Pop! Splash! Sip! That routine will be followed by many on New Year’s Eve as 2015 is ushered in with style with a Champagne toast.
Legend has it that a semi-blind French monk named Dom PĂ©rignon invented the bubbly sometime in the late 1600s. His toast is often quoted by Dom PĂ©rignon makers: “Come quickly brothers! I have tasted the stars!”
Whether he really invented Champagne and whether he actually said that is up for debate. Nonetheless the 58 million bubbles said to be in a single bottle of Champagne, are cause for celebration.
Champagne or bubbly wines made in the Champagne tradition do not require any embellishment. They are fine served on their own to toast in the new year, but if you prefer, salty snacks go well with this beverage.
“Really, Champagne goes with anything but it goes especially well with salty snack foods such as potato chips or even popcorn,” said Rosanne Winter-Repchuk a sommelier, who offers wine-tasting samples at Campbell Liquor Store.
Elegant canapés boasting slivers of smoked salmon or oysters also pair well with dry bubbly wines. Semi-dry bubbly wines are excellent with salads or even served with the main course dinner and sweet Champagne is excellent as a dessert accompaniment.
Winter-Repchuk recommended two different sparkling wines to try. On the upper-end, Pol Roger Champagne was the wine served at William and Kate’s wedding. A Canadian sparkling white from Sumac Ridge – Stellars Jay, is generally more affordable, ringing in at less than $30 per bottle.
Not everyone wants to sip bubbly wines all night long. Bill Medak, sommelier at Unwined, likes to mix and match his wines on New Year’s Eve, depending upon the food he serves.
This year he is planning an Italian-themed, evening-long celebration including rich food and different wines, beginning with glasses of Prosecco, a sparkling white wine.
“It’s semi-sweet, bubbly and refreshing,” he said.
The main entrée will be guinea fowl roasted with oregano, basil, rosemary and perhaps lavender. It will be served with wild-mushroom risotto and Brunello, which is an aged red wine.
“It’s a bit on the pricey side – $80 – but this is a special night of celebration and I want something fancy for the best night of the year. Brunello is a full-bodied red that is made by a small producer, who lives life hand-making wine,” Medak said.
Medak will have two different desserts for the occasion, but he is unsure what they will be.
“It’s a surprise because two different friends are bringing dessert. I have told them the Italian theme and I believe at least one dessert will be chocolate. I will serve Vin Santo, which is a rosĂ©-style dessert wine,” he said.
Through the remainder of the evening Medak will serve more Prosecco as well as Spanish Cava, Raspberry Chambord and Elderflower Saint Germaine.
“To ring in the new year we will likely drink the Spanish Cava,” he said.
