Raise your glass: The Superbowl is this Sunday, and when the Saints come marching in, corks will be popping all over Louisiana. But which corks should you pop? We asked a few wine experts around town which bottles of bubbly they'd choose to fill their flutes.

Eileen Bonemery at Calandro's recommends the 1996 Femme Duval-Leroy, a French Champagne that will run you $148 a bottle. The grapes are harvested from Grand Cru villages, with the best of the harvest being reserved for this label, making it a light and elegant choice. For the more price-conscious, she recommends a delicious bargain, the Domaine Saint Vincent sparkling wine from New Mexico, which gives you a crisp, fresh-apple flavor at only $13.99 a bottle.

If price is no object, Ian McCaffrey at Martin Wine Cellar suggests the vintage 1999 Bollinger Grande Année at $130 a bottle. Intense and floral, with what's described as a "brioche" bouquet, it's a tipple for the connoisseur. There's also the tasty Roederer Estate Anderson Valley California sparkling wine, priced affordably at $19.99, which tickles the tongue with a strong flavor of citrus and almond. Martin is also still carrying their Who Dat vintages, although McCaffrey warns that on-hand stock of these is selling quickly.

The Laurent Perrier Grand Siècle is the suggestion of Sydney Offner at Bacchus Fine Wines. A limited production brut with a delicate flavor, this pinot noir and chardonnay blend runs about $140 a bottle. For those who want to stay in Champagne territory but cut back on the cost, there are bottles of the famous Perrier-Jouet Fleur de Champagne that are only $40; however, Offner says, there's a premier brut version that costs $115, so check the shelves carefully.

After six years of being one half of a gas station, Couyon's Bar-B-Que is ready to move on. "It should be a relatively smooth transition," says owner Jason Hammack. "We're in the process of building out in the new location now." The new location—a 2,500-square-foot space on the first floor of the Staybridge Suites Hotel at the south gates of LSU—will afford Couyon's to make some much-longed-for changes. Although the basic menu will remain the same, Hammack plans to add to it, and to improve on dishes that he says the restaurant wasn't able to prepare properly before. "Our meat has always been homemade and smoked on-site, but lots of our side dishes were pre-prepared," he admits. "With a full-sized kitchen, we'll be able to make them ourselves to improve the quality and the taste." New dishes that Hammack plans to add to Couyon's menu include steak and seafood. He's already got specific recipes in mind, such as a smoked "cowboy-style" rib eye steak and fresh barbequed shrimp. "I've been experimenting with the recipe at home for a while," he says, "and I think it's a real winner." For more, click here.

A man enters Goodwood Hardware and Outdoors and asks the salesperson for advice on a four-gallon outdoor steel fryer. Sturdy and mobile, the basket fryer on wheels seems perfect for ballpark car lots or family fish fries. He asks for help halfheartedly, as though Tracie Comeaux couldn't possibly understand the attributes of a piece of equipment so masculine. Then she starts talking. She goes into smooth detail about how the product works, how grease can be strained or drained altogether, how the unit is cleaned and supplied with gas, and how it performs. She says the line, Cajun Fryer, is offered by a family-run company in Homer, La., and evidences the store's commitment to carefully crafted products often designed and produced by outdoor chefs themselves. The man seems convinced and quickly places an order. It happens like that at Goodwood Hardware and other homegrown institutions around town with a particular affinity for outdoor cooks. Goodwood is a family business operated by Comeaux, her parents Bill and Kay Boyd, and her brother Trent Boyd. The Boyds bought the hardware store 13 years ago, eventually sliding into a larger location across the street. Lowe's and Home Depot might have scooped up a substantial portion of the national grill market, but Baton Rouge spots like Goodwood Hardware, Shenandoah Hardware and Casual Creations are chock-full of high-quality outdoor cooking products designed to withstand both the elements and lots of culinary action. To find out more about how you can take advantage of their homegrown expertise, click here. (Photo by David Gallent)

Holly Clegg, Baton Rougean and author of the Trim and Terrific cookbook series, has become the new national spokesperson for Walmart's Great Value food brand. Clegg has made appearances on dozens of nationwide news shows and is a familiar face to foodies all over the country. In a statement, she said her partnership with the globe's largest retailer is an effort to create heart-healthy and affordable recipes. You can check out her first recipe, a tasty "one step macaroni and cheese" casserole, on the Walmart site by clicking here. For more on Clegg, check out our exclusive on her favorite healthy sweet-treat recipes by clicking here. Who knows? Maybe she'll have her own Food Network show soon.

