Affordable Holiday Sparklers

When I'm not indulging in dessert wine this month, I'm usually rooting through the cabinets for a bottle of sparkling wine. It's not something I save for special occasions--unless you consider a Tuesday night sufficient! More sparkling wine is sold in the US between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day than in the rest of the year. So what will you be drinking this month to put some sparkle in your life? Here are my recommendations for tasty, affordable bubbles for the holidays--and of course they're all under $20.

NV Jaume Serra Cava Cristalino Brut (suggested retail $8; available in the market for $5-$8). Quite possibly the most excellent QPR of any sparkling wine I've had this year, this is stunning value. The aromas and flavors tend toward lemon, toast and apple. There is a yeasty aftertaste, and a strong yet small bead. Delicious for the price.

NV Presto Prosecco Brut ($10.99, Whole Foods; available elsewhere for around $12)
I'm not sure I agree this is a dry enough to be brut, but it is delicious anyway with soft fruit, citrus, and yeast notes. The wine is very well balanced between acidity and richness. Very good QPR.

NV Roederer Estate Brut Anderson Valley ($19.99, Whole Foods; available in the market for $16-$20) You just can't go wrong with this classy, excellent QPR sparkler from the Anderson Valley. Rich notes of apple, hazelnut, and toast leave an appealing freshness in the mouth.

NV Gloria Ferrer Va de Vi Ultra Cuvée (just over $20 in my local independent grocery store; available in the market for $16-$22). The warm, pale yellow color of this wine is a good indication of the gentle wine within. Abundant mousse and fine bead sets up the aromas of pear and lemon. These elements are echoed in the flavors, and are accompanied by cherry and toast notes. Predominantly Pinot Noir, with some Chardonnay and a touch of Muscat. Very good QPR.

NV Laurens Crémant de Limoux Brut ($15.99 in my local independent grocery store; available in the market for $12-$18) Another reliably excellent QPR sparkler, this wine has a creamy mouthfeel and aromas of citrus pith and brioche dough. Creamy pear, apple, and lemon flavors are enhanced by tiny, frothy bubbles. Delicious and lively.

NV Vinos de Terrunos German Gilabert Penedès Brut Nature Reserva ($14.99, domaineLA; available in the market for around $13) This excellent QPR sparkler has an aromatic profile reminiscent of French Champagne: yeast, lemon pith, mineral. Brightly intense lemon and bread dough flavors with lively bubbles.

NV Latitude 50 Pinot Noir Spatburgunder Sekt ($16.99, domaineLA; available in the market for around $15) This very good QPR dry sparkling wine is pale rose in color. Faint aromas of wild strawberry and bread dough lead to a rich, round-tasting strawberry flavor accented with notes of toast and clay.

2008 Reginato Malbec Celestina (suggested retail, $20; available in the market for $17-$20) Unlike any other sparkler I've had, this is very dark in color--like watered-down pomegranate juice. The flavors are quite fruity, with lots of raspberry and a hint of deeper plum as well. There is a dry finish, making for a delicious, seasonally appropriate cranberry-colored sparkler for holiday toasts.Very good QPR.

Full Disclosure: I received samples of the Reginato and the Jaume Serra sparkling wines for review. The rest I purchased when out shopping in my favorite wine and grocery stores.

Comforting Weekend Wine and Food Pairings

So, it's the weekend again. Nearly. Almost. If you are biting your nails waiting for 5 pm today, you aren't alone. This time of year it's easy to feel a bit frazzled and in need of some major comfort.

I have three wine suggestions--sparkling, white, and red--and three recipe ideas for you. One menu is vegetarian, one is easy to prep and bakes in the oven (filling your house with yummy aromas and giving you some time to put your feet up), and one is a fun twist on a family favorite.

Brie, Apple, and Arugula Quesadillas with NV Presto! Prosecco Brut
(10.99, Whole Foods; available elsewhere for around $11)
You may have seen this recipe in the latest Cooking Light. It's delicious, fast, and as good for brunch or lunch as it is for dinner. Brimming with gooey cheese, crisp apple, and peppery arugula, what's not to like? Pair it with a softly citrus sparkling wine like this one, and it tastes even better. The wine is a shade past brut in my opinion, with a nice yeastiness to accompany the citrus elements. The fruit aromas and flavors are a lively counterpoint to the apples and the bubbles cut the richness of the Brie a bit. Very good QPR.

