Questions: Sulfites and Booze in Bubbly

A curious Bubbly Girl named Thelma wrote to me wondering about the amount of alcohol in a bottle of champagne and sulfites in wine. Since I had to do a bit of research, I figured I'd share it with the rest of you.

First, it's probably safe to remember that all 750 ml or 25 or so ounces in a bottle of bubbly contain alcohol. But it's true that 4 ounces of champagne aren't nearly as potent as 4 ounces of Cognac.

According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, one 5-ounce glass of wine has the same amount of alcohol as 1.5 ounces of vodka or 12 ounces of beer. Doing the math, one bottle of champagne has the equivalent alcohol as drinking 7.5 ounces of hard liquor.

But when drinking bubbly you can't forget about the carbonation. Not only do those tiny bubbles tickle your nose; they also speed the alcohol into your system, giving it a more potent effect than the equivalent amount of still wine or vodka.

Moving on... sulfites are these naturally occurring substances, often found in small amounts in wine and beer as a natural byproduct of fermentation. They're also added to many foods like shrimp, frozen potatoes, dried fruit and wine, because they're a great preservative. The Food and Drug Administration estimates that added sulfites make 1 in 100 people itchy, short of breath or worse.

If added sulfites in wine are a concern, you may want to look into wines made with organic or biodynamic processes, and often minimal amounts of added sulfites. I'm not sure its possible to make sparklers sans sulfites, but a couple responsible producers include Albet i Noya in Spain, which makes an organic cava called Cava Can Vendrell and Fleury, the first champagne maker to go biodynamic in 1989.

Tasting Parties Part 1: Chocolate

I'm gearing up for another segment on KNSD 7/39 this morning -- but at least I can get some sleep since it's for Streetside San Diego, which starts at 10 a.m.

The topic du jour is tasting parties -- a great way to combine fun with a little education. Tasting parties are about exploring one single food or drink and getting to know how its flavor changes depending on how or where it's made. The goal is finding what appeals to your palate.

I presented ideas for a chocolate tasting party, which can be done with chocolates made with different percentages of cocoa, which the range of Scharffen Berger Chocolates shows wonderfully. The line goes from a 41 percent cocoa milk chocolate to an 82 percent cocoa dark chocolate.

Then there's the Lake Champlain Select Origin chocolates, which show the differences between chocolates sourced from Tanzania, Sao Thome (an island off Africa) and Grenada.

Or if you want someone else to do the work for you, pick up an assortment of chocolate desserts from the best bakery in town. Michele Coulon Dessertier in La Jolla makes a range of mini choclate desserts from white chocolate and passion fruit tartlets to chocolate truffle cake to mini cheese cakes to bittersweet chocolate and cherry cake.

The chocolate theme inspired me to make up a fizzy chocolate cocktail, that recalls the old-fashion ice cream sodas my mom made working at College Pharmacy in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It goes upscale with in a champagne glass and sipped through a Christofle silver champagne straw. I know, the sake sounds weird, but trust me!

Chocolate Sake Soda

This would be divine with a bittersweet chocolate ganache as its base, but if you don't feel like making that, Hershey's chocolate syrup works just fine.

1 tablespoon chocolate ganache or syrup
1 ounce Kahlua coffee liqueur
4 to 5 ounces Zipang sparkling sake, chilled
1 tablespoon vanilla ice cream

Add chocolate ganache or syrup to a champagne flute. Next add the Kahlua and stir lightly to combine. Slowly add the sparkling sake, so it doesn't fizz over your glass. When the bubbles subside a bit, add the vanilla ice cream. Serve immediately.

Recipe by Maria Hunt "The Bubbly Girl" All rights reserved.

Summer White Wines

Sure I'm the Bubbly Girl, but you didn't think that meant I always drink wine with bubbles? You did? Oh, well sorry to burst your bubble.

Actualy I enjoy a range of well-made wines from all over the world, carbonated and otherwise.

Last Thursday, I shared some of my favorite Summer White Wines on this segment on the KNSD 7/39 morning show -- at 6:45 a.m.!

