Tag Archives: Bubbles

We all should drink more bubbles

26 Saturday Dec 2020

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It’s time to celebrate the new year – perhaps it’s ring in the new year and chase out the old one.

Bubbles, of course, is the traditional beverage of choice for most revelers. Having now worked in retail wine sales, I’ve developed more of a love for sparkling wines. There really is something for everyone and at all price points.

As opposed to recommending specific bottles, perhaps dropping a few names, let’s cover the choices that will work for you and what you might expect to pay.

Bubbles start with champagne. The area of Champagne in France isn’t particularly large but nearly 360 Champagne houses produce more than 300 million bottles annually. True champagne is made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Meunier. A blanc de blanc is 100% Chardonnay while a Blanc de Noir is Pinot Noir.

Lots of inexpensive bubbles’ options!

True champagne starts around $30-$50 a bottle. The U.S. is the second largest importer of French Champagne, Britain takes the top spot. The best-selling champagnes in the world are widely available in the US. If you want to go where the crowd goes look for Moet-Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Nicolas Feuillatte, Laurent-Perrier, Taittinger, Pommery. And Piper-Heidsieck – and of course, Dom Perignon.

Ask your wine shop clerk to make recommendations from small houses and you might just find better wines. One specific: Nomine Renard for around $40. Or try US made Schramsberg producers of Blanc and Noir at $30-$40.

There are also regional standout producers like Mawby from Northern Michigan.

A lesser known option is grower champagnes. If you like the farm-to-fork concept in restaurants, a grower champagne is for you. Many of the big houses buy their grapes from growers – nothing wrong with that. The grower champagnes are grown and produced by a single producer. These champagnes sell generally from $70 to $125. This is my best bet for outstanding quality and drinkability over the big houses.

If you want something more affordable look for an Italian Prosecco, Spanish Cava, US champagnes and French Cremant. The Cremants are a particularly good value made like champagne. Great Cremant is produced in Burgundy, Alsace, Loire Valley and Southern France. Average cost for great Cremant bubbles runs around $20. They are also a bit more drinkable if you’re not used to true champagne.

Another entry to not overlook is Italy, yes the land of tannic dark red wines and pasta. La Spinetta and Ferrari are a couple of names to look for.

Bubbles should be enjoyed year round. It’s not just for New Year’s. Try bubbles with a salad of mild flavored food. Drink bubbles on the porch or patio on a hot summer day.

Grab a bottle of sparkle, and let’s toast 2021 – and kick 2020 to the back of our collective memory.

Happy New Year!

What I’m drinking? More bubbles!

27 Tuesday Feb 2018

Posted by in Newspaper Column 2018

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In the early years of this column I’d do a semi-regular feature called, ‘What I’ve Been Drinking Lately.’  Let’s bring that back in 2018. We’ll recommend specific wines that, in a way, become generic recommendations for easy-to-find wine picks.

grape-sense-logoMore and more bubbles are turning up on my wine rack. It’s taken too much time but after awhile any wine drinker will learn sparking wines aren’t just for New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, or a wedding reception.

Good sparkling wine is a marvelous aperitif. A cold sparkler is a phenomenal porch pounder. Bubbles pair well with salads, lighter style seafood, and even fresh fruit.

Sparkling wine sales are growing around the globe. Whether its Cava from Spain, Cremant from Burgundy or Loire, Italian Prosecco, American bubbles, or the grand daddy of them all – Champagne from Champagne, France, bubbles are hot.

If you’re not a big bubbles drinker now, let’s find an easy place to start. Prosecco might be the easiest entry point for most wine fans. Prosecco comes from Northern Italy, largely made from the glera grape, and is very affordable. Most Prosecco wines are made dry like a tart brut. But the typical pear, honeysuckle flavors trick the palate into thinking it’s a bit sweeter.

