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Posted By: fredk Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 02:47 AM
I'm looking for suggestions on a good bubbly for a Christmas Eve family get together. I'm not averse to spending $$, but if its good and not too expensive two bottles is always a good thing.
Posted By: DL30 Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 03:20 AM
Saint-Hilaire sparkling wine. It is made in Limoux, and is therefore the Champagne method. However it also was one of the first sprakling wines produced and predates Champagnes. It is very good for about $10-11 U.S.
My wife's favorite is Veuve Clicquot, and their non-vintage Champagne runs about $40 U.S.
You can find California sparklers from Domaine Chandon and Mumm Napa that run between the Saint-Hilaire and Veuve in price that are excellent as well.
My thought is, if the Champagne/Sparkling wine will be drunk at the end of the meal, there is really no reason to spend a big chunk on Champagne when everyone's palate has already been influenced by other drinks smile.
You really can't go wrong with the Saint-Hilaire, it's a staple for us at our Christmas party.
Sparkling...

Henry of Pelham Cuvee Catharine
Cave Spring
Peller Estates Ice Cuvee
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 05:45 AM
It will be served at the beginning of the meal. In my family, a good wine is never wasted. We all have well developed palettes.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 05:46 AM
Thanks Blujays dude. I remember picking up a white from Cave Springs last year that was quite good. I'll have to look for the sparkling.
While you are there, grab a bottle of the Cave Spring Riesling CSV (whatever year they have available at the LCBO). World class riesling from Ontario.

The Henry of Pelham Cuvee Catherine sparklings you should have no problem finding at your local LCBO. Very, very good. Henry of Pelham, like Cave Springs make excellent wines.

The Peller Estates Ice Cuvee and Ice Cuvee Rose are again very, very good. This sparkling I believe would appeal to most tastes and secondly probably never have tried before. It's fantastic.

"One of our most awarded wines at the winery, this traditional ‘méthode’ sparkling wine is made. When the lees are degorged, a ‘dosage’ (doh-sahj) of Icewine is added (110ml)."

BTW these are all Ontario wines. smile
Posted By: Ken.C Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 01:18 PM
I rather like the Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs myself. I think that's what Peter had at his wedding. I'm not sure what we had, but it was pretty good and I've got it written down somewhere.
Posted By: Amie Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 02:14 PM
Nicolas Feuillatte is the only one that doesn't give Ian a headache (one small flaw in an otherwise lovely man):

http://www.lcbo.com/lcbo-ear/lcbo/product/details.do?language=EN&itemNumber=537605

It's dry and delicious.

BTW, for an interesting change at Thanksgiving, I poured 2/3s champagne to 1/3 Cranberry wine (a Muskoka classic - they grow in Bala) and it was really lovely - tasty with Turkey and beautiful on the table.
Posted By: cb919 Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 04:10 PM
That cranberry wine sounds interesting and festive - do they have a web page?
I do not discriminate against any wine, I like them all; with the exception of champaign or sparkling. I dunno why, but I just can't get into them. I've tried everything from Asti to Cristal.... Yuk.

So it was with great surprise that I actually found one that I not only liked, but really-really liked it. Enough to order a case. I stumbled onto it by accident a couple weeks back when we were in Napa, overindulging in food and wine. Come to find out, it has a cult following in the area. It will probably become hard to get and uber expensive in a year or two. They make several, but I only tried the one; Blanc de Blancs. Next trip to Napa, I am going to visit the winery and try the rest of their offerings. http://www.schramsberg.com/
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 08:56 PM
Damn, so many good choices. How am I going to keep it to 2 bottles?

Hmm... Perhaps I shall ignore the family, waste my fortune on champagne and become besotted of wine in a kingly fashion.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/05/12 09:01 PM
Originally Posted By: BlueJays1
While you are there, grab a bottle of the Cave Spring Riesling CSV (whatever year they have available at the LCBO). World class Riesling from Ontario.

I think that is the wine from them I picked up last year.

Originally Posted By: BlueJays1
BTW these are all Ontario wines. smile

Yup. We've come a long way in the last 25 years. In the 80s I had to go to the Okanogan to find a good Canadian wine.

I'll be spending a day over the holidays down in the Niagara area. I'll put Cave Springs on my list.
Geez Fred, great topic, wrong thread!
I follow the wine thread but almost missed this one.

