A Varied November

We drank a few new things in November.

For date night, I splurged and bought a bottle of Taittinger Brut Reserve that was on special offer at my new local wine shop. I have a soft spot for Taittinger, as it was the first champagne house I ever visited, well worth the tour! This champagne is a 40/60 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, extremely well balanced and flavorful. It had loads of apple and vanilla and just a touch of honey, but no sweetness. The bubbles were very good and lasted. This was a nice champagne, and to get it around the £20 price point was well worth it.

Next up, a bottle of champagne that I bought on special offer from Waitrose, Bertrand de Bessac Cuvée du Marquis Brut. It won a silver award from Decanter in 2012, and I can see why. Again a Chardonnay/Pinot Noir blend, this was less well balanced than the Taittinger, but had rich apple flavor with a touch of citrus zest. The bubbles were OK, not great, but good enough for a wine I bought from the supermarket.

To shake things up a bit, I moved down market with an under £10 bottle of Codorniu cava. This maker is really good value, I think they make a pretty good cava. This one was the three traditional cava varieties, macabeo, xarel-lo, and parellada grapes. It had a very grape-y flavor, just a touch of sour at the finish, and decent bubbles. Not the best wine ever, but very drinkable and nothing to complain about.

Finally, I found myself in Prague at the end of the month and was tempted by their Bohemia Sekt Brut. I bought a half bottle at the airport to drink with my husband, who found it far too acidic for his liking. I didn't half mind its very dry and fruity flavor combined with surprisingly good bubbles. But I couldn't drink a lot of it. Honestly, it was far better by the glass at the restaurant in Prague where I first encountered it, served alongside the hefty, saucy, meaty food.