Since it's hot outside, summer is the time to drink wines that are both light on the alcohol (less than 14 percent) and high in acid, which makes your mouth water.

Here's the list of wines that I presented, along with some Super Sips.

Albarino -- A racy white wine from Rias Baixas region of Spain, albarin~o has flavors of ginger lime and kiwi. It's great with seafood, especially scallops.
Mar de Frades Albarin~o 2005, 16.99 at BevMo

Riesling -- This elegant and electric wine is best made in Germany, where it picks up flavors of peach, lime and minerals. Try it with sushi, sashimi or spicy Asian food.
Zilliken Riesling Butterfly 2005, $16.99 at BevMo
Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling Eroica 2006, $19.99 BevMo

Chenin Blanc -- This lush and refreshing wine is well known in France, where its made into fruity Vouvray, but they're also great from cool areas of California. Tasting of melons and honey, chenin blanc excels with rich seafood like lobster or grilled chicken.
Husch Chenin Blanc, $8.99 at BevMo
Francois Pinon Vouvray 2005, $16.99 at BevMo

Sauvignon Blanc - This is a clean tasting wine, classically made into Sancerre in France, but well-crafted all over the world, especialy in New Zealand. Its herbal and grapefruit flavors make it great with goat cheese and hard- to-pair veggies like asparagus.
Pastou Sancerre Cotes de Sury, $18.99 at BevMo
Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc 2006, $13.99 at BevMo

Prosecco -- This crisp and fresh tasting grape grows best in the soaring hills east of Venice, Italy. With flavors of green apple and citrus, this gently sparkling wine is ideal with prosciutto ham and cheeses.
Fantinel Prosecco, $9.99 at BevMax
Zardetto Prosecco, $12.99 at BevMo

Charmat, I'm Sure

Even though it's been a part of winemaking since the early 1900s, it took the Oxford English Dictionary nearly 100 years to add the word "Charmat" (shar-MOTT) to its esteemed list of official words.

As you lovers of bubbly may know, the Charmat process is one of the common ways that still wine is transformed into bubbly. Also known as the tank or bulk method, it was invented somewhere between 1907 and 1910 by a Frenchman named Eugene Charmat.

Wine is added to a temperature-controlled tank like the one above, along with some yeast and sugar. The tank is then closed. The yeast and sugar start to ferment, which causes CO2 gas to be released into the wine.

Charmat is faster and less expensive than methode champenoise and is also best for preserving delicate aromas and flavors found in some grapes. It makes wine with fewer bubbles than champagne.

So next time you enjoy a glass of Prosecco or Moscato d'Asti, be sure to toast Mr. Charmat.

Lemon Sparkler -- Happy 4th of July

I've already dug my sparklers out for the Fourth of July - both the kind you light with a match and the ones that have corks. It should be hot, but what better way to cool off than with a crisp, lemony cocktail made with a splash of sparkling wine.

This Lemon Sparkler recipe comes from the folks at Barefoot Bubbly, a line of affordable, sip-by-the-pool wines that's part of the E & J Gallo empire. The lemon flavor comes from limoncello, a bittersweet lemon liqueur that's a traditional digestif all over Italy, but especially in the south.

Lemon Sparkler
1 1/2 oz limoncello

1 1/2 oz fresh sour mix

3 oz Barefoot Bubbly Brut Cuvée

Lemon twist

Fresh mint leaves

Directions: Combine the limoncello and sour mix in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into chilled martini glass. Top off with Barefoot Bubbly. Garnish with a long lemon twist & mint sprig.


If you don't get your fill during the day, The Winesellar & Brasserie, a well-stocked wine shop and restaurant in the Miramar area, is hosting a tasting called Champagne and Friends from 5 to 7 p.m. on the 4th. The exact wines are a secret, but judging from their ad, you can count on tasting something made by Gruet, a fine French style sparkling wine house based in New Mexico.

Bubble Up!

