|
|
Read about it today, experience it tonight.
|
|
|
Marqués de Monistrol Cava Reserva, Penedes, Spain
This is a great bottle of bubbly for the money.
Spain calls their sparkling wine Cava, after an old Catalan word meaning cave.
Spain, like Champagne, is known for its caves, where bottles of sparkling wine
are aged, riddled, and disgorged.
Marqués de Monistrol, (red label) offers an elegant treat without
breaking the bank.
It's golden color offers notes of pear, golden delicious apples and the finish
hints of lemon meringue.
It's a tasty bottle worth keeping on hand.
-BF $10
carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
|
Albrecht Cremant d'Alsace Brut Rosé, France
This bubbly is a beautiful salmon hue.
On the palate it is rich, with notes of raspberries, limes,
and spices.
The wine is made using Méthode Champenoise with 100% pinot noir.
Elegant, interesting, festive, stand out in the crowd.
$20
City Wine, Reserve List, and Divino carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
|
Il Prosecco, Veneto, Italy
Of course it would be an Italian sparkling wine to sport a beer bottle cap in
such a sleek presentation.
Il Prosecco and Moscato are unique, stylish, and lots of fun.
This prosecco offers racy flavors of lime, lemon, and starfruit.
There are tones of baked goods on the finish, offering hints of cardamom and cream.
-BF $13
Herritage Wine & Liquors carries this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
|
Il Moscato, Veneto, Italy
This delectable sparkling wine is made from one of the most aromatic grapes,
muscat.
The nose is like a bouquet of flowers.
The palate offers ripe peaches, apricots, and notes of angel food cake.
There is a musky, honey hint on the finish.
A great wine for pairing with dessert.
Even though is it a touch sweet, it can also be used as an aperitif.
-BF $13
Divino, Joy Wine & Spirits, and Heritage Wine & Liquors carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
|
Mumm Cuvée M, California
Cuvée M is layered and interesting
offering notes of strawberries, ginger, and lime leaves.
The finish is rich and a touch creamy.
The producer selects from dozens of vineyards for the perfect
grapes to make this fine sparkling wine.
-BF $20
Hampden Liquor Warehouse and Crossroads Wine and Spirits in Grand Junction carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
Uncorking wine closures
Because of significant internal pressure, sparkling wine needs a closure that is stronger than the usual cork. There is between 60 and 90 pounds of pressure per square inch at the business end of Champagne corked libations. A few bottles of beer on the market require a sparkling wine closure too.
Champagne corks are a recent invention on the wine timeline, but then again, so is Champagne itself. Dom Perignon is inaccurately credited with the invention of Champagne in the late seventeenth century. He is responsible for many improvements in the production of Champagne. Perignon promoted the use of glass bottles and corks that were secured with hemp twine. This closure proved effective in the short term, but eventually the hemp twine mildewed and lost its seal, causing eruptions in the cellars.
In 1844, Adolphe Jacquesson perfected the muselet, a metal cage that holds the cork in place. He also created the capsule that covers the top of the cork under the muselet. By the dawn of the twentieth century capsules became a decorative part of most Champagne bottles.
To open a bottle with a Champagne closure, remove the foil and wire cage and point the bottle at a 45° angle away from everything. You will have more control over the cork if the bottle is not handled too much before it is opened. Hold the cork firmly and gently twist the bottle away from the cork. This technique is very important if you are opening an older bottle of bubbly. The cork should release itself with a gentle pop. Pour a small amount in each flute at first, to allow the mousse to settle. Inexpensive, bulk wines will lose their carbonation soon after being opened. Sparkling wine made by a true second fermentation will retain some of its carbonation even into the next day. Toast the New Year with Cava, Prosecco, Californian sparkling, Belgian beer, or Champagne and remember; great bottles are available in all price ranges. Cheers!
Top
|
|
|
Duval-Leroy Paris Cuvée, Champagne, France
The bottle exudes pure romance.
When you taste the wine you'll realize that the wine is as elegant,
and tasteful as its packaging.
Great acidity explodes in your mouth with zest and power.
Clean, edgy, notes lime and lemon zest complimented by a sultry mineral note.
A rich mid-palate of white peaches carries to a slightly yeasty finish.
The artwork on the bottle is by Leroy Neiman.
This cuvée is 40% chardonnay and 60% pinot noir.
A bright, delicious, bottle of wine.
This would make a perfect gift for someone special.
I warn you, they may not ever want to open it!
-BF $40
Divino and Hampden Liquor Warehouse carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
|
Taittinger La Francaise Brut, Champagne, France
Bright, creamy, elegant, this Champagne is unusual and special.
It offers concentrated flavors of yellow tomatillos, peaches, and
starfruit.
The finish offers a hint of honey on fresh baked bread.
Delightful!
-BF $40
Tony's Wines, Crossroads Wine and Spirits in Grand Junction, and Joy Wine & Spirits carry this wine.
Are you a retailer that carries this wine?
Email
us and we'll add you to the 'where to find it' listing.
Top
|
|
Champagne-the newcomer
If you consider that Champagne was discovered only a few hundred years ago, you'll realize it is a relative newcomer in the realm of wine. For the first hundred years monks strived to remove the carbonation. Finally, they decided to embrace their unusual product and went about marketing it to the world.
One Champagne producer supplied Napoleon's army with bottles of their cuvée, knowing that it would travel all over Europe. Later, even though his moniker is a shaken martini, two different Champagne labels, Dom Perignon and Bollinger, earned the privilege of being in 007's glass. Over the years, Champagne has found itself on the A-list of the most exclusive parties.
