Wine Talk by Robert Whitley

My inbox is overflowing these days with wine suggestions for Valentine's Day — everything from Argentinian Malbec to moscato from Piedmont to sparkling shiraz from Australia. If it's red or sweet or has bubbles, it must have been crafted expressly for this one day of the year when romance is in the air. No?

Actually, I have fairly simple tastes for Valentine's Day. Simple as in straightforward, and perhaps a bit old-fashioned. I like fizz for me and my valentine. Good fizz.

Now, there are two types of good fizz in my humble opinion. There is Champagne, or its new world equivalent. And there is the kinda sweet, kinda frothy fizz that the Italians have perfected in the Piedmont region of northern Italy.

Champagne we all know, or wish we knew. It is so delicious, so sophisticated, so elegant that after every sip we vow to drink more of the stuff in the future. Yet it seems to come out only for weddings, New Year's Eve and, of course, Valentine's Day.

It's so expensive, you say? That may be, but the new world equivalents are purchased and consumed for exactly the same reasons even though they are often half the price and sometimes just as good.

So now that you know the path to my heart is paved with fine bubbles, you only need the names of a few favorite Champagnes to make my V Day: I will not turn up my nose at anything from Pol Roger, to my palate the personification of elegance in Champagne; either the Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve or Blanc des Millenaires would likely inspire multiple cartwheels; and if you are feeling flush, I can always muscle through a bottle of Gosset, Taittinger or Dom (any Dom, Perignon or Ruinart, will do).

The best of our domestic bubblies also have been known to stoke the passions. Domaine Carneros by Taittinger, either the prestige cuvee, Le Reve Blanc de Blancs, or the superb brut rose, Cuvee de la Pompadour, are among the finest sparkling wines made outside of France's Champagne district; Iron Horse, Gloria Ferrer and J, all from Sonoma County, can dazzle as well; and the Napa Valley's Schramsberg is the towering pioneer of sparkling wine in America.

What I won't do with any of these bubblies, however, is to buy into the big lie of every Valentine's Day I can remember: The blissful pairing of Champagne and chocolate. Sorry, it just doesn't work.

With chocolate, I turn to the other good fizz. That would be the frothy, slightly sweet, low-alcohol Brachetto d'Acqui from Italy. The luscious raspberry and strawberry flavors may well be the perfect pairing with chocolate, and these wines are sweet enough that they won't clash with a slice of chocolate cake or a truffle.

Rosa Regale is my brachetto of choice, and probably the easiest to find, but I must admit I've never had a bad brachetto.

Now you may still opt for a merlot or a Malbec, and you should indeed drink what you like on the big day. As for me, I am sticking with the bubbly, for it is truly the wine of woo.

BEST VALUE

Wines are rated on a 100-point scale. Wines are chosen for review because they represent outstanding quality or value. The scores are a measure of this reviewer's enthusiasm for the recommended wine.

Matanzas Creek 2010 Sauvignon Blanc, Sonoma County ($20) — Matanzas Creek once upon a time produced one of the finest sauvignons made in California, but that was quite some time ago.

Well, maybe not. Matanzas under winemaker Marcia Monahan, whose first vintage was 2009, appears to be back on track, if the 2010 Sauvignon Blanc is the yardstick.

This vintage makes a powerful statement about the changes she has made at Matanzas. The nose is the first clue. It's remarkably complex, showing aromas of white peach, citrus and tropical fruit. On the palate the wine is crisp and clean, with good backbone despite a creamy richness I would attribute to the small percentage of semillon added to the final blend. Monahan employs a technique in the vineyard that was perfected by New Zealand's Cloudy Bay, making one pass through the vineyard to pick less ripe grapes for their tart, pungent aromas, another pass for riper stone-fruit aromas, and yet another pass for still riper grapes that will yield notes of tropical fruit. To my palate this is the finest sauvignon from Matanzas Creek in a number of years. Rating: 91.

TASTING NOTES

Gosset Grand Blanc de Blancs, Champagne, France ($110) — Gosset has introduced a new Blanc de Blancs bubbly, the multi-vintage Grand Blanc de Blancs, and as with everything Gosset, it is the epitome of elegance and finesse. A 100 percent chardonnay cuvee, this beautifully structured Champagne is very dry (about 3.5 grams per liter of sugar, which is extremely low) and crisp, exhibiting notes of citrus and brioche, with a fine, precise bead. The vintages used in the new cuvee are 2003, 2004 and 2005. A bit pricey, but with this particular bubbly, you get what you pay for.

Rating: 95.

Morlanda 2007 Crianca, Priorat DOQ, Spain ($48) — This well proportioned red from Priorat is full-bodied and rich, shows exceptional depth and a lingering, complex finish. Despite its heft at 15 percent alcohol by volume, this blend of garnacha and Carinena exhibits considerable finesse, with layers of dark fruits, hints of spice and smooth, sweet tannins. I served it with an herb-crusted roast chicken, and it made for a spectacular match. Rating: 93.

Matanzas Creek 2009 Chardonnay, Sonoma County ($25) — This is winemaker Marcia Monahan's first chardonnay since she arrived at Matanzas and her philosophy ("I like the flavor of fruit more than the flavor of wood") shines through. She has altered the grape sourcing for Matanzas chardonnay, bringing in more fruit from Alexander Valley to complement the existing vineyard sourcing from Carneros, and cut way back on the percentage of new oak she uses to ferment and age the wine. The results are in the bottle, and they speak well of this new direction for Matanzas. The nose exhibits aromas of lemon oil and brioche, with hints of spice. On the palate the wine is clean and refreshing, with excellent length. It is well balanced and finishes with outstanding persistence of flavor. The finest Matanzas "Sonoma County" chardonnay in years. Rating: 91.

Matanzas Creek 2007 Merlot, Bennett Valley ($25) — Matanzas was among the first wineries in California to hitch its wagon to merlot, and the early Matanzas merlots were often used as benchmarks by other producers. As merlot mania fizzled and tastes turned to other grape varieties, Matanzas continued to believe in the grape, and this vintage is a good example of that ongoing commitment. It's a beautifully made, well-balanced Merlot that offers aromas of ripe plum and black cherry, with a hint of vanillin spice and well integrated tannins. The winemaker eschewed heft for elegance, crafting a gorgeous food-friendly wine at 13.5 percent alcohol, which is almost unheard of in California these days. Rating: 90.

Follow Robert on Twitter at @wineguru. To find out more about Robert Whitley and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2012 CREATORS.COM