Champagne and other tasty bubbles for all budgets
Most of us mortals don't get to drink Champagne so frequently: neither our pockets, our diaries nor our livers could afford it. But she makes an excellent point about the versatility of Champagne and indeed other bottle-fermented sparkling wines produced with the same traditional method like crémant and cava. As complex wines, they can be paired with any part of a meal, from aperitif through starters, mains and desserts, or they can be enjoyed as a solo treat or as the heart of a party.
Champagne is traditionally a blend of three local grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Where Chardonnay brings grace, elegance and light, the pinots bring red fruit notes and structure. Bollinger is long beloved for it high Pinot Noir content, but its PN series takes that further, with each year's release featuring exclusively Pinot Noir Champagnes and showcasing a specific subregion.
Today's wine of the week is the latest release: Bollinger PN TX20 blends five components of Pinot Noir-based Champagne. The two base wines were from the 2020 vintage, from two adjacent vineyards in Tauxières, one chalk-based, one clay-based. Both were vinified and aged as Champagne, and then blended with three older 'reserve' wines, from 2019, 2012 and 2008. The result is extraordinary and worthy of a special intimate celebration. You'll find earlier releases like PN VZ19 (€130) and PN AYC18 (€140) in Bubble Brothers, Brown Thomas, The Corkscrew, Mitchell & Son and Jus De Vine.
I've also included four other bubbles of very different styles and prices. The pet nat is for purists, the prosecco delivers well above its affordable tag, and both the cava and crémant are made in Champagne's traditional method at a fraction of the price. Or, from France's favourite champagne producer, O'Brien's now has the keenly priced Nicolas Feuillatte Reserve Exclusive Brut Champagne (€40, from €50): bright with brioche, white flowers, lemon and apricot notes, mineral bite and a properly dry finish, serve as an elegant aperitif or with crab or oysters.
Wines of the week
Bollinger PN TX20, Champagne, France, 12.5pc, €130
Just landed in Ireland, this superb new release from Bollinger's exclusively Pinot Noir 'PN series' showcases the warm, wet 2020 vintage in two adjacent vineyards in Tauxières. Complex, creamy and perfumed notes of mirabelle plums, raspberry and bergamot with an earthy backdrop and a textural quality, this is chalky, nervy and mineral with sweet subtle spice notes of vanilla, tonka bean, clove and hay. Magic with grilled lobster or any umami-rich shellfish; savour with someone special rather than a crowd. Grapevine Dalkey and independent stockists
Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry 2024, Italy, 11pc, €13.49
Clean and fresh with fine, fully sparkling bubbles (spumante style, as opposed to lightly sparkling frizzante), this is a little sweeter than a Brut (extra dry means 12g-17g sugar per litre) but well balanced, with delicate peach and papaya, a zesty palate and dry finish. Perfect solo or with seafood nibbles. Lidl
Crémant de Bourgogne Mancey Brut Réserve, Burgundy, France, 12pc, €22.99 (from 25.99)
ADVERTISEMENT
Crémant is a French sparkling wine produced outside Champagne but in the same traditional method. This blends Chardonnay, Aligoté and Pinot Noir grapes to ripe, rich effect, with toasted nuts, brioche and baked apple balanced by citrus freshness. O'Briens Wine; obrienswine.ie
La Sapata Petiant Artizanal Bābeasā Neagrā Rosé, Romania, 12.5pc, €22.50
Pet-nat is made in the 'ancestral method', with secondary bottle fermentation. This rustic, unfiltered example from Podgoria Sarica Niculitel AOC will wake your palate with its tart freshness, before wooing it with fragrant apricot, mandarin and strawberry charm. Divisive, but delicious, especially with seafood ceviche. Wines Direct, Athlone and Mullingar; winesdirect.ie
Carles Andreu Brut Reserva DO Cava 2022, Serra de Prades, Spain, 11.5pc, €23.95 (from €27.25)
A case of this organic, grower-made cava would be a well-priced alternative to grower Champagne for a special gathering. Lees aged for 25 months, with blossom and brioche, lemon sherbet and green apple, good weight and a dry finish. Wines Direct, Athlone and Mullingar; winesdirect.ie
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
18 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Cork video game studio urges greater backing after global success of 'Ready or Not'
