No New Year's Eve party would be complete without the sound of popping corks at midnight, and an effervescent toast. Champagne has the honor of being the most famous of the sparkling wines to ring in of the New Year.
New Year's Eve and champagne are so connected in our minds that many people find it difficult to serve it at any other time of year.
Most good champagne costs more than $30. Due to a law passed 50 years ago only the sparkling wines that come from the Champagne region of France can be referred to as "champagne" on their label. Sparkling wines from all other regions in the world are simply referred to as "sparkling wine".
While a bottle of French champagne is something that many people consider the perfect thing to toast special occasions, not everyone is in a position to buy the real thing, especially in these difficult economic times.
This New Year's Eve, if you want to reach for a bottle of bubbly, there are some great ones to choose from that won't break the budget and can be found at local stores. The level of quality of most sparkling wines from places other than France have improved in the past decade, and it's not just California and American-made, there are Italian (Prosecco), Spanish(Cava), New Zealand and Australians making good sparkling wines as well.
The best of these sparklers are about $20 per bottle on average, but you can find decent bubbly priced between $10 and $20. There are some good value wines can be found for less than $10. All of these champagnes are available in the area. Several are available in Riverdale at Dumm's Market as indicated.
Sparkling wines and champagnes are categorized as Extra Brut, Brut Extra dry, Sec and Demi-Sec. Extra Brut - is "extra" dry
Keep in mind the term "Dry" is the opposite of "Sweet"
Brut – dry (most popular style and very food-friendly)
Extra dry – middle of the road dry, not as dry as Brut (great as an aperitif)
Demi-sec – pretty sweet (pair with fruit and dessert)
Champagne and sparkling wines are also categorized as "vintage" or "non-vintage" (NV on the label) meaning they either come from a single year or are a blend of several different years. Most Champagne on the market is non vintage.
Champagne/Sparkling Wine Suggestions Priced from $10-30:
NV Poema Brut Cava $10 A solid performer in the cava category. Aggressively fizzy, with apple and grey mineral flavors and a curt lemon-pith finish. A bit rounder mouth feels, despite impressively low alcohol. Take it to the table.
Minoetto Il Prosecco10-12 in many wine/grocery stores. Prosecco is an Italian wine that has grown in popularity as a cheaper alternative to Champagne. Proseccos can be either dry or fruity and contain about 12% alcohol by volume. Il Prosecco has light flavors of peach and apricot and is a nice balance of fruity and dry.
Pink By YellowGlen (Australian) around 10.00 a bottle. Pink is a bartenders secret. It is equivalent to Moet Rose for a fraction of the cost. Pink is great value for money and gives you a sparkling that is appealing to everyone's taste and will not offend anyone. It is soft and mellow and a very enjoyable refreshing. It is a dry sparkling rose, not a sweet wine. (Available at Dumm's Market in Riverdale Park.)
Domaine Ste Michelle Brut about $10. This sparkling wine from Washington State is a great replacement for French Champagne. It resembles its pricier cousin, with those great toast and fresh bread aromas, but is one-fifth the cost. Along with the toasty aromas, it offers nice citrus and pear flavors, and ends with a hint of honey and cinnamon.
Segura Viudas $12 +."Very solid and sturdy, with aromas of apple, lemon-lime, soda cracker and mineral. The palate is fuller and more flavorful than your average cava, with candied apple, papaya, and lime and lemon flavors. Dry, pithy and hinting at complexity on the finish."
- Wine Enthusiast Magazine, December 15, 2010 -89 POINTS
Freixenet $12 generally a good value. Very easy to find -- indeed, this sparkling wine is available practically anywhere in the world.(Available at Dumm's Market in Riverdale Park.)
Korbel Champagne Brut under $15.00 a bottle A good sparkling wine (champagne) especially the extra dry which is not that hard to find. At around $12 to $14 a bottle this is great for large parties and quite evenings at home. (Available at Dumm's Market in Riverdale Park)
Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut around $20.00 + per bottle — this wine also comes from California, it's the best of the American sparkling wines. It is a bold, rich style of wine, with aromas and flavors of cinnamon, apples and baked dessert breads. It is like an apple pie in a glass, with hints of a pear tart.
Roderer is the American version of the French Louis Roderer
Kirkland Champagne $19.99 Yes Costco has champagne and it is good. Manuel Janisson is presently making the Kirkland Champagne although it may not be as good as the Grand Cru Champagnes of Janisson & Sons, this Champagne is delicious and with great character. We love the slight orange citrus aroma and delicate structure. This Champagne is a bargain at this price and certainly compares very well with the likes of Veuve Clicqout that sells for $39
Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs Rosé $19 Rosés have become very trendy in restaurants recently. Technically, Rosés are an "unfinished" red wine; the wine goes through the red wine making process, but is stopped before extracting too many red wine characteristics. The Blanc de Noirs is made of a combination of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes, which creates a beautiful pinkish hue. Flavors of strawberries, black cherry, and vanilla.
Mumm Napa Cuvee M — From California's Napa Valley, this is among the best sparkling wines on the market, and a good value. It is delicate, with abundant flavors and aromas of peaches, strawberries and pastries, with hints of vanilla. Most bottles sold at around $18.00 - $26.00 per bottle
Mumm Napa is the American version of GH Mumm French Champagne. The French version cost between ten and fifteen dollars more per bottle and is of equal vent taste.
Champagne Suggestions Priced from $25-50:
NV Schramsberg Mirabelle Brut Rosé North Coast Sparkling Wine $25 Davies family's Diamond Mountain winery This rosé has a rich strawberry, roasted orange and spun sugar lead to lively, tangy peach flavors. Great tenacity on the palate, thanks in part to 48 percent Pinot Noir that adds depth.
Domaine Carneros Brut Carneros $25 NV Domaine Carneros Cuvee de la Pompadour Carneros Brut Rosé ($36) though the Domaine Carneros wines can sometimes feel a tad subdued, the Rose is exceptional. The wineries. Clean notes of strawberry and peach are highlighted by a chalky mineral tone. 58 percent Pinot Noir fruit yields a wine with significant depth and versatility. By far one of the most highly recommended It is from the California vineyards of Tattinger.
2002 Roederer Estate L'Ermitage Anderson Valley Brut $45. The latest release of Roederer's top-end vintage effort is in fine form, showing terrific refinement. It opens with aromas of pastry dough, ripe apple, gray mineral and a raspberry tang. Fantastically nuanced on the palate - an appropriately rich texture, not too toasty or yeasty, plenty complex but not sacrificing its fruit. Its higher-acid style will give it years to develop.
Champagne producer Louis Roederer's estate in northern California's cool and windy Anderson Valley puts out one of America's top brut nonvintage sparkling wines (it won F&W's 2005 American Wine Award for best sparkling wine). It's also known for this pretty, brioche-and-wild-strawberry-scented rosé.
Domaine Carneros Cuvée de la Pompadour NV ($42)
Napa Valley's Domaine Carneros, owned by the illustrious French Champagne house Taittinger, produces some of California's best sparkling wines, among them this salmon-colored rosé. It balances lemony acidity with lush strawberry fruit.
No comments:
Post a Comment