If you still need to pick up a few cases for a party tonight — New Year’s Eve, baby — try the NV Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve. Cellared in 2004, it’s got the creamy and yeasty robustness you come to expect from Champagne, but it’s not over the top. Neither is the price. As of late last week, Wine Thieves was selling it for $29.99 (normally $35).

For those who prefer California sparklers, try the NV Scharffenberger. It’s got the typical green apple crispness of sparkling wine and it’s only $15.99 (normally $18) at the Thieves’.

Above all, drink plenty, be safe and don’t go sabering any bottles with a chef’s knife. Unless you’re quite skilled.

This is a lovely, soft blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvedre from some of the oldest vines in the world.

The early settlers came to Australia’s Barossa Valley with vine cuttings from James
Busby’s collection gathered during his trip to France and Spain in 1831. Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvédre were some of the very first red grape varieties planted and these low yielding, old dry grown bush vines survive today.

In the glass, the wine is cherry red and medium bodied. The nose is full of currants and raspberries and the flavor reminds me of herb-dusted dark berries. It’s a very well balanced wine and the initial blow of alcohol, though not particularly high at 14.5%, disappears with a little breathing.

If I made lamb, I’d serve this with a roasted version covered in herbs. But since I don’t I had it with Zachary’s pizza. Those herb-marinated tomatoes loved the wine. Get it online at Peter Lehman Wines for $16.

I think one of the reasons the sparkling wine market is exploding across the world — we’re talking the U.S., Spain, Argentina, Germany, Austria, England and French regions outside of Champagne — is because the commercial potential of Champagne is maxed out to a certain extent. Where they can go is uncertain and leaves a hole for other sparkling producers to create an elegant yet accessible product.

So in my mind it’s the garagistes of Champagne who are continuing the region’s tradition. I am a huge proponent of underground boutique Champagne producers, those like Jacques Lassaigne in the Troyes/Montgueux region, who keep it small and true and have the time to churn out expressions of both time and place.

Lassaigne’s NV “Les Vignes De Montgueux” Blanc de Blanc has the most gorgeous nose of ginger and a texture that is equivalent to cashmere. It’s achieved by an extended “prise de mousse,” something the bigger houses have little time for. What’s more, instead of being reverse crafted in the cellar for that signature Champagne style (as many of the top commercial Champagnes are), this wine is precise and true to its vintage. As it should be.

I know someone so devoted to these emerging artists of Champagne that he hopes to start importing more here sometime in the new year. I’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, ask your merchant to keep you posted on allocations. They are rare and hard to come by but worth tracking down.

I went to a great dinner party over the weekend. It was at Shirley and Wouter’s place in Hayes Valley. They belong to my wine club, the Wine Groupies, and Shirley’s guest- blogged in Corkheads a few times. She’s got a killer palate and is a wealth of information.

I arrived with a raw-milk brie I picked up at that little international market on the corner of 7th and Washington in downtown Oakland and my go-to crowd pleaser, Taltarni Brut Tache, which I’ve written about before. It’s an Australian sparkling rose and even I wasn’t prepared for how well its crisp acidity and fruit would cut through the decadent and pungent double cream.

But I was there for the Jo Pithon Savenniere. And to hang with Shirley, Wouter and their fab friends, Rachel and Joey, of course! Last year, my buddy Ian wrapped up the viticulture program at Cal Poly and headed to an internship with the biodynamic winery in the Anjou region of the southern Loire Valley. So I’d heard a lot about Jo Pithon and his hypnotically botrytised Chenin Blancs. I was anxious to try the wine.

Shirley and Wouter made baked salmon and gorgeous organic cauliflower that was brimming with buttery flavors. We all expected the Chenin to show at least some grapefruit and cream but it was all clove and spice. The color was of dark clover honey, the nose was sweet (probably the botrytis) but the wine was bone dry. Very lovely and unusual. Get your hands on some Jo Pithon wines at K&L in San Francisco.

Ok, is it just me or is the influx of absinthe cocktails bugging you too? I’ve seen them everywhere, from Absinthe Brasserie in SF to the Fireside Lounge in Alameda. I get that one of the main US producers of the stuff is right here in the East Bay, so that’s a proud note for us, I guess. It just seems like a watered-down spirit that the masses are going to go to town on.

