We’ve all done the New Year’s Eve prix fixe restaurant dinners featuring not so great food options, cheesy New Year’s décor, and a midnight countdown with the ickiest sparkling wine hurriedly passed around on trays. The weeks leading up to the big event, you spent hours or days searching for the perfect sparkly top or sequined dress. You got your hair done and maybe even your makeup done, too. Bottom line: it’s a lot!
As the years have gone by, many of us have realized that spending New Year’s at home (yours or a friend’s) with the most important people in your life, is the most perfect way to ring in the new year. You can still dress up a little (maybe some cozy leggings, a festive sweater, and glittery eye shadow), but if you stay in, at least you can guarantee that the food and drinks will be great.
A bountiful and sumptuous grazing board is a great alternative to cooking a full meal.
Be sure there’s plenty of meat and cheese options, both crackers and bread options, plus a ton of accompaniments (jams, honeys, mustard, olives, peppers, and crudité are just a few ideas to get started). Since this IS the meal, your friends and family will visit the board more than once, so you want to be sure to have plenty of options to choose from.
Even if you are serving a full meal, a cheese and charcuterie board is a great starter. I’m always looking for ways to up my cheese and meat board game… aren’t we all? Below are a few tips to ensure your board knocks it out of the park.
- If this is an appetizer, assume three to five ounces of cheese per person. If your board is part of the meal, double it (i.e., six to ten ounces of cheese per person).
- Pre-cut the cheese, so people don’t get stressed out to be the first person to cut into a hunk!
- Cut each cheese differently to add visual interest (i.e., small cubes, large cubes, triangles, strips).
- How about a salami rosette? Fold salami rounds over the mouth of a wine glass. Multiple layers overlapping. Invert the wine glass onto a board and VOILA!
- Don’t forget to add something sweet. Think fruit (fresh or dried), chocolate-covered fruit, or even broken up pieces of a chocolate bar.
5 New Year’s Eve Sparklers (Sparkling Wines)
Now that we’ve perfected our boards, let’s pick some perfect New Year’s Eve sparklers to satisfy every taste and to pair expertly with our boards. Below are five sparklers to pair with your cheese, charcuterie, or grazing board for New Year’s Eve. From cheap and cheerful to fancy pants galore!
Cheap & Cheerful
Viarae Prosecco DOC ($19)
Your go-to Viarae Prosecco for the holiday season comes from Issa Rae, groundbreaking actress writer and producer, most famous for creating the hit show “Insecure”. Prosecco is a sparkling wine made in northeast Italy in the Veneto region from the Glera grape. It is known for being fresh, vibrant, and with a slight floral note. This wine showcases citrus and stone fruit notes, plus a touch of honeysuckle to round things out. A female, Black-owned Prosecco… what’s not to love!
Think Pink!
G.H. Mumm Grand Cordon Rosé NV $46
This bright pink rosé sparkling comes from the iconic and legendary 200-year-old G.H. Mumm Champagne house. Don’t let the bright pink color confuse you, this wine is bone dry…no sweetness at all. It delivers massive acidity and palate-cleansing freshness. Being that it is a rosé, the dominant notes are red fruits such as candied berries, strawberries, and currants. Enjoy this wine with the fruits on the boards. Or perhaps with brie and a dollop of berry preserves.
Fancy Pants!
Champagne Henriot Brut Souverain ($60)
Started by Apolline Henriot (a woman!) in 1808, Maison Henriot has been going strong ever since, and is now one of few remaining family-owned Champagne houses. The Brut Souverain is an ode to the Champagne blend. Still wines are kept in reserves every year to make the final blend afterwards. Brut Souverain is a blend of each of the vineyard crus expressed annually. All three Champagne grapes comprise this blend: Champagne, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. The wine is acid driven, precise, and delivers a long, persistent freshness. A classic Champagne that is perfect to celebrate New Year’s Eve with.
Champagne Taste, Beer Budget
Domaine Bousquet Metode Tradionelle Brut NV ($18)
From the trailblazing Domaine Bousquet winery, this traditional method sparkling wine seriously over delivers for the price. Traditional method just means the wine was made in the same way as Champagne, the OGs of sparkling wine. Family owned for over 25 years, Domaine Bousquet is the largest organic and Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) winery in Argentina. Just like the true Champagne above, this wine has bracing acidity, fresh fruit flavors, and a clean finish. Perfect to cleanse your palate after any strong or creamy cheeses and spicy, peppered meats, such as peppered salami.
Sweet Tooth!
Tre Secoli Asti DOCG ($12)
If you’ve got a sweet tooth, Moscato d’Asti is for you. A sweet, sparkling Italian wine made from the Moscato Bianco grape, this wine is made in the Asti area of the Piemonte province in northwestern Italy. This Tre Secoli wine is sweet, but lower in alcohol, which means you can have one extra glass! The beauty of this wine is a gorgeous white flower aromatic note (jasmine or honeysuckle) that you can also find on the palate. This wine will pair with anything sweet on your board or even as a contrast to aged or smoked cheeses.