Italian sparkling wines at the French Embassy? Is this possible? 

California champagnes being served on French soil?  Sacrilegious??!!

No!! Wine lovers know that great wines come from around the globe, not just one region or one country.  Especially champagnes and sparkling wines.

So sample over 25 French, Italian, Spanish, American, and Austrian sparklers that will be presented at the first Champagne and Other Bubbles Festival at the French Embassy in Washington, DC. 

The selection includes bubbly samples from around the globe including:

• Champagnes
• Proseccos
• Cavas
• Spumante
• Blanc de noirs
• Blanc de blancs
• Sparkling rosés
• Sparkling reds
• Bruts, Drys, Extra Drys and Demi-Secs

Presented by the local wine and education aficionados company GiraMondo Wine Adventures, the festival includes tastings, and a festive menu to compliment your bubbly samples, including chocolate fondue and assorted Mignardises (miniature French pastries).

With sparklers from around the globe, this is a great opportunity to try a variety of styles, types and countries of origins so you can serve the most appropriate at your next festive party, let it be a black tie party or an evening in the lawn at Wolftrap.

For artists and aspiring wine label designers, register to participate in the wine label design contest for a French sparkling wine. The grand prize is $300.

First Annual Champagne and Other Bubbles Festival
La Maison Française
4101 Reservoir Road, NW 
Washington, DC 20007 (map it)
301-841-7609

Date and Time –Thursday, July 24 – 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.

Tickets – $79.00 and are available online.  At time of writing, only a few tickets remained.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Farragut West – Blue and Orange lines, and then a 15-minute Metrobus (D6) ride.  I’d recommend taking a cab.  

Parking – Limited free first come, first serve parking is available in the Embassy’s underground parking garage.  Free street parking is also available in the area. 

Images – Strawberry & Champagne, corks

______________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

The great thing about the many local summer and fall wine festivals, is that the wineries come to you.

At the Vintage Virginia Wine Festival, in suburban Centreville, Virginia, you can taste wines from over 35 Virginia wineries. After sampling some of the 250 wines offered, attend one of the hourly seminars at the Seminar Tents, and learn about paring, wine making and its history, and the learn about the many wineries in Virginia.

Besides wine tasting, there’s activities for the kids, food and live entertainment.

Vintage Virginia Wine Festival
Bull Run Regional Park
7700 Bull Run Drive
Centreville, VA 20121 (map it)

Dates and Times – Saturday and Sunday, May 31 & June 1, 2008, gates open at 10:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m.

Tickets – Adults – $25.00, Designated drivers and youth over 12 – $16.00, kids 3-12 – $5.00, kids under 3 FREE. The box office will be open 11 a.m. until 6: p.m. during the festival. Designated drivers are provided complimentary soda, water, and sparkling cider. Tickets are available online.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Taking Metro to the festival is not viable, but a shuttle from the Vienna/Fairfax,/GMU Metro station (Orange line) to the festival will run hourly 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. ($20.00).

Parking – Free parking included.

Images – Flickr – glass, grapes from personal collection – © 2008 – Jon Rochetti 

_______________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

It’s this one is sure to be well attended. Read about last year’s festival here.

And while you’re at the Reagan Building, check out the piece of the Berlin Wall that’s on display in the lobby. 

And if you are not the wine and cheese fan, you might enjoy this recent anti-wine-tasting party Super Bowl commercial from Bud Light.

Washington Wine & Food Festival
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
1300  Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington D.C. 20004  (map it)

Dates and Times – Saturday  and Sunday, Mar. 1 and 2, 2008

Tickets – $$85.00 (until Feb. 22), then $95.00 and are available by calling 1-800-343-1174. This event is for 21 and over only.  A designated driver is recommended.

Nearest Metro subway station – Federal Triangle – Orange and Blue lines, and is connected to the Reagan Building or Metro Center – Red line, then a 2-block walk.

Parking – limited paid garage parking is available in the Reagan Building or look for free or metered street parking.

Images – Flickr 

__________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

The Virginia Wine Showcase is this weekend in suburban Chantilly, Virginia.

Forty wineries will be serving, selling, and bragging about some of the 300 wines available for tasting.

