Bubbles: No, that’s not the name of a new pop singer or TV actress. It’s the direction many wine makers are taking to offer a cool and refreshing beverage in an effort to make our hot summer season more endurable.
Leading this carbonated revolution are some interesting and friendly sparkling wines from France. Not all of the sparkling wines from France are Champagne. Only wines from a specific government-delineated and protected district can carry that name. All the other sparkling wines made - and there are many - must go under the generic heading of vin mousseux.
That title does not diminish these wines by any means, and Veuve Du Vernay proves the truth of that statement. These wines are not merely wines given a shot of carbon dioxide gas to carbonate it, but are naturally fermented and naturally carbonated by traditional French methods.
Veuve Du Vernay Brut ($11)
If you have never tried a sparkling wine while reclining by the shore, the beach, the pool or just loafing on the back porch, you are missing a wonderful experience. A sparkling wine, just by its nature, is uplifting and will most definitely bring a smile to your face. This sparkler starts by displaying a pale straw color and a fresh summer fruit and floral aroma. The flavor features apple and citrus and the traditional sparkling wine flavor of bread, which then continues on to the finish. This wine will accompany almost all light summer food and also is good for sipping.
Veuve Du Vernay Brut Rose ($11)
The Veuve Du Vernay Brut Rose is the other side of the coin of the brut style of sparkling wines. With fruit galore, this is a wine that proudly displays all the flavors and aromas associated with a rose. The aroma is a rich strawberry with hints of apple. These carry through to the flavor, where fruit flavors dance across the tongue. This is a wine that can accompany everything from hot dogs to filet mignon.
Veuve Du Vernay Ice and Veuve Du Vernay Ice Rose ($12)
These wine are an homage to all of the wine drinkers who like sweet wines and have to settle for the sugary sweet, almost tasteless beverages that are just fruit juice with a bit of alcohol. It has been all to long since the sweet wine drinker was recognized and not sneered upon by wine geeks.
The Veuve Du Vernay Ice series of wines are sweet, but do not sacrifice their sweetness for flavor and aroma. The blond still carries the apple and citrus along with the traditional bread aroma, cradled in a soft sweet blanket. The rose also carries the typical rose flavors and aromas, but unlike many of its sweet sparkling contemporaries, the sweetness is not overpowering.
Nixa resident Bennet Bodenstein is a wine columnist and manages ArticlesOnWine.com. He can be reached at ben@articlesonwine.com.