I can't recommend anything i've tried for Canadian sparkling wines (and i'm partly with michael_d on this one in which i'm not a huge fan of the sparkles).
However, that being said, i HIGHLY recommend that you head to the local LCBO and look for Spanish Cava. Cava is essentially Spain's champagne, made in the traditional style, although typically with a grape varietal called Xarel-lo and hence not with the same grapes as in France Champagne (pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot meunier).
Spanish cava is far less expensive than French Champagne BUT it is very much on par with quality in many price points. Cava was becoming all the rage in the past few years as Spanish wines are becoming more popular in N.America. The local sommeliers i chat with (and was trained by) speak highly of it.
I have personally tried two Spanish cavas during my ISG course. One was fairly buttery and alot like any Champagne i've tasted in the past, including the oh so popular Dom Perignon.
Originally Posted By: Amie
Nicolas Feuillatte is the only one that doesn't give Ian a headache (one small flaw in an otherwise lovely man)

That's just funny.

Quote:

BTW, for an interesting change at Thanksgiving, I poured 2/3s champagne to 1/3 Cranberry wine (a Muskoka classic - they grow in Bala) and it was really lovely - tasty with Turkey and beautiful on the table.

It is one thing they say about sparkling wines, they can be paired with any course at a dinner.
Personally i'm not a fan but...during the final test for the sommelier certification they have to plan out a full dinner including wine pairings and the one rule is that they are not allowed to use a sparkling one for more than one course...because it is again allegedly easy to pair it with everything.

Allegedly...
We attended a wine pairing seminar with Andrea Robinson when we were in Napa last. One of the pairings was the aforementioned Blanc de Blancs with air popped popcorn that was sprinkled with truffle salt. Amazing.... I had to get some truffle salt later, at $45 bucks for a little friggin jar..
Originally Posted By: fredk
Originally Posted By: BlueJays1
While you are there, grab a bottle of the Cave Spring Riesling CSV (whatever year they have available at the LCBO). World class Riesling from Ontario.

I think that is the wine from them I picked up last year.

Originally Posted By: BlueJays1
BTW these are all Ontario wines. smile

Yup. We've come a long way in the last 25 years. In the 80s I had to go to the Okanogan to find a good Canadian wine.

I'll be spending a day over the holidays down in the Niagara area. I'll put Cave Springs on my list.


Cave Spring is one of the nicest vineyards in the Niagara Region. Beautiful location, top notch vineyard management. Too bad all you might see at this time of the year is some icewine still hanging.

I was up in Prince Edward County a few weeks ago and tried some wines. Not too bad! It was cool seeing the vineyard practices up there at this time of year with the much cooler climate than Niagara and how all the vineyards had their vines (trunk and the potential canes that would be kept after pruning) buried in soil to protect the buds from the harsh winter. That was neat.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/07/12 02:04 AM
The day will still be fun. My daughter has just discovoured wine and has never done any wine tasting.

One of my nieces is dating a guy who's parents used to own a winery in Prince Edward county. I think his parents are still involved in the industry. I'll have to work on him for an insiders tour sometime. smile
Here are some wineries I would recommend for tastings during your visit.

St. Catharines:

Henry of Pelham
13th Street Winery

Jordan:

Cave Springs Cellars
Calamus Estate Winery
Tawse Winery

Beamsville:

Fielding Estates Winery
Hidden Bench Winery
Malivoire

Niagara-on-the-Lake

Peller Estates
Stratus
Lailey
Coyote's Run Estate Winery
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/09/12 05:27 AM
Thanks. I've been to Henry of Pelham, Hidden Bench and Peller. The rest are new to me.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 02:33 AM
I finally made it to the booze store to peruse the bubblies and after all the recommendations I chose... none of them. Could not find one.

I think I did OK though. I briefly considered the $264 French champagne because, well, who wouldn't like to drink a $264 bottle of wine, but common sense got the better of me.

I remember somebody mentioning something about Spain so when I found the Neveran Perles Roses I figured I couldn't go wrong. The tasting notes were interesting and it did rate a respectable 89.

The second is a bottle from the Alsace. A Ruhlman Crement, D'Alsace. It has this nifty little sticker on it that says Concours 2011 MEDAILLE D'OR Colmar. While my French is not very good, I'm pretty sure it does not say Lump of Coal Award.