The showcase also offers a series of fee-based wine seminars where you can learn about wine, winemaking, food pairings, and improving your enjoyment of the nectar of the gods.

Some of the more interesting seminars include:

• It’s All About The Chocolate – Perfect for planning a Valentine’s Day celebration, how to pair wines with chocolate. 
• Virginia Versus The World - Just how do Virginia wines compare to wines from other regions of the world? 
• Wine Futures And How to Buy - Similar to investing in stock futures? Find out.
• Winemaking Overview – Learn about the art and science of making high-quality wines.

Enter to win one of many door prizes and get a chance to win dinners, weekend get-aways and a 42″ LCD television. There’s also a Bounce Room to keep the kids distracted (they really shouldn’t be drinking wine anyway).

Virginia Wine Showcase
Dulles Expo Center
4368 Chantilly Center
Chantilly, VA  (map it)

Dates and Times – Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 9 – 10, 2008, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Tickets – $35.00 and are available at the door, $15.00 for non-tasters

Parking – Free parking is available.

___________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

But there are so many types and styles of sparkling wines and champagnes. While the wine aficionado may turn their nose up at anything that is not “true” Champagne from the Champagne region in France, one should never ignore all the other interesting sparklers – Méthode Champenoise, prosecco, spumante, sparkling shiraz from Australia, or even a lightly sparkling vinho verde from Portugal. But what’s the difference? What do they go with?

Claude Thibault, the Champagne Master from Janisson Champagne  and previously with some great Sonoma and Napa Valley wineries, including Kendall-Jackson, Jordan (a personal favorite) and Iron Horse, will help you learn about the differences and how they compare at Wines of Summer – Champagne and Other Bubbles.   He is also adding to the growing list of Virginia wineries with his own in Charlottesville, VA. Late rthis year, he’ll be releasing his own wines to the market. 

This champagne tasting and seminar will include samplings of 8 sparklers from France, Italy, Spain and the U.S., each paired with an appropiate hors d’oeuvre.

Folklore is a great part of the history of the creation and refinement of champagne.  It’s a common misconception that French monk, Dom Pérignon at the Abbey d’Hautvilliers, was the creator of the now famous sparkling wine. However, the first documented creation of sparkling wine using a secondary fermentation process was written about by English physician and scientist Christopher Merritt, 30 years prior in 1662.  Pérignon perfected blending and bottling.

Other myths about Dom Pérignon include that he could also determine the winery by simply tasting one grape; and that he was the first to use corks in sparkling wines. 

He did develop techniques still used today to prevent Champagne bottles and corks from exploding by using thicker bottles and tying the corks down with wire or string.

And he was also a proponent of organic farming and did work tirelessly to improve the quality of still and later sparkling wines coming from the Champagne region.  

Additionally, the famous Dom quote “Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!” is most probably an effective company marketing campaign used during the late 1800s.  Regardless if it’s true or folklore, I think he was right.  It is the nectar of the gods.

Wines of Summer: Champagne and Other Bubbles
Whittemore House – The Woman’s National Democratic Club Museum
1526 New Hampshire Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20036

Date and Time – July 25 – 07:00 – 09:00 p.m.

Tickets – $59.00 and are available online. (21+ only)

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Dupont Circle – Red line, then a two block walk.

Parking – Free on-site parking is available, but often fills to capacity.

____________________________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

Here’s a great chance to sample 50 East Coast wines, an assortment of artisan cheeses from Virginia, Maryland and Vermont and foods with a local flair prepared by ten DC area chefs at TasteDC’s first East Coast Food and Wine Festival.

Expect some exciting dishes from the chefs using local ingredients to match the local wines including Williamsburg Peanut Soup with Jalapeño Chicken Fritters, Sea Scallops with Truffled Parsnip Puree and Parsley Coulis and Prawn and Tangerine Soup Shooters.

East Coast Food and Wine Festival
Whittemore House (The Woman’s National Democratic Club Museum)
1526 New Hampshire Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20036

Date and Time – Thursday, May 10th, 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM

Tickets – available online for $75.00 or $90 at the door. This is a walk-around event, no seating is available.

Nearest Metro subway station - Dupont Circle – Red line, then a two block walk.

Parking – Free on-site parking is available, but often fills to capacity.

_________________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler