 This month's topic: Champagne and Holidays
Our expert: Ron Balter
Wine Director, Vivere in the Italian Village
Wine Director, Ron Balter, hails from New York City and joined the Italian Village restaurants at the beginning of 2000. Ron has worked in the hospitality industry for over 15 years. In February, 2000, Ron joined the Italian Village Restaurants. His move to Chicago and our the Italian Village Restaurants offered many new rewards and challenges. Upon his arrival, Ron modernized the wine cellar, which holds an astounding 45,000 bottles. Paramount in importance was the establishment of the Italian Village Wine School. Classes are held for the staff weekly with training in all the major wine regions of the world, service as well as blind tastings.
When not at the Italian Village restaurants, Ron is an Adjunct Professor at Kendall College, a liberal arts culinary school in Chicago. Ron additionally contributes food and wine related articles for a variety of publications.
Q: Are there any combinations of red or white wines with champagne that I should totally avoid? - Andre Biener, Frankfurt, Germany
A: I am assuming that you are not mixing any of these wines together in the same glass! Not withstanding that, the answer is NO. Typically when serving wine with food, one should start with the lightest wines first and move on to heavier wines as the meal progresses. The food should follow the same model. If you are having all these wines during mealtime, I would either start with the Champagne with hors d'oeuvres and then follow with the white and finally the red. You may also opt to have the Champagne as the final wine of the night.
If you are having a "cocktail" party and serving several different types of wine, you may want to offer bread or crackers for people to cleanse there palate with before switching to a different wine.
Q: I have a bottle of Mansard Brut champagne that I bought last year, I've been storing it (prepare yourself) under my bed out of sunlight at room temp, whatever that is. How should I store it and how long will it be good?- Abraham Dekat, Midwest City, OK
A: Ideal storage conditions are considered to be 55-57 degrees fahrenheit at 70% humidity. A dark, vibration free area is considered ideal. If you live in a house, the basement often offers a great place to store wine, provided you keep everything away from the boiler and heater areas. In an apartment, typically the floor of a closet is relatively good. Do not store wine in a kitchen or the refrigerator. The refrigerator is typically too cool and much to dry. The dryness causes the cork in the bottle to dry up and thus cause oxidation and other problems in the wine. Certainly you can chill the wine in the fridge but don't leave it there longer than one or two weeks.
The Mansard, Brut, Champagne is ready to drink now or you can hold it another year or two. It should be fine, unless your house is as hot as my last apartment, we used to call it "the kiln".
Q: I'm a "foodie" who knows a lot about food and not enough about wine. I'm going to a wine tasting/hors d'oeuvres tasting party this Friday. Everyone is supposed to take a dish and a wine to drink with each hors d'oeuvres. What would you recommend to pair with crab stuffed mushrooms? Thank you in advance. - Rachel Cooke, Freedom, CA
A: A nice Premier Cru, Chablis from Burgundy, France would be a very good pairing. Chablis is made 100% from the Chardonnay grape but is usually not aged in oak barrels or aged very briefly in oak. Chablis has a very distinctive mineral quality. For those of you tired of Chardonnay, this wine may very well restore your faith!
Q: What is the best harmonization between a red liquor and champagne that we can have for the holiday season. Give me brand name, quantity and deco style for this please. I really like Blue Curacao and Grand Marnier mixed with sparkling wine a for special occasion. - Eric Quesnel, Montreal, Canada
A: The classic red liquor and bubbles combination is called a " Kir Royale." This is a little "Crème de Cassis" and Champagne. A great producer is called Massenez. They make a very nice Cassis from Dijon, France. The amount of Cassis is largely a question of taste. In a standard Champagne flute, put a 1/2 teaspoon of Cassis and fill the glass with a "brut" or dry quality Champagne. If you prefer a sweeter cocktail, simply up the Crème de Cassis. No need to use super premium Champagne, but remember the rule, if you wouldn't drink it, don't cook with it.
Q: What is the difference between sparkling wine and champagne?
