Choosing a wine for Valentine’s Day does not have to be so different from any other special occasion. That said, sparkling wine or Champagne is the ultimate celebratory beverage, & the obvious choice for romantic endeavors. It is a no-brainer ? you can not go wrong by picking a quality Champagne, no matter how you select to spend your Valentine’s Day. You can drink it as an aperitif, with appetizers, through the meal, & in the hot tub afterward (beyond that you can let your creative juices run wild with the possibilities).

Ideally, you should spend the extra dough & get a ‘real’ Champagne, meaning the bubbles from France. Why? Because first of all your lover is worth it… Secondly, the fact that you have chosen the ‘real stuff’ makes the motion that much more special. Finally, the majority of French Champagne you find will have the versatility mentioned above ? in actual fact most Champagne labeled as Brut will have enough structure & acidity to drink right through a main course. Some of the brands you can trust include Bollinger, Deutz, Laurent-Perrier, Pommery, Heidsieck & Monopole, Gosset, Mumm, Billecart-Salmon, Roederer, Veuve-Clicquot, Taittinger, Ruinart, Leroy, & Bellefon. Understand that the aforementioned list is a small sample of what’s available, & I provide them with the assumption you rarely purchase Champagne, offering some trustworthy names you’ll likely see on a wine list or in a retail shop. If you’re a more advanced imbiber of bubbles, you may want to check out the Champagne & Sparkling Wines for New Year’s article.

If you are only into sparkling wine as a pre-emptive quaff to dinner, then you might rather prefer a Prosecco or a Moscato d’Asti, which are fizzy wines from Italy that have just the slightest hint of sweetness ? just enough to whet your palate & get you in the mood for a romantic dinner.

Foregoing Champagne as your dinner pairing, you should select a wine just as you would normally ? pick a wine that will go with the meal & both you & your partner will enjoy. The only difference comes with the budget; if you’re the type of person who weighs the price of a wine as much as the vintage (don’t be ashamed, I am guilty), then throw that sensibility out the window on Valentine’s Day ? it’s an evening for splurging, not counting pennies. One night of breaking the budget will not destroy you, so go ahead & pick that wine you always wanted to attempt but could never justify the expense. If your date knows you well enough, the surprise :o of your careless spending will heighten the romance, & you will be paid back in spades later in the evening.

Still searching for something that just screams Valentine’s Day? Short of being corny, you have two more options: select a pink / rose wine, or find a wine that has something ‘lovely’ on the label.

There are two types of pink wines ? dry & off-dry (sweet). If you’re a regular wine drinker & enjoy dry whites & reds, you will be pleased to find that dry rose can be not just a refreshing aperitif but also very adaptable to a number of dishes. Some of the best rose wines in the world come from Spain & Portugal, & are fairly inexpensive. There’re also good choices from France, particularly Tavel & Bandol. Regardless of the region, be sure to get a fresher vintage ? ideally, a wine labeled within the last two years. Like most white wines, rose wines tend to fade quickly, & are most enjoyable young.

If you or your date drinks wine only on occasion, or finds most wines are too dry or bitter, but you still want to have something pink, there is always white zinfandel. Personally, I am not fond of white zins, but I’ll recommend Pink Truck, which is a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre & Zinfandel. Though it definitely has a sweet component, it also has good structure ? medium acidity & mild tannins ? that allow it to match well with food. It’s a perfect pink for people who are weaning off cola with their meals, & for all those who think Yellowtail is the best wine ever. In other words, a step up from white zinning.

Finally, should your choice be to be clever, you can select a wine that actually says love on the label. One of my favorites is the Beaujolais Cru Saint-Amour ? which literally translates to ‘saint love’. Being a Beaujolais, it should match well with a variety of foods, so will make a safe choice. Additionally, there is a line of wines from Tortoise Creek that are labeled ‘Les Amoureux’ (the lovers). There’re whites & reds & you will know them by the cartoon drawing of two lovey dovey turtles, one holding a bottle of wine, the other a glass.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Joe Janish is a professional wine consultant & writer whose blog, WineWeekly.com is an excellent resource for beginners & wine geeks alike.