Tag: sparkling resolution

Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61 – Celebrating a Sparkling Decade!

We’re toasting February with a bottle of Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61, a sparkler it’s producers say, “celebrates the magical decade of the sixties” with a “creative spirit” that lives on today.

We say, if that was their goal, they’ve succeeded. This is a really good, sparkling wine!

Tasting Notes:

Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61 Brut

75% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir, 11.5 % ABV

We say … Full fruit, nice acidity, not oaky Chardonnay heavy

Berlucchi says … “Floral and fruit notes, fine acidity, full body”

We liked it so much, we added more to our wine rack.

$16.99 @ Bauer Wine & Spirits

Here’s more about Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2014 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

February 1, 2014
Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61 – Celebrating a Sparkling Decade!

We’re toasting February with a bottle of Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61, a sparkler it’s producers say, “celebrates the magical decade of the sixties” with a “creative spirit” that lives on today.

We say, if that was their goal, they’ve succeeded. This is a really good, sparkling wine!

Tasting Notes:

Berlucchi Cuvée ‘61 Brut

75% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir, 11.5 % ABV

We say … Full fruit, nice acidity, not oaky Chardonnay heavy

Berlucchi says … “Floral and fruit notes, fine acidity, full body”

We liked it so much, we added more to our wine rack.

$16.99 @ Bauer Wine & Spirits

Here’s more about Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2014 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

February 1, 2014
Champagne Paul Bara Grand Rosé – Our Memorable New Year’s Eve Guest!

We had been storing our bottle of Paul Bara Grand Rosé Champagne at the top of our wine rack for nearly a year awaiting an extra special occasion to pop its cork. Through the months, we took care to properly store this $60 bubbly – always on its side, never subjecting it to extreme temperatures, occasionally turning and, yes, even dusting it – but couldn’t quite commit to opening it.

Finally, with the eve of 2014 closing in, we had to act. The day before the big night, we began chilling the Paul Bara but, just to be on the safe side, iced down a back-up bottle of Bollinger as a sort of new year’s celebration insurance.

Soon after dark on New Year’s Eve, we put together a cheese plate and sat down to try our much anticipated rosé champagne. The clink of glasses, a toast, that first sip, and … Lovely fruit balanced by a crisp backbone, not heavy at all. And, the wine’s copper hue, that Penny described as an Italian rose gold color, is amazing!

The perfectly ripe (but not over-ripe) brie and Bara were excellent together! There was no problem with the black peppered cheese and a liver paté with truffles. The fruit of this rosé was like the taste of early season Atlas Farm strawberries from the Copley Square Market.

Despite being 70% pinot noir, it’s a Champagne that’s not overpowering. It has finesse. It reminded Penny of “… people who deliver on what they say they’re going to do versus those who just talk a good show.” And, what a show it was! We couldn’t have been happier with our selection.

By the way, as you’ve probably guessed, there was no need for our rescue bottle of Bollinger. But, since it was prepped and ready to go, we invited this irresistible French charmer to join us at our New Year’s day table. Happy 2014!

For more about this special Champagne, see: Here's Our Wine Pick for New Year's Eve 2013

Related Posts:

Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2014 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

January 3, 2014
Champagne Paul Bara Grand Rosé – Our Memorable New Year’s Eve Guest!

We had been storing our bottle of Paul Bara Grand Rosé Champagne at the top of our wine rack for nearly a year awaiting an extra special occasion to pop its cork. Through the months, we took care to properly store this $60 bubbly – always on its side, never subjecting it to extreme temperatures, occasionally turning and, yes, even dusting it – but couldn’t quite commit to opening it.

Finally, with the eve of 2014 closing in, we had to act. The day before the big night, we began chilling the Paul Bara but, just to be on the safe side, iced down a back-up bottle of Bollinger as a sort of new year’s celebration insurance.

Soon after dark on New Year’s Eve, we put together a cheese plate and sat down to try our much anticipated rosé champagne. The clink of glasses, a toast, that first sip, and … Lovely fruit balanced by a crisp backbone, not heavy at all. And, the wine’s copper hue, that Penny described as an Italian rose gold color, is amazing!

The perfectly ripe (but not over-ripe) brie and Bara were excellent together! There was no problem with the black peppered cheese and a liver paté with truffles. The fruit of this rosé was like the taste of early season Atlas Farm strawberries from the Copley Square Market.

Despite being 70% pinot noir, it’s a Champagne that’s not overpowering. It has finesse. It reminded Penny of “… people who deliver on what they say they’re going to do versus those who just talk a good show.” And, what a show it was! We couldn’t have been happier with our selection.

