Wine of the Week

With the holidays fast approaching, nothing says party like Champagne. Unfortunately, Champagne always carries a hefty price tag to match its festive nature.

If you are one of Austin’s 1% crowd, by all means, go for the real French product. Some of my favorites include Bollinger Special Cuvée ($60), Ruinart Blanc de Blanc ($80), Billecart-Salmon Rosé ($90), or Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs ($175).

However, the best value sparkling wines come from the Spaniards. Cava wines are amongst the finest sparkling wines in the world. And none offers a better juxtaposition of price, physical beauty, and delicious flavor than Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Heredad Cava ($24). Note the lovely picture to the left of two different bottles. The smaller is a normal size 750 ml bottle. The large format 1.5 liter bottle ($45) sitting next to it is a work of art for the table.

But its beauty is not just skin deep. Reserva Heredad is made from just the first light pressings of the grapes and then it is aged in bottle for almost three years, producing a classically dimensioned Cava. The metal you see on the bottle is solid pewter, guaranteed to produce some “wow” sounds from your guests. Reserva Heredad in the 750ml bottle is available at better wine merchants. Some Specs carry the grand 1.5 liter bottle, but if you make a quick phone call to                                                                     your favorite wine shop, they should be able to get                                                                     you a bottle (better yet, a case) very quickly.