I spy with my little eye

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I took this wine home from a luncheon thrown by the PR firm for the winery.

A perfect wine for the summer. I recently attend a lunch for the wine brand Heritance, with owner/creator/winemaker Bernard Portet.  At the end of the lunch a lone unopened bottle of 2011 Heritance Sauvignon Blanc begged for a home so that it wouldn’t have to be checked in baggage on the flight Bernard needed to hop right back to CA. Of course, I obliged and carted it home with me.  The Heritance Sauvignon Blanc retails for $24, has a screw cap closure, and clocks in at 13.5% alcohol by volume.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) Bernard Portet might be the most charming man I’ve met in quite some time. I truly enjoyed the experience of lunch with him, and our very small group of 5 total folks.

2.) I am particularly taken with this Sauvignon Blanc. It is blended with 12% Roussanne which lends an interesting heft to the palate while not overpowering the fruit apparent in the Sauvignon Blanc.

3.) At lunch I had the wine paired with a mesclan greens, applewood smoked bacon, poached egg with a citrus vinagrette dressing salad. Amazing salad and a solid pairing with the Sauvignon Blanc. At home, we had it with Quiche Lorraine, which confirmed my initial reaction that it pairs quite well with eggs.

4.) I was jonesing for some grilled scallops while I drank this wine.

On the nose I got lemongrass, citrus, tropical notes, peach, passion fruit and a hint of the acidity to come. In the mouth I found melon, lemon, grass, tropical notes, lemongrass, and grapefruit.  The Roussanne definitely became apparent on the palate and while the wine certainly had nice acidity, the Roussane lent some weight to the wine and gave it some interesting character.

 

 

 

Filed under: California, Sauvignon Blanc, White, Wine | Leave a Comment »

2011 Bonny Doon Le Cigare Blanc

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from Bonny Doon Winery.

With the weather finally turning to spring here (perhaps?) my thoughts have turned to white wines and (even more) bubbly. Keeping that in mind when I dove into the cellar for something to drink the other night, I popped up with the 2011 Bonny Doon Le Cigare Blanc. I previously reviewed the 2010 vintage here. The current vintage is a bit more Grenache Blanc heavy, at 62% with the remainder being Roussanne. Last vintage was only 55% Grenache Blanc. The wine has a screw cap closure, clocks in at 12.5% alcohol by volume, and retails for $28.

Four takeaways from this mine:

1.) While the Roussanne still made its presence known with the mouthfeel and the viscosity, it felt less dominant to me in this vintage.

2.) I imagined myself eating crab with this wine, which we often indulge in during the spring and summer months.

3.) Or simply sipping it on one of those delightful spring nights where it is still cool enough to rock on the front porch.

4.) Overall, I’ve been mightily impressed with the quality of the wine coming out of Bonny Doon.

On the nose I got yellow apple, melon, pear, lemon, orange zest, flowers, mineral notes, and slight honey.  In the mouth I found green apple, lemon, pear, and grapefruit.  The wine had a lovely mouthfeel with a slight viscosity and a long finish.

 

 

Filed under: California, Roussanne, White, Wine | Leave a Comment »

What’s better than wine for breakfast?

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Sonadora

Cute bit of marketing from Wines of Brasil.

*Disclaimer: Snooth provided transportation and boarding so I could attend this event.

Not much, really. Except perhaps Brazilian wine for breakfast which was a new wine experience for me. Not the wine for breakfast part, the Brazilian part. I suppose I vaguely knew that wine is made in Brazil, similar to how I know wine is made in Kansas, but I’ve never seen any in the market. It appears that Brazil’s largest market is in Russia, with the US coming in 3rd, but a very distant third.  Overall, Merlot is the dominant red grape with about 60% of the red wine produced being Merlot.

I’m always excited to explore a new to me wine region, and Brazil is no exception. The folks from Wines of Brasil brought a wide range of styles for us to try, from sparkling to dessert wine. Following are my notes, exactly as I typed them into my iPad, with only my spelling cleaned up.

The line up.