If you get an e-mail from 225, don't banish it to the spam folder—you might miss your chance to participate in the creation of our annual "Best of 225" issue. Subscribers to our 225 Select and 225 Dine e-newsletters will receive invitations to nominate their top picks in more than 50 categories, from dining to entertainment. If you're not subscribed, consider the fun of voting for your area preferences and click here to sign up for our e-mail blasts. You'll get much more than a voice in naming your best-loved Baton Rouge people and places. For more details and a complete list of this year's categories, click here.

With the Super Bowl situated smack in the middle of Carnival season, this weekend is lining up as a perfect storm for partying, and few cultures do it better than Louisiana's. Some of the biggest fêtes in the area will take place in the homes of rabid "Who Dats," and Briarhill Farms' exemplary Bloody Mary mix is likely to get a serious brunch-time workout. The balanced but fiery elixir, available locally at the Red Stick Farmers Market and at Martin Wine Cellar, is the handiwork of Joe Dobie, a former dairyman who with his wife, Jackie, started selling poultry, produce, preserves and more at the Crescent City Farmers Market in 2000 and the Red Stick Farmers Market about four years ago. For more on Dobie's perfect party mixes, read this week's Du Jour by clicking here.

To read previous Du Jour features on local chefs and other culinary experts, click here.   

"I love Gino's chicken limone. I also love Mama's lasagna at Bravo's. I'm no cook—I only know that it tastes wonderful. I've had lasagna all over the world, and that's probably the best lasagna I've ever had. I also really enjoy the pork chops at Bistro Byronz."

Find out who else in Baton Rouge has food obsessions by clicking here.    

Long Island meets Grand Isle with Boudreaux & Thibodeaux's Gator Tea ($8). This potent pint gets its green sheen from pear schnapps and melon liqueur. Its guts come from vodka, gin and tequila. Gator Tea even comes with a seal of approval from Bartender magazine and its Cocktailright program: The certificate is framed on the wall. (If something portable is more your style, try one of Boudreaux & Thibodeaux's $5 cocktail buckets available during parade time—i.e., now. Bucket options include Voodoo, Category 5, Coonass Cocktail, and Swamp Water. Ingredients aren't important here; just pick your favorite color. Located at 214 Third St., you'll find Boudreaux and Thibodeaux's Balcony Bar open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m., Tuesday through Saturday.—Mary Wall

Wining and dining: Thursday, February 11, Churchill's will host a free wine tasting: two dozen vintages, reds and whites, merlots and pinot noirs, free for the sipping at 6:30 p.m. And if you like what you taste, you can return to Churchill's on February 13 for their five-course Valentine's dinner, with cedar plank redfish and chocolate cherry lava cake. The prix fixe dinner is set at  $100 per person, and seating begins at 6:30 p.m. Call 927-4211 for reservations.

Meat and greet: The Big Buddy program will hold their 20th annual Burger Bash Scholarship Fundraiser on February 11, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Catholic High School. A $10 donation gets you a burger with chips, ice cream and a drink. To-go orders are welcome, and will be available for pickup at 5:30 p.m. All proceeds from the event go towards the Big Buddy Scholarship Fund, which assists deserving "little buddies" in achieving their post-high school educational goals. For more information, and to place advance orders, visit bigbuddyprogram.org.

"We all know and love traditional Louisiana-style King Cake, the ubiquitous brioche ring swirled with cinnamon and topped with purple, gold and green sugar," writes 225 blogger Maggie Heyn Richardson. "But it's worth integrating a real French King Cake made of puff pastry and almond marzipan filling into the season's lineup, too." Find out where you can score one of these tasty, unconventional treats in this week's Spatula Diaries by clicking here.