Wine Alert!

Happy to report that I found a wonderful new sparkling wine, just in time for my January 2nd Birthday: Gloria Ferrer VA de VI ("It's About the Wine") - a soft, lovely delicious cuvee with a very reasonable price of $22. I love discovering locally-made wines that I can get excited about because they are both good AND affordable. Standing in BevMo trying to make a decision, I found myself staring into the locked case with all the bottles I couldn't afford - i.e. a 1998 Taittinger for $249, and wondered, how good could it really be? Maybe some day I'll be able to answer that question for myself, but in the meantime...

I've been wanting to try the Gloria Ferrer label for several months now. The Ferrer family, Jose and Gloria, were already well-established sparkling wine producers in Spain (they co-founded Freixenet) who came to California in 1982, fell in love with the Sonoma Carneros wine region, and started Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards. Their beautiful Spanish-style winery overlooks a 335-acre estate, most of which is planted to Pinor Noir grapes. Wine Spectator magazine claims that they produce some of the best California sparkling wines, and I can't wait to try all of them!

This VA de VI Ultra Cuvee, a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes, has aromas of apples, pear, and Bing cherries. It's very soft on the palate with peach, Meyer lemon, berries and vanilla, but what I liked best was the very "creamy" finish. It is described as "dry but not too dry" - for me it was perfect. We had it with some savory appetizers, but it would also be good with some spicy food, and fruit-based desserts. This won Gold in 2009 at the San Francisco International Wine Competition, and also the Best in Show at the 2010 Sommelier Challenge. Jose Ferrer says, "When you serve sparkling wine you are serving a smile." In this case, it's true!