Valentine's Day
What is Valentine’s Day without champagne?
It is a summer’s day without a gentle breeze, a party without a cake, a date without a goodnight kiss – champagne is the amber liquid that makes a date romantic and special. Do not even contemplate Valentine’s Day without Champagne….it would be a real shame and a disservice to the real meaning of Valentine’s Day.
“What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity. These are but trifles, to be sure; but, scattered along life's pathway, the good they do is inconceivable”. - Joseph Addison
And never a truer word was spoken. Live well, live long and whatever you do live with Champagne and bubbles, here are some great ideas to follow at all price points!
In the under $20 bracket it is hard to go past the New Zealand Deutz. I don’t know how many bottles of it we drank over Christmas. Everywhere we went for Christmas drinks, it was Deutz that was served, so by popular acclaim, it must be good. It should be less than $20 a bottle. Grant Burge Pinot Noir Chardonnay is a good option for about the same price and there is always Prosecco such as Brown Brothers for around $15 a bottle.
Next up would be Cloudy Bay Pelorus, also from New Zealand. A more refined wine and good value for $30.
After that you are getting into true Champagne territory. One of our favourites is Mumm NV which is available from about $40 a bottle, which is great value. A good local drop for similar money would be the Vintage Petaluma Croser Sparkling from the Adelaide Hills.
Then you work your way up from there through the non-vintages from Veuve Clicquot, Bollinger, Billecart-Salmon, Pol Roger, and Moet for up to around $70. They all taste a little different, in accordance with the official “house style”, it’s just a question of your taste.
After that you are into vintage Champagnes and special cuvees and the sky is the limit.
Each of the Champagne Houses has its own reserve single vintage Champagne such as Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame and Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill for around the $200 mark.
If it is very special Valentine’s Day and the sky really is the limit, try Louis Roderer Cristal, Salon S Cuvee, Mumm Cuvee R Lalou, and of course vintage Krug, any of which could set you back up to $500, but it might just be worth it!
