Results tagged “champagne”

Tonight at 7:30 pm Writers Bloc presents British mystery novelist Dame Ruth Rendell (who also writes as Barbara Vine) in conversation with April Smith, creator of the Ana Gray series. Rendell will talk about her latest book The Monster In The Box. The event will be held at the MGM Building in the ICM Theater. Park in the Westfield shopping center directly across the street. Tickets: $20. For reservations, visit writersblocpresents.com

           

Friday evening Morton's in Burbank hosted a tasting of Piper-Heidsiek champagne and Vosges chocolates. The evening started with generous pourings of Piper Sonoma Brut and hearty appetizers including Smoked Salmon Wedges, Broiled Sea Scallops and Petite Filet Mignon Sandwiches.

It's Valentine's Day and that means it's time to break out the bubbles. You take your valentine to a nice dinner, and are confronted with a confusing array of choices. It's easy to get confused. Champagne is bubbly, true, but there are lots of bubbles out there. You look at the wine list next to the Valentine’s Dinner menu and see your Favorite French Champagne names… Piper, Chandon, Mumm, Roederer…. in the ‘California’ section.

It's a family tradition: every year on New Year's Day, we toast slices of panettone and drink mimosas. The warm, buttery, alcohol-infused bread is the perfect compliment to a nice, dry champagne and nothing says ring in the new year like a little more liquor (provided you've survived the night before.)

For many years, I was a Veuve girl. As in, Veuve Clicquot. But that's so obvious now and it's expensive. Then I became a Heidsieck (Charles or Piper) girl. Much nicer, less obvious, but still pricey for the good stuff. With the holidays mere seconds away (and with all my "wine novice" locations shutting down their wine tastings until next year) I thought it would make sense to tap into the one area of the wine industry I do know something about - bubbly! The challenge? Finding good bubbly at a very good price. At a price so good, I'd buy cases. Here's what I found:

Last Sunday night, whilst many Angelenos were trying to make complete sentences out of what was left between all the bleeps heard during the MTV Movie Awards, I was down by the beach at the Loews Hotel in Santa Monica, checking out an event called "Dessert Decadence." Billed as a sunset poolside minglefest, the event featured neither a sunset (too overcast and ran from 5-8, just a bit too early) nor a poolside (we...