By the way, as you’ve probably guessed, there was no need for our rescue bottle of Bollinger. But, since it was prepped and ready to go, we invited this irresistible French charmer to join us at our New Year’s day table. Happy 2014!

For more about this special Champagne, see: Here's Our Wine Pick for New Year's Eve 2013

Related Posts:

Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2014 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

January 3, 2014
Champagne Paul Bara Grand Rosé – Our Memorable New Year’s Eve Guest!

We had been storing our bottle of Paul Bara Grand Rosé Champagne at the top of our wine rack for nearly a year awaiting an extra special occasion to pop its cork. Through the months, we took care to properly store this $60 bubbly – always on its side, never subjecting it to extreme temperatures, occasionally turning and, yes, even dusting it – but couldn’t quite commit to opening it.

Finally, with the eve of 2014 closing in, we had to act. The day before the big night, we began chilling the Paul Bara but, just to be on the safe side, iced down a back-up bottle of Bollinger as a sort of new year’s celebration insurance.

Soon after dark on New Year’s Eve, we put together a cheese plate and sat down to try our much anticipated rosé champagne. The clink of glasses, a toast, that first sip, and … Lovely fruit balanced by a crisp backbone, not heavy at all. And, the wine’s copper hue, that Penny described as an Italian rose gold color, is amazing!

The perfectly ripe (but not over-ripe) brie and Bara were excellent together! There was no problem with the black peppered cheese and a liver paté with truffles. The fruit of this rosé was like the taste of early season Atlas Farm strawberries from the Copley Square Market.

Despite being 70% pinot noir, it’s a Champagne that’s not overpowering. It has finesse. It reminded Penny of “… people who deliver on what they say they’re going to do versus those who just talk a good show.” And, what a show it was! We couldn’t have been happier with our selection.

By the way, as you’ve probably guessed, there was no need for our rescue bottle of Bollinger. But, since it was prepped and ready to go, we invited this irresistible French charmer to join us at our New Year’s day table. Happy 2014!

For more about this special Champagne, see: Here's Our Wine Pick for New Year's Eve 2013

Related Posts:

Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2014 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

January 3, 2014
Nigl Brut de Brut – A Gruner with Bubbles!

While on the lookout for a worthy sparkler to ring-in December, as part of our Sparkling Resolution, we discovered a Gruner Veltliner with bubbles – the 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut.

Since Gruner has been a long-time favorite with us, the addition of fizz, and in this case Chardonnay, seemed like an interesting marriage. Well, we’re here to say, “It’s wedded bliss!”

These new "wine" glasses were inspired by running out of glasses to share a wine with neighbors on a recent Ptown vacation. We substituted a martini glass that worked well and was fun!

This Austrian sparkler is definitely food-friendly, but also very enjoyable all by itself. Followers of wine site CellarTracker said it best, tasting “…flavors of tart apple with peach,” calling the Nigl Brut de Brut “…dry, crisp, with racy acidity,” "…quite spirited and fun to drink,” and “…a very nice alternative to Champagne.”

Choosing a sparkling version of a familiar wine might not always be this satisfying, but we’ll try it again. In fact, if you’re looking for a holiday gift for someone who likes wine and has a favorite grape, see if there’s a sparkling version?

We found our bottle of 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut at The Urban Grape, South End.

Here’s a peek at Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List!

…And, Sunday Dog will return to this spot, next week!

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

December 1, 2013
Nigl Brut de Brut – A Gruner with Bubbles!

While on the lookout for a worthy sparkler to ring-in December, as part of our Sparkling Resolution, we discovered a Gruner Veltliner with bubbles – the 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut.

Since Gruner has been a long-time favorite with us, the addition of fizz, and in this case Chardonnay, seemed like an interesting marriage. Well, we’re here to say, “It’s wedded bliss!”

These new "wine" glasses were inspired by running out of glasses to share a wine with neighbors on a recent Ptown vacation. We substituted a martini glass that worked well and was fun!

This Austrian sparkler is definitely food-friendly, but also very enjoyable all by itself. Followers of wine site CellarTracker said it best, tasting “…flavors of tart apple with peach,” calling the Nigl Brut de Brut “…dry, crisp, with racy acidity,” "…quite spirited and fun to drink,” and “…a very nice alternative to Champagne.”

