Toasting New Year's 2011 with the Right Champagne

A New Year's Eve party would not be complete without the sound of a cork popping at midnight, followed by a toast to both the new year and a fresh start.

While a bottle of French champagne is something that many people consider the ideal bubbly for the annual occasion, not everyone wants to shell out the money, especially when there are good values available locally in Mineola.

is well stocked for the occasion, with expensive French champagnes, strong brand names like Korbel, sparkling wines and inexpensive offerings as well.

By definition, true "champagne" comes only from its namesake region in France, according to Gurgen Minossyan, who along with his brother Arturs, manages this freshly-minted, two-level store. Alcomir carries 34,000 bottles of wine and liquor, including a section of champagnes for all budgets and tastes.

Champagnes are named for the houses that produce them. These houses, in turn, produce several brands that are known as marquees, i.e. Moet et Chandon and Veuve Clicquot. When you choose a bottle, it will be these marquees from which you are choosing. The list of most famous champagne marquees is relatively short, and chances are you will find it at Alcomir Liquor.

At Alcomir, prices range from $5.99 to $279 for champagnes. In the medium-price range there is Veuve Clicquot, priced from $35 to $40, although figure to pay $39.99. Veuve Clicquot is both a champagne house in Reims, France, and premium champagne. Since 1987, Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin has been part of the empire of the LVMH group (Louis Vuitton, Moet, Hennessy), a multinational corporation that controls many of the world's luxury merchandise. A bottle of Moet at Alcomir ranges from $35 and $40, depending on the year.

In the premium brands, there is Dom Perignon for $169 and Ace of Spades, which is rated by many as the No. 1 champagne in the world. Although some bottles go for more than $500, you can get a nice bottle of Ace of Spades for $279. "It's popular, it's quality and it has the name," Gurgen said.

For less expensive budgets, there is the old standby Korbel for $12.99. Alcomir also stocks Woodbridge for $8.99, Cook's for $6.99 and Andres for $5.99 among other similar priced champagnes.

The store has plenty of bottles in stock but do not wait until New Year's Eve to make your selection. "Business picked up on Wednesday of this week and will continue to the end of the week," Gurgen said.