10 great champagnes from under $15 to $50

This month, the wine panel popped many corks in anticipation of New Year's Eve. Wondering what options awaited procrastinators buying bubbly late in December, we sampled sparklers that should be easy to find, even at well-stocked supermarkets.

These days, many supermarket chains designate larger stores for expanded wine departments, often allotting multiple shelves to sparklers – from budget bottles to special-occasion splurges. We gathered bottles in three price ranges: under $15, $15 to $30, and $30 to $50. The sampling included Spanish cavas, Italian prosecco, California sparklers (plus one Australian) and French champagnes. Out of 15 sampled this month, we chose seven wines. Three other sparklers recommended in past panel tastings brought our total picks to 10.

Since this wasn't a food-and-wine pairing, our task was easier than usual. We sought exciting, refreshing wines with fine, persistent bubbles, pleasant flavors and no bitter notes. We wanted crowd-pleasers with an elegant, refined quality. And within each price level, we looked for good value. If a $49 wine was no better than a $25 bottle sampled, it didn't make the cut. Setting aside any preconceived notions of prestige and reputation of the producers, we focused exclusively on flavor and precision winemaking (there are some qualities you can't let slide in a sparkler – such as bubbles).

If there's a brand of bubbly that you love, by all means stick with it. But if you're staring down the options in the supermarket, or just curious about other sparklers, we've done the homework for you. Here are some outtakes from our tasting.

For a gift or party: Mario Batali's sparkling wine picks
•Sometimes bubbles can be too big and bad. Clumsy, big bubbles undermined one $12 wine's aspirations of elegance.

•The panel has fallen in love with many a prosecco in the past two years. But supermarkets don't seem to stock the best ones. We found a popular brand under $16 to be too harsh and unrefined.

•One well-known French champagne was on sale for $50, so we tried it. Even at a deep discount, a bitter finish kept us from recommending it; a wine that regularly retails for $65 should be stellar. Another popular champagne for $45 had a bitter, funky finish, too. The panel wondered if these champagne houses might be experiencing inconsistent bottlings.

•A $37 champagne was rejected for being too yeasty – almost beerlike – and for lacking body and structure.

•Here's good news for those on a budget: Although the two highest-quality sparklers selected were priced higher than $30, we found more winners – and values – in the under-$30 range. Out of six sparklers in the $30-to-$50 range sampled, only two won our recommendation.

•Some of the sparklers we rejected might be good when paired with a specific food. But a pairing wasn't part of our mission, so if the wine didn't impress going solo, we passed.