I’m not an expert, I just drink a lot.An aperitif, or topped off with orange juice in the morning. Engagements, weddings, divorces, graduations, pay raises or lay-offs. We’ve always found reasons to drink champagne.

Now, I drink champagne as often as possible and for no occasion at all, but there is one day of the year when popping a bottle is de rigueur. New Year’s Eve is the perfect time to figure out how to open a bottle without taking out your best friend’s eye, and then let the bubbles go straight to your head.

While it’s easy to find a delicious bottle of non-fizzy wine for under $10, what we think of as the really good champagne costs upwards of $35. Andre is a super-cheap solution to expensive sparkling wine, and it’s quite drinkable for $4, but you can avoid the initial wincing of the first sip and the unfortunate hangover for just a few more dollars.

Having been holed up in Florida for the past 10 days, I’ve made it my personal mission to sample several bottles of cheaper champagne, each under $15. I am really no expert on wine, but I like to drink it. I can’t sniff a glass and affirm that it tastes of grass, oak, or dried cherries. I’ve always found that the best method for choosing a beverage is figuring out what tastes good and sticking with it, regardless of price or the opinion of others.

*It should be noted, also, that I use the words champagne and sparkling wine interchangeably. Yes, I know that Champagne is a label given only to sparkling wines made in the Champagne region of France, using the traditional Methode Champenoise. But to describe this bubbly wine under such strict standards is annoying and pretentious, and I simply can’t afford Champagne with a capital C, so I am going to abandon the rules, even if I am breaking the law according to the post-World War I Treaty of Versailles. I will, however, refer to sparkling wine as champagne with a lower-case c, to avoid international reproach.

And so, a list of champagnes that you should be able to find at Rhode Island liquor stores, from the undrinkable to the addictive:

Domaine Ste. Michelle Blanc De Blancs - $11

If you’ve ever been curious to taste the Diet Coke equivalent of bargain champagne, this is your bottle. Unfortunately, you won’t get the bloated yet calorie free consolation of sugar-free soda that we so often order with fries and chicken wings. Instead, you’ll get plenty of nasty saccharine after taste. This champagne is in the running for the worst fuzzy grape juice I’ve ever tasted. I had to top off the glass with orange juice, and even then it was undrinkable.

Yellowtail Sparkling Wine – $12

I suspect that Yellowtail is the most widely available wine brand in the U.S., behind a few California labels. It’s rumored that some vineyards pump their wines with sugar, a cheaper method of increasing alcohol content. I’ve always tasted something a little off with their standard whites and reds. The sparkling wine is funkier. Claiming to emulate the sweet flavors of Muscato, I found that it had a strange powdered sugar aftertaste. The bubbles were almost painful as they hit the roof of my mouth.

Korbel - $12

This sparkling wine wallows in mediocrity, but if you are in a pinch, it does the trick. There is nothing offensive about the taste, the bubbles, or even the label. But be warned, when you bring this bottle to a party, it says, “I am uncreative and take no risks.”

Freixenet Cava - $10

Into the second glass this started to taste like Lemonade, and I started to wish I’d just spent a third of the price on a bottle of Andre. The champagne is acceptable, however I’d suggest masking the flavor with a bit of mango or guava juice. Freixenet makes a better, cheaper sparkling wine called Carta Nevada, but I haven’t been able to find it in Rhode Island.

Yellow! by Yellowglen – $12

Not to be confused with Yellowtail, this cheap champagne also comes from South Eastern Australia. The look of the bottle is pretty 80’s retro, and not in a good way, but what comes out of it is surprisingly light and delicious. It’s rose sister, Pink! By Yellowglen, is also lovely and perfect for the subversive girly-girl.

Jacob’s Creek Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir - $12

Fruity but not too sweet, this champagne accepts itself for what it is and asks you to do the same. The classy, simple bottle doesn’t attempt to emulate more expensive sparkling wines. What you get is good grapes at a decent price. I’ll drink this on a regular basis, but to be honest it comes in at a distant second to the next champagne…

Francois Montand Blanc de Blancs - $11

If you can find this champagne in Rhode Island, buy a case. This was better than the rest, better than Perrier-Jouet, better than Piper-Heidsieck, better than Veuve Clicquot. The bubbles were light. The flavor was clean, crisp, and just sweet enough. If you’ve ever wondered what the big deal is with champagne, get your hands on a glass of this and you’ll understand.

Cheers to you and yours as you ring in the new year. I won’t be toasting 2008 in my beloved Providence. I’ll be sitting on the ground at some party, sipping from a Bryn Mawr Class of 2004 champagne flute, lifting the glass in the air, and singing along to “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”

With my best friends and a bottle, yes, that sounds perfect.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, December 30th, 2007 at 10:42 am and is filed under Amuse My Bouche, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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