Great American Sparklers: 2024 Edition! (California Brut Sparkling Wines for the 4th of July - or Anytime!)

Show Notes

Episode 127: Great American Sparklers: 2024 Edition!  00:00

Hello! And welcome to The Wine Pair Podcast. I’m Joe, your sommelier of reasonably priced wine, and this is my wife and my wine pairing partner in crime, Carmela. And we are The Wine Pair! 

If you are new to our podcast, here is a quick orientation! Each week, we explore a different wine varietal or blend or way of making wine —like Pinot Noir or Bordeaux or Sparkling wine — and dive into what makes it unique, special,and worth learning about. Our goal is to help you expand your wine knowledge in a fun way that normal people can understand. We also taste and review 2-3 wines under $20 each, and share our scores and recommendations to help you find great wines without breaking the bank. So, thank you so much for joining us; we promise it will be worth your time! And, we are proud to say that Decanter Magazine calls us fun, irreverent, chatty, and entertaining.

Alright, Carmela, it’s been a little while since we did an episode on sparkling wine - sort of. The last one we did was in May when we were doing a whole bunch of episodes on Spanish wines as we were preparing for our trip to Spain, and we did one specific episode on Cava because Cava is the great sparkling wine of Spain and we just happened to be in Barcelona which is the region of Spain that is considered the birthplace of Cava. And, let me tell you, we drank a lot of Cava in Spain. Which I was super happy with.

But before that, we hadn’t done an episode on sparkling wine since December, and that is just way too long because -  we love sparkling wine. And when I say we love sparkling wine, I mean we are crazy for it. And we also think that sparkling is misunderstood and not well enough appreciated. Like me. 

What do I mean by that? Well, first, sparkling wine comes in very wide variety of styles and tastes, and that’s because sparkling wine is not a varietal or wine made from a particular grape, but is instead a way of making wine - and in fact there are several different ways in which sparkling wine can be made - and the way in which the wine is made will impact the taste, and so will the grapes that are used.

So, just like our episode last week on Rosé, you can’t really say you love or don’t love something like sparkling wine until we get a little more specific on what kind or style of sparkling wine you like.

There is far too much information to go into here about all of the ins and outs of sparkling wine, but you can check out our show notes for links to articles that will tell you more, and you can also go back to some of our previous episodes on sparkling wine to learn more - like our episode on Brut Prosecco - and yes, not all Proseccos are the same. Or our episode on German sparkling wines which focused on sparkling wines made from grapes like Riesling and Müller-Thurgau which you have probably never heard of. 

Another reason we think sparkling wine is misunderstood and not well enough appreciated is because it is primarily seen as a celebration wine, but we always say that sparkling wine should be enjoyed any day of the week, and, depending on the style and type of sparkling wine, it can go great with a huge variety of foods. In fact, sparkling wine is a fantastic summer wine, and not just for weddings- which often happen during the summer - but for hanging out with friends and family in the backyard, too! And they go great with grilled and spicy foods!

I also won’t go into the different ways sparkling wine gets its sparkle other than to say Prosecco doesn’t get its bubbles in the same way that sparkling wines made using the traditional method do - but you can learn more about that in our other sparkling wine episodes like I said. 

One thing I will say about sparkling wine that may help you just a touch is to consider first the sweetness of the sparkling wine. If you want a dry wine, look for Brut, if you want a slightly sweet wine, look for sparkling wines labeled “dry” which is super confusing, and if you want a sweet sparkling wine, look for wines called Demi-sec or Doux or Dolce. You can also use the alcohol content as an indication - the lower the alcohol, the sweeter the wine. Think under 11% for sweeter wines, and around 10% or so for really sweet wines. Brut will be 12% of higher. And the more brut the wine, the better it will go with savory foods. 

