Sparkle Sparkle

It seems I have been hitting the sauce rather hard this week. It is very unusual for me to enjoy alcohol four times in one week. But, whenever I imbibe sparkling wines are my favorite followed by Loire whites. I try to enjoy quality at inexpensive prices.

I picked up a bottle of Cava Brut Rosado Torre Galatea, pictured on the left, when I was working at Pane E Vino in Lorton. It came in a nice red box crawling with golden ants. Why ants? This Cava was inspired by the Cava Rose from Castillo Perelada that Salvador Dali would offer his guests in Portlligat. Castillo Perelada created this wine and Salvador Dali decorated the bottle. The wine is made of Garnacha 25%, Monastrell 25%, and Pinot Noir 50% which is fermented for a second time in the bottle and aged for twelve months. The color was that of a bright ripe strawberry and it smelled like flowers and cherry pie. This wine was full flavored but not heavy and did not show many bubbles in the glass but had a nice bubble in the mouth. I have always been a fan of Dali and feel honored to enjoy his wine. I can not get enough of this wine!

At 11 dollars a bottle from Mom's Apple Pie in Occoquan, the Marcato Durello Brut is a wonderful everyday sparkling wine. This wine comes from the Alpone Valley in Italy near Verona. I was lucky enough to visit Verona and found it to be a very old and romantic town. I find it fitting that this lovely sparkler came from such a romantic place. This Brut was dry and minerally with notes of citrus. It had a nice acidity but did not find it to be a good of a pallet cleanser as the previous Cava. It is made of 85% Durella, 5% Pinot Noir, and 10% Cardonnay and naturally sparkled in tanks.

At Mom's Apple Pie I also picked up a small bottle of 2005 Kluge SP Blanc de Blanc brut. This is a sparkler from Charlottesville, VA which made me dubious of its deliciousness. I was pleasantly surprised as I have been disappointed by Virginian wines in the past. This exhibited a strong apple flavor with a clean finish. It is made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes in the methode Champenoise. It was an enjoyable novelty which I would pass on in the future.