Sauvignon Blanc Time!

Posted on June 11, 2007 by Sonadora

Be prepared- I love crisp white wines in the summer and Sauvignon Blanc often fits my perfect idea of what to drink in the 95+ degree humid summer days of Virginia. That’s right folks, it appears that summer weather has arrived and is here to stay. Apparently we don’t believe in spring in this area of the country and jumped straight from frigid to boiling.

Which brings us to the night’s wine. A 2005 Passalacqua Sauvignon Blanc the we picked up on our last CA trip. The wine cost $16, had a real cork closure and clocked in at 13.9% alcohol by volume. I believe we have two more bottles in the basement, though my organization structure got all rearranged with the move and hasn’t made it’s way to the top of my priority list to redo yet.

I tend to jot down not very specific things in addition to flavors and impressions as I’m drinking my way through a bottle of wine, as I did with this wine. My first descriptor in my notes is “Yum.” And really, that pretty much sums this bottle of wine up.

The wine showed lemons, apricots, and honeydew melon on the nose, leading to a wonderful tropical aroma wafting out of my glass. In the mouth, there were lemons, but on the sweet side, not tart, grass, and melons. Overall the wine had a very slight sweet note. The mouthfeel of this wine was quite smooth and the fruit really showed well, both on the nose and in the mouth. I clearly really liked this one as I wrote “Yum” again at the end of my notes.

I served this wine with over baked chicken (done in breadcrumbs), rice pilaf and green beans. A very good match, I liked the way the wine played with the spices in the chicken breading. Overall, the wine was a great deal, I felt like I got a lot out of this wine for the price tag.

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Filed under: California, Passalacqua, Sauvignon Blanc, White | 2 Comments »

Digging Into the New Stash Already!

Posted on May 22, 2007 by Sonadora

I just couldn’t wait to start drinking some of the wines we brought home from Sonoma and to cure my cellar fatigue. So we hoped right in with this bottle of 2005 Passalacqua Sonoma County Zinfandel. As I’ve mentioned before, Matt and I are big Zinfandel fans and I am always on the look-out for new ones to love, and this bottle was no dissappointment.

We picked this bottle up at the winery for $25, it had a real cork closure and clocks in at 14.8% alcohol.

On the nose I found black pepper, vanilla, raspberries and strawberries. Overall, the nose had a toasty oak charcteristic. In the mouth I found blackberries, raspberries, cherries and strawberries.

Overall I would describe this wine as juicy. It is currently very smooth in the mouth and drinking really well. I wouldn’t hold this one for more than another year if you have any bottles hanging around.

I served this with pasta and tomato sauce and fresh parmesean. It was an okay match, but Zins are not my first choice for tomato based pasta sauce. I prefer a Sangiovese with my tomato sauce! I picture steaks on the grill being a future match with the other bottle I have! (We just got a grill for the new house and the weather seems perfect!)

Filed under: California, Passalacqua, Red, Zinfandel | 3 Comments »

Visiting Passalacqua Winery

Posted on May 14, 2007 by Sonadora

Another stop on our marathon tasting day in Sonoma, just before lunch, was Passalacqua Winery. Overall impressions: tiny tasting room and tiny tasting bar. It was too crowded (with only 3 groups) when we first walked in for us to even taste. We waited for 2 groups (of only 2 people in each) to leave before we stepped up for our tasting. However, the tasting room was bright and cheery with plenty of things to look at while we waited. The winery charges a $5 non-refundable tasting fee, and they are the only winery we visited where the fee was actually enforced even though we bought several bottles of wine, though the attendant only charged us for one tasting instead of two.

2005 Alexander Valley Sauvignon Blanc: $16. My favorite white wine of the trip I believe. Grass and citrus on the nose. Crisp and clean with melon flavors in the mouth. We took home 4 bottles.

2005 Dry Creek Valley Chardonnay: $21. NMS. Flowers spice and citrus in this one. It didn’t work for me.

2005 Sonoma County Barrel Chardonnay: $30. Oak, reserved nose. Lemon, creamy and reserved in the mouth.

2005 Sonoma County Zinfandel: $25. Jammy nose, pepper. Raspberries in the mouth. Lighter than I am used to for a Zin, but it worked for me. We took home 2 bottles.

2004 Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: $40. Currants, old red fruit and saddle leather on the nose. Cherries with a spicy after taste in the mouth.

Filed under: California, Passalacqua, Tasting, Vineyards | Comments Off on Visiting Passalacqua Winery