A Cork video game studio is celebrating 2m console sales of its first-person shooter game Ready or Not, but says more supports are needed for the industry to thrive in Ireland. Ready or Not was released internationally by Cork studio Void Interactive for PlayStation 5 and Xbox on July 15, having been released initially in 2023 on Windows for PC. Sales of the first-person shooter game, which sells for around €50, exceeded 2m in the two weeks following its release on console, taking its total global sales to 11m. First established more than seven years ago by Julio Rodriguez, Ryan David Post, and Stirling Rank, Void Interactive is based in the National Esports Centre on the South Mall in Cork City, employing 70 people in total, who work remotely. Void Interactive CFO Philip Nathan, COO Stirling Rank, and CEO Julio Rodriguez celebrate the success of their first-person shooter game 'Ready or Not' with David Cronin at the National Esports Centre in Cork. Picture: Gerard McCarthy Its flagship product, Ready or Not, is a tactical first-person shooter game set in the fictional dystopian US city of Los Sueños, depicting a modern-day world in which Swat police units are called to defuse hostile and confronting situations. Following the significant uptake in the game so far, the company is actively looking to expand its teams, offering remote positions for developers spanning across graphic design, animation and programming. 'We want to hire as many people as we can in Ireland,' said Philip Nathan, chief financial officer of Void Interactive. Speaking on the release of the game for console, Mr Nathan said: 'Surpassing the 2m milestone has been an incredible success for us. It can be so hard to estimate, as it is so reliant on the consumer market and how it reacts. 'Our lowest estimation for the release was 800,000, while our highest estimate was 2.75m, which we are on track to exceed very soon, with demand remaining strong.' 'Ready or Not' was released internationally by Cork-based Void Interactive for PlayStation 5 and Xbox on July 15, having been released initially on Windows for PC in 2023. Picture: Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Mr Nathan says the company's establishment in Cork was an easy decision, noting: 'The founders always knew this would be a global business and we needed a strong area to facilitate this. 'Our founders are from Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand and wanted an English-speaking city with strong European ties. "They also didn't want a capital city, which made Cork the perfect choice for the company." While its staff are fully remote, Void Interactive is based in the National Esports Centre, located in the Republic of Work on South Mall. Officially opened in March 2025 following €1m investment in gaming infrastructure, the National Esports Centre created 10 new jobs along with further positions in gaming, media, and technology expected as the centre continues to expand. The hub is used by professional eSports athletes, aspiring gamers, developers, gaming researchers, and students and is also home to WYLDE, Ireland's first professional Esports academy, which was founded in Cork in 2021. Gamer Karina Shastak, Steve Daly of the National Esports Centre and Philip Nathan of Void Interactive with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Wylde Esports player Ciarán Walsh at the official opening of the Esports Centre in Cork in March. Picture: Gerard McCarthy Recent years have seen Cork City become an epicentre for Ireland's growing video game industry, but despite a strong ecosystem, Mr Nathan says more needs to be done for Ireland to realise the opportunities available within the sector. 'Ireland has a thriving film and TV industry, which offers everything from heavy supports to generous tax breaks. While this is great, the video game industry should get similar attention. 'The video game industry is valued significantly higher than TV and film, and is only growing larger. 'The current generation of retirees is the first to grow up with mainstream video games, which means a growing customer base with the industry now targeting every generation. 