It’s a conversation I’ve had countless times with champagne drinkers. “Oh yes, Australian sparkling wines are very good,” they’ll say. “I love what’s coming out of Tasmania, I do. But . . .” and here they’ll pause for effect, “. . . they’re not as good as champagne, are they? They’re just not.”

The last time this happened, I thought to myself, right, we need to put this to the test. So, I gathered a bunch of champagnes in various categories – non-vintage, rosé, late disgorged, etc – and a bunch of top Australian sparkling wines at roughly equivalent price points, wrapped them up to conceal their labels, popped the corks, and invited friends, family and colleagues to taste them and choose their preferred bottles.