decanted

break out the bubbly

Being partial to fizzy beverages, we tend to believe they're criminally overlooked for most of the year. But no one forgets about the bubbly stuff on New Year's Eve. So here are some suggestions of sparklers we like for every budget. As with all of our posts, the prices listed here are approximate and may vary at your local wine store or online retailer.

• Recession Buster. Casteller Cava Brut N.V. (Non-Vintage) from the Catalonia region of Spain. A steal at $8.99, especially if you're going to go through cases of it.
• A Step Up. Gruet Blanc de Noirs N.V. from New Mexico, good ol' USA, for $13.99. Who knew the Southwest--of the U.S.--could produce such a reliably strong sparkling wine?
• The Real Deal. Pol Roger Brut Reserve N.V., from where else, the Champagne region of France. $39.99. Now we're getting into the good stuff. Our favorite for special occasions.
• Pinks Have More Fun. Billecart-Salmon Brut Rosé N.V., also from Champagne. $69.99 if you're lucky. Shop around for a good deal. And to all you macho types, don't fear the pink--you can pull it off.
• Going for Broke. Krug Grande Cuvée Brut N.V., Champagne, $159.99. If you're one of the lucky few who still has lots of cash to throw around, grab one of these and a half-kilo of Beluga caviar, and call it a night.

Any of these picks will help you celebrate in style. Happy New Year!

portugese, please

We've gotten quite a few requests from friends and family to cover more lower-priced wines. Cheap bastards! No, just kidding. We definitely understand the importance of being able to go into a wine store and come out of it without an empty wallet. (Or money clip. Tim is really into his money clip.)

So in the interest of saving ourselves and anyone who might be following this blog from imminent bankruptcy, we tried a $12.99 bottle of 2006 Quinta do Feital Auratus from Portugal. This straw-colored blend of 50% Alvarinho (the same grape as the Spanish Albariño) and 50% Trajadura grapes was a terrific aperitif wine-- really bright and interesting. Its glycerin-y texture, high level of acidity, and apple flavors worked together nicely. It had some substance to it, which you can't always say about a sub-$15 white. You could pair it with goat cheese, much like a Sancerre, or with the traditional Albariño partner, oysters.

Of course, if you're having oysters, you might be throwing the whole budget idea out the window. But hey--at least you'll be drinking good wine while doing so. We give this one an 8.0 out of 10.

old white guy

We have few opportunities to try aged white wines--they just don't tend to be as readily available as two or three-year-old whites. When Tim came across this 1998 López de Heredia Viña Gravonia Blanco Crianza at Addy Bassin's MacArthur Beverages, he picked it up out of curiosity. It's a $23.99 white Rioja, made from 100% Viura grapes (and organic ones, at that) at the family-owned López de Heredia winery.

We sipped it at home a few hours later and felt surprised by the oakiness sitting right in the middle of it. The taste is definitely not as subtle as French oak (it was aged in American barrels) but it's not as blatant as California-style oak. Like many oaky Chardonnays, especially California ones, it contains some hints of vanilla and creaminess. But it doesn't end like a chard; it's more acidic. After much debate, we identified the hard-to-pin-down fruit note as orange.

This isn't an unbelievably crafted wine. But the age on it gives it a few tricks up its sleeve that are hard to find in a younger bottle. We rate it as a 6.5.

not quite ready

We must admit we have not tasted as many Spanish wines as French or American or even Italian wines. But this is what decanted is all about:  sharing new experiences and learning from them. At one of our favorite DC wine stores, Addy Bassin's MacArthur Beverages, we selected the 2003 Aalto Ribera del Duero from Spain's northern plateau. Like most red wines from this region, the Aalto is made from the Tempranillo grape. Due to similarities in taste and structure, many experts once believed that tempranillo was related to one of our favorites, Pinot Noir, only to be discredited by those pesky geneticists. It was because of these similarities that we were very excited to try this example of Tempranillo.

Oftentimes, however, high expectations can lead to greater disappointment. The Aalto was a deep purple-colored wine with a strong smoky nose. What we tasted was a very tightly wound, tannic, toasty wine that got reasonably better with aeration (exposing it to air over time), but never really came out of its shell. Perhaps a few more years would do this wine well, but for $54.99 we gave this wine a disappointing 5.5 out of 10.