Many cases of this through the years. I stocked up in anticipation of potential 100% tariffs.
Didier Grappe Crémant du Jura Clash
Sant’Orsola Brachetto d’Aqui
Light on the bubbles but great mouth feel of what was there, a little sweetness, a lot of fruitiness, nice drying aftertaste, 6.5% alcohol. Delicious!
Gratien and Meyer from the Loire (Alfred Gratien doesn’t belong in the thread, it’s Champagne, but reasonably priced at an extremely high level).
There’s a lot of good, occasionally fine Cremant from Alsace. Mann and Dirler-Cade come to mind. I only had Boxler once, a long time ago. Really fine.
Dan Kravitz
Like others have said, Schramsberg in CA; L Mawby in MI; Pirie, Arras and Jansz in Tassie.
Currently, in addition to Champagne, I have the following
2017 Antech Blanquette de Limoux Réserve Brut (France, Blanquette de Limoux)
N.V. Gratien & Meyer Saumur Brut (France, Saumur)
N.V. Albourne Brut (England, East Sussex)
2013 Camel Valley Classic Cuvee Brut (England, Cornwall)
N.V. Chapel Down Brut (England, Kent)
2013 Gusbourne Brut Réserve ( England, Kent)
N.V. Hattingley Valley Classic Cuvee Brut (England, Hampshire)
N.V. Hush Heath Estate Brut (England, Kent)
N.V. Graham Beck Brut MCC (South Africa, Western Cape)
N.V. Pongrácz Methode Cap Classique Cuvée Brut (South Africa, Western Cape)
N.V. Steenberg Sparkling Sauvignon Blanc (South Africa, Western Cape)
N.V. Codorníu Cava Selección Raventós Brut (Spain, Cava)
N.V. Freixenet Cava Extra Brut (Spain, Cava)
N.V. Mondelli Prosecco Brut Torretta di Mondelli (Italy, Prosecco)
All are traditional method, except the Prosecco, and most use the same varieties as used in Champagne.
The problem for me with Prosecco is that nearly all on sale in UK are ‘Extra Dry’; it’s hard to find a Brut.
I’ve exhausted the cases of Vouvray I brought back from the Loire, but I think Chenin makes a great traditional method fizz.
Recently had a 2014 Albert Mann Crémant d’Alsace Extra Brut. Very pleasant and a big hit with the people to whom I served it.
This is the only other sparkling that has wowed me like a good Champagne: Barone Pizzini Franciacorta Bagnadore Riserva Pas Dosé. The 2004 was killer. The 2008 is just a notch below.
+1 on the Moscato d’Asti. Barely a sparkling wine, and with ~6% alcohol some might even say barely a wine, but it is delightful. Opened a modest Saracco bottle under screwcap the a few days ago, and a glass paired well with a fruit tart. A couple of days later we finished the bottle with a couple of glasses each on a warm summer evening. Then yesterday my wife went over and gave a bottle to a neighbor who is dealing with some illness in her family to bring a little sunshine into her life for a moment.
I love Michael Cruse’s Ultramarine and Cruse wines, which deservedly get a lot of love on WB. I’m always surprised Wenzlau Vineyard Cuvée L’Inconnu Estate Blanc de Blanc never gets mentioned here. They nail the bead, which is fine and long lasting. The balance is perfect, a ringer for a BdB, a little leesy, chalky, mineraled, with rich citrus but just the right restraint of fruit.
Cheers,
Warren
Dan,
Great post. I was never as big on Mountain Dome as many were as I found the bottles to be too variable from year to year for my liking, but Michael Manz certainly had a talent and passion that is greatly missed. Equinox is top notch stuff. Classic Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay that happens to come with bubbles and that is not a bad thing. Gruet really was making some nice stuff in the early 2000s, but things have changed and the wines are no longer the same - growth and giving up ownership will do that to some. Korbel Natural is still a really, really good QPR. It won’t blow you away, but for $14-$15, it is going to drink like it is $30-$40. No one pay attention to Korbel, but this is one heck of a wine for the price.
I wanted to post a note about this New Year’s Eve wine and opted to put it here.
2013 Roederer Estate l’Ermitage Brut
This wine had me at my second sip. Not the first sip, because it took a moment for me to reconcile what seemed to be a slight sweetness with the rest of the wine’s taste profile. I judged slightly sweet tart fruit and it was not disjointed at all. Complex flavors, but delicate. Mineral, spice, biscuity lees. Fine bubbles. A wonderful, almost ethereal, lightness to the overall mouthfeel. Outstanding wine, I think. Caught me by surprise. I was expecting a step up from the Roederer Estate Brut bottling, but this was something far more than I expected. Wow!
Nice! I’m grabbing one.
FYI if you post this note here it’ll help a charity.
Wild blend here (macabeo, xarello, parellada), totally dry, and a bargain-
Since last post, Blue Mountain (Okanagan) , two or three cuvées
Since the last year was so very atypical, I went for the most atypical sparkling wine I had in my cellar for our celebratory new year’s fizz.
We had De Bortoli Woodfired Sparkling Shiraz. That was as far from a classic Champagne as possible. A bit too sweet (at whopping 18 g/l dosage) and a bit too oaky for my palate with the high alcohol (almost 14%) making the wine feel rather warm. Definitely an apt wine to close the year.
I 100% agree with the Raventos de Nit Rosè.
Jean François Mérieau Touraine J’ose les Fines Bulles. This is a beauty from Loire, excellent stuff!
Also, drink a lot of Gruet rose, from New Mexico.
Monte Tondo Frizzante Veronese IGT. This is a fun summer drink, not Méthode Champenoise
Have you had their BdB? Never see it, but always wondered how it is…
Laetitia makes some nice Sparkling wines. We belong to their wine club.
Sorry, just not the same:
Gruet: Has changed hands, few if any bottlings are still New Mexico fruit and IMO quality has declined. A go-to staple for a few decades that I now avoid.
Just had a bottle it was underwhelming to say the least.
As mentioned above Roederer Anderson Valley Brut is excellent. $15.99 a bottle in Minneapolis.