(Forbes) - American sparkling wines just keep getting better and better.

I have observed this happy trend over the last decade and attribute it to the new wine industry’s inventive spirit, its ambition to always be trying to now, finally, get it right.  Of course there’s no “finally” when it comes to making wine, it’s always an ongoing process, it’s always a constant adaptation, always a struggle to coax the best possible wine from the terroir.

But it’s a struggle that in California and elsewhere is producing some very rewarding, ever-improving, wines.

The presence of Champagne makers in California certainly helps. Taittinger, Roederer, Mumm & Moet Chandon all have outposts there, but the expertise imported from France can only carry them so far. Conditions in California are so different, that they have to adapt, work with what they have, not slavishly apply the rules that have been so successful on their cooler home turf.

American producers are learning too, and remarkably quickly. The secret here is cool – to make good, Champagne-like sparkling wine producers need the sort of chilly environs that don’t really exist in California, so they have to seek out the coolest regions. Carneros and Anderson Valley seem to be particularly hospitable, as do other cool climate locations such as Oregon and NY’s Finger Lakes.

Jeremy Noye on NYC wine shop Morrell & Company has seen this trend develop at first hand. “The established houses, whether established by a French organization or producers here in the US on their own, are all improving. The improved quality in sparkling wine is like domestic wine in general. it’s all about time.”

The consumer is catching on too.

“There’s a new interest in domestic sparkling wine because of the renewed interest in Champagne. With Champagne getting more integrated into the American market beyond just a celebratory drink, you now see that spilling over into domestic sparkling wine.”

This growing acceptance of domestic sparklers among knowledgeable wine people Noye attributes in part to the recent economic downturn. “When the stock market got very wonky here there was a big movement among consumers away from high-end Champagne to lower priced Champagne or sparkling wine that was affordable, but of high quality. We in the retail sector saw a lot of growth of sparkling wine. People no longer wanting to spend over $50 on a bottle of Champagne.”

Now, though the recession has receded, consumers have not lost their newly discovered affection for these ever improving sparklers.

Argyle Blanc de Blanc, Knudsen Vineyard 2011

Dundee Hills, Oregon, $50

100% Chardonnay

The Chardonnay is obvious from the first, beguiling sip, and hugely rewarding all the way through to the long, lingering finish where the lemony freshness emerges to complement the mouthfilling prologue. Cries out for caviar.

Domaine Carneros by Taittinger, Brut Rosé NV 

Carneros, California, $37

58% Pinot Noir, 42% Chardonnay

Light, bone dry and crisp on the open, with every glass it became rounder and a better companion to the salty; fishy canapes. Or perhaps it was the canapes that bought out the best in the wine. Funny how it works like that.

Domaine Chandon Blanc de Noir

California, $22

Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier & Chardonnay

Made primarily from dark grapes, that’s the “noir” bit in the name, though they wouldn’t be allowed to call it Blanc de Noir in Champagne thanks to the interloping Chardonnay. The Pinots account for the weight and sense of substance, and the result is an altogether captivating, strawberry-infused, fizz for a modest price.

Iron Horse Classic Vintage Brut 2010

Green Valley, Russian River Valley, California, $42

69% Pinot Noir, 31% Chardonnay

Perfect balance; a weightless intensity shot through with veins of personality-driving minerality. Far more interesting than many inexpensive Champagnes, and not a few expensive ones too.