MionettoAn easy starting point is Mionetto Prosecco. It’s fresh mouthful of fruit with light bubbles. Mionetto can be found at the entry level of $13-$16 and is widely distributed. Other entry level Prosecco include Bisol and Rebuli, among others.

I prefer my bubbles with a good chill. It won’t take you long to figure out where you like the temperature of your sparklers.

Like any other grape in the wine world, you’ll notice new layers of flavor and satisfaction as you climb the price ladder. Prices are quite modest for Prosecco and Cava starting at under $10. Consumers can find outstanding sparking wine’s in the $30 range.

There’s nothing like French Champagne but you won’t find one for 13 bucks. Good champagne starts in the $40-$50 range.

Let’s add its not a bad time to stock up. Most fine wine shops and liquor stores pack the shelves for the holidays through Valentines day. Look for prices to be discounted in the next few weeks.

And a final note for today, most all sparkling wine producers produce a sparkling rose’. In a brut you get a dry, and sometimes yeast hint, that isn’t pleasant to all palates. Sparkling Rose is a personal favorite. Rose’ is still dry, bubbly, but with a bit more fruit.

You won’t regret keeping bubbles on your wine rack.

Bubbles don’t have to be expensive

30 Saturday Dec 2017

Posted by in France, Holidays, Italy, Newspaper Column 2017, Uncategorized

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The sale of sparkling wines and champagne has been booming. French Champagne, Italian Prosecco, and Spanish Cava have become year-round refreshing treats. And after years of predictions it could become a big player, England’s sparkling wines are finally turning up on shelves of U.S. wine stores.

grape-sense-logoGrape Sense has urged year-round enjoyment of bubbles, but everyone at least thinks of Champagne at the new year.

Let’s do a quick review of what’s available, something we haven’t done in a few years.

Italian Prosecco is one of the biggest booming wines in the world. The bubbles are lighter, and the wines are a little sweeter. Most Prosecco is made with Glera, native to northern Italy, but up to nine other grapes can be blended to make up to 15 percent of any Prosecco.

rubuliHere is an easy tip to make sure you’re buying quality Italian bubbles. Look for the region Valdobbiadene on the bottle. You don’t have to pronounce it, just remember it. Valdobbiadene is the premier region for the Glera grape.  You can find great Prosecco at most wine shops ranging from $15-$35. Rebuli and Bisol are good producers.

Spanish Cava is even more affordable. There are good bottles as low as $8-$10. Spain is the second largest producer of sparkling wine, second only to Champagne. Much of the Cava is made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, though local grapes like Parellada get involved as well. Look for an easy-to-find bottling like Poema or Segura Viudas is an even better producer.

U.S. producers in California have been around a long time. A personal and affordable favorite is Sonoma County’s Gloria Ferrer. Several different bottlings are available but the entry level Sonoma Brut is a great wine for $20. If you want something special, try the Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Blanc for just a few dollars more. A bit of education, a blanc de blanc is made of 100 percent Chardonnay while a Blanc de Noir would be Pinot Noir bubbles.

Other top California bubble makers include Korbel, Gruet, Roederer, Schramsberg, and Mumm.

HebrartOf course, no discussion of bubbles can exclude Champagne. French bubbles remain the benchmark all sparkling wine producers seek to reproduce. The classic Chardonnay and Pinot Noir bubble blends set the world standard. Many producers near Reims, France, about 80 miles north of Paris, have been making Champagne for hundreds of years.

Like many things French, champagne doesn’t come cheap. There are good bottles around $40-$60 but most people are more familiar with names like Dom Perignon, Bollinger, Krug, Moet & Chandon, and many others. Visit a wine shop and you’ll learn the names you know also make less expensive bottles.

A somewhat newer trend in Champagne is the emergence, at least from a marketing perspective, of grower wines. These are usually small production houses really focused on growing their grapes and making wine with a focus on terroir. In Indiana, look for a producer like Marc Hebrart. The Hebrart Brut sells for around $35 and the Rose’ bubbles about $60.

May you enjoy good health and success in 2018.