Choosing a sparkling version of a familiar wine might not always be this satisfying, but we’ll try it again. In fact, if you’re looking for a holiday gift for someone who likes wine and has a favorite grape, see if there’s a sparkling version?

We found our bottle of 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut at The Urban Grape, South End.

Here’s a peek at Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List!

…And, Sunday Dog will return to this spot, next week!

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

December 1, 2013
Nigl Brut de Brut – A Gruner with Bubbles!

While on the lookout for a worthy sparkler to ring-in December, as part of our Sparkling Resolution, we discovered a Gruner Veltliner with bubbles – the 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut.

Since Gruner has been a long-time favorite with us, the addition of fizz, and in this case Chardonnay, seemed like an interesting marriage. Well, we’re here to say, “It’s wedded bliss!”

These new "wine" glasses were inspired by running out of glasses to share a wine with neighbors on a recent Ptown vacation. We substituted a martini glass that worked well and was fun!

This Austrian sparkler is definitely food-friendly, but also very enjoyable all by itself. Followers of wine site CellarTracker said it best, tasting “…flavors of tart apple with peach,” calling the Nigl Brut de Brut “…dry, crisp, with racy acidity,” "…quite spirited and fun to drink,” and “…a very nice alternative to Champagne.”

Choosing a sparkling version of a familiar wine might not always be this satisfying, but we’ll try it again. In fact, if you’re looking for a holiday gift for someone who likes wine and has a favorite grape, see if there’s a sparkling version?

We found our bottle of 2005 Nigl Brut de Brut at The Urban Grape, South End.

Here’s a peek at Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List!

…And, Sunday Dog will return to this spot, next week!

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

December 1, 2013
Discovering November Bubbles! Canard-Duchêne Comes to U.S.
One sip of Canard-Duchêne Authentic Brut and we knew we had discovered a special Champagne. Toast on the nose and luscious Pinot fruit on the palate – not overwhelming, just right.

The blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Pinot Meunier, and 20% Chardonnay captured our attention and never let go. Canard-Duchêne Cellar Master Laurent Fédou puts it best with the words “intensity … complexity … and balance” to describe their Champagnes.

He characterizes the Authentic Brut as having …
- “A straw-yellow appearance and delicate mousse."
- "Intense aromas of fresh fruit typical of the Pinot varietals."
- "Fruity flavours [that] jostle with pastry notes, a sign of excellent maturity.”
We always like to taste through the temperatures of our first glass of wine. In this case, moving from the initial chilled sip to that warmer last splash brought out more of the Chardonnay.

After lingering over the rest of the bottle, our only question was, “Why haven’t we heard about this Champagne before?” Well, it hasn’t been readily available in the U.S. until recently, but has been well-known and respected for more than a century in other parts of the world.

We found our bottle of Canard-Duchêne for $38 at The Urban Grape, South End

Clinking glasses to toast each new month has never been more enjoyable – à votre santé!

Watch for a few extra wine posts this month. We'll be telling you about some of our favorite value sparklers that are perfect for holdiay entertaining or as great value gifts.

Here's more about Our Sparkling Resolution

And, Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
November 1, 2013
Discovering November Bubbles! Canard-Duchêne Comes to U.S.
One sip of Canard-Duchêne Authentic Brut and we knew we had discovered a special Champagne. Toast on the nose and luscious Pinot fruit on the palate – not overwhelming, just right.

The blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 35% Pinot Meunier, and 20% Chardonnay captured our attention and never let go. Canard-Duchêne Cellar Master Laurent Fédou puts it best with the words “intensity … complexity … and balance” to describe their Champagnes.

He characterizes the Authentic Brut as having …
- “A straw-yellow appearance and delicate mousse."
- "Intense aromas of fresh fruit typical of the Pinot varietals."
- "Fruity flavours [that] jostle with pastry notes, a sign of excellent maturity.”
We always like to taste through the temperatures of our first glass of wine. In this case, moving from the initial chilled sip to that warmer last splash brought out more of the Chardonnay.

After lingering over the rest of the bottle, our only question was, “Why haven’t we heard about this Champagne before?” Well, it hasn’t been readily available in the U.S. until recently, but has been well-known and respected for more than a century in other parts of the world.

We found our bottle of Canard-Duchêne for $38 at The Urban Grape, South End

Clinking glasses to toast each new month has never been more enjoyable – à votre santé!

Watch for a few extra wine posts this month. We'll be telling you about some of our favorite value sparklers that are perfect for holdiay entertaining or as great value gifts.

Here's more about Our Sparkling Resolution

And, Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.
November 1, 2013