Grower Champagnes—that is, Champagnes made by small, family-owned operations—are all the rage among hip wine folk these days. Unfortunately, some of the more rabid proponents of these wines attempt to promote their virtues at the expense of Champagnes produced by larger, usually corporate-owned houses, which produce the vast majority of wine in the region. To some people, “factory fizz,” as opposed to “farmer fizz,” means bland and soulless, while bubblies made by smaller wineries deliver greater character and pizzazz. As is almost always the case with wine, generalizations are dangerous, and that’s especially true for non-vintage Champagnes, which account for the overwhelming majority of the region’s production.

While it’s undeniable that a lot of lackluster Champagne is made by large firms, it’s also true that plenty of wine made by mom-and-pop operations is crude and lacking in real complexity. That has a lot to do with the fact that in the case of non-vintage Champagnes, which are blends of wines from various vintages, producers who have access to a range of vintages and vineyards are theoretically in the position to make more complex wines. Few small wineries have the stocks to blend across numerous years, while larger, well-capitalized firms often carry massive inventories of older vintages. Large houses like the ones I cover here can also afford to buy high-quality fruit or wine year in and year out, and they also retain highly talented staff and own state-of-the-art equipment, which make it possible to produce high-quality Champagne on a large scale.

Since non-vintage Champagnes are constantly being blended to maintain inventory, and since those blends obviously vary, lot numbers are often engraved on the bottle, label or foil. This allows some way for wine writers—and consumers—to identify each bottling. A few houses indicate the exact date on which the bottle was disgorged, which typically occurs just before the wine is released for sale. I provide those numbers here in the hope that readers can find the exact wines I have reviewed. But don’t sweat it too much, especially if you shop at a quality-minded, passionate retailer who takes good care of their stock. Non-vintage Champagnes are all about consistency of house style, and all of these producers are nothing if not consistent, not to mention quality-driven.

Incidentally, the half dozen wines featured below are just a tiny part of my annual coverage of non-vintage Champagnes in the International Wine Cellar, which features wines from roughly a hundred producers, including many of the top small growers. For as little as $19.95 for a two-month subscription, you can get immediate access to my tasting notes as well as to the IWC’s enormous archives of notes and scores on wines from virtually every important wine-growing region around the world.

Charles Heidsieck (Rémy Cointreau USA) is a highly reliable producer of complex, deep, smoky Champagnes that blend power and vivacity. Their Brut Réserve ($55; 2009 disgorgement), a classic example of the house style, compares favorably with plenty of Champagnes that cost twice as much.

Pol Roger (Frederick Wildman & Sons) is another producer known for rich, powerful Champagnes and the Extra Cuvée de Réserve Brut ($50; Lot 11961873B) shows the house’s weighty style while exhibiting bright chalk and citrus character as well. This hefty but vibrant Champagne is extremely flexible with food but is also delicious by itself.

One of the smallest big houses, Henriot (Henriot Inc.) has developed a reputation for Champagnes that combine deep, smoky character with brighter mineral qualities. Both of their NV bottlings, the Brut Souverain ($50; Lot 1106921210) and the Blanc de Blancs Brut ($60; Lot 1107221010) are excellent this year. The Souverain is a smoky, powerful Champagne while the Blanc de Blancs combines that rich character with more intense minerality.

Some of the most interesting big house Champagnes are made by Alfred Gratien (Domaine Select Wine Estates), who ferment their wines in traditional wooden casks, a rare practice in the region today. The oak gives the wines a toasty, warm character that I find enthralling. The basic Brut ($45; Lot 10334) is a spicy, highly nuanced Champagne offering an array of orchard and citrus fruit flavors supported by a strong mineral spine. Given the prices commanded by Gratien’s top bottlings, this is a serious value.

Louis Roederer (Maisons Marques & Domaines) is probably most famous, or infamous, for their luxury Cristal bottling, which is consistently outstanding, but quality here runs high across the full range of their wines. At $40, Roederer’s Brut Premier (Lot 0346408100107) is one of the best values in Champagne this year. A bright, racy wine, it’s loaded with citrus, floral and spice character, and finishes with excellent clarity and stony cut.