'There is so much potential for the Irish Government, universities, and Enterprise Ireland to get behind this and allow for Ireland to become a video game hotspot in Europe." The global videogame market is projected to grow by 3.4% to $189bn (€165bn) in 2025, compared with last year's growth of 3.2%, according to a report by video game research specialists Newzoo, with this projected growth reflecting concrete changes, hardware cycles, pricing trends, install base growth, and title pipelines. 'We've seen this happen in Cork before, where one company comes and a whole industry follows,' Mr Nathan said. 'In 2005, McAfee set up here, and it wasn't long before the city became a hub for cybersecurity companies. The Government was quick to take notice, and universities altered their offerings to cater for the heightened demand for computer science graduates. There is an opportunity here to do that again and replicate previous success. 'I've reached out to universities and government agencies, offering sponsorships and other things. I said, whatever they wanted, we would give it to them. I never got a response. 'I hope that changes in time, and people begin to see the opportunity that lies in front of them.' Looking forward, Mr Nathan says sales of Ready or Not are expected to total 5m by the end of 2025, with a further 2m to 3m sales anticipated over the next five months, and the company also looking to add extra levels to the popular game in the near future. 'We are constantly investing in ways to improve the game and user experience,' says Mr Nathan. 'And while we do that, we are also looking to diversify our offerings and develop new games, while always keeping Ready or Not our main focus and at the core of our business. 'There are a lot of exciting things in the pipeline, and we're looking at a very busy few years ahead.'
Agriland
a day ago
- Agriland
Carbery Teams Up with European Agency to Trial New Methane Reducing Tech
Carbery has teamed up with the European climate innovation agency, Climate KIC, to trial "next-generation methane-reducing technologies" on 10 additional dairy farms in west Co. Cork. The research project has secured financial backing of €700,000 and will see the 10 farms trial new technologies, such as a treatment for improving manure management and satellite technology to map biodiversity and expand the research which is already underway as part of the Farm Zero C initiative. The Carbery group, together with BiOrbic, are among the key partners in the Farm Zero C project which aims to "create a climate-neutral, economically-viable dairy farm". The working farm acts a "living lab" for not just researchers but also farmer and policy makers. It has already trialed a number of innovations including carbon sequestration, renewable energy, low-emission slurry spreading, feed additives, regenerative agriculture, and improved herd and nutrient management. According to Enda Buckley, director of sustainability for Carbery, Farm Zero C, demonstrates that cutting emissions and maintaining profitability "can go hand-in-hand". Buckley also believes that Carbery 's FutureProof sustainability bonus - where farmers are paid a premium to "implement certain sustainability initiatives" "on their farms - also provides firsthand proof of what works. He said the new trial will give the group the opportunity "to bring these practical solutions to more farmers, faster.' According to Carbery, the project with Climate KIC will prioritise 'ready now' innovations, to reduce methane emissions rapidly "while retaining profitability". These technologies will be selected by Carbery and participating farmers and will include the Galway-based, Glasport's Bio's Slurry Abate system which "reduces methane, hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and other gaseous emissions". The first year of the new Carbery, Climate KIC project will focus on trialling technologies, "building collaboration with the first 10 farmers", collecting baseline data, and developing viable financial and narrative models. In year two, the project will be scaled, and a second farmer cohort added. According to John O'Donoghue, who is participating in the new trial, farmers have already seen "what works on one farm, as part of Farm Zero C". "This project is about taking what has been tested on one farm, and bringing it to more of them. "We will see then what works practically and what will actually make a difference to the average farmer," he added. Separately, Carbery's Farm Zero C and Climate KIC's Deep Demonstration programmes are also looking at funding models and financial supports to make methane-reduction technologies more affordable for farmers.
