, as this is a demi-sec, meaning it's sweeter as more sugar has been added than is to a traditional brut champagne.

There are notes of sweet honeydew melon on the nose with a good dose of honeysuckle, pineapple, and apricot with a full body of creaminess, making it a great, more sophisticated alternative to a pudding wine. Pair it with a heavy dessert like a sticky toffee pudding, and even someone with the sweetest of tooth will be happily satisfied.

This is a very classic champagne in both appearance and taste, which has a deeper yellow hue to it in colour, and is dominated by notes of vanilla, brioche, with some fresh peachy notes.

I was really impressed with this champagne, which I felt really stood up to the others from bigger names. An all-round excellent choice, especially for just £25.