A Splash from Your Nantucket Sommelier
Pops Picnic with Style
by Leslie-Ann Sheppard
owner of The Cellar on Surfside Road.
It’s time for one of the most popular and beloved Nantucket events of the summer: The Boston Pops concert at Jetties Beach. This event is special for many reasons. First, it is an important fundraiser for one of the island’s most crucial services: the Nantucket Cottage Hospital. The hospital is there for all of us, whether we live here year round, or come for a weekend, or stay for the summer. It is critical to the health of a community to have good quality health care available, and we are lucky to have our Cottage Hospital. The Pops concert raises much needed funds for our hospital. Second, the concert is a family oriented gathering that celebrates all the good things in life: music, the outdoors, togetherness, and picnics. By design, the event will provide the music and the wonderful beachfront setting. It is up to the concert-goer, however, to organize his or her family and the picnic they will bring.
Picnics for the Pops run the full gamut. If you purchase a ticket that includes a cocktail party and catered dinner, you need not worry about packing your picnic. Every detail has been planned. But the majority of concert goers will lug a cooler or two quite a distance to enjoy their own customized spread. Some folks keep it simple with sandwiches and chips; others plan elaborate menus and bring beverages that compliment the foods. It probably isn’t surprising that I favor the latter idea. In my experience, the quality of the picnic has a direct effect on the overall enjoyment of the event. So, why not put a little effort into the plan so that you get maximum pleasure out of a special night? Choosing wines that will compliment your picnic is a good place to start.
One crucial wine for the Pops is Champagne. If this isn’t a good time to enjoy that celebratory ‘Pop,’ I don’t know when is. Though I often try to teach customers that Champagne isn’t only for celebration, it certainly does evoke merriment. Champagne wakes up the palate, and pairs well with many foods, such as cheese, lobster, oysters, shrimp, chicken, and salads. Make it a rosé Champagne, and it will charm concert goers with its seductive hue.
If you are on a bit of a budget, you can choose sparkling wine from other regions of the world for a much smaller price tag than a typical bottle of Champagne, which starts at around $40. Look for Spanish cava, Prosécco from Italy, or any number of other bubbly from France, made outside of the Champagne region. There are some quality domestic bottlings as well (Schramsberg is a favorite), and some wonderful Southern Hemisphere sparklers, such as Graham Beck from South Africa, or Alma Negra from Argentina. The majority of these ‘alternatives’ to Champagne can be found for around $20 or less. Another bonus to drinking bubbles at your beach picnic is that you don’t have a pack a winekey or corkscrew. Just pop and let it flow.
Rosé wine is another winner of a wine choice for the Pops. Again, even though I try to encourage folks to drink rosé at other times of the year—not only summer–there is just something to be said for enjoying a nice chilled glass of dry rosé outside during the summertime. It is the quintessential summer wine. There are many different styles, so try to figure out what you like in a rosé before buying, and ask questions of your wine merchant. Many rosés are versatile enough to stand up to spicy foods, grilled foods, and typical ‘red wine foods,’ like meats.
Depending on the size of your Pops party and whether the attendees are interested in tasting different wines, choosing half bottles can be a fun way to picnic. One year, my husband and I attended with another couple. They organized the food and I organized the wines. We had six or so different half bottles of wine, so we progressed from lightest to heaviest, and everyone had a couple ounces of each wine. It was a lot of fun to taste many different wines and observe their ‘effects’ on the different foods.
Whatever you choose for your Pops picnic, a little effort in the wine selection can really enhance the entire experience.