Meatloaf and 2008 Meridian Vineyards Merlot
(suggested retail, $9; available for $8)
Meatloaf has to be one of the all-time most comforting foods. I always use the same recipe from the revised Joy of Cooking that includes ketchup, lots of onions, three eggs, and a cup of quick oats instead of the usual breadcrumbs. You can make meatloaf as light or as rich as you want by using lower-fat proteins like turkey or chicken, but we always go for good old ground beef. With it? Merlot. It's the perfect match. I was impressed by the very good QPR of this bottle of wine, with its rich blackberry and plum aromas. Expect flavors of cocoa, plum, and dark chocolate, with a rich, mocha aftertaste. This wine stands up to the meatloaf, with a nicely plush texture that complements the food.

Hot Dogs with Cheddar and Apples and 2009 Schloss Castell Silvaner Trocken
(available for around $12)
Hot Dogs are a guilty pleasure, one that I indulge in rarely. When I do, I want to enjoy them without any excuses. Finally, I found a recipe that elevates the simple hot dog to an even greater treat: hot dogs in pretzel rolls with sauteed apples and cheddar cheese. Kids will adore them, but grownups will gobble them up, too. The recipe provided an interesting pairing challenge, given the slight sweetness of the hot dogs which was accentuated by the apples. The answer was a dry Silvaner from Germany, with its pure apple aromas and flavors. This is a dry wine, but there is a slightly honeyed note in the finish which made it ideal for hot dogs and apples. Expect a fresh, stony, even slightly saline element in the wine, too--like smelling a beach after a rainstorm. Delicious, and excellent QPR.

Full Disclosure: I received samples of the Silvaner and Merlot for review.

A Bargain in Bubbles: Zonin Prosecco

I'm sliding in a weekend post--a recommendation for bargain bubbles in case you have something to celebrate. When a wine is this enjoyable and this affordable, I figure finding a reason to celebrate is pretty easy. Did you finish your laundry? Clean out the TiVO? Wash dishes?

If so, treat yourself to a bottle of the NV Zonin Prosecco (suggested retail around $14, but available for $8-$18 in the market). This is a new bottling for Zonin, which already makes a popular "Special Cuvee" and "Brut" Prosecco. I really enjoyed this wine in part because it was a hair off-dry, which made for a wine that tasted soft with aromas and flavors of honeyed apple. There are some zngy tangerine peel notes in the aftertaste, which only added to the attractions for me.

This was a nicely-priced, thoroughly enjoyable, not-too-serious sipper of a Prosecco that you can enjoy before dinner or with dessert without guilt or stress. Very good QPR all around.

Full Disclosure: I received this wine as a sample.

Veneto Wine, Sweet and Sparkling

This month I actually managed to find a sparkling wine and a dessert wine to add to my tastings of wine from Italy's Veneto region.

Though many Italian regions produce sweet wine, fewer produce sparklers. Though you might not know it, Prosecco--Italy's best known sparkling wine--is made in the Veneto. I wanted to try a Prosecco that I wasn't familiar with and selected the NV Sorelle Bronca Prosecco di Valdobbiadene (K&L Wines, $16.99; available elsewhere for $14-$17). Made by a pair of viticultural sisters, it was a clean, bright wine that was very pale in color. Aromas of lemon and lemon blossom made a fresh first impression, and the medium-large bead was equally refreshing. The emphasis in the flavors were lemon juice, with a touch of pink grapefruit. This was a simple, citrusy Prosecco and qualified as good QPR given its enjoyable freshness.

In the sweet wine department, I tried the 2006 Maculan Dindarello (Bristol Farms, $21.99/375ml; available elsewhere for $15-$19) This was an absolutely delicious dessert wine made with Moscato grapes, its sweetness and acidity in excellent balance. There were aromas of orange peel and pineapple, and the flavors were equally tropical and full of pineapple. The aftertaste developed a touch of coconut and brown sugar in the juicy aftertaste. Excellent QPR for a wine that reminded me of Sauternes in both taste and texture.