A: Just at Cognac is a type of Brandy, so to Champagne is a type of sparkling wine. To be called Champagne, a wine must come from the Champagne region of France. Champagne can be made using only three different grapes, you don’t have to use all three, but none other are permitted. The Champagne grapes are: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Champagne can be made in several styles: Blanc de blancs literally means “white from white” and is made exclusively from the Chardonnay grape. Blanc de Noir means “black from black” and is Champagne made entirely from dark skinned grapes. This means either entirely from Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier or a blend of the two. Lastly there is rose. This is typically pink, or orange and pink, tinged bubbly made by adding still red wine to the cuvee.
The other major difference between Champagne and many of the other sparkling wines is the method used to produce it. The brilliant manner in which Champagne is created is called: methode champenoise or methode traditionelle. While there are many elements to this production system, its hallmark is that Champagne is fermented two times: Once to ferment juice and create wine, the second, to capture the sparkle and thus create the tiny bubbles.
There are many sparkling wines made in many countries around the world. Some of these use the same production method of Champagne. Those that are made in the Champagne manner will typically say on the label some variant of “Champagne Method.” Although many wines are produced in this manner, different grapes are sometimes substituted in the cuvee based on the availability of grapes in the country of origin. A good example would be the fine sparklers from the Lombardy region of Italy. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are used for blending but as Pinot Meunier is largely only grown in France, Pinot Blanc is often used instead. Italy is also home to light bubbly's such as Moscato and Prosecco. In these wines, the Champagne method is not used at all, with both these wines fermentation is done once. The Spaniards have a wonderful sparkling wine called Cava.
Q: What kinds of wine and champagne should I have on hand for the holiday season?
A: I like to have on hand a variety of different types of wine. For the rich Christmas dinner the Italian wine, Amarone della Valpolicella, is a great choice. This wine hails from the Veneto region, which is in the northeast corner of Italy. The grapes for this wine are partially dried before pressing, so the wine is very rich, fruity and lush.
Red Burgundy is always a nice option, especially during the holidays when we tend to be a bit more extravagant in our entertaining. With the popularity of Pinot Noir these days, Burgundy is fine choice. The key here is to stick with producers you are familiar with and use great care in selecting the vintage.
For dessert wine, Oporto (Port) is perfect. With family and friends gathered around a fire or over dessert a vintage or twenty year Tawny Port is a wonderful ending to a meal. Vintage Port is somewhat thick and very rich and opulent. Tawny Port will be somewhat lighter with a beautiful nutty character.
Lastly, Champagne is the quintessential celebratory holiday drink. For special gatherings a vintage Champagne is the way to go. The 1996 vintage is largely available in retail stores now, and is a tremendous vintage. For larger groups or where money is an issue, a beautifully made non-vintage, Brut Champagne is perfect. While there are many fine “large houses” or Champagne producers that make a high volume of wine, it is also nice to explore the small production or artisanal Champagne houses. A good wine retailer or the Sommelier at your favorite restaurant should be able to point out a few.
Q: Can you suggest some hors d'oeuvres or desserts to bring to holiday parties? What kind of wine, champagne or dessert wines would you bring to pair with it?
A: Hors d’oeuvres:
- Smoked salmon is a personal favorite of mine. It is easy to serve and works well with crostini, crackers and vegetables. Rose Champagne is a great pairing.
- Prosciutto and many other cured meats are always a good option. They are rich, specialized and made with great care. Cured meats generally pair well with an Italian grape, grown extensively in the northwest corner of Italy called, Barbera. The wine has deep black cherry fruit with nicely balanced acidity.
- Oysters are a nice holiday treat. Very easy to eat, you do need to find a trustworthy purveyor and keep them on ice. Porter beer is an unusual and tremendous pairing. Porter’s richness carries the flavors of the oysters very well.
Desserts:
- Always work with the fruits that are in season. While I love mixed berry tarts, since the fruit is not in season, they tend to be very expensive and not very good. Stick with apples and pears. Tarte tatin or an inverted caramel and apple tart is a great choice. Rich and luscious with a flaky single crust. A tasty pairing here would be the wonderful brandy from Normandy, France, called Calvados. This brandy is made from fermented and distilled apples.
- Poached pears are simple to make and a lighter alternative to many of the rich foods of the season. You can poach pears in white wine infused with sweet spices like clove and cinnamon. A light Muscat grape based dessert wine can be a nice simple pairing. Some very tasty ones can be found in the Priorat region of Spain.
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