Segura Viudas Extra Dry Cava

It isn’t often that we drink extra dry sparkling wines. First off, there really aren’t that many out there, with the vast majority of producers going with the drier Brut dosage. Those who do use higher sugar content often don’t call the wine Extra Dry, as this term is very counter intuitive. Remember, Extra Dry is sweeter than Brut.

We bought this wine for $7.99 at Bullock’s, the only place I’ve ever seen this offering from Segura Viudas, a house we consume (when spending our own money) quite a bit of around here.

For a wine with a bit of extra sweetness to it, it was really quite good. I’m a bit funny about sugar in wine, preferring my sparkling wines to be drier and more in the Champagne taste profile, with lots of minerality in them. In still wines, I’m a fan of dessert wines, another category much maligned and ignored by most wine geeks. I guess I’m just a fan of the under appreciated.

With all the sparkling wines I’ve consumed this year, I think the extra sweetness was a welcome change, but I’d still recommend and drink this again. In other words, it wasn’t just the slight increase in sweetness that makes me like this wine. (Remember, context in wine consumption is paramount.) For those who say they don’t like sweet wines, I’m sorry you don’t enjoy them. Before dismissing them in general, you should at least give them a shot with the proper food or in a blind tasting. That way you can really be sure.

This particular wine was quite refreshing and the sugar seemed to act more as a rounding of the palate and brightening of the fruit, never straying into what I’d call a “syrup” mode as some wines are apt to do. The flavors were centered around apples, pear and a touch of stone fruit, with a slightly creamier texture than the Brut.

I think this is well suited for spicy cuisine, be it Pan-Asian or Southwestern in flavor. Overall, it is an above average wine and an outstanding QPR. This would make a spectacular offering for weddings, where most folks aren’t really into drinking sparkling wine. For $8, this is tough to beat.

Haiku
A slightly sweet wine
Like spicy sugared apples
A palate delight

Remember the review on the three selections of Champagne Henriot? Well, those same friends are having a gathering next month and were having trouble in picking the sparkling wine to kick start said event. So, what else would a good wino do, but have a pre-event with a small group of fellow drunks oenophiles to select the starter wine.

All the wines were under the $20 price range and actually, came in under $15 each. The quality was pretty good all around, though I will admit that the constant drinking and eating didn’t give a fair chance to the last four or so selections. We had ten wines, all of which were served blind. I have them listed in order and have listed the names along with them, along with my notes and then thoughts about the wines after they were revealed.

First off, I’d like to say thanks to our friends for creating the event(s) and our gracious host and hostess who cooked dinner for us at their home. Food, conversation and company were all great and throw in 10 sparkling wines (after tasting six still wines at an earlier tasting) and yeah boy, you’ve got a party.

We were served food that was NOT the same as what the menu at the actual event would be, so I was taking the possible selections into mind when reviewing these wines. Like I was trained, I also considered the audience, which will include many folks who don’t really care that much about wine. Yes, they’ll drink it, but they aren’t as obsessed enthusiastic as the rest of us.

Adriano Adami Garbel Prosecco 13 - Depreville Brut Rose - Kingsley North Coast

NV Adriano Adami Prosecco Colli Trevigiani Garbèl 13 ($13.99): Pear, touch of mineral with a sweet-tart like finish that had a hint of pink grapefruit in it. Pleasant for a starter wine, but wouldn’t stand up to the suggested appetizers.

NV Depréville Brut Rosé $9.99: Pretty rose quartz color, with tart red berry flavors that finished a bit short and would actually work better at the end of a menu with some sort of tart. The ladies seemed to like this one if I recall, but I wasn’t counting the ballots, so what do I know?

NV Kingsley North Coast Sparkling Brut $12.99: Cooler climate from the higher acidity profile, with granny smith apple dusted with candied ginger, giving it spicy edge. I found this to be decent, but not well suited for the crowd.

De Chanceny Cremant de Loire - Rotari Talento - Segura Viudas Brut Reserva

NV De Chanceny Crémant de Loire Brut $12.99: The crowd favorite, this got a vote from everyone. While not my personal favorite, I thought this had been the easiest and smoothest to drink, but with more oomph than the first, which was just too light for food. I was also drinking this while eating marinara sauce, which was a mistake. I think the acidity in the tomatoes does nothing good for sparkling wines, but hey, I was hungry and the food tasted good.

