Mind and Palate Openers: Sparkling Wines to Get You Through Tax Season
Whether you are expecting a tax return or need to owe taxes, you know you’ll need a glass of wine (or two) to recover. Bubbles are always a good option.
Taxes suck.
Gathering your documents, figuring out filing statuses, finding any tax deductions, and trying not to pay for tax filing services is anxiety-inducing whether you’re the CEO of a Fortune 500 company or “Joe/Jane Schmo” like me. Finding out that you owe or are getting a smaller-than-expected return is even worse. As someone who had to change their filing status and find any deductions to claim with my IRA investments and interest payments, I was stressed and pissed. After I calmed myself down with hugs from my husband and “Transformers”, I wanted a drink–a “fizzy-lifting” drink specifically.
While I don’t condone drinking alcohol to take away stress, sparkling wine brings a flavorful experience and, more importantly for me, visual grounding. You look at the mousse traveling through the glass before taking your first sip. When you take that first sip, those bubbles carry out different flavor notes on your palate that you focus on the wine.
Splurging on Champagne regardless of how much you get on your tax return isn’t always the best decision for your wallet. Plus, every person’s tax filing situation differs. Here are some sparkling wines to keep in your fridge (or have when you’re out on the town) no matter what tax filing situation you find yourself in to get through this stressful spring season.
You owe taxes: Prosecco for the fridge; Spanish sparkling wine on a night out
You can’t go wrong with having a bottle of Prosecco in the fridge. It’s easy to drink bubbles at a super affordable price. A lot of Prosecco producers, recently, are shifting the perspective of Prosecco from a super cheap, fruit-driven sparkling wine that’s better used for Aperol spritzes to an affordable sparkling wine that is dry, crisp, and mineral-driven.
One of my faves is from BiancaVigna. A relatively new producer founded by siblings Enrico and Elena Moschetta in 2004, BiancaVigna is part of that Prosecco new wave. The Moschetta siblings and Elena’s husband, Luca Cuzziol, strive to make wine in a way that’s terroir-driven and respectful to the environment that can be enjoyed at home or fancy restaurants. While their higher-end bottlings are pricey, their entry-level Prosecco still has a refreshing acidity, complex aromas of apples, citrus blossoms, and tarragon, and a persistent finish.
If you feel like having a night out just to take a break from crying because you have to owe taxes, find a wine bar or restaurant that has a great Spanish bubble selection. Spanish sparkling wine1 provides great value when you want to chill at the bar reading a book about how to improve your taxes next year. You can’t go wrong with Raventós i Blanc. These wines have a texture similar to Crémant (French sparkling wines made outside of Champagne) and nutty undertones similar to Champagne for a fraction of the price of a glass of Champagne. Until you’ve recovered from paying the tax man, this will hold you over until your next glamorous night out.
You got a super small tax return that you might as well have owed: American sparkling wine for the fridge; any Crémant from France on a night out
If you’re going to semi-spend on a bottle of sparkling wine to keep in reserves, look no further than the wine made in your own backyard–in this case, look to American producers. American sparkling wines are still relatively unknown and even have a tainted reputation of being “basic” or “not as good as the European stuff”. Because of that perception, these under-the-radar American wines mean potential for savings and discoveries for us. And maybe drinking sparkling wine from our home country will get us in good tax karma with Uncle Sam (it’ll be worth a shot anyway).
RGNY in Long Island, New York makes a high-quality sparkling wine that is reminiscent of European sparkling wine production areas such as Austria and Italy. This wine is clean, crisp, and refreshing with notes of lemons, green apples, and freshly baked biscuits. You probably wouldn’t have guessed this was an American sparkling wine because of how good it tastes. I recommend stocking up on this. (Fun digressing fact: The Rivero Gonzales family–a prominent winemaking family in Mexico–bought the Martha Clara Vineyards in Long Island to become RGNY.)
If you’re looking at wine-by-the-glass options at a restaurant or bar and you want to have a little sparkling treat without completely breaking the bank, I recommend getting any Crémant. Crémant is an overarching designation for sparkling wine made in France but not made in the area of Champagne; because these wines are not made in Champagne, they cannot be called Champagne. There are a lot of regions that make Crémant such as the Loire Valley (Crémant de Loire), Alsace (Crémant de Alsace), and Bordeaux (Crémant de Bordeaux).
If you’re looking for a Crémant that is in close geographic proximity to Champagne, go with Crémant de Bourgogne–a sparkling wine from Burgundy. Burgundy is such a renowned wine region for still red and white wines that it obviously would make high-quality sparkling wine at a valuable price point. Be on the lookout for Parigot & Richard. The winery is owned by 5th-generation winegrower Grégory Georger, and he maintains his family’s ethos of tending the vines and the resulting wine gently. The “Le Sentinelle” cuvée is the most comparable to a Blanc des Blancs grower-producer Champagne–it’s medium-bodied with expressive aromas of green tea, mint, and apple pastry with a bright citrus finish.
You got a tax return: Franciacorta for the fridge; Champagne on a night out (duh!)
Franciacorta is one of the most well-known regions to make sparkling wines with Champagne vibes. Two distinctions I found with Franciacorta compared to all of the other Champagne-adjacent wine regions are an underlying savoriness among the rich texture of Franciacorta wines and a tropical fruit finish. Those subtle aromas and flavors make the wine not only great while relaxing after taxes but also a great pairing with whatever affordable takeout you get.
Antica Fratta is a Franciacorta producer with a long history. Their wines are rich yet balanced with a bright acidity and stoney aromas reminiscent of Champagne. While their entry-level wine is non-vintage, their rosé and higher level cuvée (Quintessence) have vintages recognized. Those vintage-labeled wines have a lot more complexity and can age longer–more importantly, they are at a fraction of the pricepoint of vintage-labeled Champagnes.
But if you got a good tax return, you might as well go out and drink multiple glasses of Champagne. Fortunately, there is a handful of Champagne out there at an approachable price point nowadays. One of those is La Caravelle’s “Cuvée Niña”.
Originally made for the iconic La Caravelle restaurant, André and Rita Jammet took their restaurant-branded Champagne out to the public. “Cuvée Niña”, the entry-level wine, has everything you want from a Champagne–creamy texture with complex aromas and flavors of yellow apples, Meyer lemon, jasmine flowers, and gingerbread as well as a long finish–at a price point that won’t damage your wallet. Their rosé is just as beautiful and tasty for a night out after doing your taxes.
I hope taxes were easier for you than they were for me. Like I said, there’s always sparkling wine to help you through it. And maybe some Töst if you need a detox in between all of those glasses.
There’s some recent “drama with Cava” because of geographic identity disputes and winemakers’ need to be perceived as a serious wine. For more info, go here: https://www.wineenthusiast.com/culture/wine/cava-corpinnat/