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	Upcoming Events Recent Events Calendar Regional Groups Calendar Archive About SIGS	November Wine SIG Sparkles and Bubbles in Oakland by Mary Margaret Pack November 13, 2007 The Wine Special Interest Group (SIG) met on 13 November in Oakland to delve into an interesting series of non-champagne sparkling wines. Host Jennie Schacht selected the wines and guided the group through the tasting. The parameters were that the wines had to be sparkling but not made in the Champagne region of France. We tasted seven bubblies from Italy, Spain, France, New Mexico, and California. Following the SIG’s standard procedure, we poured the wines one at a time, tasted and commented, and each participant made notes on the provided tasting sheet. Wine SIG Chair Christina Mueller brought Johnson and Robinson’s World Atlas of Wine and MacNeil’s Wine Bible for reference, and Jennie had Herbst’s The Wine Lover’s Companion on hand, as well as notes gleaned from the winemakers’ web sites. As we tasted and discussed each wine, it was helpful to learn about the regions, grapes, and winemakers, and view geographic origins on wine maps. After tasting all the wines, group members voted for their three favorites, and then Jennie revealed the prices for each. There wasn’t a clear correlation between expense and preference. The surprise winner was Gruet Blanc de Noirs ($13), made by French vintners from Champagne who relocated to Truth or Consequences, New Mexico in the late 1980s. Two wines tied for second place: 2000 Roederer Estate L’Ermitage from California’s Anderson Valley ($35 at BevMo; retails for $45) and Domaine des Baumard Brut Crémant de Loire, Carte Turquoise, a chenin blanc sparkling wine from Anjou in France’s Loire Valley ($16.50). In third place was Nino Franco Prosecco Rustico ($16) from Italy’s Veneto region. We also sampled a Segura Viudas Brut Cava from Spain, 2004 Delmas Blanquette De Limoux Brut, Cuvée Berlène from the Languedoc region in France, and a 2006 Banfi Rosa Regale Brachetto D’Acqui, a sweet, pink sparkler from Northern Italy. True to custom, the evening ended with convivial wine chat over a variety of hors d'oeuvres and experiments with pairing the various sparklers with each. If you would like to be on the list to hear about future SFPFS Wine SIGs, please contact Christina Mueller at muellercme@yahoo.com.	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