NV Rotari Talento Trento Brut DOC $12.99 Golden apples with touches of bread and minerals. Lengthy and smooth on the finish, this was another crowd pleaser with broad appeal. Rotari makes three excellent sparkling wines and while the NV stuff is very nice, if you find the vintage, take a stab and see if you aren’t impressed for the money.

NV Segura Viudas Brut Reserva $7.99: This was one of the wines I’d suggested which made the list. At this point, everyone was more into the conversation than the actual evaluation of the wines and all I put was this had nice fruit and was a contender for the crown. I always think this is a good bottle to keep around the house for casual sipping or Sunday mimosas. Unfortunately, it didn’t add to my total in the race for 365, but that is fine, it was still good.

Rondel Pura Raza - Segura Viudas Aria - 2006 Saint-Hilaire - Depreville Brut

NV Rondel Pura Raza Cava $7.99: I guessed this was an inexpensive Cava based on the high acidity and the strong, simple citrus profile. I thought it was a nice wine for a starter and think it is one to take a look at if you can’t find the Segura Viudas. You could always do what we did and hold your own blind tasting.

NV Segura Viudas Aria Cava $10.99: Again I wrote Cava, with more richness than the previous two and strong hint of grapefruit. At this point, I was just ready to get done. I always like Aria, but as reviewed last week, find it has taken a bit of a downturn for me when compared to the $3 less expensive Brut Reserva.

2006 Saint-Hilaire Blanquette de Limoux $14.99: Umm…I got tangerine and citrus, which means I was too lazy to really try and sniff out what other (since tangerine is a citrus fruit) citrus I was picking up on. It was nice, but at this point, what wasn’t?

NV Depréville Brut $8.99: Austere and not pleasant. Even at this stage, I didn’t like this one. Probably the only wine I wouldn’t drink again. Skip this.

So, there you go. Ten sparkling wines, all tasted in a blind format (my favorite kind) that was really quite fun. The wines ranged from no way Jose to fill ‘er up Johnny and while none of them blew my socks off, I thought it was a very good lineup for the price range. Then again, I am bias to some degree when it comes to sparkling wines. I wonder how many Pinot Noirs in this price range you could find of similar quality? Even Cabernet Sauvignon, with the sheer number of choices to pick from, could be difficult, especially if you were picking out wines that you weren’t really familiar with.

Based on all factors (our votes, price, location, customer loyalty), Rotari is the winner and will be the wine we start the evening off with when the party actually takes place.

Once again, many thanks to P & C for having us as guests to the party and M & T for being such awesome hosts. We had a wonderful time and look forward to many more with everyone. It was also nice to put another 8 notches in the 365+ belt in one evening.

Cheers,
Kevin

Segura Viudas Aria & Segura Viudas Brut Reserva

It was sometime in November of 2006 when I was first introduced to the wonders of Segura Viudas. It was the time of year when distributors were pushing their sparkling wares and we were sampling 3 wines from this Spanish Cava producer, the Brut Reserva, Aria and Reserva Heredad. Unfortunately, the Heredad was corked, so we didn’t get a good sample. The other two impressed both sensei and myself and we had ourselves a new featured sparkling wine, both which would retail for under $10.

It was one of those win-win situations. The distributor got a new placement, it was a small quantity deal for us (less risk) and both of us really enjoyed the wines, especially for the money. It also didn’t hurt that the Aria had a rather nice package. Clean, simple and elegant. Proof that simplicity really is quite attractive. The key is being simple, but not plain.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I received both of these wines as samples, but I’ve bought them before and will continue to buy them as our under $10 house sparkler. Retail for Brut Reserva runs between $7-8, Aria runs $9-10.

NV Segura Viudas Brut Reserva: A blend of the three traditional grapes used to make Cava, 50% Macabeo, 35% Parellada & 15% Xarel-lo, with somewhere between 2 and 3 years on the lees.* It is a very simple, straight shooting wine that is well suited for pairing with light appetizers, especially anything fried. The acidity will cut through crispy battered treats with the precision of Hattori Hanzō steel. Flavors are primarily green apple and tart lemons, with a touch of minerality in the finish. This is no lightweight bubbly and comes with a very firm structure, so unless you are like me and really dig the austere style of sparkling, please pair with food. Honestly, all wine should be paired with food of some sort for maximum pleasure.

* Per the website, which is confusing. First, it states the wine is aged in bottle for a minimum of 3 years. Then, under the technical specs, it states time on yeast as up to two years. Adding to the confusion, the bottle states 2-3 years. While the time frame does far exceed the minimal 9 months, I think all 3 statements should be more cohesive and consistent. Granted, they could be meaning to say the wine is aged for up to two years on the lees, then disgorged, then aged in bottle for up to another year, but that isn’t what the information actually says, it just implies it. Simple to fix and yes, it matters.

