Fun With Carbs

Pop champagne...

Thirteen tables of champagnes and sparkling wines  – and amazing little nibbles passed on trays. I can’t think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than at the best cocktail party the area has to offer.

Last year, I vowed I’d make it to Table & Vine’s Champagne Extravaganza in the 2009 holiday season. I’m an absolute sucker for bubbles, but basically only the affordable ones. With the exception of Veuve at nice parties and a bottle of Dom at our wedding, we haven’t tried too much of the good stuff. That all changed last night.

How do you sample 75+ sparklers without floating away?  Well, you’ve got to sip and pour out the rest, lest you end up on the floor with the spins, laughing uncontrollably. (No, I’ve never had champagne on New Year’s.) Or, like some of the snootier patrons at the event, you choose a short list of samples and then elbow your way in front of other customers, interrupting a representative’s pitch. Anyway.

Wine importers poured everything from $8.98 Korbel to $300 Armand de Brignac. (Which, curiously, occupied the same table.) We tried bruts, reserves, rosés, demi secs, blanc de blancs, imperials, cuvées, cavas and proseccos,  from Napa, New Mexico, Spain and Italy in addition to the famed Champagne region of France. Truly, there was a bubbly for everyone.

Mumm Napa and Perrier-Jouet

A rep pouring Mumm Napa sparklers offered me a taste of their Cuvée M and claimed it was a perfect pairing for spicy foods. To prove this, she produced a basket of Thai-spiced potato chips and told me to taste the wine before and after a bite. She was right – the spice leapt off my tongue upon second sip.

It took us a while to make our way through the line at the Moët & Chandon table, where Dom, Veuve and Krug were on display. Naturally.

The event was catered by One Fine Day of Longmeadow. Waiters circulated spectacular little hors d’oeuvres, and cheese blocks with fruit and crackers were situated in the middle of the room. Here’s a roundup of the delicious bites we tried:

Lobster bisque (which we paired with a rose)

Amazing grilled shrimp on bamboo skewers

Crispy lobster wontons

Stuffed mushrooms (you know I didn't try these)

Beef tenderloin crostini with horseradish sauce

Chicken satay with peanut sauce

Chocolate 'rangoons'; cheese and fruit

There was also a crab and corn salad, served atop big Frito ‘scoops.’ At the dessert table, we picked up what looked like chocolate-covered strawberries, but one bite confirmed that they were bites of chocolate-dipped cheesecake. Sweet surprise.

No one on the corner has swagga like Cristal...

The mood in the tasting room was high-spirited and merry, and even the importers got in on the fun. We made our way to the table offering Roederer and Gosset, and the very well-dressed representative poured us sips of Cristal, ending with a rapper-inspired flourish,folding his arms across his chest.

At another table, my husband joked to a representative that the taste of one French sparkler was ‘like a playground in his mouth,’ and the rep got all excited and asked if he could trademark the quote. Later, the guy used the same  quote – with attribution to Rob -  to describe the champagne to a female patron. With every repetition, it just sounded more prurient…

Tasters circulate throughout the Champagne Extravaganza

The ticket price was $45 per person, and we certainly got our money’s worth of food and wine. We decided that we’d definitely use One Fine Day as caterers if we ever threw a party  calling for food fancier than pepperoni bread.  Looking forward to Champagne Extravaganza 2010!