Champagne Night Among Friends

I happen to be lucky enough to be part of a wine group called NY Grapes, which is a fun and great concept, as well as a great excuse to dig into the cellar and open some "sleepers." The system is easy and efficient; we meet in a member's house or office every couple of months, and the host provides food and sets the theme of the night. Then, the members that can attend the dinner bring their chosen bottle in accordance with the theme. I attended my first dinner in September, when I was invited by the President of the group Eric Porres, whom I met in the store and bonded with, thanks to a magnum of Bartolo Mascarello Barolo 1997 that he bought for a dinner with the mirroring group in the west coast. The bottle, coincidentally, turned out to be the wine of night and from there we had started a good friendship. We've had quite a few dinners since I joined, and many with some great wines from around the world. The last dinner, one of my favorites thus far, was hosted by Paul DeBraccio in his office, and the theme was small growers from Champagne. The lineup for the night was composed of 4 Brut non-vintage, two Rose non-vintage, 5 Millesime (3 1999 and 2 2000) Champagnes and two outsiders: Huet 2002, a sparkler from Loire made from Chenin Blanc, and the Erpacrife from Piedmont made from 100% Nebbiolo grapes which were both very interesting. It was definitely a great array to experience the difference in terroir for real champagnes. On the NY Grapes site you will find our president's descriptions of the wines and winners, so I won't repeat those here, but I'd like to point out that a denomination or an appellation do not guarantee a level of quality. That evening the difference between bigger and small wineries came out clearly, wineries like Mumm and Gosset didn't stand up to the others, and to tell the truth, the Loire sparkler was more complex and interesting then the ones described "as done by the book" by Eric. Pricing-wise, I noticed that the Millesime weren't much more expensive then the non-vintages, but the difference in taste was dramatic. With prices ranging from the high 50's to the low 70's, the tasting also showed that 1999 was a more elegant and probably better vintage then 2000. Being part of these kind of groups is a great way to experience and learn about the nectar of the gods among friends, so if it interests you, get together with your friends and take an evening off every couple of months to get together around several great wine bottles.
Buona Bevuta a Tutti!!!