Holiday meals at my house are kind of like a pot-luck dinner at a Sunday school picnic. Everybody prepares their favorite dish and brings enough for the whole gang share. Planning a wine for a variety of festive flavors can present a challenge, but a simple solution is to serve an extremely versatile sparkling rosé.
Sparkling rosés are ideal for meals that run the gamut. Rather than overpowering some items on your plate with a robust red, a rosé offers enough structure and body to stand up to some heavier flavors while not overpowering some more delicate dishes. The bubbles serve as a palate cleanser, toning down the heat from spicy foods while cutting through rich, fatty flavors to refresh for your next bite.
Here are three inexpensive sparkling rosés from Spain that are sure to please your Holiday crowd:
Elyssia Pinot Noir Brut: A blend of classic Pinot Noir (my favorite grape) with just a touch of the Spanish grape Trepat, Elyssia, it has aromas of ripe raspberries and blackberries. The wine is crisp and fruity with hints of cherries. It’s minerality gives the wine a nice balance.
Alcohol Level: 11.5%
Suggested Retail Price: $18
Freixenet Cordon Rosado Brut: Freixenet, America’s favorite imported bubbly, offers another charming rosé sparkler, Cordon Rosado. A vivacious, crisp rosé that is deep pink in color, and delightfully dry on the palate, with engaging cherry and berry flavors. It’s readily available in the US.
Alcohol Level: 12%
Suggested Retail Price: $12
Segura Viudas Brut Rosé: This is an elegant yet affordable Brut Rosé with aromas of raspberry, currant and grenadine, highlighted by crisp flavors of ripe strawberry and cherry. A lingering cherry note on the finish is crowned by a small touch of sweetness.
Alcohol Level: 12%
Suggested Retail Price: $10
To find Freixenet and Segura sparkling wines in your area, visit the Wine Locator section of www.freixenetusa.com and www.seguraviudasusa.com.
Holiday Cheers Y’all!!
Disclosure: I’m not a sommelier or even a wine snob. I’m just a regular guy who loves wine. I frequently participate in food and wine chats on Twitter where I share what I like and I learn from others what they like. From time to time winemakers and marketers will send me a bottle of wine to review. If I like it, I’ll tweet about it and possibly even write a blog post about it. If I don’t, you’ll never see it mentioned. I am not paid to review wines. The wine is my only compensation
