Fun With Carbs

This December 31, we mark not just the end of 2009, but the end of a decade (have they chosen an ‘official’ name for it yet? The Aughts?) So it’s the perfect occasion to pop a bottle of delicious sparkling wine.

If you aren’t familiar with bubbly (or haven’t watched endless episodes of Three Sheets,) you might not know that the label ‘Champagne’ can only be legally applied to wines that come from a specific region of France. So if it comes from California (or Spain, or Italy) it’s something else – sparkling white, cava or prosecco, for example.

Epicurious.com has a handy Champagne primer if you want to learn more.

Read about Table & Vine’s Champagne Extravaganza on Dec. 6

You don’t have to break the bank and buy French, though. I’m a firm believer in good inexpensive wines, and that includes the sparkling stuff.  A few of my favorites:

Freixenet Cordon Negro: Not too dry, a little sweet, plenty of bubbles. Very drinkable. Very affordable – around $9-11

Mionetto Proseccos: They range from dry to semi-sweet. Tried these at the T&V Champagne event. Very tasty. Around $13

Korbel: Despite its recent affiliation with MTV’s “Jersey Shore” (seriously?) I’ve always found Korbel to be a solid household name. According to the Korbel website, the label also offers a Rouge, Brut Rosé and Sweet Rosé, though I’ve never seen them around here.

Poema Cava: A little on the sweet side, but very crisp and enjoyable. Around $9

[yellow tail]: This label, at least for me, has been very hit-or-miss by the grape (Shiraz, good. Chardonnay? HORRIBLE!) and the sparklers are no different. The regular sparkling white is a pretty nice choice. The rosé? PASS. Price: Around $10.

Ballatore Red Spumante: This was a college favorite of mine, and while I’ve moved on to (slightly) bigger and better tastes, it’s still a classic fruity sparkling red in the under-$10 range. Definitely on the sweet side, lots of ripe berry flavor.

One I haven’t tried yet but will be purchasing for New Year’s: Segura Viudas, another Spanish cava. It’s in the $8-10 range at Table & Vine and comes in big ‘magnum’ sized bottles. I’ve heard lots of good things about it.

If you want to splurge: Veuve Clicquot is my favorite ‘good stuff” Champagne. $35-50, depending on the type.

Happy New Year!