This is the monthly appointment
and I have with our pools of readers. The last for 2023!It is our shared moment for an intra-newsletter dialogue where we jointly write here and on
Last month we talked about the hardship and beauty of agricultural working in the wine world, and this month instead we go all posh and talk about our favorite drink: Champagne!
Every month we will explore a theme. The articles are free for our subscribers, but you can always think of giving us a donation - those bubbles don’t come cheap!
Oh, Champagne!
If there was only one alcoholic beverage I could be left to drink, that would be it.
Often, when dining alone I limit myself to one glass, and inevitably it’s Champagne, for me. If I do not want to drink too much, but still have an enjoyable moment, that is what I want and need.
During the lockdown I invented a tasting game: I ordered all the Champagne below 50 Euro per bottle that I could find, one of each kind. We tasted and paired and tried, and we had mad fun discovering new maisons, new producers, and new ideas.
I share this love for champagne with a friend, Marco Leali, who is the impeccable Sommelier at Casa Leali, the whimsical restaurant he shares with his brother, Chef Andrea Leali.
Their restaurant is loved by the Gambero Rosso guide, not so much by the Michelin who keeps ignoring that in the western Garda lake there are Casa Leali and Lido84, making me seriously doubt of the validity of their maps, tires and business model - and in this editorial decision there is really all you need to know about which guide to choose when visiting Italy.
Similarly to the Repsol in Spain, it’s not the Michelin that has the best reviewers and critics and it shows in the stiff, rigid, démodé and frankly dismaying choices they make.
I am a critic of critics, not a critic of restaurants so I can allow myself to these musings.
But back to Champagne!
Together with water, kombucha and tea, it is the category of beverages I like and consume the most. If I am alone at a restaurant, as I said, dining out with myself, I will likely stick to one glass, and that one glass will necessarily be champagne for me.
You can imagine my despair when the only champagne on offer is some commercial maison or some substitute for champagne like Cava or Prosecco - sorry, I still prefer the Bairrada sparkling wines, and above all, the marvellous sparkling wines of the Trento DOC denomination in Italy.
Giulio Ferrari Riserva is, to me, as pleasurable as any champagne.
I asked
:Copo largo, copo degustación o flute?
Cup, wine glass, or flûte: what is your choice when it comes to Champagne?
For me, champagne is enjoyed at its best in a tasting glass, and a rather large one.
I detest flûtes with all my heart, and even the more innovative designs do not let me enjoy this, which is my favourite alcoholic beverage above all, in full as I want.
Old-time wide-brimmed cups are fun but the Champagne heats quicker in them and loses its bubbles faster and I do enjoy some sparkle in my nostrils when I drink it, so if I can, I still stick to a wide but not as wide glass.
Go over to Cris’ blog to see what she prefers!
Speaking of glasses, this week,
asks me:Cuántas copas distintas tienes en tu casa? Cuáles son?
How many different glasses do you have in your house? Which are they?
I admit I do have a thing for wine glasses.
Our pastime at home, whenever we open a bottle of wine, is to taste it in all the different glasses we have - and all of them give a different vibe to the wine.
Or the Champagne.
At the moment, we have at-home glasses by:
Josephine Hutte is the only glass that regularly manages to get even with my beloved Zaltos, and in some cases, it even wins them.
I have the universal, the white and red - I chose on purpose not to acquire the champagne one, because of the reasons mentioned above.
So if you are looking to invest in one, good glass, I cannot help but recommend them. Get the Josephine Universal, and try not to break it too soon.
I’ll die for champagne and that Fidèle you pictured is one of my favourite. I also hate flute glasses and even more that stupid pompadour ones. Keep on rocking girls!! Love you both!!
I have waaayyyy too many rescued animals in this house for Zaltos.