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Champagne and other tasty bubbles for all budgets
Bollinger headed up Bollinger Champagne for 30 years, after being widowed in 1941 by third-generation owner Jacques Bollinger. She spent those decades making the most of her access to some of the finest wine known to mankind (Champagne being, primarily, a wine). Most of us mortals don't get to drink Champagne so frequently: neither our pockets, our diaries nor our livers could afford it. But she makes an excellent point about the versatility of Champagne and indeed other bottle-fermented sparkling wines produced with the same traditional method like crémant and cava. As complex wines, they can be paired with any part of a meal, from aperitif through starters, mains and desserts, or they can be enjoyed as a solo treat or as the heart of a party. Champagne is traditionally a blend of three local grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Where Chardonnay brings grace, elegance and light, the pinots bring red fruit notes and structure. Bollinger is long beloved for it high Pinot Noir content, but its PN series takes that further, with each year's release featuring exclusively Pinot Noir Champagnes and showcasing a specific subregion. Today's wine of the week is the latest release: Bollinger PN TX20 blends five components of Pinot Noir-based Champagne. The two base wines were from the 2020 vintage, from two adjacent vineyards in Tauxières, one chalk-based, one clay-based. Both were vinified and aged as Champagne, and then blended with three older 'reserve' wines, from 2019, 2012 and 2008. The result is extraordinary and worthy of a special intimate celebration. You'll find earlier releases like PN VZ19 (€130) and PN AYC18 (€140) in Bubble Brothers, Brown Thomas, The Corkscrew, Mitchell & Son and Jus De Vine. I've also included four other bubbles of very different styles and prices. The pet nat is for purists, the prosecco delivers well above its affordable tag, and both the cava and crémant are made in Champagne's traditional method at a fraction of the price. Or, from France's favourite champagne producer, O'Brien's now has the keenly priced Nicolas Feuillatte Reserve Exclusive Brut Champagne (€40, from €50): bright with brioche, white flowers, lemon and apricot notes, mineral bite and a properly dry finish, serve as an elegant aperitif or with crab or oysters. Wines of the week Bollinger PN TX20, Champagne, France, 12.5pc, €130 Just landed in Ireland, this superb new release from Bollinger's exclusively Pinot Noir 'PN series' showcases the warm, wet 2020 vintage in two adjacent vineyards in Tauxières. Complex, creamy and perfumed notes of mirabelle plums, raspberry and bergamot with an earthy backdrop and a textural quality, this is chalky, nervy and mineral with sweet subtle spice notes of vanilla, tonka bean, clove and hay. Magic with grilled lobster or any umami-rich shellfish; savour with someone special rather than a crowd. Grapevine Dalkey and independent stockists Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry 2024, Italy, 11pc, €13.49 Clean and fresh with fine, fully sparkling bubbles (spumante style, as opposed to lightly sparkling frizzante), this is a little sweeter than a Brut (extra dry means 12g-17g sugar per litre) but well balanced, with delicate peach and papaya, a zesty palate and dry finish. Perfect solo or with seafood nibbles. Lidl Crémant de Bourgogne Mancey Brut Réserve, Burgundy, France, 12pc, €22.99 (from 25.99) ADVERTISEMENT Crémant is a French sparkling wine produced outside Champagne but in the same traditional method. This blends Chardonnay, Aligoté and Pinot Noir grapes to ripe, rich effect, with toasted nuts, brioche and baked apple balanced by citrus freshness. O'Briens Wine; La Sapata Petiant Artizanal Bābeasā Neagrā Rosé, Romania, 12.5pc, €22.50 Pet-nat is made in the 'ancestral method', with secondary bottle fermentation. This rustic, unfiltered example from Podgoria Sarica Niculitel AOC will wake your palate with its tart freshness, before wooing it with fragrant apricot, mandarin and strawberry charm. Divisive, but delicious, especially with seafood ceviche. Wines Direct, Athlone and Mullingar; Carles Andreu Brut Reserva DO Cava 2022, Serra de Prades, Spain, 11.5pc, €23.95 (from €27.25) A case of this organic, grower-made cava would be a well-priced alternative to grower Champagne for a special gathering. Lees aged for 25 months, with blossom and brioche, lemon sherbet and green apple, good weight and a dry finish. Wines Direct, Athlone and Mullingar;