NV Segura Viduas Aria: The first year we carried this, I had a customer come in around 9PM on New Year’s Eve and ask for a case of really great bubbly, but without spending a fortune. I immediately handed him a bottle of this. He looked at me in disbelief when I told him it was $8.99, plus he’d get a 15% discount on the case. I told him to take one from the cooler, go home, try it and if he liked it, call me right back and I’d set aside the case for him. Turns out, he did just that and called back to take the case. He said his wife had tried it without knowing the price and was really impressed, doubly so when he told her how much (or little in this case) it cost.

This wine used to be a lot yeastier than the past few bottlings we’ve had and this bottle continued the trend. It did have slightly more toast to it than the Brut Reserva, but not significantly so as I once remember. Flavors are very similar, though a touch richer in profile. From what I can gather, the primary difference between the two is that this only uses first press juice, so fruit flavors should be more pronounced. Unfortunately, I didn’t find that to be the case. While good, this has fallen off a bit and while I’m not going to give up on it, I’ll probably begin to gear more towards the Brut Reserva, as it has actually improved over the last couple of years.

I’d say you should try both, along with other Cavas in a similar price range (Cordon Negro and Cristalino come to mind) and sample them blind. Throw in a bottle of that super popular bubbly from California that still uses the word Champagne on it and starts with the letter K. See which one you like. You may be surprised.

Haiku
Bubbly wine battle
Siblings wage aggressive war
Lesser is victor

Cheers and thanks for stopping by. As always, I love questions, comments and of course, followers on Twitter or fans on Facebook. If you want to join up in a massive online sparkling wine tasting in September, follow this link.

For other opinions, check out these links:

• My buddy Josh does a video review of the Aria and two other bubblies.
• The Wine & Cheese Place reviews Aria
• Cork Popper reviews Brut Reserva.
• Foodie Wannabe reviews Brut Reserva.
• Citrus Quark (awesome name!) reviews Brut Reserva.

Moët et Chandon Nectar Imperial Rosé | Moët et Chandon Rosé Imperial | Schramsberg Brut Rosé | Roederer Estate Brut Rosé | 2006 Marques de Gelida Pinot Noir Cava

Last Friday saw the resurrection of a previously canceled tasting of sparkling rosés. Of course, you know I’m never one to pass up on some bubbles, so I attended in the hopes of catching a few items I’d not yet had. 4 out of 5 ain’t bad, as the other one I already have a sample of. Here are some quick notes on all five. I misfired in my arrangement of the bottles, as we actually tasted them as shown above, but from right to left. You’ll figure it out.

2006 Marques de Gelida Brut Pinot Noir Cava ($16.99 / was on sale for $10.98): I don’t know for sure, but this is probably the fourth Cava made from Pinot Noir that we’ve had. All four have been a disappointment, but I think this just lies in a particular taste preference (more like a lack of taste for) I have. The wines have this certain herbal, earthy tone that underlies the fruit, something I just don’t find appealing. The writer who coves bubbly for Wine Enthusiast seems to like them, as this wine received a respectable 89 from that publication. I got plenty of strawberry at first, but it was a bit on the syrupy side with a lack of acid to keep it from self-implosion. I’ll keep trying, but will remain wary when it comes to Cava made from Pinot Noir.

NV Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut Rosé $24.99: I’ve enjoyed this before and was even accused by some random commentator (who didn’t answer my email) of being a shill for the wine. I enjoyed this bottle and still recommend it, but will go into more detail when I sample the full bottle. My personal favorite.

2006 Schramsberg Brut Rosé $39.99: America’s oldest producer of sparkling wine makes high quality stuff, at a high quality price. $40 is nothing to sneeze at and puts you in the range of quite a few Champagnes, though very few of them will be rosé. I’m a really big fan of their Mirabelle bottling, which comes in $15 cheaper and delivers excellent quality, though I think the more recent bottling is a step down from the previous release, which garnered a monster score of 93 from dictator Wine Spectator. Refined, with a gentle mousse and soft notes of freshly sliced strawberries sprinkled with clementine mist, kissed by a soft breeze blowing in from the spice fields. While I feel the Mirabelle is the better value, this is a wine worth your attention when seeking a great example of American sparkling rosé. My second favorite of the tasting.

