With less than a month till Christmas, the silly season has well and truly arrived.

Cue tinsel, lights, mistletoe and holly, as well as our very own advent calendar up for grabs.

However, before you go to town on expensive Champagne, it’s worth taking a trip to northeastern Italy’s Veneto to check out this year’s top Proseccos.

Prosecco is a largely – but not exclusively – white fizz made from Glera, although there are some rosé incarnations and even some still, but these are relatively few and far between, particularly the latter.

Although the Italian sparkler used to suffer a slightly tatty reputation for being an insipid sugar rush in a glass, those days are increasingly in the rearview mirror as both viticulture and production methods improve, and the wine style has rightly climbed the ranks as both a fun addition to cocktails – Bellinis anyone? – to an ever more sophisticated drink in it’s own right.

Although Champagne may well hold court on both Christmas and Boxing Day, in the weeks and days ahead, however, why not indulge in some of the light, affordable and extremely well-made bubbles from Italy’s most crowd-friendly wine region.

Because that’s what Prosecco is – quaffable, people-pleasing, and friendly – easy to drink with or without food, and equally at home as a sundowner or at a party.

First, let’s explain what we mean by “best”. The wines in this series are all ranked according to their aggregated critic scores. This takes all the scores we have for each wine from every critic we follow who has reviewed it. Those scores are then aggregated and assorted in descending order. The scores run to four decimal places, so even though wines might appear to have identical scores, they are ranked in their actual order. All prices are in US dollars and represent the global average retail price across the millions of prices we hold on our database.

So what’s made this year’s best in show?

The World’s Best Proseccos on Wine-Searcher:

Well leading the pack is the Vigneto della Riva di San Floriano Superiore by Nino Franco. This lauded estate has scored three entries into this year’s list. The seeds of the estate were sown by Antonio Franco, whose son Nino and his own son Primo then furthered. It was Primo who helped pioneer a new wave of Prosecco on an international scale.

Their Vigneto della Riva di San Floriano Superiore has for the past ten years hovered resolutely around the $19 mark, while presenting a very respectable critic score of 92 points. Falstaff described the 2022 vintage as having “precise aromas of tropical fruit, hazelnuts, lemon zest and a hint of blood orange, with a creamy echo”.

Next is Nino Franco’s Nodi. Extra Brut, the Nodi has remained relatively consistent at its current price-point of $21 – give or take a few peaks and troughs – and its critic score of 92 points. Falstaff described the 2021 vintage as having notes of “candied lemon, smoky notes, a hint of apple and beautiful floral nuances.”

Number three is the Adriano Adami Vigneto Giardino Rive di Colbertaldo Dry. Still family-owned today, Adriano Adami can trace its roots back to 1920. The Adami family have long been associated with the Valdobbiadene area and are passionate about preserving it for future generations. As a result, sustainability has become one of their key tenets.

Their Vigneto Giardino Rive di Colbertaldo Dry represents the estate’s first single-vineyard Valdobbiadene DOCG, releasing its inaugural vintage in 1933. Today, the wine comes in at $21, having only increased by a couple of dollars over the past ten years, with an aggregated score of 91 points.

Wine Enthusiast wrote about the 2022 vintage: “Acacia and citrus blossom aromas open the nose of this vibrant Prosecco. Notes of Fuji apples and quince flow from the glass.”

In fourth place is the Ca’ dei Zago Dosaggio Zero. Ca’ dei Zago has been home to the Zago family since 1924. Made from grapes grown in their Bastia vineyard – which has a high abundance of marine fossils in the soil – the Ca’ dei Zago Dosaggio Zero is made using the traditional method, and then bottle fermented.

Since 2017, the price has oscillated, initially averaging around $21, before intermittently climbing to today’s $31, along with an aggregated score of 91 points. Wine Enthusiast described the 2018 vintage as “bone-dry and savory, this focused sparkler has delicate, enticing scents of aromatic herb, white stone fruit and yellow field flower”.

Number five is the Col Credas Rive di Farra di Soligo Brut by Adriano Adami. Extra Brut, the Col Credas is 95 percent Glera with a dash of Chardonnay, it is considered one of the tope wines from the Conegliano Valdobbiadene.

Over the past ten years, the price has largely held steady, only rising a couple of dollars to today’s $20, along with an aggregated critic score of 90 points. According to Wine Enthusiast, the 2022 vintage “is focused with aromas of tart green apples, Meyer lemon zest and lilies.”

Number six is the Vecchie Viti Brut by Ruggeri, whose roots date back to the 19th Century winemakers Eliseo Bisol and his son Luigi; however, it wasn’t until 1950 when the winery began to make serious waves.

The Vecchie Viti – made from old vines – has for the last decade consistently been priced around today’s $24, with an aggregated critic’s score of 90 points. Wine Enthusiast wrote of the 2020 vintage, “this gorgeous sparkler has heady scents recalling hawthorn and ripe Bartlett pear … green melon, Granny Smith apple and a hint of gooseberry”.

In seventh place is the Nani Rizzi Millesimato Extra Brut Prosecco di Valdobbiadene DOCG. The winery dates back to 1887 and Giovanni Spagnol – aka Nani Rizzi – since Giovanni’s initial plantings, the winery has continued to be family-run.

The Millesimato Extra Brut comes in at a very affable $14, while boasting an aggregated critic score of 92 points. Falstaff declared the 2022 vintage as having shades of “fresh citrus, white peach and acacia flowers, also pear … wonderfully pleasurable.”

Number eight is the Primo Franco from Nino Franco. Again very affordable, it has come down in price from December 2014’s $23 to today’s $16, with an aggregated critic score of 90 points.

Regarding the 2022 vintage, Wine Enthusiast wrote, “alluring scents of ripe peach, honeydew, and acacia flowers”.

In penultimate place is the Rive di Soligo Brut by Biancavigna, like much of these Prosecco estates, Biancavigna is family-owned although unlike many of them, it has a fairly young tradition, having only been founded in 2004 by siblings Enrico and Elena Moschetta, although, their grandfather had previously had vineyards on the site.

Their Rive di Soligo continues to be a hit with the critics, having climbed in price from December 2017’s $14 to today’s $25, along with an aggregated critic score of 91 points. Wine Enthusiast wrote of the 2022 vintage, “this wine is a stunner with orchard and stone fruit aromas swirling out of the glass followed by mountain flowers and wet gravel aromas”.

Last but not least is the Col Vetoraz Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Cartizze DOCG. Col Vetoraz being another relatively recent venture, having been founded in 1993 by Francesco Miotto with the assistance of agronomist Paolo De Bortoli and winemaker Loris Dall’Acqua. However, since it’s inception, the winery has gone on to achieve much success.

Their Col Vetoraz Prosecco has climbed over the past 10 years from an average of $20 to today’s $28, along with an aggregated critic’s score of 90 points. The 2022 vintage was described by Falstaff as having “fresh apple and white stone fruit, then a touch of quince.”

When it come’s to this year’s best in show for Prosecco, it’s worth noting that not a single one has a score less than 90 points, or a price over $31, there isn’t a single wine listed below $200 on Champagne’s equivalent list.

For all those festive days ahead, Prosecco is as good to your wallet as it is to your friends.