Favorite things: Brut Rosé

Chatting with winemaker Eileen Crane is almost as delightful as a glass of sparkling wine. In fact, Eileen is a bit like the sparkling wine she makes--bright, sophisticated, elegant but completely unpretentious and fits in just about anywhere. She's a great person to talk to about wine, because she's been making it at European style wineries in California for ages. She's been a winemaker at noted sparkling wine producers Gloria Ferrer and Domaine Chandon, in addition to Domaine Carneros in Napa Valley, where she's been for the last twenty years.

I talked to Eileen because I wanted to get to the bottom of why I am so crazy about sparkling rosé, especially brut rosé. Now as we are heading in to Valentine's Day it seems like the perfect bubbly, but actually, it's the perfect bubbly all the time, as far as I'm concerned. Sure it has a festive color, and a rarity about it, but there are so many more reasons to love it.

Perhaps most importantly, we talked about brut rosé being one of the of the more versatile wines around. Even Julia Child noted, "Rosés can be served with anything." Hamburgers? Seafood? Salad? Pork? Barbecue? Charcuterie? Turkey? Indian food? Pizza? Yes! In fact, it has become one of my favorite picks to go with a multi course tasting menu because there is hardly anything it doesn't complement. Eileen blends Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the color comes from Pinot, and it's the Pinot that gives sparkling rosé some backbone.

Just because it's pink, doesn't mean it's sweet, brut still means dry. The brut rosé from Domaine Carneros is particularly crisp and almost lemony with some just a hint of strawberry and melon or peach. Called Cuvée de la Pompadour, it's namesake is Madame de Pompadour who introduced Champagne to the court of King Louis XV and was known for her artistic eye and her seductive ways. It used to be available only at the winery, but now it has much wider distribution and sells for about $36 a bottle.

Eileen told me she opens a bottle of it and keeps it in the refrigerator. If it's sealed properly with a good champagne stopper, it actually holds its flavor better than many other wines, not to mention the bubbles. At 12% alcohol it is also an easier drinking wine that I can enjoy a splash more of, something I can't say about too many wines these days.

When it comes to lesser sparkling wines, Eileen recommends making cocktails out of them and I couldn't agree more. Any berry or fruit flavored simple syrup will turn bubbly into a blushing refresher. But if you find a brut rosé you like, I suggest you enjoy how special it is without any adulteration. And by all means, don't just drink it on Valentine's Day!

Sensible Foods: Favorite things

This won't come as any surprise to you I'm sure, but people are idiots. One day I experienced this first hand when I placed my laptop, which was inside a big backpack into the security machine at the airport. This was before the days of the trays. Out of the machine it came and on the back a big smear of mushed banana. Yes, the dork behind me had put his banana on the belt heading into the screening machine. Sigh.

There are times you need to bring a snack with you on the road, and these days, into the sky. Finding healthy snacks is really not that hard to manage. Many fruits and all dried fruit don't need refrigeration and neither do nuts. Other decent snack options, in my opinion, are Asian treats like rice crackers and wasabi peas.

Listening to Michael Pollan on Michael Pollan on National Public Radio recently I heard him talk about the price we are willing to pay for packaged, processed food. He pointed out these foods are expensive, unhealthy, and generally not good for the environment. Really, they barely qualify as food at all. Adding insult to injury, much of them don't really taste all that good. Oh I guess they do if you grew up eating them, but most processed snack foods, like those bright orange squiggles that are supposedly cheese flavored, taste pretty nasty to me.

My plan was to review a bunch of healthy, low-fat, snacks. But the ones I tasted were so crappy I couldn't see the point. The one packaged/processed snack that I really do like is called Sensible Foods, Crunch Dried Snacks. Most of the line is organic, GMO-free and includes no artificial flavors or colors. There are sweet fruit snacks including the Cherry Berry blend of apples, cherries, blueberries and strawberries and Orchard Blend which has apples, peaches and apricots, as well as a couple of savory versions too such as Roasted Soy Nuts and Organic Supersweet Corn which has a pinch of sea salt added. They taste really good are healthy and convenient and will never leave a big messy spot on anyone's backpack.

BonBonBar: Favorite things

So on the day I vow to return to the gym there is a severe weather alert, bridges close, roofs and scaffolding blows into roadways as rain pours and winds approach 80 miles per hour. I dunno. Perhaps the universe is trying to tell me something? I'm pretty sure the message is "stay home and eat candy."

I've been following the blog Sweet Napa for ages and have to admit I was taken with Nina's idea for creating really high quality candy bars and confections from the moment she shared it with her readers. Now many moons later her company, BonBonBar is a reality. The philosophy behind the company is to use fresh ingredients that are organic and local whenever possible, that chocolate should only mingle with equally spectacular ingredients, like butter, cream, California nuts, vanilla beans, and sea salt and to banish artificial ingredients, including high-fructose corn syrup.

When Nina offered to send me some of her products I was thrilled. Of course my house was filled with candy and chocolate at the time but being the professional I am, I managed to give it a try nonetheless. Ah the sacrifices I make! One bite and I was smitten.

BonBonBar is selling only a few items at the moment and I can proudly say I have tried them all. The Malt Bar is like the world's best Kit Kat bar. It comes in both dark and milk chocolate and I was amazed that I actually liked the milk chocolate version best. The shortbread is crisp and buttery, the malty layer is rich and the chocolate coating just the right balance.



The Caramel Nut Bar is a combination of fresh and toasty mixed nuts, cocoa nibs, with a slightly salty caramel filling that is soft and gooey all covered in a deep dark chocolate.



The bars are a bit pricey at $5 a pop, but a really decadent treat. I shared them and found a little goes a long way. The marshmallows which come in passion fruit and vanilla were the biggest revelation. Frankly, I've not been impressed by "artisanal" marshmallows in the past. The ones I've tried have always been too rubbery and didn't have that strong a flavor. Worst of all, they didn't melt well in hot chocolate or in s'mores. The BonBonBar versions are light and fluffy and have a lovely texture, just like I was hoping for, and in addition they actually smell and taste like the flavors listed on the package.



None of these treats are fancy pants sophisticated confections, but are like idealized versions of things you probably loved as a child. For me, BonBonBar offers not just delicious and high quality treats, but the cure for candy nostalgia. Here's hoping Nina takes on a few of my other childhood favorites, a Chunky bar, and a Violet Crumble...

Favorite Things: Route 29 Napa

I'm a sucker for great looking packaging. If it's cute and retro that just clinches it. While I was a little confused at first as to why the brand name is Route 29 Napa and the company is located in Minneapolis, I like their candy nonetheless. Made in small batches it's fresh and fun.

Route 29 sells mostly old-fashioned style American candies such as toffees, caramels, and licorice. My favorite though are the chewy peps. The tin says "succulent dilemma" and after one candy you'll understand. The minute you put one in your mouth it's so mouthwatering and cooling you want to munch into it, but it's so hard that you know you shouldn't. As it softens in your mouth it turns from a hard candy to a delectable chewy one.

Lee and I are also fond of the chocolate covered potato chips. It's that sweet salty combo I crave. It may not be as trendy as chocolate covered bacon, but it works. I find that both of these candies are rich and satisfying enough that I don't go overboard eating them, but maybe that's just a sign of my amazing self control. The prices for the candies are very reasonable so I look forward to giving them as gifts. Check out the bargain section of the web site for sales and discounted items.