Please note that I have listed suggested retail prices for these Champagnes. In most cases, you should be able to find them for lower—even much lower—tariffs, especially in larger metropolitan markets.

Champagne cocktails for New Year's: Alex Day's Whisper Campaign

December 28, 2011 | 11:37 am

 

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This week's Food section will include several recipes for sparkling cocktails, including the one pictured at right. It's the Whisper Campaign from Alex Day, a partner, along with David Kaplan, at downtown drinks consulting firm Proprietors LLC. 

It's camomile-infused Calvados with lemon juice, yellow Chartreuse and sparkling wine. Happy New Year!

Whisper Campaign 

Servings: 1

Total time: 5 minutes

Note: From Alex Day of Proprietors. For the camomile-infused Calvados, add 3 tablespoons loose-leaf camomile tea to 6 ounces Calvados and let it sit at room temperature for 25 to 30 minutes (taste to make sure it doesn’t over-steep); strain and discard the tea. To make simple syrup, combine equal parts water and sugar in a saucepan and heat until the sugar dissolves; cool before using.

1 ounce camomile-infused Calvados
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/4 ounce yellow Chartreuse
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Dry sparkling wine

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine the camomile-infused Calvados, lemon juice, Chartreuse and simple syrup; shake and strain into a chilled flute. Top with dry sparkling wine.

Champagne and Sparkling Wine Ideas for New Years Eve

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Champagne and Sparkling Wine For New Years Eve

There will be no shortage of recommendations for Champagne for New Year’s Eve celebrations. I visited CBS12 and chatted with Suzanne Boyd about four options, three sparkling wines and one Champagne, that I’ll be serving at my own party. You can serve them with confidence at yours. The video talks about the four sparkling wines for New Years, plus some other tips to make your party awesome.

I mention it in the video, but the difference between Sparkling Wine and Champagne is the area in which it’s grapes are grown. The region of Champagne, France, fights hard to protect the name “Champagne”. In fact, with few exceptions, most sparkling wines no longer will call themselves Champagne if they aren’t from one of the five wine producing districts within the Champagne administrative province: Aube, Côte des Blancs, Côte de Sézanne, Montagne de Reims, and Vallée de la Marne. The towns of Reims and Épernay are the commercial centers of the area. Enough education, check out the video!

Now that you’ve watched the short video of the TV segment, and know what sparkling wine or Champagne you want for your New Year’s Eve Party, what about food that pairs with it? Appetizers is the quick and easy answer, and almost all of them you serve will pair. Specific favorites are lightly salted mixed nuts, shrimp cocktail or fried shrimp, potato chips and popcorn, hard and salty cheeses, french fries or tater tots. However, if you are going outside of finger foods, I love Champagne with white fish prepared almost any way, crab anyway, especially crab cakes, ham and many pork preparations, and chicken almost any way you can make it. A quick recap of the wines follows, and you’re ready for New Years Eve!

Barefoot Bubbly Rose Cuvee

The first selection was the Barefoot Bubbly Rose Cuvee. Coming in at $8 in most of the US, this inexpensive sparkling wine will appeal to those who prefer sweeter wines. Sweet ripe cherry and strawberry dominate the palate, and the bubbles were persistent and lively. This budget bubbly surprised me, as it was sweet without being syrupy and is a fun, inexpensive sparkling wine. While they use the word Champagne on the label, I assure you this comes from California!

Lamberti Prosecco Extra Dry

The second selection was Lamberti Prosecco Extra Dry. While Extra Dry is more sweet than a Brut, our next two selections, the Lamberti is not a syrupy sweet sparkling wine. Instead, it has notes of honeydew and lemon, with fantastic bubbles that make it a great option at $15. The price on this prosecco makes it inexpensive enough for any time, not just New Year’s Eve. It’s a fun wine to pour at the start of an evening, while guests are arriving at your party, or as the main wine for your party.

