Merrimack Valley Magazine

Wine Notes – Celebrating with Champagne

December 24, 2021 by Steven Goddu

Nothing says “celebration” like a Champagne toast. Yet many of my friends say they don’t care much for this bubbly treat. Then I find out that they weren’t drinking real Champagne, or were consuming a very inexpensive version.

Often their most recent exposure to Champagne came at the last wedding they attended, when it was served in an inappropriate glass and poured too soon before drinking. They toasted with a warm, flat and bitter beverage that probably was better suited for a saute pan. The old axiom about having “Champagne taste on a beer budget” is oh, so true. Good Champagne isn’t inexpensive, so if you are planning a Champagne toast, be sure it is served correctly and that you have a bottle that everyone will enjoy.

Champagne is the region in northeast France where the world-renowned sparkling wine is produced. The chalky hills of Champagne provide the ideal growing environment for chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier grapes, three types that are used together to make Champagne. These grapes are gently pressed and made into a still wine through normal fermentation. The bubbles are formed during a second fermentation, when sugar and yeast are added to the bottles. Real Champagne comes only from Champagne, France, and is by law produced under strict regulations. (Products labeled “sparkling wine,” with no mention of “Champagne,” are not real Champagne.)

Not all Champagne is created equal. Grapes from villages that are rated as “Grand Cru” and “Premier Cru” demand the highest prices and are generally used in the production of “vintage” Champagnes. These will set you back $100 to $500 or more per bottle, and are thus responsible for Champagne’s high-priced reputation. Nonvintage Champagnes are made from a blend of still wines of multiple vintages, and generally intended to have a consistent taste from year to year.

Champagne should be served chilled in a crystal Champagne flute. This tall, narrow stemware helps to keep the wine chilled, enables a person to enjoy the aroma, and helps to preserve the bubbles. Some function facilities may still use a Champagne coupe for toasting (popular in the 1930s), but this type of glass is wide and rather shallow and really not good for anything other than stacking in layers to form a tower. Nearly every wine expert will agree that the flute is the stemware to use in order to get the most out of this beverage.

As with any wine you elect to serve, it is very important to taste it first and find something you think will appeal to your guests’ palate. Don’t rely on name, reputation or price. Each can be very misleading.

There are many fine Champagnes, so I hope you enjoy your search for the ultimate toast. Shop at the best wine stores, ask questions, and take home a few bottles in order to do your research properly. As Mark Twain said, “Too much of anything is bad, but too much Champagne is just right.” Take his advice, open your wallet and enjoy what many consider to be the world’s best beverage.

Salute!

Get Hitched Without a Hitch

February 15, 2021 by Dean Johnson

Tips from Local Experts on How to Avoid Common Wedding Mishaps.

Brides-to-be want fairy tale wedding days; they don’t want receptions that look like a Three Stooges pie fight.

What can they do to ensure the former and avoid the latter?

Sometimes it’s more a matter of what they don’t do.

When you talk to wedding experts in the Merrimack Valley about planning that perfect day, one specific theme keeps surfacing: Brides-to-be take on too much and need to rely more on other people.

Or, as Kerianne Steele, director of weddings and events at Les Fleurs in Andover, quipped, “DIY? DI DON’T.”

“DIY [do it yourself] is a great way for couples to save some money and have a part in creating their wedding,” Steele says. “But limit how many tasks you take on. Three things is a manageable number within a 12-month engagement time. More than that, reach out to friends, family or members of your bridal party. Clients often place too much stress on themselves to make all the favors, print the wedding invitations, make the welcome bags, sew the table runners …”

And it’s easy to see her point. It’s difficult to enjoy what is supposed to be the best day of your life when you are borderline psychotic over whether there are enough candied almonds in each table favor.

Stress is a good thing to take to the gym, but it should be left home on your wedding day. Stephanie Gendron, sales and marketing coordinator at Castleton Banquet and Conference Center in Windham, N.H., says the biggest mistake many brides make is failing to hire “the right vendors to make [the] special day as stress-free as possible.”

“I tell my brides all the time to shop around, talk to as many people as possible so they can make an informed decision,” Gendron says. “Sometimes it’s easy to find a vendor that is convenient without getting the proper referral or information on how the vendor operates.”

And why can that be a problem? Gendron saw firsthand the kind of horror story that must make brides-to-be wake up screaming in the middle of the night.

