There's No Place Like Home at New Year's

If you are willing to do a bit of legwork, the same scenario at home can probably be accomplished for about a third of the price, and inviting a couple of friends who can share in the wine cost can make it a convivial but thrifty evening.

If you haven't guessed, I'm recommending New Year's at home so that you can save a bit of money and enjoy one of the world's greatest drinks: champagne.

I know it's may seem selfish and extravagant, but given how much money others have lost in my name this year and how much more money we are going to hand out to prop up the auto industry and the rest who are sure to have their hands out soon, I've decided my personal bailout will be a bottle or two of champagne on New Year's. And, I'm going to feel good about subsidizing myself and my friends, instead of a bunch of irresponsible corporate executives and their greedy shareholders.

You could choose a less expensive sparkling wine from the list we provided earlier this month but, other than the obvious price difference, there is little comparison between champagne and sparkling wine. The differences that separate the two categories of fizz are origin and flavour intensity.

Champagne is made with grapes grown only inside a delimited area or appellation known as the Champagne region, some 150 kilometres to the north -east of Paris. More important is champagne's intense concentration of flavour and finesse that stems from its unique chalky sub-soils. Terroir is alive and well in champagne.

Okay, back to New Year's. Keep in mind Champagne, with its striking acidity, is food-friendly so you can serve it through dinner - and if cheese seems like an unlikely pairing, it's not. According to local cheese mavens Alice and Alison Spurrell, proprietors of Les Amis du Fromage, there is no better match with champagne.

Alice Spurrell suggests you serve your champagne alongside walnuts, pecans, dried figs and pears before dinner. Today I'll share with you six different champagnes to kick off the New Year and I'll leave the rest of the evening to you to plan.

The de Venoge Cordon Bleu Brut Sélect always presents in a more mature style with a touch of austerity, making it the perfect candidate for cheese. The aroma is an enticing mix of leesy, citrus, nutty, baked-apple notes with bits of anise and butter. The palate is dry and crisp with a delicious creamy mousse. More toasted nuts and citrus, granny smith, honey, and earthy flavours round out the palate and finish. Good value.

A personal favourite is the elegant, round stylish Pol Roger Brut Reserve Brut. This fizz spends a full 36 months en tirage, or inside the bottle on its lees, a rarity for a non-vintage brut, and that explains the intense toasted pear and broche aromas and the creamy, citrus, baked green apple and nutty, honey-lemon finish. This is a very attractive bubble.

Moët & Chandon Brut Impérial N/V is always welcomed by guests. The traditional, classically-styled champagne comes with a nutty, toasted nose flecked with citrus and floral notes. Fresh, crisp, fairly dry brut style with good body and mousse. Toasted brioche, honey, baked apple, pear skin, citrus and mineral flavours. Full bodied style with good intensity, but just a hint of bitterness. Great before dinner with oven-heated cheese straws.

Delicate toasty, floral, citrus, oyster shell and mineral aromas mark the nose of Roederer Brut Premier Champagne. Look for a smart-looking, updated package on the outside and a delicious nutty, toasty, strawberry, citrus, baked apple, biscuit flavours. The finish is crisp and long with fine acidity and structure. A perfect choice for cheese.

The Taittinger Prélude Grands Crus is an impressive blend of fruit grown only on the highest rated vineyards in the region. Expect toasty, nutty nose with baked pear, baked apple, biscuit, lemon and earth aromas and similar lemon, mineral, nutty flavours. Long, flavourful, delicate and balanced. The finish is long and creamy. Well done.

Citrus, toasty, nutty, cherry, floral aromas mark the nose of the Veuve Clicquot Brut. The flavours as usual are intense: citrus, green apple and mineral with bits of grapefruit and orange. The big, nutty, toasty N/V brut defines its house style thanks to some 25 to 40 per cent reserve wine in each edition. This one is always better with food.

Happy New Year, everyone.

de Venoge Cordon Bleu Brut Sélect N/V, Champagne, France

Price      $58

UPC       03291690500018

Score     91/100

Remarks              Toasty, nutty, citrus, granny smith, honey, earthy flavours.

Pol Roger Brut Reserve N/V, Champagne, France

Price      $63

UPC       089744142450

Score     90/100

Remarks              Citrus, creamy, nutty, honey/ lemon flavours.

Moët & Chandon Brut Impérial N/V, Champagne, France

Price      $65.00

UPC       3185370000335

Score     90/100

Remarks              Full bodied style sparkler built for food.

Louis Roederer Brut Premier Champagne, Champagne, France

Price      $68

UPC       3114080016053

Score     91/100

Remarks              Flavourful with good acidity and balance. Classy.

Taittinger Prélude Grands Crus N/V, Champagne, France

Price      $70

UPC       3016570050380

Score     92/100

Remarks              Rich, elegant, creamy palate with fine concentration.

Veuve Clicquot Brut N/V, Champagne, France

Price      $69

UPC       3049610004104

Score     91/100

Remarks              A big toasty N/V brut containing 25 to 40 per cent reserve wine.