L.A. WINELINE AUSSIE GOLD WINE NOW IN GOLDEN STATE.

Byline: LARRY LIPSON

Is Aussie white wine with floating gold flakes the latest vino fad?

Could be.

Yeah, but there's a catch.

The people who brought you 2005 Hundred Acre Gold from Australia's Barossa Valley last year now produce their Gold 2005 in Napa Valley.

And some say it's a pretty good chardonnay blend that goes well with spicy food.

So, if you want to join the trendoid crowd and go for the gold, the Napa Valley bottling is available at the Duke of Bourbon, 20908 Roscoe Blvd., Canoga Park, locally for $25 a bottle or $23.75 a bottle if you buy half a dozen or more, and from Liquid Wine & Spirits, 10100 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Chatsworth, for $24.99.

Information: the Duke, [phone] or www.dukeofbourbon.com; Liquid, [phone] or www.liquidpartyworks.com.

TINY PINK BUBBLES: Would you prefer a romantic Valentine's Day wine be pink and bubbly instead of gold and still?

Then save some bucks by picking up a bottle of methode champenoise brut rose by Korbel for around $11, ironically (since we're talking about going for the gold) a gold medal winner at the Los Angeles County Fair and double-gold winner at the California State Fair.

But if you have deep pockets, there's always the wonderful true champagne brut rose from Billecart-Salmon for around $65, affectionately known as ``liquid love.''

HIGH-SCHOOL VINTNERS: St. Helena High students who were enrolled in the Napa Valley school's first-ever viticulture and winemaking class this past fall got involved with winemaking's every step, from vineyard to glass, utilizing Sherwin Family Vineyards facilities in the Spring Mountain district.

Shame, though, that they weren't of age to enjoy tasting the end result, the 2005 zinfandel scheduled to be bottled in fall of 2006.

Information: [phone] or www.sherwinfamilyvineyards.com.

NEW RELEASES: Southeastern Australia's Alice White, whose wines sell pretty well in the United States, has released its 2005 Lexia, a sweet muscat selling for $6.99. ... Beaulieu Vineyard offers two new 2004 chardonnays - one from the Carneros area at $19.99 and one designated from Napa Valley for $17.99. Information: [phone] or www.bvwine.com. ... And under the Grand Reserve labels from Kendall-Jackson come three estate-grown wines, a 2004 chardonnay ($20), a 2003 cabernet sauvignon ($26) and a 2003 merlot ($26). Information: [phone] or www.kj.com. ... Norma Jeane, a pre-starlet 2005 merlot ($10.50) from Marilyn Wines is described as ``fresh, fruity, vivacious, innocent and delicious, all obvious parallels with Norma Jeane Mortenson, before she 'became' Marilyn Monroe.'' Information: www.marilynwines.com or [phone].

SIPS & NIBBLES: Another Spring Mountain district name to watch is Fantesca. Its initial release, a 2002 estate cab made by Kirk and Nils Venge, retails at $60. It is described by the district's newsletter as ``powerful, inky, ripe and luscious.'' Information: [phone] or www.fantesca.com. ... Jacques Bezuidenhout, bartender at Tres Agaves restaurant in San Francisco, won the Wines from Spain 2005 sherry cocktail competition (a cash prize and trip to Jerez, Spain) last month with his mixture of manzanilla sherry, reposado tequila and pear liqueur. Information: www.enjoysherry.com. ... Celebrity chef Charlie Trotter picked 2003 Trefethen chardonnay to go with his Tasmanian sea trout and chanterelles dish at the Wine Spectator's New York Wine Experience event last October, so Trefethen is now sharing the recipe. Find it at www.trefethen.com or call [phone].

Larry Lipson, [phone]

larry.lipson(at)dailynews.com