Lucien Albrecht Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Wine

The third sparkling wine option hails from the Alsace region of France. While you may see the label as Jean Albrecht in stores such as Total Wine and More, but it’s the same great bottle of wine for $20. I love the notes of nuts, warm baked bread and green apple in this wine. It is dry yet has great fruit and other flavors that makes it a perfect Sparkling Wine for New Years. Lucien Albrecht Blanc de Blanc is not 100% Chardonnay, but rather a blend of  80% Pinot Auxerrois, 10% Pinot Blanc and 10% Chardonnay, and is made in the traditional Champagne method. Blanc de Blancs means White of Whites, and while many cases it’s 100% chardonnay, it means that red skin grapes, such as Pinot Noir or Pinot  Munier aren’t used.

Pol Roger Non-Vintange Brut Reserve White Foil Champagne

The final option for Champagne on New Year’s Eve is Pol Roger Non-Vintage Brut Reserve White Foil. I’ve enjoyed and written about this Champagne previously, and believe it’s excellent at the price.  This is a classic Champagne, with a long history, including being the Champagne of choice for Sir Winston Churchill. It’s a blend of the three grapes typically found in Champagne, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Munier, and they offer vintage Champagne in excellent years, which is a treat to have. The palate of the Pol Roger Non-Vintage Brut has amazing notes of brioche, yellow and green apple and the most delicate, tiny bubbles, which makes it an excellent choice to serve as you ring in the New Year.

Regardless of what you select, I hope you have a very happy, safe, and prosperous New Year. I hope 2012 brings you everything you need, and a lot of what you want.

Bubbles that Won't Break the Bank 

Typically on New Year's Eve I bust out bottles I've been saving all year, but since this one past required I drink them prior to the ringing in of 2012 I had to head to the wine shop along with the zillions of you seeking sprtiz for your special occasion.  Never seeing myself as a wine snob I usually look for affordable and delicious sips to serve.  I know Champagne, from Champagne France, is always a fave in my house but I wasn't looking to spend more than $20 a bottle. When it comes to bubbles this can be a risky venture. I didn't want something flat, or sweet or lacking finesse.  In order to find this diamond in the rough I had to start taste testing and after a few sad little sips I found my shining star.  Trapiche Sparkling Wine NV (non- vintage) ringing in at $15.99 a bottle is a stellar bottle of bubbly from of all places Argentina. Argentina has been pumping out delicious still wines at awesome prices and now I can say they are kicking it on the bubbly side too.  This pour is full of vibrant bubbles that taste fresh and will make your mouth happy this New Year's.  It's versatile enough to go with lots of different dishes or you can simply sip it all by itself.

Erwan Faiveley at the helm

It’s no secret in Burgundy and beyond that Faiveley has been on a roll. And it’s no secret why: the arrival of the young Erwan Faiveley at the helm.

Erwan, 32, is the seventh generation in his family to run the company, which was founded in 1825 as a negociant, buying and selling wine. When his father was 25, Erwan’s grandfather literally turned over the keys to his dad. And in 2005 when Erwan was 25, his father continued the tradition and put Erwan in charge (Erwan himself has no children, so his position is likely safe for 25+ years). I sat down with Erwan in New York a few weeks ago to talk about how he has improved the house style, overcoming paternal resistance, vineyard acquisitions and biodynamic winemaking.

With the weight of generations on their shoulders, today’s heirs to the storied estates of Europe could be forgiven for having one primary goal: not screwing up. And when the family company holds a jaw-dropping 300 acres of vineyards in Burgundy, including 25 acres of Grand Cru, and makes wine across 18 different appellations, the pressure ratchets up even further. I could certainly understand if a scion asked for the instruction manual along with the keys and followed everything to the letter; ripping up the manual would seem like a remote possibility.

So when Erwan took over in 2005, he was careful not to rock the boat. He grew up in Nuits-St.-Georges and studied in Versailles (and later did an MBA at Columbia in New York). He told me that he wasn’t happy the first two years running the domaine, as he contemplated a change in style and personnel. He went out into the market and discussed changes with key accounts in the Japan and the US and elsewhere. In the end, he decided that “when you don’t take risks, you don’t make great wines.” He hired a new technical director and a general manager, Bernard Hervet. The shift was underway; he didn’t rip up the manual entirely, he just did a total rewrite.

