Why do we save champagne only for New Year’s Eve and other special occasions? Are we afraid it would lose some of its distinction if we opened it more often? Perhaps. Yet, I’m in favor of increasing the frequency of celebratory events. Something along the lines of, “Hallelujah, it’s Saturday; break open the bubbly.”
And I especially like drinking champagne, or, if you must, sparkling wine, on a hot summer day. Sitting in the spa (once the temperature has been reduced so that it is more of a tepid tub than a hot tub) with a champagne flute (yes, real glass, no plastic, please) within reach is one of those moments when one is prompted to declare, “Life is good.”
I recently took a bottle of Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte brut rose to the tub, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. (The champagne, I mean; well, the tub, too.) Rose wines, long maligned thanks to the white zinfandel craze of decades ago, are finally reaching a level of appreciation among wine lovers. And rose sparklers are getting extra attention.
The Feuillatte brut rose is non-vintaged, and the product of 20 to 50 single crus. The blend is 10 percent chardonnay, 60 percent pinot noir and 30 percent pinot meunier. The pinot noir, of course, gives it its structure while the pinot meunier gives it fruitiness. Those fruits include lots of berries: blackberries, strawberries, raspberries and such. It has fine bubbles, too many to count, and a pleasingly pink color. I enjoyed mine with an assortment of cheeses and a few soggy crackers (hard to finesse crackers in the tub).
You should be able to find Nicolas Feuillatte brut rose for under $45, which puts it in a middle-premium range. But, hey, get some for a special occasion — Saturday’s coming. If you’d like to visit Nicolas Feuillatte’s Web site, click here.