“I had a couple a year ago that hired a company to provide a photo booth for the wedding,” she says. “The day of the wedding, the photo booth company just never showed up. This was the one thing the bride had pushed for and had made room for in her budget.

“She was devastated,” Gendron adds. “I tried that day calling different vendors I work with on a regular basis to see if any had a photo booth. But none were available on such short notice.”

According to Gendron, the bride hired the company online, and all communications had been by email. The phone number she had for them was not a working number.

“[The Internet] is a wonderful tool for today’s bride,” Gendron says. “But it is important to connect with your vendors by telephone, meet with them, see some of their work.”

Steele mentions another key mistake that’s made by some brides. “Establish a realistic budget overall … and stick to it. But don’t underestimate the cost,” she says. “Good services and products are always worth the money.”

According to Steele, determining the most important elements of your wedding day should be done at the beginning of the planning stage. For most couples, this is the first time they have planned an event so large, and they often miscalculate how much they will need to spend.

“Understanding [that] your ‘dream’ photographer just may be too expensive is OK,” she adds. “Look to area professionals to guide you to the right vendors for your budget.”

So make sure to delegate, be real about your budget, and listen to the experts. Then you’ll have a wedding that everyone will remember… for all the right reasons.

North Meets South

January 3, 2021 by Wesley Gallagher

Add A Little Southern Charm to Your New England Wedding

Weddings are all about traditions. New England is a charming region with a long history of traditions, but the South has some great customs, too. Whether you’re a New England native looking for something different, or a transplant with Southern roots, here are some subtle ways to add a little Southern charm to your Northern wedding.

Southerners are all about hospitality, and it shows in their weddings. Welcome baskets for out-of-town guests are a must in the South. These often include items that the bride and groom are fond of, or specialties from their hometowns. “It’s the whole idea of Southern hospitality and making your guests feel welcome,” says Nicole Speake, co-owner of the Chicago-based custom invitation and event branding company, Nico and Lala. “And showing your guests something about your family,” adds Lauren Staley, the other owner.

Have the welcome baskets waiting for your guests at the front desk of their hotel. Include an itinerary for the weekend, a list of your favorite restaurants, shops and sights so they know how to stay entertained during downtime, and be sure to add some local goodies. Guests will feel like they are a special part of your wedding before the weekend begins.

Linens and napkins might be a small detail at a wedding, but they play a big role in the mind of a Southern bride. Chattanooga, Tenn.-based event planner Dori Thornton Waller, owner of The Social Office, says white linen hemstitch napkins are a must-have for her most traditional Southern brides. They are basic, elegant and traditional, and a beautiful addition to any reception. Many brides have monogrammed dinner and cocktail napkins, and some even use the groom’s family crest. “[One client] had their family crest embroidered on napkins for her son’s rehearsal dinner on Nantucket,” Waller says, “as a way to bring Southern tradition up north.”

Top of pagee: Many brides have begun to lean toward the vintage, Southern feel of outdoor farm weddings. Mason jars are a Southern staple that have made their way into weddings across the country, while cowboy boots add a Southern flare to any wedding outfit, including bridesmaid and flower girl dresses and even bridal gowns. Photos by Patricia Takacs / Kivalo Wedding Photography.

Southern cuisine is making its way onto menus across the country, weddings included. Steve Beauvais of Artisan Chef Catering Co. ( formerly Two Chefs Are Better Than One Catering ), has created several Southern menu items for weddings. “We’ve done Southern stations on a multi-station menu, and for a lot of outdoor summer weddings, we’ve done barbecue stations,” Beauvais says.

Louisiana fare, such as Cajun spiced shrimp, jambalaya and homemade beignets, is always a favorite. “We had a bride who had to have hush puppies similar to some she had just had at a restaurant down south,” Beauvais says. Whether your main dish is fried chicken, or you simply serve cornbread instead of rolls, Southern food can add a fun element to your menu.

While most Northern brides lean toward seated dinners, Southern brides prefer buffet-style meals that can be eaten sitting, standing or someplace in between. If you’re set on a seated dinner, you can change things up with the cake. “Instead of a seated course, I love to cut the cake and pass it out Southern-style in the lounge,” says Tara Guérard, a wedding planner with offices in Charleston, S.C., and New York City who has planned weddings on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.

