Few things bring joy like a casual sparkling wine with dinner. A lot of people get irritated when they see bubbly sprayed over a crowd or smashed against the side of a boat. I personally hate seeing sparkling wine served by itself. Oh, it's certainly fun as a party beverage, and it is classy to begin an event while wandering around with a slowly fizzing flute, but the stuff goes so great with so many foods that it's a shame not to take advantage of it. And when you serve it to other people with dinner, it helps reverse the idea that bubbles are just for special occasions. 
Fortunately there are lots of well-crafted bargains out there today, including those from less famous regions of France. Such as this little gem from Alsace, way out east next to the German border. NV Lucien Albrecht Crémant d'Alsace
Brut Blanc de Blancs
Alsace, France
100% Pinot Blanc
$20, 12% abv.
This wine has large, abundant bubbles, which combined with the dash of acidity gives it a very crisp and refreshing profile. The nose is floral, with touches of honey and pear. It is bone dry, with just a touch of ginger. This one seems like it would be a great match with spicy Thai food, but I popped it open alongside grilled mahi mahi, tomatoes, green peppers, and a bit of brown rice.
Note: This wine was received as a sample.
8 comments:
Hey buddy... sorry for the absence. Work starting to level out a bit.
Interesting about the large bubbles. I think all Cremants have to be produced in the "traditional method", so I'd expect smaller ones. Actually, even the big ones are pretty small.
Anyway, I do loves me some Cremant D'Alsace. Good deal for sure. Can't wait for summer weather, crab boils, low country boils, and many, many bottles of Alsace wine a poppin'...
Joe,
I personally define large bubbles as those big enough to see as spheres and that you can feel popping on your tongue, roughly like those in Coca-Cola. The other extreme of the spectrum is Guinness, either charged with a nitrogen canister on the tap or using the little widget inside the bottle. Nitrogen bubbles are freakishly small, leading to that foam that is almost like meringue.
I've found the best (and vintage) Champagnes I've tasted to be full of bubbles closer to Guinness than Coke, though I've had some Champagne that was pretty close to the Coke end of things.
Cheers,
Benito
good call. this is one of my favorites.
Fredric,
Indeed--there's also that one from Savoy that I'm forgetting at the moment, but it occupies a nice balance between thrift and genuine wine appreciation.
Cheers,
Benito
ah, yes. The "mousse", if you will.
Cremant d'Alsace has been one of my go-to bubble choices for years now. The QPR is often better than that which you can find in California sparkling and I find a certain refinement to the wines that seems to be lacking in the more rugged, and sometimes gassy wines from the Loire. Pretty, I find many, including the Albrecht, to be delicate and pretty.
Sam,
Glad to see it gets your stamp of approval--that means a lot!
Cheers,
Benito
I Like Magic Moment wine and its brand .....lovely its wine and testy
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