CHAMPAGNE PAIRINGS
Serve all these wines at around 50°F (10°C). Keep them cool in an ice bucket.
Champagne Tarlant Brut Reserve LCBO 325167, $43.95
Start the evening with this complex grower’s Champagne as a crisp, racy aperitif, then carry it forward as a companion for the Devilled Deep-Fried Eggs. It will cut through their richness like a blade but offers more than mere refreshment, bringing all sorts of nuances of its own. The fine foamy mousse carries suggestions of mushroom, rye bread, lemon and green apple while the high proportion of reserve wines used in the blend lends an unexpected maturity for the price. ALTERNATIVE SPARKLER: Trius Brut VQA (LCBO 284539, $29.95)
Pol Roger Brut Champagne LCBO 217158, $67.45
Established in 1849 and still family-owned, Pol Roger produces classic non-vintage brut Champagne. Medium-bodied but perfectly elegant, it gets the balance of fruity aromas (pear, lemon, apple) and toasty, yeasty effects just right. As a food wine it’s remarkably versatile and also resilient—though seeming so delicate, it stands up to even very robust flavours, taking our Zesty Fish on Potato Chips in its stride. Champagne and potato chips is a famously happy match, as this pairing proves. ALTERNATIVE SPARKLER: Paul Delane Crémant de Bourgogne Reserve (LCBO 214981, $20.40)
Moët & Chandon Nectar Imperial LCBO 509695, $75.40
Rich, weighty Shrimp Coconut Bisque calls for something with more substance than a brut Champagne, and Nectar fits the bill, decidedly off-dry but with a satisfyingly balanced acidity. The aroma always reminds me of a warm pear-and-apple pie with buttery pastry but the flavour moves subtly towards more tropical fruit. It is, however, a wine, not a pie, and it refreshes the palate in a delightful way after each spoonful of soup, its own lingering, honeyed aftertaste forming a delectable braid with the coconut. ALTERNATIVE SPARKLER: Bottega Vino Dei Poeti Prosecco DOC (LCBO 897702, $14.95)
Moët & Chandon Brut Imperial Rosé LCBO 482026, $82.95
The label says brut, but this sumptuous rosé isn’t bone-dry, which makes it even more effective as a food wine. The still red Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier that gives the cuvée its charming coral colour also bring a slightly earthy hint all but masked by the cherry and raspberry top notes. I love how this wine works with the mild spices of our Asian Spiced Chicken with Broccolini and Mushroom Fried Rice, its fruitiness a great counterpoint to the dish’s savoury character. It’s also a fabulous companion to poached or grilled salmon. ALTERNATIVE SPARKLER: Cono Sur Sparkling Pinot Noir Rosé (LCBO 365205, $14.15)
Veuve Clicquot Rich Champagne LCBO 424341, $87.55
All Champagne was fairly sweet until the 1860s, when English customers asked for dry and the style caught on. But sweet (or “rich”) Champagne still has its fans and its purposes. Recently, Veuve Clicquot has been marketing to mixologically minded millennials its Rich Champagne on the rocks with a twist of grapefruit zest; I prefer pouring it with dessert. The wine’s apple pie and brioche aromas work beautifully with the pine nuts in our dessert while lush hints of honey, peach blossom, citrus and stone fruits form an ethereal confection of their own. ALTERNATIVE SPARKLER: Jacob’s Creek Moscato Rose Sparkling (LCBO 445825, $13.95)