2010 Cave Geisse Nature sparkling- made in the Champagne Method, bright pear, acid, bread, slight cream, green apple, lots of acid, tart, definitely will wake up your taste buds, which was an excellent start to my day since I didn’t sleep well in the hotel the night before.

NV Casa Valduga 130: peppery, smokey,  yellow apple, Asian pear, seems like a little residual sugar, pear, apple, acidity, tight tart bubbles

2011 Salton Virtude Chardonnay: butter oak, coconut, pear, apple, light on the palate, slight butter, pear, apple.

2012 Lidio Carraro Dadivas Chardonnay: melon, tropical, pear, light, spice, herbs, very light, apple, pear. The winery uses no wood of any kind.

2009 Villagio Grando Chardonnay: herbs, dank, wet, stone, cement, green, earth, cedar, very herbal, pear, not a lot of fruit.

2007 Salton Desejo Merlot: bright red plum, raspberry, spice, herbs, chocolate, earth, dirt, very restrained, good fruit, earth, plum, the fruit is not the star of the flavors/aromas. No one would ever call them jammy.

2009 Pizzato Reserva Merlot: light, very reserved nose, earth, dirt, olives, herbal notes, salt, very earth drive, hardly any fruit.

2009 Miolo Merlot Terroir: more fruit than the previous wine, some raspberry, plum, wood, black cherry, tons of acidity, plum, earth, dirt, salt, dark fruit, more familiar as a Merlot, floral.

2009 Pizzato Fausto Verve: funky, black fruit, dark, plum, cherry blackberry, barnyard, herbs, dark, tannic, needs time.

2006 Lidio Carraro Grande Vindima Quorum: strawberry, floral, spice, herbs, cherry, spice, herbs, anise, woody, tannins, lovely nose,

2009 Perini Quatro: vanilla cream chocolate wood, oak lots of it, green under that, but the oak influence is really predominate, smooth, round, fruity, vanilla, cream, would easily appeal to the general North American palate. New world.

2007 Casa Valduga Villa Lobos: funk, earth, mint, eucalyptus, wood, spice herb, some black fruit, very dark, very tannic, needs age.

2008 Miolo Lote 43: chocolate dust, vanilla cream, lovely and floral, cherries, cream, cherry, raspberry, red fruit on the palate, nice mouthfeel, might be my favorite, really restrained austere fruit, mineral, a saltiness, the pieces are all there.

Pretty color on the Moscato.

NV Aurora Carnaval Moscato Rose: very sweet nose, definitely muscat, honey, sweet melon, overripe peach, less sweet in mouth, slightly frizzante, still a ton of peach of melon, could drink a tiny tiny glass, even though nice acidity. My mom would like this.

The standouts from this tasting for me were the NV Casa Valduga 130, the 2007 Salton Desejo Merlot, and the 2008 Miolo Lote 43. Overall I think the 2009 Perini Quatro would likely be the most successful wine in the typical US market.  I’d be very interested to check out more of the sparkling wines from Brazil as I thought they had quite a bit of potential.

Filed under: Chardonnay, Merlot, Red, Sparkling wine, White, Wine | 3 Comments »

Sometimes Size Matters

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Sonadora

When we are talking about wine, that is. Large format bottles are fun to open when you have a big group over for tasting and they impact the way that wine ages in a bottle. I particularly enjoy large format bottles for sparkling wines, though I buy them with all sorts of wine inside. I think I currently have about a dozen Magnum format bottles in the basement, mostly of Petite Sirah (which often has great aging potential) and of sparkling wine. We busted one open when an old friend came to town recently.  After perusing the options, we settled on the 2000 Roederer Estates L’Ermitage Brut.  I purchased this wine directly from the winery a few years ago and it’s been resting alongside its siblings in our basement every since. I think it retails for around $100 for the bottle, but I can’t recall what I paid for it.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) Having a Magnum of sparkling wine makes you feel like you actually got enough glasses as you can never have too much sparkling wine.

2.) I’ve had this wine in a regular sized bottle before. You can read my notes from that and compare here.

