Bubbles on the brain
A few of our favorite local sparkling wines
In case you’ve been hiding under a rock somewhere, or you randomly forget what day it actually is every now and again (not that any of us here at the inn would EVER do that), let us remind you that New Year’s Eve is sneaking up right around the corner. As in, it’s less than a week away! Aaaahhhhh! Where in the world does all the time go? Weren’t we celebrating the advent of 2019 just the other day? Well, we blinked, and here we are preparing to face the big 2020.
The beginning of the New Year always feels so weighty, so full of promise and dreams. We feel like we have to gear up and get ready to start the year on just the right foot, with all our intentions and goals clearly lined out in time for orderly, responsible implementation at the very first crack of dawn on January 1st. Right now though, we’re still recovering from the festivities of Christmas, so as we stare at our blank page of New Year’s resolutions, all we can think about is bubbles. You know, sparkling, fizzing, happily dancing, effervescently bubbly wine. Champagne, crémant, petillant naturel…. With what are we going toast this brand new year when the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve????
We can’t concentrate on our resolutions right now anyway, so we’ve decided to round up a list of all our favorite local sparkling wines instead. Because if we don’t want to make those weightier decisions yet, at least we can decide something fun, right? Here are the top contenders so far:
— Brut by Saint Gregory, part of the Graziano Family of Wines. Crafted by prolific yet meticulous winemaker Gregory Graziano in inland Mendocino County, this Champagne style wine grew out of a family love affair with the sparkling wines in Europe. It is crisply dry and is just as good served alongside food as it is standing alone for a celebratory toast.
Available online and at their tasting room.
— Brut Rosé by Goldeneye. We absolutely fell in love with this new small batch venture from Goldeneye when they debuted it in their Bubbles and Caviar experience last year. Like everything they do, this champagne style wine is classy and delicious.
Available online and at their tasting room.
— Brut Rosé by Roederer Estate. Pretty much anything from Roederer is going to be prime toasting material, but this Rosé is just that extra bit special and fun that you want for a celebration. This champagne style wine is rounded out and smooth, with exactly the right amount of bubbles.
Available in stores and at their tasting room. You can call in an order too!
— Cremant by Scharffenberger Cellars. We wrote about this wine in a previous post, and we simply HAVE to include it in this list too. We love the soft creaminess of this sparkling, which you can only get in Scharffenberger’s tasting room in the Anderson Valley. Plus, it has fun memories attached to it for us.
Available only at their tasting room.
Sarah and her bubbles
— Sarah’s Rustic Bubbles by Fathers + Daughters Cellars. This fabulous sparkling wine is one of our staff favorites, and not only because it’s made by the inn’s owner and named after his wife. It’s produced in the style of a petillant naturel, which means drinking it is a whole different kind of experience than you would get with a champagne style sparkling. The bubbles are a bit more excitingly unpredictable. The taste is a bit more piquant, more cidery, more…. unique! We love it when we get to pop a bottle to pour during Wine Hour in the evening.
Here are a couple of others we’ve been hearing about that sound intriguing:
— Goose Bubbles by Toulouse Vineyards. Toulouse never fails to delight with their wines, so their playfully named sparkling has got to be great. We’re itching to taste it!
Available at their tasting room and select local restaurants.
— Sparkling Riesling by Bee Hunter Wine. Because doesn’t that sound delicious?! We’ve got to check it out…
Available at their tasting room, maybe?
Have you tasted any of these sparklings? Which will you be toasting with on New Year’s Eve? Do you have any others from Mendocino County you think should be on the list? Let us know!
Words by Laura Hockett
Pictures courtesy of the wineries