At the end of a semester, a milestone, or oftentimes just when I get some long-awaited time off, I have a ritual wherein a treat myself to an evening of DVD watching and a bottle of champagne. It should be noted, though, that not just any DVD will do. It has to be something stylish, sexy and cosmopolitan like Nip/Tuck, Queer as Folk or Sex and the City. It also depends on what comes in first at the library. The week after turning in my thesis it was Season 5 of Sex and the City and a bottle of blanc de blancs.

Ready for Sex and the City

In preparation for this grand night of marathon Sex and the City, I made an exception to my usual DVD watching milieu and set up my 19" widescreen monitor in my living room—a much more glamorous locale than my cramped office where I normally keep the monitor set up. It should be noted at this juncture that I do not have a TV. Well, okay, I do, but it's tiny and it's older than me and I hardly ever use it. It's so old, in fact, that it has built-in rabbit ears and manual dial for changing channels. Besides, why does a gal need to watch TV programs on the network schedule when she can get the DVDs out of the library to watch on her own schedule? Traditionally, I have used my 15.4" widescreen laptop as my main DVD watching apparatus, but when a confluence of circumstances led me to believe that the screen of my old laptop was fried (it was not fried, happily; only temperamental), I decided to purchase a 19" V7 widescreen monitor for which my old laptop could serve as DVD player. I get quite a bit of use out of it in its usual setting in my office. I would like if it had a wider range of tilt adjustment, and there seems to be a very faint blemish in the screen on one side—though I only notice it on programs that are particularly dark. However, the screen arrived without a single dead pixel and I am on the whole pleased with my purchase. And so, it gets to visit the living room for special occasions.

Blanc de Blancs

Ordinarily my champagne of choice for such celebratory DVD marathons is a blanc de noirs—for those who don't know wine, or French, that's a white champagne from red grapes, usually pinot noir (as a result it is sometimes a little pink, but rest assured not in a white zinfandel sort of way). My favorite way to get quality blanc de noirs at a reasonable price is to see what's on sale from the California vineyards of major French wine makers. Champagne heavy-weights like Mumm, Piper and Chandon operate state-side vineyards, producing quality champagnes without import costs. And stuff from France is always more expensive by virtue of being fancy-schmancy, right? This time, however, I did not opt for my usual blanc de noirs. About a week before Champagne & Sex and the City night, I found myself discussing wine over drinks with Professor G—a generous soul who gives of his time to mentor impoverished students in all things classy. When I told him of my affinity for blanc de noirs, he recommended that I ought instead to try a blanc de blancs—that is, champagne from white grapes, specifically from chardonnay grapes. Citing its comparative rarity among common winery offerings, Professor G nudged me to give it a try. So, when I went to the liquor store to pick up a bottle, I discovered a Domaine Ste. Michelle blanc de blancs—on sale for less than any of the blancs de noirs. Sold.

Lenox Tuscany Classics Fluted Champagne

This night was also the inaugural usage of my Lenox Tuscany Classics Fluted Champagne glasses. As with all the glassware in the Tuscany Classics collection, the Fluted Champagne are full lead crystal, which gives them an aesthetic quality more luminous than glass and a softer feel on the fingers. The classically-shaped flute has a leggy stem—one of the Tuscany signature features—and adds elegance to any occasion, even to a night at home watching DVDs. The champagne itself was crisp, a light and dry wine that complemented my leftover chocolate mousse (stayed tuned for more on the mousse in a future column). While I would have to say I prefer the blanc de noirs, I must admit that the blanc de blancs was a pleasing change of pace. If I have one critique, it is that the dryness of the wine became a little too pronounced for me as I reached the end of the bottle—and I'm not a drinker of sweet wines, hence the crack about white zinfandel. I realize that most people are not comfortable enough with their inner lush to be drinking an entire bottle of champagne alone in one evening, and perhaps I only have myself to blame in that measure, but my gut recommendation is to say that the dryness of this wine would be kept at bay and well harmonized with some appetizers and light desserts. In other words, take with food.

Sex and the City Season 5

And so, I settled in for an evening of Sex and the City Season 5. I'm on my second go around in watching Sex and the City, so I had already seen Season 5 on DVD once before. This is perhaps the most criticized season of the show; it was certainly the most abbreviated at only eight episodes. Further, many of the gals are unlucky in love this season and many critics complain that it's the season where they don't have any sex! While the sex is fewer and further between, it's not absent. One of the highlights of this season, in fact, is when Charlotte starts a torrid relationship with her divorce lawyer—a man who is the exact opposite of her usual type of prim society guys. This season also contains one of my favorite episodes for its comedic conceit—the episode where Carrie and Samantha take the train out to California. As they trek through Pennsylvania and the mid-west, the gals get a disappointing dose of reality to dash their romantic railroad fantasies. As a semi-frequent Amtrak rider, I find this episode quite hilarious. And, I must point out to all those Season 5 naysayers that Carrie does end up sleeping with Mr. Big in this two-parter. I'll admit though, that while this season isn't wholly sex-less for the gals, it does lack the "sex topic of the week" sort of episodes that characterize many of the earlier seasons. While I'm certainly always an advocate for the breaking of formula, especially in favor of character-driven story-telling, I'll readily admit that one of the best things about Sex and the City is the frank discussion among the gals and within the storyline of sexual issues and experiences. I definitely missed this aspect of the show in Season 5. The traditional Sex and the City candor is by no means absent—Miranda's experience as a new mother gives viewers a dose of earthy reality at times—but this season is unfortunately lighter on girl talk than the ones that came before it. If I remember correctly, Season 6 represents more of a return to the familiar in this respect, even as the storylines advance. It's a little too soon, though, for another champagne night. Maybe this time I'll opt for a chocolate martini (A martini without gin? Don't tell Professor G).