Sommelier Journal, February 2009
Glassware Options by Catherine Fallis MS, CWP
Check out my extensive overview of the best wine glassware available in the USA, from Libbey to Christofle. Go to www.sommelierjournal.com and select the February 2009 issue, which will be available shortly.
It’s here, it’s here, our excuse to drink Champagne! And on this very romantic day I say throw caution to the wind and open the good stuff. Hey, why not? Perhaps over the weekend they’ll add a Champagne budget for every American to the stimulus package. Here are my top picks for the big day:
Louis Roederer Brut Premier NV, $55
For those with Cristal taste but not the fat wallet, this is a great choice. The opulent house style carries through from top to bottom. Pale straw yellow in color, this masculine wine entices the nose with rich vanilla, maple syrup, caramel-apple, and ginger ale notes. On the palate it is full with bold caramel and cream soda notes, sea spray, and then crisp delicious apple. The finish is clean and crisp.
Champagne Duetz Brut Rosé 2003, $81
Pale salmon with amber-gold highlights, this reserved, subtle 100% Pinot Noir has notes of strawberry tea, lemon, and brioche. The palate is delicate and silky with fraise de bois, lemon, and honeyed notes, but deftly expresses an underlying power. The mousse is brisk and the finish lemony and very dry.
Krug Grand Cuvée $130
This blend of up to ten different vintages is, like the wines of Bollinger, barrel-fermented in neutral oak initially. It is a Chardonnay-based blend with fruit primarily from grand cru vineyards. Golden yellow in color, it has fresh, bold aromas of Bosc pear, Macintosh apples, nutmeg, and lemon meringue. On the palate it is full-bodied and rich with caramel, earth, and baking spices. The finish is long.
Bruno Paillard N.P.U. Brut 1990, $195
The Nec Plus Ultra of Champagnes, this 100% grand cru wine is a 50-50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, is aged for ten years on the lees, and was disgorged in 2000. Golden yellow in color, it has aromas of earth, slate, lime, and smoke. On the full, complex, intriguing palate, it is rich and clean with yeasty, toasty, pear tart notes, and keen minerality.
Philipponnat Clos de Goisses Brut 1999, $200
Straw yellow in color, this rare, complex beauty has initial terroir-driven aromas of dust, chalk, slate, and earth, followed by ginger, lemon, pink grapefruit, pear compote, and honeyed yeasty notes. The perfume is soft, delicate, and complex. The wine has a silky, round, creamy entry followed by caramel, ginger ale, honey, vanilla, rosewater, slate, apple pie and strawberry notes. It has a very fine, airy mousse. It is extremely elegant and complex, with a precise, flawless focus. One of the greatest Champagnes on Earth.
Saturday Hobby Classes
at the Professional Culinary Institute of Silicon Valley
Join Catherine Fallis MS, CWP, aka grape goddess, named “Best of the Bay” by San Francisco Magazine for wine education at the Professional Culinary Institute, for this series of Saturday wine tasting classes:
April 4, 2009 ARTISANAL CHOCOLATE & WINE PAIRING
Visit www.pcichef.com, call 1-888-PCI-LEARN, or email deriksen@pcichef.com or grapegoddess@planetgrape.com for reservations and information. Classes are $75 per person and are from 12:30-2:00pm.
