Sparkling Grape Juice is drier and less sweet than grape juice. It’s made from white grape juice.
The more expensive ones use natural carbonation: the grape juice is let ferment a bit to create natural carbonation, then it is flash-pasteurized. This kind of makes it somewhere in between wine and juice. The cheaper ones are artificially carbonated with C02, with the grape juice flash-pasteurized immediately after pressing so that no fermentation will take place. European-made ones may advertise themselves as “low in alcohol” (around 3% alcohol) as opposed to the “100% alcohol” free more common in puritanical North America. Some of the better ones can cost as much as a bottle of wine.
Many people who don’t wish to serve wine at festive occasions will use sparkling grape juice instead, or use it to fill the children’s glasses with while everyone else gets bubbly. This is a perfect use of it. Elsewhere, though, celebrating with a bottle of “Sparkling Grape Juice” will bring great snickers to people’s faces.
Welch’s began making Sparkling Grape Juice in 1981 (artificially carbonated.)