Oh dear…you don’t think…you don’t think they’d make absinthe mojitos do you? Shoot me. Before you do that, tell me your thoughts on absinthe and if you’ve tried some good cocktails around town. Also read Barbara Hernandez’s informative story, which ran yesterday.

I felt validated and quite overjoyed, actually, to read Lettie Teague’s “Wine Matters” column this month in Food & Wine. The raven-haired columnist was given $1,000 to spend on whatever wines she wanted, and she was obsessing, much like I would.

Blow it all on one bottle of Bryant? Or 500 of Chuck? Invest in a few mixed cases of  red and white Burgundies, or support some Champagne garagistes?

What would YOU do?

After all, most of us don’t spend that kind of money on wine. My insurance doesn’t cover glasses AND contacts. And how am I supposed to stay on the gray trend this fall without the right boots? Like Teague (did I mention validated?), I usually spend between $15 and $30 for a bottle of wine. I go into the $40s for small production Pinot and Syrah. Maybe more for bubbly. But that’s it.

Minus the Chuck and Petrus, I’d probably stick to what I listed above and throw in a bottle of a heavenly Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Had Teague not spent the majority of her money on a special dinner with two wine friends, this is what her list would’ve looked like:

2004 Joseph Drouhin Chassagne-Montrachet Marquis de Laguiche ($85, white Burgundy); 2003 Clos Saint Jean Deus Ex Machina ($90, Chateauneuf-du-Pape); 2001 Trimbach Clos Ste. Hune ($150, grand cru Riesling); 2001 Sandrone Cannubi Boschis ($135, Barolo)’ Billecart-Salmon Nonvintage Brut Rosé ($150, Champagne).

But she got to try some exquisite wines at that dinner, including the 1989 La Mission Haut-Brion and the 1989 Haut-Brion — probably $1,000 each.

In the spirit of Teague’s column, I’d love to hear what wines you’d buy with $1,000. Post them here or email me!

So I’ve probably suggested enough Champagne and sparkling wines on this blog to fill a small country, but since I’m not huge on sweet wines, I thought you could get your fill at Wine Thieves’ 6th annual Sparklings & Stickies party on Dec. 27. It’s from 7 to 9 p.m. in the downstairs Cellar of their Lafayette store at 3401 Mt. Diablo Blvd.

Rod and the boys are swell about helping people find under-the-radar wines at ridiculously low prices. I think I first discovered Gruet New Mexico bubbly there, as well as Sigura Vidas Cava.  I’m sure they’re on it with stickies too, from Sauternes to Port.

You can always default to my Cline Late Harvest Mourvedre or Meyer Family Port — two sweet wines I do admittedly enjoy –  but I’m sure the Thieves can hook you up with so many more options at prices that are less than these wines.

The event costs $20 per person. Be sure to register via their Web site by Dec. 26. This thing fills  up every year.

The girls and I had our Chrismukkah gift exchange last night with delicious takeout from North Berkeley’s Gregoire: gorgeous seared white tuna, scallop kabobs and potato puffs with aioli dipping sauce.

A bevy of wines could stand up to this menu but Farnoosh is big on Chardonnay and had the hardest day at work, so I opened up a 2005 Gundlach Bundschu Chardonnay Rhinefarm Vineyards ($25).

I served it uber cold to mask any oak but found that even when it warmed up a bit, a bolt of acidity balanced the round and creamy mouthfeel. The wine had a lovely finish, and reminded me of pineapple creme brulee. Only 30 percent of this wine undergoes malolactic fermentation, so it’s not over the top.

My friend Michael loves elegant yet full flavored Chardonnay — not oaky, mind you. Michael, if you’re reading, pick up this wine.

Just loved this post on Fray about a city guy who moves to Sonoma and finds himself and the whole town drunk on wine. What follows is his x-rated palate. Think cat piss is bad? Read on. The content may offend delicate ears, so consider yourself warned.

I for one have never compared the flavor of wine to a body part. Dirty gym socks and mold, maybe. This guy probably should’ve just used his indoor voice.  

Hey folks, if you like Corkheads, check out my friend Megan’s blog, Wine Clubbie. Megan and I are in the same wine club, Wine Groupies, and her twist on the cork– she likes da techno — is awesome. Megan’s got a great palate: big into Rhone varietals with a Spanish flair. So I’m sure she’ll be recommending some great wines and taking you on her various club kid adventures while swirling some excellent vino.