I always love an excuse to talk about the Rosa Regale Brachetto d'Acqui, a deep red , tart-sweet sparkling wine from Piedmont that tastes of roses, raspberries and cranberries. At Arterra in the San Diego Marriott Del Mar they're serving a potent ruby red Sangria made with Brachetto. Created by Tom Mastricola, the new general manager and resident mixlogist, it's sublime.

The hip new patio that surrounds the pool - complete with cabanas, mod furniture and a yummy menu of upscale comfort food -- makes a great place to down tall cold glass of sangria this summer.

In case you'd like to try it at home, here's the recipe:

ArterraGria

2 raspberries
2 blueberries
2 strawberries
1 slice orange
1 slice lemon
1 ounce Landy Cognac
1/2 ounce creme de cassis
1/2 ounce simple syrup
splash fresh orange juice
2 to 3 ounces Rosa Regale Brachetto d'Acqui

Add the berries to a 16-ounce bar mixing glass and muddle (smash) the berries to a juicy pulp. Add the orange and lemon slices. Add the Cognac, creme de cassis, simple syrup and orange juice and stir well to combine. Fill the glass with crushed ice. Top off with Brachetto.

My Bubbly Book

It feels good to be blogging again.

First, I must apologize for having been absent for so long, but I've been up to something huge.

For the past few years, I've been working on a lifestyle book that would celebrate all the wonderful sparkling wines and champagnes I love from around the world.

Things started clicking in early spring when I started working with literary agents Jennifer de la Fuente and Frank Scatoni of Venture Literary. They were professional, encouraging and well-connected.

In early April, I signed a deal with Clarkson Potter to write a book on sparkling wine cocktail recipes and delicious appetizers that sing with any sparkling wine or champagne. Clarkson is considered one of the premier publishers of gorgeous and glossy lifestyle and cooking books; their authors include Martha Stewart, Rachael Ray and Giada di Laurentis. The book will be filled with beautiful color pictures as well as lots of practical information on how bubbly is made, how to pair it with everyday foods and great wines to taste. It's due out in August 2008, but I'll keep you updated.

After a whirlwind of shooting pictures and writing that ended on June 1, photographer Paul Body, some friends and I celebrated by cracking open a magnum of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label.
I look forward to many more celebrations!!!

Cava, Cava!

I was out wine shopping with my friend Kristi at a local grocery store this weekend when I stumbled on one bottle of Cava Can Vendrell sitting all by its loneseome on the shelf. I think I yelled "Oh my God" and grabbed the bottle.

I was so excited because it was the first time I'd ever seen a bottle of this organic cava by Albet I Noya. I thought it was a bargain at $18. Cava, which means "cave" in Spanish, is a sparkling wine made in the same method as champagne, but it using native grapes from Penedes named xarel-lo, macabeo and parellada. Josep Maria Albet I Noya, as their web site explains, is one of Spain's pioneers in making fine organic wines, dating back to the late 70s.

So I raced home with my prize, stuck it in the refrigerator and planned a cava-worthy meal of Spanish shrimp with grapes.

Turning on the computer while I waited, I found an email from a "Bubbly Chap" named Patrick and his wife Roso who live near Barcelona, Spain. She works for an Institute promoting cava, the Spanish sparkling wine, and in doing research found my site The Bubbly Girl.

How freaky and cool is that?? They were as thrilled to find someone in the US who loves bubbly as I was to hear from them. Every Friday, they celebrate what they call "Happy Friday" with a bottle of cava and different foods. They say there are lots of local stories about cava, like the one that promises if you dig a hole in the earth in Penedes, cava will run out of the ground.

I hope to get there one day soon to find out!

The Other Dom

Who hasn't heard of Dom Perignon? But there's another Dom who's quite famous in the world of Champagne. Dom Ruinart also created champagne, and realized selling bubbly to Europe's high and mighty would make a fine business. His family founded what is the oldest house in Champagne in 1729.

As good as Ruinart champagne is, it's somewhat rare. So I was thrilled to discover their Blanc de Blancs on the wine list at Chive in downtown San Diego. And mon dieu, it was half-price, thanks to a Mad Monday wine special!!
The clear bottle of Blanc de Blancs was gorgeous and the wine was a revelation: incredibly elegant and light while still being round. It's rare and refreshing to find an old-school French bubbly that's so lithe and juicy with chardonnay fruit. It was perfect alone, but magical with a dish of seared scallops stuffed with chorizo.

