Gearing Up For Pride

It's the morning of the Pride Parade and we were readying ourselves to head off and join the 600,000 revellers that were being forecasted for the annual party. We'd crossed wires about an invite to a brunch downtown that morning, so Boo, Miss Jaq and I just had our own little brunch at home.

Sunday brunch. Pride Weekend. Glorious sunny weather. Could anything match the occasion better than a round of mimosas?

144. Cook's Brut Sparkling Wine (California)

We were in the government liquor store looking to grab a bottle for our brunch mimosas and Miss Jaq drew our attention to the Cook's. When looking for economical sparklers, I generally look first to the Aussies. In our market, the Prosecco's tend to hover at $20 or more, so the kids from down under can generally deliver a decent bottle for under $15.

When you're just going to mix it with OJ, who needs stellar production values and flavour profiles?

I'd never noticed - or tried to my knowledge - the Cook's before. But Miss Jaq said that she constantly sees it back in Abu Dhabi when hanging out with the ex-pats at brunch-y sorts of affairs. At $10 a bottle, what was the harm in trying it.

Let's be straight (even if we were heading to the Pride Parade right after the mimosas). This is not Champagne or even a close facsimile thereto. There's no methode traditionelle being used here. Rather, Cook's uses a bulk method process where the secondary fermentation (and, hence the bubbles) is completed in large stainless steel tanks before bottling. The production method is reflected in the price and, hey, I didn't freshly squeeze the orange juice for the mimosas either.

But I found it to be very respectable for its price point and for the purpose at hand. I was also surprised to find out that Cook's Brut is the top selling sparkling wine in the US.

I think it'll be an integral part of my mimosas for many brunches to come.