Holiday Food and Wine Strategy #5: Bubbles

When all else fails, there are bubbles.

Whether its for drinking, gifting, unexpected visitors, toasting, or sitting by the fire and simply recovering from it all there is nothing--ok, very little--that bubbles cannot fix. In the US, more sparkling wine is sold between December 1 and January 5 than at any other time of the year. Maybe because it's cool and frosty while being warming and toasty and therefore it seems to fit the mood of the holidays just perfectly. Can't figure out what to give as a gift? A nice bottle or two of sparkling wine will be welcomed by anyone over the age of 21. No idea what wine will go with that food? With the possible exception of roast beef, it goes with everything (and if you splurge for vintage champagne, roast beef actually goes very well with it).

The only problem is that it can be so dang expensive. But there are bubbles (cava, cremant de bourgogne, prosecco) that do tend to require less shelling out than other more costly bottlings. The NV Soligo Prosecco Brut is just such a bottle and is quite possibly the best prosecco I've ever had. (I received this as a sample from domaine547, and you can get your hands on some for $15.99) This is a really well-made and superbly balanced wine that strikes a pose between toast and citrus notes. If you don't like prosecco because of what can be a bitter taste, you will not find it here. Instead, look for lots of creamy mousse, and a medium bead. These will be followed up by notes of grilled bread, lemon, and lemon blossom. This wine is many steps up from most $8 proseccos. Excellent QPR. Plus, and not to be overlooked at this time of year, this wine has a bottle shaped like a Hollywood starlet and a label that is tastefully glam. In other words, it is perfect for gifting if you don't drink it all yourself.

I've reviewed lots of other sparkling wines over the past year, so if you are still looking for something with bubbles, check those reviews out and stock up. To be honest, I've never been sorry to have 6 bottles on hand when I go into full holiday mode--and I've never had a bottle left over on January 2, so maybe gathering together a mixed case of sparkling wine now would be a wise strategy!

Thanksgiving and Wine, Part 2: Some Specific Recommendations

If you haven't already bought your wines for Thanksgiving, you're probably starting to think about it right about now. This is a great week to make some decisions and purchases, because the crowds haven't yet started to build and the shelves are still relatively well-stocked. What follows are some specific, fruit-forward, budget-friendly recommendations of wines that I think would go well with the Big Meal. (vintage image from Caaren Charles)

I've had all of these wines sometime during the past year, and kept tasting notes for them (long before I started blogging here) so I've checked to make sure that those listed are still available.

I broke the recommendations into three categories (whites, reds, and sparkling wines) and indicated a general price range so you can figure out which are best for your budget. The range is based on prices I found on Wine-Searcher. Of course, prices in your area may be different from those indicated here.

Whites:

2004 Hugel et Fils Gentil ($5-$10): A very good gewurztraminer with crisp apple notes and a sweet impression. Pale straw in color, with appealing apple and floral aromas. Will be excellent with a traditional meal, or with a meal where there are spicy side-dishes.

2005 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc ($10-15): Pale, almost translucent in color, with grass, melon, and grapefuit on the palate. Not as fragrant as some sauvignon blancs, it is still more complex and interesting than most at this price point. Zingy enough to cut through the heavy foods, but not at all acidic.

2004 Voss Sauvignon Blanc ($10-$15): A nice sauvignon blanc, if a bit one dimensional, with predominantly pink grapefruit aromas and palate. This wine has a little bit of herbal freshness, so will go well with meals that use traditional spices (thyme, parsley, sage). Clean and crisp.

2004 Sollner Danubio Gruner Veltliner ($10-$15): For a full tasting note, see my earlier post.

2004 Dry Creek Vineyard Dry Chenin Blanc ($10-$15): Pale straw color, lemony upfront then a sweet undertone that keeps it brisk and fresh. Would be particularly good with spicier sides and smoked turkey.

2003 Rutherford Hill Chardonnay ($15-$20): Pale straw color, with a very faint aroma of lemons and pears. On the palate, citrus and mineral notes with a tiny bit of butter around the edges. Crisp, clean chardonnay with no bitter or oaky flavors to cause problems with all those flavors on the table.