After dinner, I moved over to the bar to meet a co-worker who had a guest named Stephen visiting from London. He works at the posh bar Artesian in the Langham Hotel -- which serves loads of bubbly and cocktails based on artisanal spirits.

The half-price Ruinart caught his eye too. "We sell this for 17 pounds a glass!"

Here we go again...

Sweet Surrender Cocktail Recipe

OK, sorry it took me so long to get back to you, but I've been a busy girl -- even more than normal.

One of my new activities is joining my first book club, informally known as the Best Book Club Ever. It's filled with smart, fun women, who are mostly attorneys or their wives. Our first book was My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult, a very moving and controversial tale of a girl who was born in order to donate stem cells, and then bone marrow to her older sister who has a rare form of cancer.

Since I was longing for a bit of spring, I decided to create a girly, rose-scented cocktail to add some sparkle to our first meeting. I named it after a hot pink rose called Sweet Surrender. Here, finally, is the recipe:

Sweet Surrender aka Book Club-tinis
Makes 1 cocktail
2 tablespoons Stirrings 60 Petals Rose Essence
splash Torani raspberry syrup
Rotari Brut sparkling wine
candied rose petals

Add the rose syrup and a drizzle of raspberry syrup to a champagne flute. Top off with Rotari or another favorite brut sparkling wine. Add a few pieces of candied rose petals to the glass, they'll float up and down and make it extra bubbly.

I plan to sip a few of these while reading our next book, The Other Boelyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, a tale of political intrigue, romance and sibling rivalry set in the court of King Henry VIII.

Livin My Life Like It's Golden

I feel like I'm in sixth grade again.

I have been playing the song Golden by the amazing singer and songwriter Jill Scott incessantly this weekend.

I'd heard before, but it hit a chord when I heard it on TV paired up with the image of a perfectly golden glass of bubbly. Apparently, it's the theme song for "The Starter Wife" a new USA Network miniseries starring Debra Messing. It's based on a book of the same name by Gigi Levangie Grazer that tells the story of a Hollywood exec's wife restarting her life after getting the heave-ho.

Married, divorced or happily single, this song celebrates the way we all should live. Is this the Bubbly Girl theme song or what?

Boa Cocktail Recipe

A good cocktail recipe can be hard to find, so I'll save you the trouble.

Here's how to make The Boa, the Valentine cocktail I mentioned earlier this week. It's slightly sweet with a sort of unseen power -- like a woman perhaps?

The Boa is just one of the unique wine-based cocktails that Lisa Redwine has created at Molly's Restaurant in the San Diego Marriott Marina, where she's the wine director and GM. Redwine (yes, her real name) was inspired by a similar cocktail she tasted on a trip to France.

The Boa Cocktail
Splash (1/2 ounce) Aqua Perfecta Raspberry Liqueur
5 ounces chilled sparkling wine
Float of Quady’s Elysium Black Muscat dessert wine
1 fresh raspberry
Pour raspberry liqueur in bottom of glass. Add sparkling wine slowly because it will foam. Top with Elysium. Garnish with fresh raspberry.

Cin-cin!

New Site Feature: Bubbly FAQ

Ever wondered how to afford more champagne on a beer budget or how to stop mangling the pronunciation of methode champenoise?

Well, wonder no more: go check out a new feature called Bubbly FAQ on my web site The Bubbly Girl.

Now, the only thing missing is your question... If you've got something you're dying to know about bubbly, write to me at
thebubblygirl@sbcglobal.net

Divine Valentine Wine

It's not hard to figure out that I wholeheartedly recommend rose bubbly for Valentine's Day. Aaah, but which one?

I'm early to bed tonite because at 6:15 a.m. Monday, I'll be on KNSD 7/39 talking about romantic sparkling wines to serve on V-Day.