I'll let you know how they taste.
Posted By: CatBrat Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 03:09 PM
Just don't buy the Cherry Chocolate Beer. I made that mistake this year, and am still almost retching from the memories.
Posted By: Andrew Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 03:46 PM
Originally Posted By: BlueJays1

I was up in Prince Edward County a few weeks ago and tried some wines. Not too bad! It was cool seeing the vineyard practices up there at this time of year with the much cooler climate than Niagara and how all the vineyards had their vines (trunk and the potential canes that would be kept after pruning) buried in soil to protect the buds from the harsh winter. That was neat.


I'm lucky enough to spend a week each year in the County with relatives. The wine and food scene have exploded in the past couple of years! My favorites that you MUST visit if you are ever in the area are Closson Chase and Norm Hardie.
Posted By: Andrew Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 03:52 PM
Originally Posted By: BlueJays1
Here are some wineries I would recommend for tastings during your visit.

St. Catharines:

Henry of Pelham
13th Street Winery

Jordan:

Cave Springs Cellars
Calamus Estate Winery
Tawse Winery

Beamsville:

Fielding Estates Winery
Hidden Bench Winery
Malivoire

Niagara-on-the-Lake

Peller Estates
Stratus
Lailey
Coyote's Run Estate Winery



If you're a fan of crisp, German-style Riesling, and spicy Gewürztraminer, you need to add Konzelmann Estate Winery to your list!
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 04:52 PM
Originally Posted By: Andrew

If you're a fan of crisp, German-style Riesling, and spicy Gewürztraminer, you need to add Konzelmann Estate Winery to your list!

Thanks Andrew. I picked up an excellent Gewürztraminer and a very good Chardonnay there last year.

I'm not a big fan of 'crisp' Rieslings. They lose much of their flavour and subtlety as sweetness is lowered. In Germany, there is a precise relationship between sugar content and acidity that allows for the "Mit Kabinett" designation. There is a good reason for this.
Originally Posted By: fredk
I finally made it to the booze store to peruse the bubblies and after all the recommendations I chose... none of them. Could not find one.

I think I did OK though. I briefly considered the $264 French champagne because, well, who wouldn't like to drink a $264 bottle of wine, but common sense got the better of me.

I remember somebody mentioning something about Spain so when I found the Neveran Perles Roses I figured I couldn't go wrong. The tasting notes were interesting and it did rate a respectable 89.

The second is a bottle from the Alsace. A Ruhlman Crement, D'Alsace. It has this nifty little sticker on it that says Concours 2011 MEDAILLE D'OR Colmar. While my French is not very good, I'm pretty sure it does not say Lump of Coal Award.

I'll let you know how they taste.


I'm very surprised you couldn't find any of those suggestions at your LCBO, especially those Ontario sparklings. Even at my local LCBO, my most recent visit they had bottles of the HOP Cuvee Catharine Brut (though not the Rose) and the Cave Spring Blanc de Blancs Brut. I ended up with a bottle of the Cave Spring sparkling.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/21/12 07:42 PM
Usually the bubbly is either in the champagne section or the vintages section. I didn't see anything from Cave Springs in either. Last year the Riesling was in the vintages section.

It matters not. I'll be at their winery in a week anyway.
Cool. I couldn't find the Cave Spring CSV either. It's the Riesling that comes from the grapes in the best block in the vineyard which also has the oldest vines. The terroir really shines through. It's priced in the $30 range/bottle. Really, really good. In general Riesling does particularly well in Ontario. I did find a bottle of their Riesling at the LCBO from their other Riesling blocks but didn't buy it. It's still very good though. It runs about $15-$17 bucks/bottle.

Well, you will find out for yourself anyways soon smile.
Posted By: fredk Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/29/12 12:37 AM
You Bastard!!
Posted By: Adrian Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/29/12 11:07 PM
Add Angel's Gate to your Ontario wine list, Fred. The Reisling is excellent.
Posted By: Adrian Re: Champaign (or made in the method of...) - 12/29/12 11:22 PM
Originally Posted By: Amie

BTW, for an interesting change at Thanksgiving, I poured 2/3s champagne to 1/3 Cranberry wine (a Muskoka classic - they grow in Bala) and it was really lovely - tasty with Turkey and beautiful on the table.

We bought a case of Muskoka Lakes Crannberry wine last year...didn't last long!
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