The start of December can mean so many things to so many people, but to me it is the start of the Party Season. Open houses, corporate get-togethers, impromptu drinks out with friends all in the name of the holiday season and cheer often including toasting with a glass of bubbly. If you are going to a ton of parties where the bubbly is flowing and you maybe responsible for bringing some, here are some alternatives to the traditional bottle of methode traditionelle that are often both a pleasant surprise to your host, and a pleasant surprise to your budget!
For Something DifferentPrincess Royal Station Sparkling Shiraz – Burra Creek, South Australia $21.99. 
This sparkling wine is sure to surprise even the most knowledgeable wine drinkers. For your friends who love red wine and love bubbly, this marries the best of both worlds. The wine shows lovely fresh cherry and berry fruits with hints of chocolate and spicy pepper on the nose. The palate displays rich berry fruits with the method champenoise adding a layer of freshness and delicacy.
For The GirlsMumm's, Napa Brut Rose NV $18.95
This wine is a great option for your holiday season or an all-girls poker night. Bring a little cheer to the occasion (for some reason this wine make me giggle…might be the bubbles). Medium–bodied, this is the signature sparkler for Mumm’s in Napa. It has a rose petal aroma with touches of vanilla, strawberries and melon. On the palate it shows firm acidity and crisp structure. Further layers reveal crisp yet creamy qualities that are rich and lingering.
For The Budget2005 Marques de Gelida Cava Brut Exclusive Reserva $10.99
If what you love about champagne is the small bubbles tingling your tongue, the creamy texture and the warm biscuity flavors and aromas, then you really have to stick with methode traditionelle: that 27-step process that makes champagne so wonderful. What isn’t so wonderful may be the price tag that this hard work brings to the bottle. Thankfully, the Spanish are willing to bring us our M.T. fix on the cheap. This is a great budget option, with tart apple flavors carry over in its crisp and creamy mouthfeel, with a gentle hint of sweetness in the background.
For The Splurge, But Not Too SplurgyHiedsieck & Co Monopole Blue Top $34.99 
When nothing but champagne will do this is a great option. It was my wine instructor’s favorite champagne. And it is easy to see why. It is perfection in a glass. A textbook example of why Champagne is Champagne and everything else is sparkling wine. The nose reveals buttermilk biscuit and toasty notes with floral components and a touch of honey. It has a creamy mouthfeel and a touch of richness. At this price point, it is a great Champagne.
Anu Pohani
How to Pick a Summer Wine: The Gentler, Lighter Side of Wine
Summer’s soaring temps beg you to step away from heavy Cabernets and check out the gentler, lighter side of wine. When choosing the perfect summer wine for your outdoor engagement party or wedding, think light, crisp, refreshing--and because people tend to drink more in the heat--lower in alcohol. Nothing more prettily suggests summer than a dry (i.e. not sweet) rose. Avoid the simple, syrupy versions and try French roses from the Mourvèdre grape or roses made using the Saignee method for more complexity. Pick wines from countries where you imagine the locals sipping leisurely at sidewalk cafés while basking in the sun, like Spain. A Spanish fave is Albarino from the Rias Baixas region. Made to drink young, Albarino is a crisp, white wine with intense fruit, lively acidity and generally a lower level of alcohol. It pairs perfectly with summer foods from seafood to grilled vegetables. But you don’t need to swear off red wine for summer. Look for light bodied wines like Pinot Noir from Oregon or a Valpolicella from Italy, both capable of standing up to barbequed foods. And don’t be afraid to put a slight chill on your red wine. It is summer after all!
Rías Baixas Albariño from Spain, “Exceptional with Everything” Oh Really?
There's nothing we love more than a challenge. It's in our makeup. We're two women, thirties. One Indian. One Filipina. The first, founder and CEO of a business in the arguably male-dominated wine world. The second, building experience to be a future proprietess of a wine store. Add to this: In New York City. So when presented with the opportunity to play wine and food critic for a night—to pair Rías Baixas Albariño wines, proclaimed to be "exceptional with everything" with Mercat’s offerings —it is impossible and simply against every ounce of who we are, to refuse.
Mercat means “market” in Catalan, the language of the northern Spanish region where owner, Jaime Reixach, is from and where the restaurant’s menu draws its inspiration. The albariños we’ll be drinking also originate from the northern region, and so we’re already anticipating more perfect wine pairings than tragic mismatches.
It’s a beautiful warm Thursday night—and we are tasting two Albariño wines: Alba Rosa from Martinez Serrantes and Pazo San Mauro, both 2006 vintages. We take our time with each wine—assessing them alone and then side by side. At the end, we agree that both are delightful: the Alba Rosa is sparkling with surprising depth while the Pazo San Mauro would bring life to our springtime picnic. Further, we imagine that if each wine were to be personified, they might just be these two ladies, described as such:
Now, we move on to the heart of our challenge: Exceptional with everything? Oh really? How do these two beauties handle themselves in company? After the three and a half hours of glorious sipping, chewing, and chatting, among ourselves and the restaurant staff, here are our findings:
No surprise, our lovely wines get along splendidly with their classic and traditional partners: we have raves for the nicely seasoned patatas bravas—not too spicy, not too garlicky—and the padrones/blistered shishito peppers, the char and oil offset by the tartness of the wines. One of us goes wild for the Canelons de Verdura/eggplant wrapped spring vegetables, manchego, and cranberry reduction. And then Chef Lowder sends over Trencat d’Ous/mushroom with salsa verde topped with a fried egg, which again, goes splendidly with our wines. Even the suckling pig/Cochinillo, which we think will surely clash, in fact becomes the surprise of the evening. Like the beauty and the beast, our wines and the pig make an unlikely but harmonious pair.
We ask ourselves for the last time: Rías Baixas Albariño from Spain: Exceptional with
Everything?If not for being the gluttonous bottomless pits that we are, we would certainly have answered YES with an exclamation point. But since we order those two desserts—Torrades Sta. Teresa/fried bread with lemon yogurt and Pa Amb Oli Xocolata/bread, olive oil, and chocolate, our answer must be: Almost. These two desserts with our two Albariños — are disastrous.
Rías Baixas Albariño from Spain: Exceptional with
almost Everything.
--Anu Karwa and Marie Estrada
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http://www.riasbaixaswines.com for more info on Rías Baixas Albariños from Spain
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