In case you're not up that early, here's the rundown:

Billecart-Salmon Brut Rose One of the best kept secrets in France. Think strawberries on buttered toast. About $75
Domaine Chandon Brut Rose - A vivid and bold wine with lively flavors of plums and raspberries. About $17
Banfi Rosa Regale Brachetto d'Acqui- A seductive sweet-tart wine with flavors of raspberries, cranberries and roses. About $18

Champagne & Chocolate

I can't help but grimace whenever I read about people eating champagne with chocolate.

Actually, I have loved chocolate and champagne, but just once. It was at Trianon, Moet et Chandon's hospitality house in Epernay, France. The chef there paired a very subtle milk chocolate mousse with Nectar Imperial.

The rule is that the wine needs to be at least as sweet as the dessert for the pairing to work. Otherwise, the wine tastes sour and it doesn't do much for the food either.

But when the champagne is mixed with the chocolate in a truffle, it's a whole different story. I'm mad about anything San Francisco pastry chef turned chocolatier Michael Recchiuti makes, and his Champagne Truffles are no exception. The milk chocolate ganache truffles are blended with Schramsberg's Blanc de Noirs and dusted with powdered sugar.

For a busy woman, eating fine chocolate and champagne at the same time is the ultimate in multi-tasking.

The Bubbly Index

Even before all those corks went flying on Dec. 31, the vintners of high-end domestic sparkling wine had reason to celebrate: sales of their wines grew 6 percent over last year.

The Bubbly Index -- a report by wine industry consulting firm Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates -- looked at sales in the premium California sparkling wine category. That includes a wide range of brands from J to Domaine Carneros to Korbel.

Joy Sterling, of Iron Horse Vineyards said that their 7.5 percent growth in revenue was fueled by new young wine drinkers who aren't beholden to French bubbly. "California high-end Methode Champenoise Sparklings like Iron Horse fit the profile as 'affordable luxuries,’" Sterling is quoted as saying.

Seeing that this is the third year in a row that sales of domestic bubbly have grown, to me, it also means that more people -- young and not so young -- are realizing that fine sparkling wines are perfect accompaniments for every day life.

Last Minute Bubblies Under $20 and Opening That Bottle

I got up early Saturday to make a last-minute appearance on KNSD 7/39's morning show to talk about under-$20 sparkling wines that make great alternatives to champagne.

Here are the four wines I shared:
Blason de Bourgogne Cremant de Bourgogne Cuvee Brut- Sparkling wine from Burgundy France, it’s light and clean with a balance of crisp citrus notes and golden apples. I couldn't find any background on the Brut Cremant, but Blason de Bourgogne is a joint venture by four well regarded producers in Burgundy intent on crafting fine affordable wines. If you can, grab a bottle of the rose!
$8 at Trader Joe’s

Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Heredad – Cava is a sparkling wine made in Spain using the same methods as in champagne. Smooth, elegant and buttery, it goes down very easily. Plus it comes in a stunning pewter embellished bottle. If you thought you didn’t like cava, this is the one to try.
$14 at Trader Joe’s

Piper Sonoma Brut – Made in Sonoma by a French champagne house Piper Heidsieck, this wine is bold with toasty, mushroom flavors and aromas tempered by creaminess and rich fruit.
About $12 at BevMo or Trader Joe’s

Banfi Rosa Regale Brachetto d’Acqui- Lush, tart-sweet wine with raspberry, rose and cranberry flavors and aromas that make it quite unforgettable.
About $17 at BevMo

We also talked about the right way to open a bottle of champagne, a task that I've noticed makes some grown women cringe. Some guys on the other hand, seem to think it's fun to shake the bottle and see how far they can shoot the cork and the bubbly inside. But since a bottle contains the same amount of pressure as a truck tire, corks can and do cause injuries.

Here's how to ring in the new year without needing an eye patch.
1. Get the bottle cold; 20-30 minutes in ice water or 1 hour in the refrigerator.

2. Remove the foil and loosen the wire cage.

3. Place a cloth napkin or towel and the palm of your hand firmly over the cork.
4. Point the bottle at the ceiling, hold the cork and twist the bottle to open.
You should hear a slight sigh, not an explosion.
Cheers!