Champagne has been so successful that producers from areas that are not inside the geographic region of Champagne have mimicked its recipe and its name. True Champagne comes from Champagne, France and all other carbonated wine is called sparkling wine. Champagne is considered sparkling wine too.
Processes in Champagne are followed by many sparkling wine producers. Sparkling wine can be made from many different grapes, but Champagne's chardonnay, pinot noir, and pinot meunier are considered authentic. The steps involved in 'Method Champenoise' create a bottle of sparkling wine of supreme quality. Vintaged Champagne is made from the grapes of one exceptional year. A cuvée is blend of several years and batches, often containing wine from vintaged years. A Champagne producer's cuvée is blended to taste the same year after year, earning it a devoted following.
Sparkling wine has been around for a short time, but has become the icon of celebration and milestones. And, if you open it for no reason, you'll soon find that it creates its own cause to rejoice.
|
|
Vocabulary
Each week we'll include a few wine (or beer or spirits) terms.
To read more terms go to the
vocabulary
page. This page will grow as we add more terms.
lees:
are sediment created by fermentation.
Lees are made up of dead yeast and other debris,
such as small grape solids.
When wine is left on the lees it is called sur lie.
Allowing wine to rest on the lees adds creamy flavors.
This technique is generally used with white wines,
in particular, chardonnay.
riddling:
is the act of removing sediment from a bottle of sparkling wine.
It is one of the steps in the Méthode Champenoise and is also called remuage.
Riddling is preformed by placing bottles of sparkling wine into a rack at a 45 degree angle,
upside-down.
Every few days someone will give the bottle of sparkling wine a shake to dislodge
sediment and force it to fall into the neck of the bottle.
After all the dead yeast cells gather in the neck, the sediment plug, is frozen and then
removed from the bottle in what is called disgorgement.
Riddling is mostly done by machine these days.
disgorgement:
is the removal of a frozen plug of dead yeast (lees)
from the neck of a bottle of sparkling wine.
It is one of the steps in Méthode Champenoise.
After the riddling process is complete,
when all the sediment has sunk to the neck of an inverted sparkling wine bottle,
the neck of the bottle is frozen.
Once the cork is removed,
the relief in pressure causes the plug of frozen sediment to push out of the bottle.
Once the plug is removed the bottle is given a dosage and recorked.
dosage:
pronounced doh-sahj,
is a small amount of wine with sugar
(and sometimes brandy and citric acid)
that is added to a bottle of sparkling wine after disgorgement has taken place.
It is one of the steps in Méthode Champenoise.
This addition of sugar acts as fuel for the domant yeast,
which causes a secondary fermentation.
The waste product from yeast eating sugar is alochol and carbonation.
A dosage's purpose is to add more carbonation to a sparkling wine and
return the fill line to an exceptable level after disgorgement.
|
Brews
|
|
Do you make your own beer?
If you make your own beer we are interested in your thoughts, recipes, and experiences.
If you would like to share with our readers, we will include you on our weekly newsletter and-or
add your contribution to our Do It Yourself section.
Top
|
|
|
Chimay Premiere, Dubble, Belgium
This amber colored brew offers fruit aromas.
Belgium beers are known for using hops with low alpha acid,
therefore they are not very bitter or hoppy.
Chimay Red is malty, with hints of dried fruits,
like apricots, pineapples, and mango.
Rich, yet not overly sweet.
As it warms it offers a spicy note.
It is a hearty brew with an air of class.
-BF $8 for a 22 ounce bottle
Corks, Divino Wine & Spirits, Crossroads Wine and Spirits in Grand Junction, Primo Vino, Joy Wine & Spirits, and Heritage Wine & Liquor carries this beer.
Top
|
|
|
Chimay Grand Reserva, Dubble, Belgium
A mahogany colored beer with a fruit-cake like nose.
It pours with a creamy head and offers a full bodied drink.
Flavors of caramel and yeast lead to a hint of bitterness.
The mid-palate and finish offer a touch of floral hops.
It makes a great alternative to popping a cork on a bottle of wine.
A regal brew in the Trappist tradition.
-BF $9 for a 22 ounce bottle
Divino, Little Raven, Crossroads Wine and Spirits in Grand Junction, Joy Wine & Spirits, Primo Vino, Corks, and Heritage Wine & Liquor carry this beer.
Top
|
|
|
Chimay Cinq Cents, Tripel, Belgium
A lovely golden color tumbles to the glass as
aromas of fresh ground spices fill the air.
This citrusy beer is spicy and rich.
It has a touch of floral hops with notes of lemons, oranges, plantains,
and a touch of lemongrass.
There is a complimentary black pepper and yeasty tone on the finish.
Another great bottle to pop while celebrating this New Year's Eve.
-BF $9 for a 22 ounce bottle
Primo Vino, Crossroads Wine and Spirits in Grand Junction, Corks, Joy Wine & Spirits, and Heritage Wine & Liquor carries this beer.
Top
|
|
|
Oskar Blues Old Chub Lip Balm
Notes of almond, macadamia nuts, and Scottish Ale?
Yep, this is one tasty lip balm.
It is made from almond and macadamia nut oils with a splash of Old Chub Scottish Ale.
Perfect for skiing with its SPF15 protection.
A great Christmas gift for the beer fan in your life.
Order it online
http://www.oskarblues.com
Tasted all day long!
-BF $3 a tube
Top
|
|
Events
|
|
Want to get the best of Denver without having to search for it?
Sign up for ThisWeekInDenver's weekly eCalendar and they’ll keep you up to date on
all the city has to offer, including arts and entertainment, music, nightlife, shopping and
dining. Where will your week take you?
View a sample
eCalendar.
ThisWeekInDenver follows a strict anti-spam policy.
Top
|
|
