Bubbles on a budget.Byline: Anthony Manifold There's no more fitting climax to the celebration of a wedding than the champagne toast to the bride and groom. But with the price of French champagne soaring, it's getting more difficult to budget for a glass of Gallic bubbles. Over the last decade, worldwide sales of champagne have rocketed 31 percent to 335 million bottles annually. All champagne is sparkling wine, but not all sparkling wine is champagne. Only sparkling wine from the Champagne region of France qualifies as the genuine article, so supply is limited. One solution adopted by grape growers in Champagne is to improve their yields per acre. The good news is that by 2011, they expect to increase production to 430 million bottles a year. The not-so-good news is that, thereafter, demand is forecast to outstrip out·strip tr.v. out·stripped, out·strip·ping, out·strips 1. To leave behind; outrun. 2. To exceed or surpass: "Material development outstripped human development" supply. The industry's next step is to increase the number of authorized grape producers from 323 to 363. However, most of them will not come on stream until 2017, so this measure will do little to slake the world's thirst for champagne during the next decade. To further aggravate the situation, new consumer nations like Russia and China are competing with America for their share of the precious bubbles. The current weakness of the dollar puts us at a serious disadvantage. All of which adds up to the prospect of already inflated prices escalating by another 10 percent in the coming months. There is, of course, no substitute for authentic champagne, but there are numerous effervescent ef·fer·vesce intr.v. ef·fer·vesced, ef·fer·vesc·ing, ef·fer·vesc·es 1. To emit small bubbles of gas, as a carbonated or fermenting liquid. 2. To escape from a liquid as bubbles; bubble up. 3. alternatives that will bring sparkle to a nuptial nup·tial adj. 1. Of or relating to marriage or the wedding ceremony. 2. Of, relating to, or occurring during the mating season: the nuptial plumage of male birds. n. toast. So this is a good time to look at sparkling libations that will be more pleasing to the pocketbook. Spanish sparkling wine comes in a wide variety of styles and prices. When the French put a worldwide lock on the definition of champagne, the Spaniards shrewdly countered by naming their sparklers "cava." Cava is vinified in the bottle and cellared in the same traditional way as champagne, but there the similarity ends. Most cava comes from Catalonia, where the two largest producers, Codorniu and Freixenet, have vast underground cellars in the picturesque town of San Sadurni de Noya. Local grapes like Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Parellado endow cava with its characteristic biscuity, floral taste. Look for dry, brut Brut, Brute (both: br  t), or Brutus (br or extra dry on the label for increasingly fruitier
flavors.
Cavas in the $8 to $10 range are great buys, but you can also splurge on reserve or vintage qualities costing up to $20. There are pink cavas, too, usually known as rose. Domestic sparkling wine producers also pose a serious challenge to champagne in terms of price and quality. Some still call their wines champagne, but most have ceded the appellation ap·pel·la·tion n. 1. A name, title, or designation. 2. A protected name under which a wine may be sold, indicating that the grapes used are of a specific kind from a specific district. 3. The act of naming. to their Gallic rivals. California offers the most wide-ranging choice. Their premium sparkling wines, such as Schramsberg, are made with the "in the bottle" fermentation technique known as methode champenoise using an authentic French grape blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier. Schramsberg has been served at state functions at the White House for more than 30 years. Prices start at $25 and up. More pedestrian West Coast sparklers like Korbel, with more down-to-earth prices around $12, are available to please the palates of us lesser mortals. There's even a New World sparkling wine with an Old World pedigree. Gruet Winery in Engle, New Mexico, is the brainchild of French champagne maker Gilbert Gruet. They produce seven sparkling wines priced from $14 to $46. New England sparkles, too, with Westport Rivers Vineyard's Estate Grown white and rose bubblies. And if you like quaffing sparkling wine Budweiser-style, there's veteran Hollywood producer and winemaker Francis Coppola's Sofia Blanc de Blancs that comes in a bright red can complete with straw. Most domestic sparkling wines are available in varying degrees of sweetness from brut to the fruitier demi-sec styles. Italy produces myriad sparkling wines but the easiest to find are Prosecco, Asti Spumante and Moscato d'Asti. The latter has rich, honeyed hon·eyed v. A past tense and a past participle of honey. adj. also hon·ied 1. Containing, full of, or sweetened with honey. 