3.) Nearly 3 years later and the large format bottle (not sure which or if both of those factors contributed) gave this bottle a heft on the palate that I didn’t find before along with a creaminess.

4.) I need to drink more bubbles.

On the nose I got toast, bread, lemon, pear, and apple. In the mouth I found apple, toast, pear, yeast, and bread. Overall the wine had a heft and creaminess on the palate I really enjoyed, especially on the finish.

 

 

Filed under: California, Roederer Estates, Sparkling wine, White, Wine | 1 Comment »

Sipping Sauvignon Blanc

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the winery.

Snow? Cold? Rain? Gray fog? Nothing says Sauvignon Blanc like that kind of weather, right? Well, I often like to pretend it’s summer or spring when we’re in the dead of winter. Plus, the overgrown rodent in PA says it will be an early spring.  Cheers to hoping it’s right.  We opened up the 2010 Cornerstone Cellars Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc to go with a quiche Lorraine the other day.  The wine has a real cork closure, clocks in at 14.1 percent alcohol by volume, and retails for $25.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) It had me dreaming of heat waves, so it served that purpose.

2.) You can’t see me but I’m making that motion with my fingers to my lips and saying “perfecto” about the pairing with the quiche Lorraine.

3.) I’ll take a bottle for the first 90 degree day of the year.

4.) I’d also drink this with grilled white fish, fondue, pasta with cream sauces, on it’s own on a tropical beach somewhere…

On the nose I found lime, lemon, white peach, grapefruit, and pear. I could smell the acidity and it made my mouth water.  In the mouth I got grapefruit, white peach, lemon, and pear.  Tart and refreshing, my final note on the wine (twice, that is) is “yummy.”

 

 

Filed under: California, Cornerstone Cellars, Sauvignon Blanc, White, Wine | 1 Comment »

Lobstah. It’s what’s for dinnah.

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the winery for review.

I’m on a bit of an Albariño kick these days.  We traveled North for Christmas this year to see my parents for the holidays in CT. In CT, lobster is $4.99 a pound. In VA, it’s $8.99 a pound if you can find it. And, you can almost never (read: it’s happened ONCE in the decade I’ve lived here) find steamers.  We enjoyed this lobster and some steamers with the 2011 Bonny Doon Albariño. The wine clocks in at 13.2% alcohol by volume, has a screw cap closure, and retails for around $15.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) I could drink this all day, every day with steamers. Add in the lobster and I’m in heaven.

2.) The Bonny Doon Albariño is a super value at sub-$20. It easily makes my list of best white wines I tasted in 2012.

3.) I sort of feel bad for lobsters, but they can rest easy knowing they were paired with such an excellent match.

4.) It appears the 2011 is nearly sold out (or sold out) but be sure to keep an eye out for the 2012.

On the nose I found honeysuckle, tangerine, candied pineapple, lemon, lemongrass, and orange.  The nose smelled tart and promised good things to come to help cut through the butter and rich lobster flavors.  In the mouth I got lemon, lime, tangerine, orange blossom notes, more lime, and pineapple. The promise of the nose held true with excellent acidity and tart fruit flavors.

 

 

Filed under: Albarino, California, White, Wine | 4 Comments »

Switching Gears

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample for review.

Jumping around a bit as we kick of this new year.  From CA to Spain and red to white.  Variety keeps the wine palate alive and kicking and for me, it’s what makes wine endlessly interesting, unique, and fun to drink. Tonight we tried out the 2010 Benito Santos Albariño.  The Albariño has a real cork closure, clocks in at 13% alcohol by volume, and retails for around $16.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.)  Nice and racy on the palate, just like I enjoy in an Albariño.

2.) That said, as it warmed up, the fruit softened and became rounder.

3.) If you keep it nice and chill, this seems like a great wine for the dog days of summer. (Just around the corner, right?)

4.) I’d pair with a light white fish dish this summer.

