Toast the new year
Champagne is the mother of all celebration drinks, and what better time to indulge than New Year’s Eve? Champagne is always on the menu at Smokejacks in Burlington, although general manager Kathleen Maloney, 33, of Hinesburg said people seem to reserve the festive drink for special occasions.
The signature Smokejacks Champagne Cocktail is a hit anytime, said Maloney, a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute who’s been managing the Burlington eatery for 10 years.
The pretty drink is served in an ice-filled snifter glass with Iron Horse sparkling wine from California, Elio Perrone Bigaro, a pink-hued Italian blend of white muscato grapes and red brachetto grapes with a taste of strawberry, and a drop of rosewater. The sweet, bubbly beverage is stirred and topped with rose petals.
Want straight bubbly? Here are Maloney’s recommendations:
* Laurent Perrier, Brut Millesime Champagne, 1997, from France. Each holiday season, Smokejacks offers a vintage (meaning all the grapes are from the same year) champagne by the glass. This year’s selection is Maloney’s favorite bubbly, a dry blend of pinot noir and Chardonnay grapes with mineral and fruit undertones. $13 per glass.
* Gruet Methode Champenoise, Rose, non-vintage. This New Mexico sparkling wine is made with pinot noir grapes. The dry Brut has berry flavors and slight earthy tones and draws its pink tint from the grape skins, which are left on for a bit during the winemaking process. $9 per glass.
* Collalbrigo Prosecco, extra dry, non-vintage. These mini bottles of sparkling Italian wine are perfect for a single serving of bubbly. Maloney says the crisp wine doesn’t have much fruit flavor but is ideal for champagne cocktails. $6 per bottle.
* Perrier-Jouet Champagne, Brut, 1996, from France. Anemone flowers decorate the bottles of this creamy French champagne, which has mineral and crisp apple flavors. $121 per bottle.
Maloney says it’s best to drink champagne “ice cold and lots of it” — provided you’re not driving, of course. Decent champagne tends to have a creamy quality, making it a nice pairing with pate, triple cream cheese, fruit, buttery popcorn or oysters, she said.