Speaking of cake, another Southern tradition is the groom’s cake. Nina Fisichelli Gaffney, owner of Fisichelli’s Pastry Shop in Lawrence, says she doesn’t make as many groom’s cakes as she used to. “There was a time when everyone was asking for groom’s cakes,” Gaffney says. In the South, groom’s cakes are a given, and they are displayed almost as prominently as the main wedding cake. A groom’s cake is a great way to be creative and let the groom in on the decision making (because, let’s be honest, he doesn’t have much say about anything else). The cake is usually a flavor the groom likes, caramel cake being a favorite in the South, and often showcases a groom’s favorite hobby or sports team. One Tennessee couple’s groom’s cake was an exact replica of a Jack Daniel’s bottle, says Guérard.

If you’re a bourbon fan, there are plenty of other interesting ways to include it in the wedding festivities. One Southern bride had a bacon and bourbon bar, with a choice of top-notch bourbons, and instead of the usual stirring stick or straw, guests could grab a piece of bacon (or two) to accompany the cocktail.

Guérard’s favorite Southern tradition is definitely worth trying. Southern folklore says that burying a bottle of bourbon at the wedding site the month before your wedding will ensure that it doesn’t rain on your big day. “I had a client make me do it,” she says, “and sure enough, it didn’t rain!”

Artisan Chef Catering Co.
( formerly Two Chefs Are Better Than One Catering )
Lowell, Mass.
(978) 970-0212
ArtisanCateringCo.com

Fisichelli’s Pastry Shop
Lawrence, Mass.
(978) 682-7774
Fisichellis.com

Love Will Find a Way

February 7, 2020 by Aaron Robinson

“Love will find a way” might sound like a cliche, but there’s truth in those words. Here are just a few stories from Merrimack Valley couples who defied the odds and found true love. While the images tell the tale, below you’ll learn more about these newlyweds — their stories may renew your faith in that timeless adage.

Colleen + Myke

Myke and Colleen met for the first time at Saint Anselm College in 2009. Ten years later, Myke, who grew up in Andover, and Colleen, who grew up in Wakefield, tied the knot at Middleton Place in Charleston, S.C., an area of the country that held a lot of significance for Colleen, who had family in the region. The venue boasted moss-draped, centuries-old oak trees and meticulously manicured gardens bursting with color. The couple now lives in Ipswich, Mass. with their one-year-old dog, Gus. Myke works for his family’s business, Air Filter Sales in Haverhill, and Colleen works as a nurse at Tufts Medical Center in Boston.

Photo by Emily Meeks Photography
EmilyMeeksPhoto.com

Aubrey + Alfred

When Aubrey graduated from Cairn University in 2017, she returned home to Londonderry, N.H., with a longing for connection. It wasn’t until she attended a church-oriented young adult group event in Lowell that she met Alfred. The two bonded immediately, sharing their love of religion, karaoke and playful competition, especially billiards. They dated for a year and were married four months after Alfred proposed, at the Alvirne Chapel in Hudson, N.H. The wedding incorporated Alfred’s Nigerian and Aubrey’s American wedding customs, blending cultures in a way that represented the backgrounds of both families in food, wardrobe and music. The two now live happily in Nashua, N.H.

Photo by The RH Photo
TheRHPhoto.com

Lindsay + Marc

Despite both growing up in Peabody and attending the same college (UMass Amherst), Marc and Lindsay didn’t meet until the school held an alumni weekend event shortly after the two of them had graduated. Their relationship flourished soon after, and Marc’s love of cooking rubbed off on Lindsay. The passing of Linday’s brother was a pivotal point in their relationship. Marc’s support for Lindsay during this tough time drew them closer, and made them realize they could get through anything together. A little over a year later, they were engaged. The wedding took place at the Cruiseport Gloucester, which features a grand ballroom with floor-to-ceiling windows, gorgeous chandeliers, and a romantic, oceanside atmosphere.

Photo by Audrey Cutler Photography
AudreyCutlerPhotography.com

Michaela + Christopher

For Michaela and Christopher, their relationship began when she boldly asked for his phone number while he was working as a bartender at Lowell’s historic Old Court after an evening of “awkwardly attempting” to flirt with him. Christopher nervously fumbled for a piece of paper and things blossomed from there. Christopher, who grew up in Lowell, and Michaela, who grew up in Windham, N.H., were married at Waterville Valley Resort in the White Mountains. Michaela and Christopher now live in Londonderry, N.H., where Christopher founded Horne Family Farms and grows produce for nearby communities. Michaela teaches at the Stoklosa Middle School in Lowell, and is also a field hockey and basketball coach. In the summer, they work together on the farm.

Photo by Arielle Unger Photography
ArielleUngerPhotography.com

The New Nuptial Attitude

January 25, 2020 by Jenn Lucey

How Generation Y is Shaping the Wedding Industry

In recent years, as all those born between 1981 and 1996 have found themselves in full-blown adulthood, the prevalence of teasing commentary about the lifestyles of millennials (aka members of Generation Y) has reached new heights.

An example: They live off of their parents and hope the new iPhone will come in “millennial pink” instead of just rose gold. While there may be some hard facts behind these jokes, the generation is full of conscientious change-makers. A 2014 U.S. Trust study cited by The Washington Post found that millennials are more likely than their elders to see investment choices as means by which to act on “social, political or environmental values.”

One microcosm through which to observe this mindful approach to investing is in Gen Y weddings, where choices aren’t only about which companies to support, but also the messages couples wish to convey. I talked to some locals who have made firsthand observations on new nuptial attitudes.

Pamela Older of Pam Older Designs in Newburyport says diamonds are still in high demand, but her young clients now ask for assurances that they have been ethically sourced. Some of Older’s custom rings possess a nontraditional whimsy, starring the likes of moonstone and sapphire, but she’s also seeing shifts within the classic category.

“I see a resurgence of yellow gold and simple solitaire styles with personal details like engraving,” she says.

Joanna Hall, owner of The Flower Mill in Lowell, says, “We also see lots of couples trying to support local vendors, which is so fantastic for us brick-and-mortar shops. … We often have people who are familiar with our style and unique items, and leave me the availability to create something one of a kind.” These arrangements include the nontraditional, such as huge king protea flowers or clippings from evergreens.

A similar rustic aesthetic is fundamental to much of what Maddie Goodnuff makes by hand at Sugarhouse Stationery in Manchester, N.H. Goodnuff has designed invitations, envelopes and menus for young couples looking to focus on the beauty of the natural spaces they choose for their weddings, often by incorporating her watercolor landscapes. The embrace of outdoor venues is another growing trend.

Rachel Chandler, co-founder of Red Antler Apothecary in Lowell, has perspectives on current trends informed by her family’s experience. Her mother worked as a wedding consultant for almost 50 years before premarital cohabitation became more common in the ’90s. She set up registries requesting everything but the kitchen sink — and sometimes even that was needed.

The attitudes of Generation Y are reflected in their weddings. One of the biggest trends is to buy from local vendors. Whether it’s the flower arrangements and favors seen on the top of this page, or the stationary (photo courtesy Sugarhouse Stationery), jewelry (photo ©2019 Derrick Feole) and foraged soaps (photo by Kevin Harkins) pictured here, local shops, makers and ingredients are frequently given preferential status.

Reflecting on preparations for her own 2001 wedding, Chandler notes, “In a [store] with 500 dresses, two or three of them you could get with a colored sash.” The rest were pure white. These days, Chandler observes alternative colors from local designers like Jack Attackk Clothing on Western Avenue in Lowell. Today, many feel free to cut ties with color symbology without being whispered about by aunts.

In her own business, which she co-owns with her husband, Rick Stec, Chandler delights in talking to young couples ordering wedding favors. The most important thing she observes, backed up by her mother’s knowledge: “Rather than hanging their hat on etiquette, which is what it used to be, it’s much more about the experience of their guests, and being reflective of their values.” In Chandler’s view, the successful fight for the same-sex marriage has increased the general ethical consciousness surrounding weddings.

She notes how many young couples put natural, fair trade and environmentally sustainable front and center in their planning. These are all values that bring them to Red Antler. Many of the store’s home and body products are made with all-natural ingredients sourced with fair wages and geographical proximity in mind (the owners and staff grow and forage many of their offerings).

The soaps sold by the store as favors come in compostable muslin bags or beeswax wraps from the owners’ own bees, which also provide the honey samples some couples choose for their guests. “Millennials know what wax wraps are,” she says. I do, at least.