There is something about the sound of a cork popping that can instantly change the mood.
An ordinary dinner becomes a celebration. A catch-up with friends feels a little more special. Even an uneventful Tuesday can suddenly seem like an occasion worth marking.
For many women, the appeal of bubbly goes far beyond the taste. It is the ritual of opening the bottle, the fizz rising in the glass and the familiar clink of glasses before a toast.
But why do women love bubbly? The answer may lie in a combination of history, psychology, social connection and the simple pleasure of turning everyday moments into something worth celebrating.
A long history of women and bubbly
Women have played an important role in the history of sparkling wine.
One of the earliest women associated with making bubbly fashionable was Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, better known as Madame de Pompadour, the influential mistress of King Louis XV of France. She is famously credited with saying that champagne was the only wine that left a woman looking beautiful after drinking it.
Whether the quote is entirely accurate or not, the association between women, celebration and sparkling wine has endured for centuries.
Women have also played a significant role behind the scenes of the industry. At a time when business and winemaking were largely dominated by men, women running champagne houses helped shape some of the styles and traditions still associated with sparkling wine today.
Bonang Matheba, founder of South African MCC brand House of BNG, believes women have long had a connection with some of the world’s most celebrated bottles. “Women have always been behind the best bottles,” she says.
Why bubbly is associated with luxury
A glass of bubbly carries a sense of occasion that few other drinks can match.
For centuries, sparkling wine from France’s Champagne region was associated with royalty, important celebrations and grand occasions. It was served at coronations and later became a fixture at royal gatherings and society events. That history helped create an enduring association between bubbly, luxury and celebration.
Today, that idea has become more accessible. You do not need a royal banquet or milestone birthday to open a bottle.
Bubbly can be part of a long lunch, a book club gathering, brunch with friends or simply a Friday evening at home. And perhaps that is part of its appeal: it allows people to create a sense of occasion for themselves.
The power of the ritual
The experience of drinking bubbly often begins before the first sip.
There is the anticipation of opening the bottle, the sound of the cork and the fizz that follows. Then comes the pouring, the toast and the shared moment. These rituals can help signal that something different is happening.
Psychologically, rituals often make experiences feel more meaningful. The act of opening a bottle of sparkling wine can therefore become part of the celebration itself, rather than simply a way of serving a drink. For many women, bubbly is also closely connected to memory.
A particular bottle might remind someone of a wedding, a birthday, a graduation, a holiday or an evening spent with close friends. Over time, those associations can become part of the appeal.
Does the bottle influence the experience?
Packaging can also shape first impressions. Research has suggested that visual cues, including colour, imagery and design, can influence expectations about how a wine might taste or how much a person expects to enjoy it.
However, when it comes to choosing sparkling wine, previous experience, personal taste and familiarity with a particular brand may ultimately play a bigger role than the appearance of the bottle.
The takeaway is simple: presentation can create anticipation, but the experience in the glass still matters.
It’s about the taste, too
Of course, no amount of ceremony can compensate for a wine people do not enjoy drinking. Sparkling wines offer a broad range of styles, from crisp and dry to richer and fruitier, giving drinkers plenty of choice depending on their individual tastes.
Fresh citrus, berry and tropical fruit notes can make certain styles particularly approachable, while richer flavours can appeal to those looking for something with more complexity.
The growing popularity of South African MCC has also introduced consumers to a wider variety of locally produced sparkling wines.
For many drinkers, finding the right bubbly is less about following a particular trend and more about discovering a style that suits their palate and the occasion.
Bubbly brings people together
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons women love bubbly is that it is rarely just about drinking. It is often part of a shared experience.
A bottle might be opened at a baby shower, graduation, birthday lunch, bridal celebration or girls’ night. Increasingly, however, people are also choosing to celebrate smaller moments.
A promotion at work. A completed project. A long week survived. Or simply the fact that friends are together.
For Bonang Matheba, that sense of everyday celebration is central to the philosophy behind House of BNG.
“House of BNG was never about champagne saved for someday,” she says. “It’s my love letter to South Africa, made with grapes from some of the best terroir in the world, for the woman who already knows she’s the occasion.”
So, why do women love bubbly?
Perhaps there is no single answer. It is the history, the ritual and the sense of celebration. It is the sound of the cork, the bubbles in the glass and the memories created around a shared bottle.
Bubbly has a way of making an ordinary moment feel slightly more important. And perhaps that is the real reason it remains such a favourite. Sometimes, you do not need to wait for a special occasion.
You can simply decide that the occasion is now.
For more information about House of BNG, visit the official House of BNG website.
