Celebrating Little Christmas in Michigan with a Local Bubbly #WinePW

Did you celebrate The Feast of the Epiphany yesterday?  Also known as Three Kings Day, Befana Day, Little Christmas, Twelfth Day, The Baptism of Jesus, depending on your location, customs and culture.

We do celebrate the Twelve Days of Christmas ending with Little Christmas on January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany.  I had planned a family dinner and was going to serve Italian foods, starting with anitpasti and ending with a Befana Cake.

However, on New Years Day, Frank was diagnosed with COVID and we went into quarantine.  All gatherings were canceled.  Frank and I still celebrated the end of the Christmas season and the near end of his quarantine by popping open a bottle of Sparkling Wine from Mawby Vineyards here in Michigan.

Prior to marrying into Frank's family Epiphany was a day we went to Mass to celebrate the 3 Wise Men coming to see Jesus and to warn Mary and Joseph to flee.  When I married into a Polish family they introduced me to all of their customs and traditions.  Some we keep and some we just remember.

When Frank was young the tree didn't go up until Christmas Eve Day and the lights didn't get lit until they saw the first star.  That tradition may sound nice and homey but folks, I start entertaining at Thanksgiving and continue until Little Christmas.  I ain't got no time for that hullabaloo!!!

But I did embrace the tradition of extending the Christmas Season to enjoy 12 Days.  Prior to our marriage, New Years Day, found me taking down my tree and decorations.  I loved and still love the idea of extending the season of joy and love.

And while we didn't have a feast, we did still have pasta to pair with our wine.  Mawby Vineyards is located in Sutton's Bay in Northern Michigan.  They specialize in sparkling wines so when Andrea of The Quirky Cork invited us to kick off the New Year by showcasing Bubbles from Around the World, I knew I wanted to highlight a local winery.  Michigan makes very nice sparkling wines.

Mawby has sparkling wines to please everybody's palate.  Some are bottle fermented and some, like the bottle I am sharing, are barrel fermented.  The bottle fermented wines are made champagne style using only Michigan grapes.

This bottle of US Brut was barrel fermented blending grapes from several vineyards including Michigan, California and Washington State.  This Brut is the driest wine that Mawby bottles.  

It is crisp, bright and very acidic.  I paired it with a Four Cheese Pasta Skillet Dinner that I will be sharing with you later this month.  The pasta was very rich and this sparkling wine cut through that richness very nicely.  

It has a price point well below $20 and was a wonderful way to end our celebrations, albeit quietly.

We are gathering tomorrow morning at 11 AM ET to talk about Bubblies from Around the World.  I'm anxious to see what Sparkling Wines the others chose to share.  You are welcome join us on Twitter Chat following #WinePW.  Here are some of the topics we will be discussing.......

• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm bubbles over about Celebrating Little Christmas in Michigan with a Local Bubbly
• Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla sabers open Gelukkige Nuwe Jaar with Pannekoeke + Boschendal Brut Rosé 
• Linda from My Full Wine Glass cracks open Cava: Because everybody needs a go-to bubbly 
• Martin at Enofylz Wine Blog pops the cork on Sparkling Wine from Chablis? Oui! Val de Mer Brut Nature Rosé 
• Anna Maria of Unraveling Wine toasts us with 10 Best Greek Sparkling Wines with Pairings #WinePW 
• David at Cooking Chat Food disgorges Baked Fiesta Dip with Mexican Bubbly 
• Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles riddles with Bubbles by any other name...Sparkling wines from all over the globe 
• Jennifer of Vino Travels charms with Upcoming the Game with Asolo Prosecco 
• Lisa at The Wine Chef adds dosage with Dive Into the OG Bubbly With Blanquette de Limoux #WinePW 
• Nicole at Somm's Table gets cagey with Re-introducing Cava! 
• Gwendolyn from Wine Predator adds the crown with Sparkling Wine Secrets from Around the World 
• Susannah from Avvinare sparkles with Brazilian sparklers come of age 
• Terri at Our Good Life shares Favorite Bubbles from Around the World 
• Andrea The Quirky Cork celebrates with A Vertical Tasting of Vinkara’s Yaşasın #WinePW  

I hope you had a very Happy Holiday Season.  Time for me to close the books on Christmas and start preparing for Chinese New Year and Valentines Day.  Hope to see you at chat.