Raise a glass to good cheer in the new year, but make sure it's filled with a wine that's sublime.
By Lynn Hoffman
There are three ways to ensure your New Year's Eve celebration is a happy one. You'll want to:
-Make a little noise -Share a little kiss, and; -Raise a little toast
You can make a little noise by popping the cork on a bottle of champagne. And wine glasses held aloft do make a promising background for a toast to the old and the new. While I don't know much about such things myself, I hear that the right wine at the stroke of midnight can lead to that little kiss.
Here are some suggestions for wines to serve at your New Year's Eve party. Don't hesitate to ask liquor store personnel to make recommendations too.
Real Champagne Authentic champagne comes from the chalky soils of France's Champagne district. It's expensive, elegant and irreplaceable. Once you've been bitten by the Champagne bug, it's hard to settle for something else but real Champagne doesn't have to cost a fortune. Try Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label.
Sham Champagne The charm of Champagne comes partly from the wonderful grapes of the Champagne district and partly from the multi-step Champagne method in which each bottle is individually re-fermented. The method can be used anywhere, and there are some great sparkling wines produced in other parts of the world. Look for these words on the label: -Champagne Method -Method Champenoise -Metodo Classico (on Italian wines)
Some of my favourites are the 'cavas' from Spain, particularly Friexenet's inexpensive and stylish Cordon Negro.
Boisterously bogus bubblies: sparkling wines There are some sparklers that don't try to imitate anything else and have some wonderful flavours of their own. Look for Asti Spumante -- particularly the Brut de Venegazzu from Gasparini and the exuberantly flavoured Proseccos, especially ones from the Valdobiadene area in Northern Italy.
Crisp cocktail white wines There are white wines that have special appeal to cocktail lovers: wines that are crisp and clean with just a hint of flavour. They are what most people have in mind when they ask for 'dry white wine'. Try a Soave from Italy, an Albariño from Spain or a Riesling from Washington state.
