Notes From The Phantom Wine-OÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 
The time from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, the “holidays”, are known as a time of joy and celebration. Nothing better epitomizes the holidays than sparkling wine or champagne. But not all sparkling wine is created equal. Or, as George Orwell put it, “All sparkling wine is equal, but some are more equal than others.” So when someone thrusts a glass of bubbles into your hand this season there are some things you can do to determine just how equal your sparkling wine is.
First of all, look at the bubbles. They should be small and plentiful, rising in a steady bead from the bottom of the glass. The French have a term, “oieul de crapot” (sic) which means “toad’s eyes.” Those are the very large, ugly bubbles encountered in cheap sparkling wines. (I won’t mention any names)
As a final point, sparkling wine should always be drunk in a tall tapered glass called a flute. Obviously, the charm of sparkling wine is the sparkle, and the less surface area, the longer the bubbles will last. All of us have probably seen the old movies, or been to a wedding, where the toast was done with the wide- bottomed coupe glasses. The legend is that that shape was modeled after the breast of Marie Antoinette. (A romantic notion, but a Frenchman once told me that the flute was actually the gass modeled after it.) Salud.
photo credit: vmiramontesl
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Speaking of champagne, has anybody else noticed what a bargain some of the Spanish Cavas are in comparison to Champagnes and Sparkling Wines?