On the nose I got tangerine, orange, spice, white peach, and white pepper. The aroma was quite nice.  In the mouth I found lime, tangerine, citrus fruit, white pepper, and white peach as it warmed.  Overall, when chilled the fruit was crisp, acidic, and tart. As it warmed, the fruit turned softer and rounder.

 

 

 

Filed under: Albarino, Spain, White, Wine | Comments Off

Could it be lovelier?

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Sonadora

 

 

 

 

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the PR folks for Wines of Germany.

I think the answer is no. Generally I love Riesling. It’s a great, almost always, low alcohol wine with plenty of acidity, making it extremely food friendly for all different types of cuisine. With that in mind, we pulled the 2010 Schloss Johannisberger Grunlack Riesling Spatlese from the cellar the other evening to enjoy with a very heavy chicken casserole. The wine has a real cork closure, clocks in a 8.5% alcohol by volume, and looks to retail for around $40.

 

IMG_0440

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) Put the lime in the coconut… Okay, well perhaps not coconut, but lots of lime and something tropical lurk on the nose.

2.) This Riesling will perk up any boring holiday meal.

3.) For everyday eating I’m thinking this would be excellent with the Zuppa Toscana I make.

4.) One should never be intimidated by strange German wine labels because great things often lie within.

On the nose I found lime, honey, spice, sweet tropical notes, and flowers.  In the mouth I got lime, citrus, honey, flowers, honeysuckle, jasmine, and a great mineral streak. Overall the wine had excellent acidity, and as my notes say “was just lovely.”

 

Filed under: German, Riesling, White, Wine | 1 Comment »

Blending the ‘Annes

Posted on November 2, 2012 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the PR folks for the winery.
Marsanne and Rousanne that is. This wine is an equal blend of the 2 grapes. It hails from the team at Hope Family Wines out of Paso Robles.  We pulled this from the cellar to drink with roast chicken the other night. I’m not making a turkey before Thanksgiving and I wanted to give it a run with poultry to assess it as a potential Turkey Day wine.  The 2010 Treana White retails for $23, has a real cork closure, and clocks in at 14.5% alcohol by volume.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) Gobble gobble gobble.

2.) Being serious, the flavors and structure of this wine, combined with the “oily” nature of the grapes would make it a great contender to stand up to the array of foods served at your Thanksgiving celebration.

3.) I was really surprised by the depth of flavors in this wine.

4.) I’ve been enjoying all the wines coming from Hope Family Wines I’ve had lately.
On the nose I got pear, cream, orange, honeysuckle, and stone fruit. I found that I could smell the oily nature of the grapes on the nose, along with the round fruit flavors to come. In the mouth I found pear, peach, stone fruit, tropical notes, honey, flowers, and melon. The wine had a lot of weight on the palate, along with the oily quality I noted earlier and the round fruit flavors.

 

 

 

Filed under: California, Marsanne, Roussanne, White, Wine | 1 Comment »

Bring on the Riesling

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Sonadora

*Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample from the PR folks for Wines of Germany.

The weather has turned in my neck of the woods.  Today felt as if we’d jumped to early winter and completely skipped fall.  When the weather cools down and I want white wine, I tend to pull wines with a bit more body and complexity off the shelves versus the summer fare of Sauvignon Blancs.  Tonight I chose the 2009 Knebel Von Den Terrassen Riesling to fit the bill. The wine has a screw cap closure, clocks in at 12.5% alcohol by volume, and retails for around $23.

Four takeaways from this wine:

1.) A beautiful riesling that had a lot going on for the price point.

2.) I’m thinking ahead to turkey, this would be a definite good choice for the white wine drinkers in T-day crowd.

3.) The 2009 rieslings have overall been lovely in my experience.

4.) I was surprised by how delicate and racy I found this riesling to be.

On the nose I found honey, lemon, pear, white flowers, peach, honeysuckle, and wet stones. In the mouth I got lime, pear, white peach, and a mineral streak.  The wine had excellent acidity with fresh tart, clean fruit flavors. The mineral streak/wet stone added nice complexity to the wine.

 

 

 

Filed under: German, Riesling, White, Wine | 5 Comments »

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