NV Moët et Chandon Brut Rosé Impérial Champagne $59.99: Two Moët’s get checked off the list and the only real difference between the two is the dosage. {Quick lesson: The last stage (besides corking and caging it) in creating traditional or Champagne method sparkling wines is adding the dosage. The concentration level of sugar in this liquer de expedition is what determines if the wine is labeled Brut, Extra Dry, Demi-sec, etc.. This wine is a Brut, which means between 6-15 g/L (okay, they can go down below 6, but then it will usuually be called Extra Brut…confused yet…). The next wine, the Nectar Imperial, which is Moët-ese for extra dry, is between 35-50 g/L, so at least twice as much sugar. Here endeth the lesson.} Red fruits that smack of cherry with watermelon juice laid in with a crisp finish that would work well with fried foods. My 3rd favorite.

NV Moët et Chandon Rosé Nectar Impérial Champagne $59.99: Hello sugar shock. This is easily the richest and sweetest Champagne I’ve ever had. Our table fell right along gender lines, with all the men disliking it and the ladies loving it. While I may be fond of late-harvest dessert wines and off-dry German Rieslings, this just didn’t work for me. I found the acid to be low and insufficient to support the sweetness. Pair this with a bittersweet chocolate and you may get a totally different answer from me. This isn’t my cup of tea at all, but for those who prefer a sweeter bubbly, this may be something you want to investigate.

Haiku
Dislike Noir Cava
Pink Cali bubbles win out
Champagnes just okay

Cheers and happy Monday to you all. I hope you have a great week and please, leave me comments, read my other entries, pass them along to friends and follow me on Twitter or become a Fan on Facebook. You can keep up easiest by subscribing via email or RSS and of course, I love questions.

Freixenet Cordon Negro Extra Dry (black frost) & Carta Nevada Semi-dry (white frost)

Value holds different meaning for everyone. If you are worth a billion dollars, spending a few hundred dollars for a bottle of bubbly isn’t going to really mean much to you. If you’re of much more limited funds, $20 can feed a family of five to a decent home cooked meal. Overall, I feel like the best values in sparkling wine come from Spain, where they make Cava.

Our house bubbly is from another large producer, but this is my first experience with Freixenet. I’m sure you are familiar with their black bottle, which is one of the two bottlings I’m reviewing here today. This is the Cordon Negro series and you pretty much see it everywhere, from grocery stores to liquor stores. I remember it was my dad’s best selling wine for New Year’s, back in the days when I had no interest in wine whatsoever.

On the latest trip to Bullock’s of Woodstock, we picked up several inexpensive sparklers, including several different ones from Freixenet. They had a frosted white bottle bottled under the Carta Nevada name, something I had no knowledge of whatsoever. There is a brut, semi-dry and spumante, so I got one of each. Same for the Cordon Negro, we got a Brut and Extra Dry.

The difference in the two wines appears to be in the blend, with the Carta Nevada series being an evenly divided mix between the 3 classic varietals; Macabeo for fruit, Xarel-lo for acidity and Parellada for the fruit and finesse. Contrast that with the Cordon Negro series, where the focus is on Parlellada at 40%, rounded out with 35% Macabeo and 25% Xarel-lo. I’m guessing the Carta Nevada is made for a slightly softer and fruitier wine, better for cocktails or sipping.

Both of these wines were $7.99. To repeat, when it comes to value in the bubblesphere, Cava is hard to beat.

Between the two, I really preferred the Cordon Negro Extra Dry. The extra residual sugar, weighing in at 23 grams per liter, pushes the wine right up to the point of sweetness which can be carried by this wine. Much more, and it would become a bit out of balance and sappy. The focus is on sweet tropical and citrus fruits, with a touch of tang in the finish. Nice for your next party where there will be some hot wings that bring the flame, though I’d not go too hot or the acid could knockout your taste buds beyond the soothing ability of the sucrose. I’d say it was a good wine and will work well for parties and those folks who don’t drink bubbly very often.

As for the Carta Nevada, it just sort of fell flat for me. I think the bottle was over-sulphured and got lost on the way to flavorville. The sweetness didn’t help and there was a lack of balance for me. Perhaps the dosage was just too high for my palate. It could have been a bad bottle as well, but since this was my first experience with the wine, I have no sure fire reference point. Overall, I’d pass and not buy this again. I’ve still got the bottle of Brut, so maybe it will be more to my liking. It did get a solid review and a recent score of 86 points from Wine Enthusiast.

No haiku today.

Cheers,
Kevin