The Phantom - The Drink, The Drive

Personally, I've always associated Rolls-Royces with Grey Poupon mustard-- at least I think that was a Rolls.

But in yet another burst of over-the-top creativity, New York Chef Daniel Boulud (who brought us the $69 burger laden with short ribs, foie gras and black truffles) found inspiration in a Rolls-Royce for a uniquely luxurious cocktail.

Boulud, who admits he's wild about beautiful cars, was so impressed with the Phantom Black he decided to create cocktail that's equally exquisite and elegant. The result is The Phantom, a curious libation of champagne crowned with a champagne cloud.

Bartender Xavier Herite combines gelatin and the restaurant's private label Cuvee Daniel champagne to make the champagne cloud. In tribute to the Rolls-Royce Phantom Black, the cocktail is served in a mysterious black crystal glass made by Riedel. The Black Sommelier's Blind Blind glass is designed to conceal the color of the liquid so tasters can judge a wine solely on its aroma and flavors.

Most of us will never drive a Phantom, but for a mere $29, we can experience the cocktail from now until late spring 2007 in the Lounge at Daniel.

Irresistible

Recipes seem simple, but they're so much more than sets of instructions for a dish. In between the measurements, they hold a connection to memories of the first time we ate that food, where we were or the person who shared the dish with us.

Being a Bubbly Girl is as much about serving the right sparkling wine as it is about knowing what foods best accompany that wine. I can't think of anything better with bubbly than these Cheddar Cheese Coins, savory little crackers with a buttery cheddar taste and a hint of spice. They're going in my Bubbly Girl book, but since its the entertaining season, I've decided to share them with you now.

The original recipe they're based on came from a rather unpleasant person. But I suppose that shows that everyone has at least one redeeming quality.

Cheddar Cheese Coins
1 pound butter, softened
1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated and at room temperature
4 cups unbleached flour
2 cups pecans, toasted and chopped
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cayenne
½ teaspoon ancho chile powder

Put everything in a large mixing bowl and mix well with your hands or add ingredients to the bowl of an electric mixer and process until well-combined. Working on a lightly floured surface, take a hunk of dough and roll it into a long log about the diameter of a quarter. Wrap log in plastic wrap. Repeat with the remaining dough. Put the dough you don’t plan to bake into the freezer. Let the rest chill in the refrigerator for an hour or two.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using a sharp knife, cut log into slices one-eighth-inch thick. Place coins close together on baking sheet that’s been greased lightly or is covered by a Silpat baking mat. Bake for 16 minutes or until the kitchen smells like cheddar cheese and butter. Remove from the oven, the bottoms should be slightly golden. Let coins cool completely before removing them from the pan, or they will fall apart.

© Maria Hunt - All Rights Reserved

Oh Jaaames...

I've been so busy lately, I'm probably one of five people in North America who hasn't seen the new James Bond flick Casino Royale yet. It's the story of how James Bond went from regular spy to a licensed to kill 007. In Bond creator Ian Fleming's original 1953 Bond book by the same name, we learn of all of Bond's favorite things: the Walther PPK, martinis shaken-not-stirred and Bollinger Champagne.

Now I know why he's been drinking the stuff for the past 50 years or so; it's probably the most marvelous champagne I've ever tasted. My friend Jan invited me to a champagne and sparkling wine tasting at the University Club in downtown San Diego.

It was crowded, and by the time I made it over to Bruno, the Bollinger rep, he was down to his last bottles. First I tasted the Special Cuvee, which caught me off guard with its striking balance of toasty aged character mixed with golden fruits.

I was still pondering and savoring this wine when Bruno told me to drink up. He wanted me to have the last taste of La Grande Annee. The current vintage of this wine, which is Bollinger's prestige cuvee, is from 1997. I was mesmerized by the most beautiful symphony of flavors: it was like eating buttery golden brioche wrapped around caramelized apricots.

That was a week ago, and I'm still in its thrall.