Describing the stylistic transition, Erwan says that his father prefers strength, where has he prefers more elegance making a comparison as shifting from Nuits-St-Georges to more Chambolle in style. His inspirations for the shift were the wines of Dujac, Domaine de la Romanée Conti, Domaine Henri Gouges, and Dominique Lafon. Erwan shelled out for a new vertical press at the winery, paid more attention to the wood for barrels, and purchased vineyards in the Cotes de Beaune, including two acres in Batard-Montrachet.

The results in the glass are terrific. The 2009 Bourgogne wines, made from mostly purchased grapes, are both solid examples of Burgundy under $20. The 2009 Clos des Myglands, a premier cru from Mercurey, offers good depth, acidity and a tannic structure that provides intrigue. The 2009 La Combe aux Moines, a premier cru from Gevrey Chambertin, climbs the scale in terms of quality showing a lot of richness, minerality on top of approachable tannins with a good does of come-hither fruits earthiness on the nose. The 2009 Corton Clos des Cortons Faiveley, a grand cru, is a terrifically rich wine that is not over-the-top, just concentrated with ample stuffing. Young as it is, my time with it in the glass showed an unfurling of aromas–spices, red fruits, plums and earthiness–and layers of complexity on the palate. It’s pretty sexy stuff.

Although we tasted all 2009s, I asked Erwan which vintage he preferred, the 2009s, which have been derided by some contrarian-minded Burghounds as underwhelming in favor of the 2008s. He replied that while the 2008 was very classic and fresh, he preferred the 2009. In the vineyard, he said, there was so much perfect fruit in 2009 while in 2008, some selection had to be done. As to biodynamaics, he worked with only one grower who was biodynamic but he asked him to stop in 2010, citing the large amount of copper and silica used in the vineyard treatments.

Are more vineyard purchases in the offing? “I would love to purchase a vineyard in Chablis,” he said. He has his eye on one site and every year he thinks it will be the year. But that might actually happen this year, he says, citing a January 31 change in the capital gains tax on real estate that may trigger sales. A developing story–just like the domaine.

Prosecco

Prosecco has earned a reputation as an affordable alternative to Champagne. But this Italian bubbly is generally not made the same way as Champagne and Cava.

Instead, it's generally made using the tank (or Charmat) method—the second, bubble-producing fermentation takes place in large tanks and the finished sparkling wine is then bottled under pressure. The tank method is less labor-intensive (no riddling, no flying ice pellets) and thus less expensive, but the bubbles tend to be bigger and can attack your tongue harshly. The tank also doesn't encourage complex flavors, making Prosecco a better choice for casual sipping.

Prosecco is made from the prosecco grape and has a fruity, even sweet flavor. The amount of residual sugar (that is, sugar that is not converted into alcohol during fermentation) is usually mentioned on the label. You'll usually see Brut (dry to off-dry) and Extra-Dry (off-dry) in your local store. There are plenty of inexpensive Prosecco options around, but they aren't always up to par. Ask for advice to make sure that your bottle remains both cheap and cheerful.

Recommended Producers: Col Vetoraz, La Marca, Nino Franco.
Get more on prosecco and more picks in our Prosecco guide.

I’m sure you’re making your last minute rush to get gifts for everyone on your list as I write this.  I’m sorry this didn’t get to you sooner, but I’m here to offer three great ideas for wine gifts for everyone on your list.  I’ll post the video, which has all of the information you’ll need. However, I’ll also put some quick highlights below the video for you to cut and paste into your wish list.

The next option for $20-25 was Pascal Jolivet Sancerre 2010. This wine can be found in most retail shops, and like the other two options here today, can be found at most Total Wine stores. A great white wine for any time of the year, this crisp, lean expression of Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley, France is fantastic. It has excellent citrus notes and good acidity  with nice minerality. It’s perfect with seafood, salads, appetizers or just sipping alone.