But today we are really going to focus on sparkling wine made in the United States, and do a little edumacating on sparkling wine production in the US, and we have 2 sparkling wines from the United States that we are going to taste and review and let you know if you should run out and buy so that you can pop them open on the 4th of July, which is on a Thursday this year, and I think that is the best day of all for the 4th of July because it means that it is close enough to the weekend that most people just take the 5th off of work as well but I digress  . . . 

Because first . . . we have to do our shameless plug.

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ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://www.oiv.int/public/medias/7291/oiv-sparkling-focus-2020.pdf
• https://winefolly.com/tips/sparkling-wine-explained-dry-to-sweet/ 

Topic: Sparkling Wine Production in the United States 11:43

So let’s talk about sparkling wine in the US, Carmela, shall we?

Coming out of the Pandemic, sparkling wine has been a winner. My guess is that people just want to have something fun and that is easy to drink after all the crap we went through with COVID, and sparkling wine is the perfect antidote for that! According to one source I have, sparkling wine grew by double-digit percentages in 2020, 2021, and 2022. And it was growing before that. Since 2002, sparkling wine production increased more than 50%, and makes up about 7% of all wine production world wide.

The biggest producers of sparkling wine are in Europe, with Italy number one and France number two, but the US is the 5th largest producer in the world, and the only top producer outside of the EU. So we do ok!

Since 2008, US sparkling wine production has increased by about 4% per year, and the area producing the most sparkling wine is Napa in California, which makes 77% of the total sparkling wine made in the US. Now, the US does import more sparkling wine than we make, and we are the 3rd largest consumers of sparkling wine, and that amount has doubled since the 1970s. So we like our bubbly out here!

When it comes to making sparkling wine, what is interesting is that, with most American sparkling being made in California, the techniques and approaches are different from those in the Champagne region of France. Most US sparkling wine is made in the traditional or Champagne method. So that is the same. And there are several French Champagne houses that make sparkling wine in California like Moet and Roederer. (Remember that sparkling wine not from the Champagne region of France is called sparkling wine, not Champagne!)

But one difference in the wines is that the area of Champagne is a much cooler climate than that of California. In fact, the latitude of California is much closer to that of Southern Spain, so even growing the same grapes means differences - for instance, sparkling wine grapes have to be harvested earlier than those in France so they don’t become too ripe.

Now, here is something new that I did not know, and is a bit of an asterisk on our episode last week on  rosé wine - rosé sparkling wine is actually made by mixing or blending red and white grape varieties together - while rosé still wines are made exclusively from red wine grapes. Kind of strange, right? 

The French in Champagne for a long time did not look highly on rosé sparkling wine, sometimes calling it champagne for prostitutes, but in California there has been big growth in it, and rosé sparkling makes up 15% of the sparkling wine consumed in the US vs less than 10% in the rest of the world. 

And fun fact, most often sparkling rosé is made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. So you can wow your friends with that information the next time you see them.

One nice thing about some American sparkling wines is that they can be much less expensive than a Champagne. Now, there are some expensive American sparkling wines for sure, but wines like the ones we are having today, and other American favorites we have had in the past like Piper Sonoma and Gruet are great tasting and much less expensive, and sometimes about the same price as Prosecco, but often better produced. 

So, look this is why we are talking about sparkling wines now, before the 4th of July. First, they are great summer wines, and while they are great celebration wines, they are also great cookout and just hanging out wines. And, given how much Americans seem to love sparkling wine, they are a perfect fit for the celebration of our nation’s birth. 

One more set of fun facts from an article in our show notes - based on a survey by Wine Intelligence, and with a name like that, I mean, come on - the number of monthly sparkling wine drinkers in the US has risen from 56% in 2019 to 72% in 2022, and almost a quarter of respondents reported drinking sparkling wine at least twice a week. Those are our kind of people! So, if you are not a weekly sparkling wine drinker, it’s time to ask yourself what your problem is!

So, on that note, I think it’s time to learn a little more about the specific wines we are drinking today. Whaddya say?

ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://daily.sevenfifty.com/the-state-of-the-sparkling-wine-market/
• https://wineinstitute.org/our-industry/statistics/wine-fact-sheets/sparkling-wine-champagne/ 
• https://a.wholelottanothing.org/north-america-western-europe-equivalent-latitude-maps/ 
• https://france-amerique.com/pop-the-rise-of-american-sparkling-wine/ 
• https://www.theiwsr.com/the-changing-role-of-sparkling-wine-lifts-sales-in-the-us/ 

 

American Sparkling Wines We Chose for This Episode 18:32

As usual, the wines we have chosen for this episode are under $20, and both of them should be relatively easy to find because I bought them all on wine.com. Now I will say that both of these wines were on sale, so that is what helped bring them under the $20 mark. One of the wines is by a producer you should have no trouble finding, and the other may be one you have to hunt around for a bit. 

Also, both of these sparkling wines have good reviews from professional reviewers that are not James Suckling, so that is a good thing!

The first wine we are going to try today again comes from a pretty well-known US producer called Decoy, and you can find their wines all over the place. By the way, Decoy is owned by a larger brand called Duckhorn. The wine we are having today is called Decoy Brut Cuvee and it is made of a pretty traditional blend of grapes that you would find in a Champagne: 49% Pinot Noir, 47% Chardonnay, 4% Pinot Meunier.

The wine is made in the méthode champenoise, and evidently is “dosaged with French oak barrel fermented Napa Valley Chardonnay” which seems a little unique to me and I don’t believe very Champagne like.  Again, a California winery like we had last week who just can’t help themselves from adding G-D oak to everything they make. 

As it says in the name, this is a Brut sparkling, which again means dry, and the winery indicates that it has 7 grams of residual sugar per liter, so that fits. There is not a lot else I can tell you about this wine, so I think we move onto the next wine. 

Our next wine is called Paula Kornell California Brut and it is made from 80% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir, which, again, is pretty similar to the blend in Champagne and fairly typical for a California sparkling. This wine has gotten a ton of accolades, earning #5 on Wine Enthusiast Top 100 of 2020, and the first release of the wine was in 2020. So, if this is a good wine, you want to run out and find it! 

This is also made in the méthode champenoise, and, as the name also says, is Brut with 6.5 grams of residual sugar, so a bit lower in sugar than the Decoy.

The winery says that their grapes come from certified sustainable vineyards in some of the coolest growing regions around California. So, if that is important to you, this is a good wine to seek out. 

I like the way the winery describes the wine, because it fits with our theme in this episode which is enjoying sparkling wine on a warm summer day. They say, “Ideal for a Sunday afternoon in the garden, a weekend picnic, or at the beginning of a meal, this approachable and highly drinkable wine will satisfy all tastes.”

They do make a higher end sparkling wine called the Napa Valley Blanc de Noirs which is marked with a vintage which is unusual in sparkling wine, and given that it is a Blanc de Noirs, is made from Pinot Noir - the black or Noir refers to Pinot, although that wine is also made from 30% Chardonnay, so that is very atypical of a Blanc de Noir which in France would be 100% red skinned grapes. But I digress!

I think that is enough information - let’s get to drinking! We’ll take a quick break and be right back. And, if you have these wines or similar wines, drink along with us!


ARTICLES and LINKS

• https://www.decoywines.com/product/decoy-brut-cuvee-sparkling-wine-release22
• https://www.paulakornell.com/paula-kornell-sparkling-wines 

Decoy Brut Cuvee, Paula Kornell California Brut Wine Tasting, Pairing, and Review 23:09

Wine: Decoy Brut Cuvee (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. We may get compensated if you purchase on wine.com)
Region: California
Year: NV
Price: $16.99
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 12.5%
Grapes: 49% Pinot Noir, 47% Chardonnay, 4% Pinot Meunier
Professional Rating: WW 92, WS 90

What we tasted and smelled in this Decoy Brut Cuvee:

• On the nose: Apple, creamy, baking spice, apple turnover or apple crumb, vanilla, nice bouquet
• In the mouth: Spicy, baking spices, apple or pear turnover, wood, vanilla, some bitterness on the end, creamy, rich mouth feel, good for an oaky Chardonnay lover, some depth, some viscosity, a bit heavier than a typical sparkling wine, maybe more serious

Food to pair with this Decoy Brut Cuvee: Good with food, spicy foods, General Tso’s chicken, Thai food, Indian food, teriyaki chicken, burgers and dogs on the 4th of July, potato chips, salty foods, shellfish - shrimp, clams, oysters
 
As a reminder on our rating scale, we rate on a scale of 1-10, where 7 and above means that we would buy it, and 4 and below means that we are likely to pour it down the sink, and a 5 or 6 means we are likely to drink it and finish it, but we are probably not going to buy it. 

Decoy Brut Cuvee Wine Rating: 

• Joe: 7/10
• Carmela: 7/10

Wine: Paula Kornell California Brut (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. We may get compensated if you purchase on wine.com)
Region: California
Year: NV
Price: $19.99
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 12%
Grapes: 80% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir
Professional Rating: WE 94, TP 92, WS 89

What we tasted and smelled in this Paula Kornell California Brut:

• On the nose: Earthy, peach skin, peach tree leafs, pear, baking spice, clove, basil
• In the mouth: Clove, cinnamon, spicy, spiced apple cider, lime, lime juice, grapefruit, pith, citrusy tartness, refreshing, crispy, great on a hot day, less body than the Decoy, sophisticated

Food to pair with this Paula Kornell California Brut: Spicy foods, fried foods, fish and chips, garlic fries, Asian foods, focaccia, charcuterie board, could drink throughout the meal

Paula Kornell California Brut Wine Rating: 

• Joe: 9/10
• Carmela: 8/10

Which one of these are you finishing tonight?

• Carmela: Paula Kornell California Brut
• Joe: Paula Kornell California Brut

Taste profiles expected from Decoy Brut Cuvee and Paula Kornell California Brut 34:58

• General 
  • Champagne: Fresh apple, pear, tropical notes, mineral undertones, brioche, toast, citrus, strawberry, cream, vanilla, yeast.
• Decoy Brut Cuvee
  • Winery: Layers of baked apple, white peach, and orange zest, as well as aromatic hints of honeysuckle and vanilla. On the palate, a delicate sweetness is perfectly balanced by bright acidity
  • WW: Bitingly refreshing. Brings green apple flavors and a hint of minerality to its aromas and flavors.
  • WS: Brisk and vibrant, yet layered with rich baked apple, brioche and spice flavors that linger on a long, luscious finish.
• Paula Kornell California Brut
  • Winery: Its racy acidity makes the wine lively and refreshing, while the small amount of residual sugar gives the wine weight and depth alongside the aromas of lemon pith, fresh peaches, just-ripe apricots, toast, acacia, and honeysuckle
  • WE: A beautiful jasmine aroma leads to marzipan, peach and cherry flavors as lively acidity envelopes the palate
  • TP: Zingy aromas of toast, orchard fruit, and honey encounter flavors of still ripening stone fruit, mid palate stoniness, and backend hints of lemon meringue and lemongrass
  • WS: Expressive and vivacious, showing pretty apple and lime flavors laced with notes of vanilla and spices before finishing on a zesty accent.

Outro and how to find The Wine Pair Podcast 37:41

Ok, so, Carmela, it’s time for us to go, but before we do, we want to thank you very much for listening to us - and if you haven’t done so yet, now would be the perfect time to subscribe to our podcast and also a fantastic time to leave us a nice rating and review on our website or Apple podcasts or other podcast service - and it is an awesome and free way to support us and help us grow listeners.

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Alright, with that, we are going to sign off, so thanks again, and we will see you next time. And, as we say, life is short, so stop drinking shitty wine.

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