2004 Sineann Pinot Gris ($15-$20): Delicious. Like biting into a golden delicious apple, tart and sweet at the same time. Appley rather than lemony, it's not entirely characteristic of the varietal but it works. No bitter edges, so its easy to pair with a wide range of foods.

Reds:

2002 Georges Duboeuf Fleurie ($10-$15): Extremely good beaujolais wine. Light and fruity red, with raspberries and some depth as a result of the bottle age. Most gamay wines are for drinking straight away, but this one has staying power due to the excellent vintage. Perfect for roasted turkey, dark meat turkey, mushroom dishes, and robust holiday foods.

2004 Castle Rock Pinot Noir Monterey ($10-$15): Richer and more nuanced than most pinots at this price point, this ruby wine had earthy and berry flavors and a good finish that was spicy and drew you back for more.

2005 Mark West Pinot Noir Central Coast ($10-$15): This was a juicy, fruity pinot noir. When you first open it, the aroma can be hot and alcoholic, so open it before the meal and let those aromas blow off. After 20 minutes or so, it will smell like red raspberry with a tiny bit of underlying red currant. Crushed raspberry in color, the wine's palate was silky and raspberry as well. A bit of meatiness in the finish made it linger. Not as spicy and rich as the Castle Rock described above.

2005 Pierre-Marie Chermette Beaujolais ($10-$15): For a full tasting note, see my earlier post.

NV Lazy Creek Vineyards Red Table Wine ($20): 100% pinot noir grapes, blended from a number of vintages to yield a rich and flavorful pinot noir. Loads of red fruit and a little bit of earthy funkiness in the aromas. It's a little less silky than the very best pinots, but an excellent drinking wine to go with a wide variety of foods.

Sparkling Wines:

NV Cavit Lunetta Prosecco ($10-$15): For a full tasting note, see my earlier post. This wine would be good with any course, from hors d'oeuvres through to dessert.

NV Santa Margherita Prosecco Brut ($15-$20): A bright, crisp prosecco. Not at all harsh or bitter, this is appley and lemony. Would be best with hors d'oeuvres or the main course. Surprisingly rich and complex for a prosecco.

NV Domaine Chandon Extra-Dry Riche ($15-$20): For a full tasting note, see my earlier post. Would be best with hors d'oeuvres, dinners that use lots of spice, and dessert as it has a definitely sweet impression on the aromas, even though it drinks dry.

NV Piper-Hiedsieck Brut ($20-$25): Light, lemony, and crisp with medium bead and a bright finish. Best with the main course, since it's a robust champagne.

Happy shopping!

Indian Food and Wine

Last night I cooked Keralan food from South India using Maya Kaimal's excellent Curried Favors. I wasn't able to find any of the recipes I used online, but if you want to check out Maya's accessible approach to Indian food, you can go to the Rachael Ray magazine website (she's everywhere!) and see her recipe for curried chicken. We had lots of fun with our belated Diwali festival (missed it by a few days!), eating shrimp thiyal and cabbage thoren with some eggplant curry and lamb korma.

But the menu did pose problems for someone like me who prefers wine to beer. I know that beer is supposedly best. I was told this by the guys at Chronicle Wine Cellar, who tried to persuade me not to buy wine that day. But I think gewurztraminer and rieslings do work well with curries, so I asked the Chronicle Wine staff for a recommendation and they suggested I try either the 2003 Chateau d'Orschwihr Gewurztraminer Bollenberg ($14.95) or the NV Cavit Prosecco Lunetta ($7.95). I bought both, to try out a little experiment.

We opened both before dinner, and I had sips of both before eating. I was extremely impressed by the NV Cavit Prosecco Lunetta, which I think had excellent QPR. It was fresh and round on the palate, and the nicely bubbling glass was pleasantly refreshing. It was toasty and a bit yeasty, with I found a nice counterpoint to the typical lemony essence of prosecco. Sometimes a prosecco at this price point can be a bit harsh and acidic, but not this one. With the food it stood up to the strong flavors without overwhelming them, and while I've never had a sparkling wine with Indian food after this I have to say that prosecco was a great recommendation. I wouldn't necessarily pull out your finest French vintage champagne, but the prosecco was very good indeed. This Lunetta would be an excellent holiday pour, good with a variety of foods and extremely affordable. Striking label, too. Thanksgiving?

