Vintage 59 imports some of our all time favorite Champagnes so we’ve teamed up with our Vintage Berkeley alum, Maria Castelli, and V59 partner, Michael Daniels, to host a champagne party to end all champagne parties. We’re hosting a Sunday afternoon fête featuring two of our favorite things: grower Champagne & fried chicken. Well you may be used to washing down your caviar with Champagne not your KFC, we’re here to let you in on a dirty little secret: Champagne is the perfect accompaniment to good old fried chicken.
When selecting foods to go with the world’s finest bubbles, the saltier and greasier the better. The high acidity and effervescence of Champagne cuts cleanly through all that salt and fat, refreshing your palate for the next divine bite. If you know anything about Vintage Berkeley by now, it’s that we never like to take ourselves, or our wine, too seriously and this pairing is 100% inspired by that ethos. So come live a little, let loose and enjoy this sinful pairing.
On the menu, beyond hot fried chicken from local chef Carlo Espinas from Sister Restaurant, will be a stellar line-up of Champagnes brought to you by the Vintage 59 team. The list will include Champagnes from small production, grower producers working with impeccably farmed grapes. One of these producers includes Lilbert-Fils, a petite father and son operation (Dad is about to embark on his 62nd harvest!) producing incredible Champagne. These wines are not only delicious, they’re rare & hard to find! As wine journalist Peter Liem puts it, “The only problem with [Lilbert-Fils] wines is finding them, as the tiny production is eagerly snapped up upon release by a near-cult following of clientele around the world.” Swing through on Sunday to taste and snag a bottle while you can!
Also gracing the list will be a Champagne from beloved J.M. Sélèque. Jean-Marc Sélèque took over his grandfather’s domain in 2008 with a goal in mind: put ecology first and make authentic Champagnes that express the historic terroir of Pierry. The list will include a handful of additional very special, limited, delicious bubbles. Come hang, snack on fried chicken, revisit old favorites and discover new producers to the shop just in time for the holidays (or as we like to call it, Champagne season).
