I love sparkling wine in all of its glory. I love Champagne, Cava, California sparklers, even Fingers Lakes Sparklers (Great Western, with its Concord grape flavor, is actually quite nice).
I've had a few new ones that are worth mentioning.
Segura Viudas "Aria" is a clean, crispy treat. I enjoyed the Segura Viudas brut, but this is even more delicious. It sort of tastes like a January evening--clear and refreshing. Tasting notes from the company: "ARIA Estate Brut is a dry, lively refreshment appropriate for any occasion. Its flavor is dominated by fresh pineapple, almonds, honey and straw, with hints of pears and fresh bread."
Mionetto Sergio: A surprisingly complex sparkler from the Veneto region of Italy. When I was doing tastings, I sold this as the "novel, while the other Proseccos I have are the Cliffs Notes." It got a lot of praise from the Champagne drinkers. Some almonds, some honey, some citrus. Delicious, refreshing...this is a great reason for drinking sparklers. Delicious as any sort of aperitif, or with shellfish/oysters.
In short--sparkling wine feels festive (hence the markup at restaurants/bars!), but I love it for its clarity, its tingle, its surprising versatility with food.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Monday, November 12, 2007
Wine Tasting @ Kappy's!
Sunday Kappy's had the grand holiday tasting. Here were my standouts:
Tangley Oaks Chardonnay: A hint of sweetness, SO refreshing compared to the buttered popcorn Chardonnays I'd been having. Food friendly, versatile, some fruity apple notes. YUM YUM YUM YUM.
Oriel "Etereo" Barolo: Structured, some tannins but not unctuous. Red fruit, spice. At $70 a bottle, not something I could drink every day.
Stangeland Pinot Gris: Clean, good drinking. Light fruit, a great "house white"...and I love the story of the retired chemist deciding to make wine!
Gancia Prosecco Extra Dry: I still like the Mionetto Prosecco Brut better, but this was a party in my mouth. Crisp, easy drinking sparkler.
Oriel "Palatina" Riesling : Fruity but not sweet, steely mineral notes. Food friendly and a fuck of a good wine.
Renwood Zinfandel: What a pleasant surprise! Fruity, jammy easy drinking wine. I guess I like my fruit bombs!
Banfi Pinot Grigio: Light citrus, apples, pears. Great with seafood. MMMMMMMM.
Tangley Oaks Chardonnay: A hint of sweetness, SO refreshing compared to the buttered popcorn Chardonnays I'd been having. Food friendly, versatile, some fruity apple notes. YUM YUM YUM YUM.
Oriel "Etereo" Barolo: Structured, some tannins but not unctuous. Red fruit, spice. At $70 a bottle, not something I could drink every day.
Stangeland Pinot Gris: Clean, good drinking. Light fruit, a great "house white"...and I love the story of the retired chemist deciding to make wine!
Gancia Prosecco Extra Dry: I still like the Mionetto Prosecco Brut better, but this was a party in my mouth. Crisp, easy drinking sparkler.
Oriel "Palatina" Riesling : Fruity but not sweet, steely mineral notes. Food friendly and a fuck of a good wine.
Renwood Zinfandel: What a pleasant surprise! Fruity, jammy easy drinking wine. I guess I like my fruit bombs!
Banfi Pinot Grigio: Light citrus, apples, pears. Great with seafood. MMMMMMMM.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Eating Crow and Drinking Wine
At some point (two Boston Wine Expos ago I believe), I tasted several dreadful sparklers . One was a sparkling white zinfandel (I'm fairly sure it's Beringer, and I wouldn't recommend it), another was a sparkling Shiraz. In any event, despite loving sparkling wine in general (and I'm not opposed to sweet or unsophisticated!) these two wines left me cold.
As will happen when you drink 100+ samples of wine in a few hours, I mixed up the name of the sparkling Shiraz and Banfi Rosa Regale, a delicious frizzante--lightly sparkling--red dessert/aperitif wine we had last night at Icarus. I was denouncing the Rosa Regale during one course and loving it in the next. I'm not too proud to admit I was wrong!
And I was wrong--the Rosa is a sweet and fruity treat, great with the peach compote/poundcake combination it was paired with, but also delicious with the decadent chocolate cake I had. It's low in alcohol and gorgeous in color. And it definitely has a celebratory tingle. Drink it with a smile!
As will happen when you drink 100+ samples of wine in a few hours, I mixed up the name of the sparkling Shiraz and Banfi Rosa Regale, a delicious frizzante--lightly sparkling--red dessert/aperitif wine we had last night at Icarus. I was denouncing the Rosa Regale during one course and loving it in the next. I'm not too proud to admit I was wrong!
And I was wrong--the Rosa is a sweet and fruity treat, great with the peach compote/poundcake combination it was paired with, but also delicious with the decadent chocolate cake I had. It's low in alcohol and gorgeous in color. And it definitely has a celebratory tingle. Drink it with a smile!
Monday, August 6, 2007
Lightly Chilled Beaujolais and Date Night!
Mike and I had a hell of a good time last night.
