Add sparkle to holidays with Finger Lakes bubbly

A few weeks ago, my wife and I selected three New York sparkling wines during visits to area wineries. We were preparing for a wine-tasting dinner.

We wanted to see firsthand how Finger Lakes bubbly stacked up against a well-regarded sparkling wine from California. The California entry was the Gloria Ferrer 2000 Blanc de Blancs, made from 100 percent chardonnay grapes grown in the Carneros region.

We chose wines from McGregor Vineyard & Winery, Chateau Frank and Glenora Wine Cellars for comparison. Each of the Finger Lakes entries had chardonnay grapes in its blend. After sampling a few appetizers and getting acquainted, our six guests were invited into the dining room for the 'serious' part of the tasting.

Thirty-two champagne flutes, some almost a foot tall with slender stems, others arching out like a very slender pilsner glass, greeted our guests as they were seated. The unmatched sets of stemware reflected the lighthearted tone for our tasting.

I had created a modified tasting sheet, from a form used by the American Wine Society for judging wines that I found on the Internet.

Although I did not realize it when we made up our guest list, half of the participants had connections with education. It was little surprise that Hollace scrapped my overall rating system and instead gave final grades of A through D for the wines we sampled.

Each of the wines was passed around, enclosed in shiny, silver, numbered bags, until everyone had completed their tasting notes. There were several trips back to the refrigerator to pull bottles for additional comparisons.

In the appearance category, Michael rated the four glasses of sparkling wine from most to least bubbly, while Lois rated them on colors ranging from golden to pale yellow.

Unanticipated notes were the most fun to read after we had completed our tasting. Maria rejected the categories for rating the wines and wrote, "I like whatever leaves the best aftertaste -- the lightest, the easiest going down."

Michael, her husband, picked up on that thought when he changed the 'finish' category to something he could relate to more readily. His finish category was changed to, "If I were at a wedding, would I drink more as opposed to the free beer?"

He gave a wide range of responses to his own question. For a wine that didn't impress him, he wrote, "Not interested, I would seek out the 'whatever'-light."

Another wine made a much better impression. Michael wrote, "I might con the waitstaff into finding me a bottle -- or two."

When everyone had formed opinions, it was time for the unveiling of the bottles.

The wine receiving the highest rating turned out to be Chateau Frank's 1998 Brut. It is a blend of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier. There is a lot of fruit in the nose. It has a nutty, creamy taste and a refreshingly clean finish.

The Gloria Ferrer 2000 Blanc de Blancs came in a close second. Lois had enjoyed it before and selected it as her favorite. In her notes, she wrote that it had the best aroma, with strong but pleasant fruit. She added that it had a good balance, with grapefruit flavor and a warm finish.

Eric liked the Glenora 1998 Brut the best. He wrote that it had flavors of fruit and yeast, with a lingering finish.

In my own tasting notes, I recorded that the McGregor 2000 Blanc de Noir is a blend of chardonnay and pinot noir grapes with a creamy, toasty taste and less fruit flavor than some of the other sparkling wines.

All of the wines we tasted are in the $18 to $25 range and any one would add a little excitement to a holiday celebration.

Jeff Richards' wine column appears Saturdays. For comments or questions, he can be reached at 607/271-8279 or 800/836-8970, ext. 279, or e-mail: thewineguy