VINOMECUM - Walking with 12cm heels

The light at the end of the tunnel walks on 12cm heels...- Episode 3

The choice is made, the order decided, wine chilled... do we need anything else to avoid comments on our choices and to proudly wear the nickname of 'sommelier for one night'?

Actually, the hardest part comes now. After finding our 'little black dress' it's time to see if we can walk on a 12-heel to show off!

As we know, the corkscrew is not needed for sparkling wines, but great care must be taken. After winning a stage at the 2022 Giro d'Italia, cyclist Girmay injured his eye with a champagne cork, ended up in the hospital and was forced to retire. And it's not a joke!

Always be careful when handling sparkling wines: the internal pressure (at 20°C) ranges from 3 atmospheres for Charmats to 6 or more for Classic Methods, and increases with the temperature and the agitation of the bottle. The closing cage is a guarantee of safety until it is removed, after which the cap can go off like a projectile (80km/h or more) at any moment, even involuntarily. Therefore, always keep your hand on the cap until the gas has flowed out and never direct the bottle in line with your eyes (or even with fragile objects... especially chandeliers). But how will we proceed?

First, the capsule is removed, preferably always with a small knife (professionals will have it embedded in their corkscrew).

Then it is time for the safety cage, and from this moment you must always keep the tip of the bottle towards a free and safe trajectory (usually the ceiling... or the garden...or anyone you really dislike!) between 30° and 45° degrees. With the palm of one hand hold the cap whatever you do: because of the internal pressures of sparkling wine, the cork can fly away at any time with the same speed with which the fried first courses disappear on the set table on Christmas Eve! At this point, still holding the cork with your hand, rotate it around its vertical axis to overcome lateral friction, and at the same time exert a slight traction on the bottle along the same vertical axis (or on the cork, but it is more difficult ). The internal pressure does the rest and the cork comes out, but everything must be done very slowly and the cork must always be held with the hand by applying increasing force. Towards the end of its stroke, it should be bent slightly to SLOWLY and laterally release the pressurized gas, and at this point, it can be poured. This method avoids the classic POP, inelegant and dangerous (https://youtu.be/Q6ULyip3otQ).

Another method is the 'sciabola', but it is not easy to handle;)

At this point, it will be poured ... where exactly? Everybody has flutes, but in general, all the glasses shaped in a way that bubbles will have a long way to the surface will do. The rules of correct dining room service teach us that the wine should be served first to the highest-ranking prelate present and then to the older woman and continue until you get to the youngest. So if you want to impress the mother-in-law, start with the aunts (and buy more points) if, instead, the mother-in-law is a teetotaler, keep in mind that you continue in decreasing order of age up to the youngest female guest, and finally the landlady; after female gusts, the same applies to men considering that, in case of celebrated guests, they will be served first. Whether they are men or women.

And if you don't know the age?...simple, ask the lady of the house where to start announcing that you will continue clockwise, and here too you will acquire points! Somehow your sommelier course will be endorsed by the whole family. If lucky, you may find someone financing it as well:)

Now, while they will proudly observe you advancing with the bottle in your hand, they will ask you the magical question: how do you determine the quality of sparkling wine? And, if you tasted them in your trusted wine shop, how did you choose one for the other?

The official literature claims that a quality sparkling wine always has fine bubbles, the size of the tip of a pin, and the perlage must have a long persistence. The speed with which they reach the surface of the glass is also an indication of the quality and must be rather slow and continuous. But the rule always applies: beautiful is what you like. So everyone will have his/her perfect match.

Well, we are at the end of our three-episode mini-guide. Remember that, when passing from one wine to another (whether they are all bubbles or not), it is good to ensure that the following one has AT LEAST the same finesse, structure, alcohol content, sweetness (if any), serving temperature and the evolutionary state as the previous one, possibly HIGHER, and which has acidity, effervescence (if present), tannins (if present) AT LEAST equal to the previous one, possibly LOWER.

Like what happens with mineral water, effervescence in wines anaesthetizes the taste buds producing a (fake) quenching effect. However, the higher concentration of carbonic acid, which facilitates the absorption of ethyl alcohol, anticipates the euphoric effect: in other words, it goes to your head sooner, and more.

Drink well, drink a little. It is the quality that makes the difference. Happy Holidays!