We'd gotten some lamb chops at the grocery store...which I let sit in a cup or so of Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages 2005, five or so garlic cloves (minced roughly), good olive oil, a little apple cider vinegar, some salt and pepper.
While that was marinating, I made panzanella (an Italian bread salad--the bread is toasted in olive oil--with shallots, tomatoes, cucumbers, red and green peppers, plenty of fresh basil, and a yummy mustard vinaigrette). Letting that sit, I threw the lamb chops in the broiler (if we ever get a house, a grill is absolutely a must!). We had that spread with the Louis Jadot Beaujolais, lightly chilled (maybe half an hour in the fridge). Not the most complex of wines of course, but the fruity flavors really paired nicely with the pepper and sweetness in the salad. I also liked the contrast of the intense earthiness in the lamb chops with the slightly rustic flavor of the wine. By far the best red wine drinking experience I've had in the summer months.
If you're curious, the recipe for the panzanella is here (I changed the red onions to shallots and left out the capers).
We'd gotten some lamb chops at the grocery store...which I let sit in a cup or so of Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages 2005, five or so garlic cloves (minced roughly), good olive oil, a little apple cider vinegar, some salt and pepper.
While that was marinating, I made panzanella (an Italian bread salad--the bread is toasted in olive oil--with shallots, tomatoes, cucumbers, red and green peppers, plenty of fresh basil, and a yummy mustard vinaigrette). Letting that sit, I threw the lamb chops in the broiler (if we ever get a house, a grill is absolutely a must!). We had that spread with the Louis Jadot Beaujolais, lightly chilled (maybe half an hour in the fridge). Not the most complex of wines of course, but the fruity flavors really paired nicely with the pepper and sweetness in the salad. I also liked the contrast of the intense earthiness in the lamb chops with the slightly rustic flavor of the wine. By far the best red wine drinking experience I've had in the summer months.
If you're curious, the recipe for the panzanella is here (I changed the red onions to shallots and left out the capers).
Monday, July 30, 2007
The Punk Rockers Strike Again!
I had written a review of the Four Vines Old Vine Cuvee Zinfandel...a fruity Zin blend that makes me want to buy one of their "Zin Bitch" shirts.
Anyway, fun little surprise in the Boston Globe...every month they recommend some "plonk" (relatively inexpensive and surprisingly drinkable wine) and Four Vines Naked Chardonnay is one of their picks!
When we were at the Boston Wine Expo, they slapped a "Naked" tattoo on my arm because I liked this unoaked Chardonnay so much. Gives me a little validation for my palate.
Here's the "Barebones Chardonnay" Plonk of the Month.
Here's the Four Vines Wines.
Anyway, fun little surprise in the Boston Globe...every month they recommend some "plonk" (relatively inexpensive and surprisingly drinkable wine) and Four Vines Naked Chardonnay is one of their picks!
When we were at the Boston Wine Expo, they slapped a "Naked" tattoo on my arm because I liked this unoaked Chardonnay so much. Gives me a little validation for my palate.
Here's the "Barebones Chardonnay" Plonk of the Month.
Here's the Four Vines Wines.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Five Dollar Bottle of Wine
Now, let me first say that there's nothing wrong with cheap bottles of wine. The Lost Vineyards Chenin Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc is surprisingly tasty and worth every penny (it tends to retail for $4 or less). Check it out here.
Over the weekend I had bought a few bottles of wine (our friend Bedlam was in town, and I knew we'd be drinking something tasty). One of those was the 2005 Honey Moon Viognier from Trader Joe's. Price point is about five dollars. It's a ripe, ripe mouthful of honey, apricot, citrus and tropical paradise. It lacks some subtlety, but at five dollars it's a keeper!
Over the weekend I had bought a few bottles of wine (our friend Bedlam was in town, and I knew we'd be drinking something tasty). One of those was the 2005 Honey Moon Viognier from Trader Joe's. Price point is about five dollars. It's a ripe, ripe mouthful of honey, apricot, citrus and tropical paradise. It lacks some subtlety, but at five dollars it's a keeper!
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Costco and Cheval Blanc
I wandered about the Food and Wine section of Costco.com and was incredulous to find that they are selling 2005 Bordeaux futures~!
I managed to find (although I certainly can't afford to order) Cheval Blanc for the low, low bargain price of $724.99 per bottle (a bit of sarcasm). Retail cases of Cheval Blanc for the 2003 vintage went for between $3600 and $4600, so this price point may be a bit...shall we say...excessive? On the other hand, the Cheval Blanc is certainly a candidate for wine of the year, at least according to some of the tasters that had it in the barrel. And 2005 was an excellent, excellent year for Bordeaux. Read more about Bordeaux future pricing and tasting notes here!
I managed to find (although I certainly can't afford to order) Cheval Blanc for the low, low bargain price of $724.99 per bottle (a bit of sarcasm). Retail cases of Cheval Blanc for the 2003 vintage went for between $3600 and $4600, so this price point may be a bit...shall we say...excessive? On the other hand, the Cheval Blanc is certainly a candidate for wine of the year, at least according to some of the tasters that had it in the barrel. And 2005 was an excellent, excellent year for Bordeaux. Read more about Bordeaux future pricing and tasting notes here!
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