Put a little color in your Valentine’s Day
By Robyn James
During the month of Valentine’s our thoughts always turn to Champagne and other sparkling wines. Some choose white, some like pink, but how many take the road less traveled and sample a sparkling red?
My generation carries a heavy grudge toward sparkling reds because we remember the cheap, stomach-turning Cold Duck beverage and the fake bulk processed lambruscos like Cella and Riunite.
However, there are some gorgeous, quality sparkling reds in the market and the visual of the red bubbling froth in a flute is impressive and romantic.
Italy is definitely the mothership for sparkling reds. It’s a little ironic that one of the most famous sparklers comes from the Piedmont region of Italy, usually famous for the hard, tannic reds from Barolo and Barbaresco.
Brachetto is a dark-skinned grape grown almost exclusively in the Piedmont region but planted primarily in the provinces of Asti and Alessandria. It is often considered to be the red counterpart to Moscato D’Asti, although the grapes are not related.
Fizz 56 is one of my favorite brachettos and costs about $18. Although it is higher on the residual sugar scale, the acidity in the wine keeps it from tasting cloyingly sweet. This wine is truly a basket of berry flavors: strawberries, raspberries and touches of blackberries. There is even a nuance of candied rose petals, which is interesting because often Barolo can have a drier rose petal note. There is no wine that complements chocolate better than brachetto.
Not many American consumers are familiar with quality lambrusco; however, you will find them on the wine lists of authentic Italian restaurants in New York City.
Lambrusco is an Italian grape grown primarily in Emilia-Romagna and Lombardy. It is finished frizzante (sparkling in Italian). Mederfil Lambrusco Reggiano is labeled rosso dolce, meaning “sweet red.” This wine is about $10 and also has bountiful berry and violet flavors. Strawberries, cherries and blackberries are deliciously wrapped with an herbal earthiness that almost gives an impression of fruit in balsamic. Although sweet, it has a nice beam of acidity that would pair well with pizza or pasta.
There’s no way to talk about sparkling reds without a tip of the hat to Australia and its fabulous sparkling shiraz. When I visited Australia over 15 years ago, I was delighted to find that literally every winery I visited produced a sparkling shiraz. I predicted it would become all the rage in the U.S., and sadly I was mistaken. It’s still difficult to find sparkling shiraz in the U.S. when it is all over Australia. I guess importers lack faith in the marketability of the wine.
One of my favorites that is available stateside is The Black Chook Sparkling Shiraz, about $21 a bottle. The winemaker explains that his shiraz follows the centuries-old tradition of northern Rhone French syrahs by adding a very small amount of viognier, a white grape that actually deepens the dark color of the wine. He spotted a black chook (chicken) in the vineyard and compared the small white egg it came from to their small white addition of viognier to the wine. Hence the name Black Chook. This is a serious sparkling red.
Sourced from great vineyards in McLaren Vale, a premiere shiraz location, this wine is aged in small French oak barrels. The barrels contribute a smoky, slightly tannic edge to the black currant, blackberry and chocolate-cherry flavors. Try it as a party aperitif wine or with duck, grilled tuna or any chargrilled meat.
February is the month to branch out and experiment with a great sparkling red! PS
Robyn James is a certified sommelier and proprietor of The Wine Cellar and Tasting Room in Southern Pines. Contact her at robynajames@gmail.com.
