Chateau Ste. Michelle

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A couple of weeks ago, the folks from Chateau Ste. Michelle came to town to host their #MyChateau event at the Innovation District’s (Fort Point?) Space with a Soul.

Chateau Ste. Michelle My Chateau

The event’s intention, in addition to letting Bostonians enjoy Chateau Ste. Michelle’s delicious wines with food pairings from local chefs, was to celebrate Boston, our love of food and wine, and our unique, awesome culture. You can’t beat that! Here’s a little more about the event and Chateau Ste. Michelle:

The people of Boston have spoken and identified their Chateau as innovative food paired with wine and music. Chateau Ste. Michelle is excited to bring Boston’s Chateau to life. The winery will be featuring a local celebrity chef and live music from a Boston-based band.

Chateau Ste. Michelle also shares a passion for food and music. The winery’s own culinary team, based in Woodinville, WA, pairs Chateau Ste. Michelle wines with Pacific Northwest ingredients, hosts dinner events and shares seasonal recipes. The culinary team also prepares food for every show of Chateau Ste. Michelle’s Summer Concert series, one of the winery’s favorite traditions.

Chateau Ste. Michelle wine

Tables with Chateau Ste. Michelle wines were posted around the space, making it easy to browse the wines and tasting notes as well as to taste. While I already knew I liked Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling, I discovered I loved their Columbia Valley Chardonnay and Merlot. One of the things I love most about all of the wines we tried is that they were all complex, really delicious, and very affordable, all under $20 per bottle.

Chateau Ste. Michelle wine

Chefs like Louis DiBiccari and Rebecca Arnold were serving up small bites to go with the wine, and guests were treated to live music that really set a festive mood.

Chef Louis

Space with a Soul was, overall, a great location for an event. The fact that we had to get there by elevator was the only snafu; it made for a bottleneck as people were waiting in the lobby and making it difficult to get inside.

Space with a Soul

But the views, vibe and lighting made up for it! The event planners did a great job in setting the mood, and the crowd was definitely enjoying themselves. As with any free event, there were definitely some pushy free wine vultures as we call them, but  I think that’s unfortunately to be expected whenever free food and drinks are involved!

Space with a Soul

As a wine lover and a winery lover, I thought it was great that Chateau Ste. Michelle made their way out to Boston with an event just for us! Hopefully they enjoyed themselves just as much, and they will come to visit again.

In the meantime, I REALLY need to plan a Washington and Oregon wine tasting trip!

Tags: Boston, Chateau Ste. Michelle, events, food and wine pairing, wine, wine tasting

Sparkling wine and Champagne are great options for almost any occasion. They make a great hostess gift, thank-you gift, and a nice case with a note for each month of the year makes a great wedding gift for wine lovers. They also tend to be very food friendly wines, a great dinner party choice when you don’t know what is being served for dinner.

It can be hard to figure out which sparkling wines are really great especially in the low to mid price ranges. As always, tasting is the best way to find out what works for you, but I thought I would share a few of my favorites in a wide range of prices, something appropriate for every occasion.

Ruinart Blanc de Blancs Champagne, $59.99

I actually received this bottle in a happy accident. A public relations agency sending me wine to sample had a warehouse mix-up which resulted in this bottle arriving at my door. I offered to send it back, and they kindly told me to keep it. We saved it all winter long and enjoyed it on a recent summer evening, just because. This champagne’s tiny, festive, and abundant bubbles made me smile, and its classic, yeasty nose and toasty flavors give it a great creaminess.

Ruinart Champagne

Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow Label, $44.99 (Boston Wine Exchange often has deals on Veuve for under $40)

A true classic, Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow Label shouts celebration and elegance to me. It’s crisp fruit and nice mineral flavors make this dry bubbly a perfect pairing for a large variety of meals including a regular old pizza, a tip I learned while reading French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano, a favorite book of mine, and as I say on my About page, one that was life-changing for me in terms of eating and exercise.

Veuve Clicquot  

J Cuvée 20 Brut, $22

A Sonoma Valley favorite, this bubbly offers toasty, yeasty flavors with hints of honey and a little bit of lemon. Sweeter than some of my other choices, and as corny as it sounds, this sparkling wine really evokes a spring day in wine country. We enjoyed this bottle at Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg and will no doubt enjoy it in the future, hopefully at a visit to J Vineyards 🙂

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Chateau Ste. Michelle Blanc de Blancs, around $10

For this price point, and really just in general, this sparkling wine from Washington’s Columbia Valley is outstanding. It is citrusy, very dry, with flavors of tropical fruits and green apples. I absolutely love it and would happily serve this as an everyday bubbly or at a special meal. We enjoyed this at Lineage last weekend, and it will always be one of my favorites.

Domaine Ste. Michelle Blanc de Blancs

As you can see, sparkling wines do not have to be expensive to be delicious. I hope you will think of these options the next time you are shopping for that special bottle, whether for some big occasion or just to celebrate a summer evening.

Have a great Saturday everyone! And if you get a chance, please check out the two guest posts I did this week, one on The Wine Bottega for CRAVE Boston and one on Vianne Chocolat for Boston Local Food Festival

Tags: champagne, Chateau Ste. Michelle, J Vineyards, Ruinart, sparkling wine, Veuve Clicquot, wine

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