I’m going Bananas!

Posted on February 14, 2007 by Sonadora

The other night we drank a bottle of 2005 un-oaked Hop Kiln Chardonnay. It cost us $16, is 14.5% alcohol by volume and had a real cork closure. I paired it with some leftover Zuppa Toscano, just trying to get a feel for what goes well with it. This did not go well at all.

The wine smells like bananas and tropical fruits.
There are some tropical fruits in the mouth, but not nearly what I would expect based on the nose. At the end, just a tiny bit of peach could be detected. But overall, kind of flat. I wasn’t impressed with the flavor of this wine. The taste is a little off for a Chardonnay, even for an un-oaked Chardonnay, which I usually like a lot. I can’t really put a finger on what’s off, exactly, but it just didn’t work for me. Ordinarily, I would say it’s the banana scent that put me off, since I can’t stand bananas, but Matt also commented that he didn’t really care for this bottle.

I’ve had a string recently of wines I’ve not been pleased with. Perhaps I need to take a drinking break for a few days…..well, that would just be punishing myself though! Thankfully, the bottle we drank last night was excellent and I can’t wait to review it!

Filed under: Chardonnay, Hop Kiln, White | 4 Comments »

Hanna 2005 Pinot Noir

Posted on February 14, 2007 by Sonadora

I know this wine exists. I drank it and I have a picture of it. However, I can find absolutely no mention of it on their website. Very odd. In anycase, it came in a club shipment, cost us $25ish, runs 14.6% alcohol by volume and had a real cork closure.

I thought this wine showed a lot of potential. I think perhaps we drank it a little too young, but what with serving Roz’s Zuppa Toscana again, I wanted a Pinot Noir since it seemed to work so well last time I paired the two. A few hours in the glass and this was a very tasty wine.

In the glass, it was a beautiful ruby red color. You can’t tell from the picture because, well, I kind of suck as a photographer, plus my life pile on the table is starting to really cramp my photographs!

On the nose I found cherries, raspberries and spices. In the mouth, after a few hours, it was quite smooth and showed raspberries, more spices and some cedar characteristics. Overall, a good wine that just needs some time to come into its own.

Filed under: Hanna, Pinot Noir, Red | Comments Off on Hanna 2005 Pinot Noir