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.