On to the 2003 Chateau d'Orschwihr Gewurztraminer Bollenberg, which I rank as having good QPR. (here's a label shot from an earlier vintage--but the label looks the same). I'm not as familiar with Alsatian Gewurztraminer, which is less dry than new world bottlings. It was deep and golden in the glass, and had really interesting honey, peach, and apricot aromas. The first sip, without food, was over the top and sweet. This is definitely an off-dry wine. With the food however, espeically the highly seasoned cabbage and some spicy chutneys, this wine was very nice. But I did feel that it may be overwhelming the food, rather than complementing it. I found it interesting that the CWCellar staff felt that riesling was too lean and wouldn't stand up to the food as well as the gewurztraminer.

So the jury is still out on Indian food and wine. I have yet to feel like I know the wine to go to--never mind the maker--when I'm thinking of cooking up a Keralan feast like this. Any readers with suggestions or recommendations, please leave a comment.

Saturday Wine Shopping--Thinking Ahead

Today's wine shopping theme was: thinking ahead. I was prompted by the prospect of dinners with friends over the next few weeks (need wine to take to my generous hosts and hostesses, as well as wine in multiple bottles to serve at a Keralan fall feast I'm cooking on Thursday), the impending Turkey Day holiday, and by the challenge of the next Wine Blogging Wednesday to get out there and do some pre-planning that didn't involve simply thinking of what to drink with tonight's dinner. Kitchen Chick is hosting the WBW in early November, and the topic is ice wines--kind of a challenge for the under $20 bracket I focus on. I love dessert wines, though, and have never had an ice wine because they are usually way out of my wallet's comfort zone. But I did some online research and discovered that my local Beverages & More had a bottle that wouldn't break the bank, as well as a nice special on Domaine Chandon Brut Reserve. So I got in the car and headed over to the Pasadena branch of the store.

People can get quite sniffy about Beverages & More, which is (let's face it) a supermarket for wine. They even have a bar-coded loyalty card, just like the supermarkets. They seem to be everywhere in So Cal and like most chains, they can vary enormously in quality from branch to branch. The Pasadena branch is neither the worst nor the best I've shopped in, and I usually just go 2-3 times a year to buy sparkling wine and the odd French and Italian good buys you can find there. In general, their selection is more varied and more interesting than what you find at Ralph's or Albertson's, and their prices are competitive with the supermarkets. Though, if you hit a Pavilions with a good sale on, nothing beats their prices if they have the wines you want. But don't go to BevMo looking for advice. Sometimes you luck out and get a great clerk, but most often they know less than a serious wine drinker does about the options. They can help you find the sauternes, though! They are also quite good about posting shelf-talkers with magazine scores on them, which can be a help when wading through aisle after aisle of California Cabernets. Yes, yes, scores are no substitute for knowledge but who among us pays no attention to those insidious little 90 point proclamations??

Today's outing yielded a few finds: 2003 Ch. Lafaurie-Peyraguey Sauternes ($23.99/375ml and $44.99/750ml) which received huge ratings (97!) from all those wine magazines most of us read. Based on Cellar Tracker, folks are already drinking this wine which probably won't really even begin to live up to its potential until 2010. I bought a couple of bottles to put away for Christmas in 2010-2013. At $23.99 this really did qualify as a genuine bargain. I snapped up the last bottle of 2004 Jackson-Triggs Proprietor's Reserve Vidal Ice Wine for WBW ($21.99). And I bought three bottles of bubbly, all non-vintage: Nino Franco Prosecco Rustico ($16.99), Domaine Chandon Extra-Dry Riche ($13.99), and the Domaine Chandon Brut Reserve ($17.99 on sale). The sparklers will start flying off the shelves soon in anticipation of the holidays, so I wanted to start drinking around in my price range for some good options to buy and have on hand.

Indian food demands Gewurztraminer in my opinion, and I found their selection less than inspired so headed back to Chronicle Wines to get all the remaining 2003 Hamel Pinot Noir I could get my hands on and see what they had in the gewurz department. I left with two bottles of 2003 Chateau d'Orschwihr Gewurztraminer from Alsace ($14.95) and will let you know how that goes down later this week.