Conventional thinking tends to relegate Champagne and other fine sparkling wines to special occasions, late night parties, and New Year’s Eve celebrations.   But I think Champagne deserves better.  As a young man, I came to fully appreciate the wonderful unique wine called Champagne while working in Champagne.  Champagne, the original and finest sparkling wine from the ancient province of Champagne, may still enjoy a reputation as the “Belle of the Ball,” a wine of conviviality and good cheer, but it also pairs beautifully with many types of foods and truly deserves the reputation as a wine for all seasons and occasions.

So, why not pour a glass of Champagne on a cold, rainy day as well as a warm, sunny day or serve it at a mid-week meal as well as at a party?  Isn’t every day meant to be celebrated in some fashion?  Why limit the pleasure of good bubbly to a few occasions or just one time of year?  Champagne makes glad the heart as it cleanses the palate and enlivens the soul.  For these reasons and more I like Champagne at all times of the year, and I especially enjoy it as an aperitif and a prelude to a fun-filled evening.  It was Winston Churchill who is said to have remarked, “In the time left to us between the disaster and the catastrophe, there is time for a glass of Champagne.”  And to that I add Amen!

Saluté!
Don

For decades the name Soave was nearly synonymous with white wine from Italy, much like the word Chablis doubled as a catch word for any white wine made in America.  And to make matters worse, a hand full of Italian producers monopolized the market for Soave – a beautiful, personality filled white wine from northern Italy of charm and grace in its pure form.  Unfortunately, these industrialized giants homogenized the Soave they produced, reducing it to the lowest common denominator.  The result was oceans of eviscerated, innocuous white wine, whose only attribute was that it was squeaky clean, so clean in fact that it was grossly devoid of character and flavor.

Fortunately, a number of small grower/producers survived and others have joined them to restore Soave to its proper place among the top echelon of Italian white wines.  Some of my favorite Soave producers are Gini and Tamellini, though Anselmi (who prefers not to use the name Soave in protest to past and present abuses), Inama and a number of other artisan producers make world class Soave as well.  What I enjoy most is the delicacy and purity of authentic, carefully crafted Soave.  No other white wine appears as ethereal as genuine Soave, yet real Soave is capable of captivating the mind as well as the palate, which is something your Grandfather’s Soave could never do.

Saluté!
Don

The market is full of fine red wines from every imaginable place, so choosing a good one can be a daunting task.  So why bother looking for such wines?  Bang for the buck!  And where does one start looking for fine red wines that hardly anyone knows?  How about beginning with wines you’ve never heard of from a place you would never think of?  Start with Uruguay, The Republic of Georgia and circle back to small garagiste producers in California.  Consider grapes such as Bonarda, Saperavi, and Tannat before coming back to Mataro, Petite Sirah, and Zinfandel.  Uruguay, a South American oasis of peace and stability, has been making good wine for centuries, most of which has been consumed by the small but prosperous local population.

Tannat, whose origin is Southwest France where it figures in the legendary “Black Wine” of France known as Cahors, is Uruguay’s signature grape variety.  The word tannin derives its name from the Tannat grape, which should tell us something about Tannat: It produces full-bodied, age worthy wines for certain.  Alone or when blended with Merlot from wineries such as Artesana, Tannat delivers a lot of bang for the buck and pairs beautifully with red meats and rich sauces.

Saperavi, a red grape from The Republic of Georgia (a small country with a mere 8,000 year old history of wine production) yields another fine red wine that almost nobody knows.  Saperavi is a versatile grape that can be made for gratifying early consumption or crafted for the long haul.  Marani makes a number of noteworthy wines from the Saperavi varietal.  And after further exploration far and wide, head back to California in search of old vine field blends of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah,  Mataro and more from a small producer you’ve never heard of.  You will almost certainly find wine worthy of the quest.

Saluté!
Don