Call me when I can get bottle of Veuve Clicquot rose for less than $60. I'll go get it and then we'll all drink it. Snobby, I know, but that shits soooo good.
Not to be all pedantic and snooty, but they're talking about Champagne, capital "C" (not, not THAT capital "C")-- from the Champagne region of France. Not sparkling wine from other places, delicious though it may be. Part of the reason is that they kept raising prices to differentiate "real" Champagne from other sparkling wines.
(Also, if you drink the very dry (Brut) sparklers, you won't get that nasty headache. That comes from the sugar in the cheapie demi-sec or extra-dry wines.)
I would be interested to see how the non-vintage, non-Champagne sparklers' shipments are tracking.
Which leads me to one of my favorite toasts:
"May all your joys be true joys, and all your pains be Champagne."
Um, maybe the champ bubble is bursting because the bottle of $45 Veuve I bought last year wasn't as tasty as the $10 Freixenet I followed it up with. Seriously, I'm sure there's some excellent actual French champagne out there (I had some Dom last month that was like drinking with God), but for the most part, I think the Spanish cavas are a better value and better taste. The climate of the actual Champagne region of France is changing from what it was over the last 200 years-- the new area to get good bubbly from is becoming England. Quelle horror!
If you get headaches from champagne/bubbly, the easiest way to avoid them is stop getting spumante or sweet champagne. I used to hate it and then I switched to brut or extra-dry (NOT COOK'S! Try Domaine St. Michelle, Freixenet, Segura Viudas, or Cristallino) and I've never had the headache problem since.... unless I really do drink a hangover-worthy amount.
@Ipomoea:: Love Cavas and Proseccos for the taste as well as the price. Moet and Vueve are great for indulgences, but I'll happily drink the Spanish or Italian versions on a regular basis.
@Ipomoea:: Never understood why people love Moet or Cristal. I sold bottles at a nightclub and sold them all the time, then of course was invited to have a glass. They SUCK. Cristal especially, I'll drink Dom given the chance but Moet, Cristal and even Veuve....nasty.
I'm a happy drunk anyway but champagne makes me a really happy drunk. It's the perfect buzz. I buy the half-way good stuff (c.$50) and I have never once had the slightest bit of a hangover.
Also, is it okay to drink Carlo Rossi Rhine out of my (single, chipped) champagne flute? It's fizzy and cold. And it's like, $6 for 1.5L of it. That's okay, right?
My husband makes the best bellinis EVUH by stirring together inexpensive Asti Spumante and peach sorbet. We drink Kir Royales and French 75s, too. I am all about affordable sparking wine from Trader Joe's.
@HanaMaru: I am fairly certain that after a good handful of kir royales at the work holiday party one year I ended up at a strip club with half of the IT department, handing out $1 bills.
@veronykah: It's really yummy, pretty dry. You can taste the gin, so I use a good one like Bombay Sapphire. I make mine with 1 1/2 oz gin, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp fine sugar, topped off with bubbly and garnished with a lemon peel twist or a maraschino cherry. I know a Turkish bar that adds a dash of Turkish cherry juice to theirs, and that's a great variation, too.
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(Also, if you drink the very dry (Brut) sparklers, you won't get that nasty headache. That comes from the sugar in the cheapie demi-sec or extra-dry wines.)
I would be interested to see how the non-vintage, non-Champagne sparklers' shipments are tracking.
Which leads me to one of my favorite toasts:
"May all your joys be true joys, and all your pains be Champagne."
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CHAMPAGNE FOR MY REAL FRIENDS, REAL PAIN FOR MY SHAM FRIENDS.
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If you get headaches from champagne/bubbly, the easiest way to avoid them is stop getting spumante or sweet champagne. I used to hate it and then I switched to brut or extra-dry (NOT COOK'S! Try Domaine St. Michelle, Freixenet, Segura Viudas, or Cristallino) and I've never had the headache problem since.... unless I really do drink a hangover-worthy amount.
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