2. Ingratiating; sugary: honeyed words. flavors derived from the Muscat grapes from which it is made. These wines are fermented in a bulk tank then bottled under pressure to retain their fizz. While they are not as elegant as their French counterparts and can be cloyingly cloy v. cloyed, cloy·ing, cloys v.tr. To cause distaste or disgust by supplying with too much of something originally pleasant, especially something rich or sweet; surfeit. v.intr. sweet, at their best they make some of the most attractive toasting wines to pair with rich wedding cake and ice cream. If you're a dedicated red wine lover, semi-sweet sparkling Lambrusco is another Italian option. Australia is the latest New World contender to become a source of bubbles in a beverage for toasting. At present, the choice is limited, but the price is right with white sparklers at about $11 bottle. Shiraz, the signature grape from Down Under, is also used to craft a fizzy fizz intr.v. fizzed, fizz·ing, fizz·es To make a hissing or bubbling sound; effervesce. n. 1. A hissing or bubbling sound. 2. Effervescence. 3. An effervescent beverage. red that exhibits characteristic blue and red fruit flavors. The price is about $10. So here's a thrifty toast to the bride and groom with some savings in hand to provide a sparkling welcome to their firstborn first·born adj. First in order of birth; born first. n. The child in a family who is born first. Noun 1. firstborn - the offspring who came first in the order of birth eldest . Ten suggestions for thrifty toasters Martini and Rossi Asti, $11.99 Exhibits super-sweet and ripe peach flavors from the Moscato Moscato can have several meanings see:
n. 1. One, such as a highly polished metallic surface or a virtuoso performer, that sparkles. 2. Informal A diamond. 3. A firework that burns slowly and gives off a shower of sparks. . Korbel Brut, $11.99 Vinted from a proprietary blend of grapes not about to be revealed by the winemaker. California's most popular sparkling wine. Suggested by Joe Fisher, Julio's Liquors Gruet Blanc de Noirs Blanc de noirs is a French term (literally "white of blacks") for a white wine produced entirely from black grapes. It is often encountered in Champagne, where a number of houses have followed the lead of Bollinger's prestige cuvée , $18 This salmon-colored sparkler made from Pinot Noir and Meunier grapes has all the components needed to make a good celebration even better. Leopardi Brut Rose $25 Spanish Tempranillo grapes. Soft, fresh strawberry-raspberry notes on the palate and a minerally dry finish with a clean, vibrant swallow. Suggested by James Nicas, Castle Restaurant Nino Franco Faive IGT IGT impaired glucose tolerance. Veneto, $26.99 Rose sparkler using Cabernet Franc and Merlot grapes. Faive is Venetian dialect for flames of the fire - very appropriate for a loving occasion such as a wedding. Adami Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Sur Lie, $16.99 This is a unique Prosecco because the lees or sediment are not filtered off the wine during maturation. So this wine has a richness that other Proseccos don't. Suggested by Lorenzo Savona, Tomasso Trattoria trat·to·ri·a n. pl. trat·to·ri·as or trat·to·ri·e An informal restaurant or tavern serving simple Italian dishes. [Italian, from trattore, host, from trattare Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut, $16.99 Methode Champenoise using Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes from cool Carneros. Light golden hue with vanilla, lemon and yeast on the nose. Lots of fresh apple and toasty toast·y adj. toast·i·er, toast·i·est Pleasantly warm. taste notes followed by a creamy finish. Taltarni Brut Tache tache (tahsh) [Fr.] a spot or blemish.tachet´ic tache blanche (blahnsh) a white spot on the liver in certain infectious diseases. , $19.99 Traditional French blend using Australian grapes from Victoria and Tasmania. Very pale salmon hue achieved with the rare technique of "staining" the wine by coloring the liquor used in the fermentation process. Tache is the French for stain. Vivacious strawberry and raspberry tastes. Crisp, refreshing follow-through. Suggested by Christine Zecker, Educated Grape Naveran Brut Reserva Blanc de Blancs, $11.99 A really fresh, crisp, chalky sparkler made from Xarel-lo, Macabeo and Parellada grapes with a long finish. Has those biscuity, yeasty yeast·y adj. yeast·i·er, yeast·i·est 1. Of, similar to, or containing yeast: yeasty dough. 2. characteristics that I love in some of the Cavas Reservas. Castellar Cava Rose, $9.99 This is a great example of Cava Rose with sweet strawberry notes and vibrant acidity. Suggested by Michael Covino, Block Five ART: PHOTOS PHOTOG pho·tog n. Informal A person who takes photographs, especially as a profession; a photographer. : PHOTOGRAPHY BY TOM RETTIG |
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