Another New White

We haven't reviewed a Californian Sauvignon Blanc yet, and this weekend we opened one. Raymond Reserve Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2006. Excellent! Not as much juicy tropical fruit as our beloved NZ SB. Daryl thought it had an acidic overtone, and I tasted a hint of citrus. We opened it with last night's catfish and finished the bottle with happy-hour's Cheez-Its. We have a bottle of their Merlot, which we are curious to try.

Getting out of a rut

Last time, we talked about trying new white wines. The Chilean white was a start, and this week we opened something brand new to us: Berger 2006 Gruner Veltliner, an Austrian white. Very nice! Smooth, very dry, excellent with grilled pork chops and chicken. And it should go well with tonight's fried rice. Versatile.

This was our September white wine of the month--proving again why we love being members of a wine club. We probably would never picked this up on our own, but now that we've tried it, we'll look for it again.

Oh, and we recently tried the Gewurztraminer from Washington State...another great, new wine for us--unexpectedly peppery and crisp.

Looking over some recent purchases, we can't wait to open a bottle of Syrah Rose from France (and see how it compares to our favorite from Paso Robles) and a Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc to see how it compares with ones from Chile and New Zealand.

Chilean Sauvignon Blanc

From the "roots of the Andes"...this weekend's wine is a delicious 2006 SB from Anakena (D.O. Valle Central). Crisp, light, a touch acidic--this a great, refreshing wine! We had it last night with barbecue and finished the bottle this afternoon with spinach dip and crackers. It's been a long time since we drank any sort of Chilean wine, and we're wondering why. The price is always excellent (this bottle was around $7), and the quality is good. We're still stuck on Rueda and NZ SB, but maybe it's time to branch out and look for wines, especially whites, outside our comfort zone.

Have a great week!

Settling In

The lease has been signed and most of the boxes are unpacked. A few more days to slowly adjust until work starts and school begins. And, yes, we found a couple new wine stores!

One is a superstore, carrying wine from pretty much all over, plus a great selection of domestic and imported beers. Excellent prices and no more Ohio markup, woo hoo! We found our favorite NZ SB (Nobilo) for $8. We also stocked up on some crisp summer whites: Rueda from Marques de Riscal, an Italian Pink Pinot Grigio and a Gewurztraminer from Columbia Valley, Washington. The last is a new white for us; look for a review soon.

We also found a locally owned shop, where we met the owner and joined the wine-of-the-month club. We're excited to try some new reds and whites--stuff that the bigger stores may carry but that we'd never find on our own. We already have August's bottles: white from Austria and a Californian red. We're looking forward to trying those.

Yesterday, after many hours of unpacking, we opened a new Spanish red: from D.O. Somontano (a new region for us) made from the Moristel grape. A very relaxed, mellow red. It was great just drinking a glass by itself, and it also went well with tonight's pasta. We're partial to Spanish wines--very good value and overall high quality.

Last Sippin' in Ohio

Where does the time go? A month ago we chatted about moving on and finishing our wines, and here it is--five days before the movers get here. Amazing. Sad as we are to say good-bye to Ohio, we are ready to move on to a warmer, sunnier spot...year round.

As for the wine, we've slowly been depleting our cellar, deciding what to drink and what to carry with us (we anticipate carrying one or two cases). We've been drinking our special reds; two nights ago, we opened a very tasty Merlot, Parcel 41 Napa Valley Merlot 2004. We generally don't care for Merlot, but we found this one in the back of our fridge, most likely a stashed wine-of-the-month selection. It is very good. Rich, complex and sharp. Not quite as earthy or possessing the same berry notes as a favorite Cab but intriguing.

Speaking of Cabs, we've opened several of them in the past weeks, and enjoyed them. We've also celebrated the summer with our favorite Ortman's Syrah Rose. Last weekend, our friends brought back a Rose from Switzerland, which we enjoyed. It was light and had just a hint of sweetness, making it a nice summer table wine. They also shared a sparkling wine made by Gruet of New Mexico.

Wines that we couldn't bear to open are ones that have special meaning for us, like two bottles of Long Island Chardonnay that we received at a wedding several years ago, or Italian wines that family picked up for us on trips. We have a Cincinnati red that we'll keep as a souvenir, as well as a Louisiana bottle from Kath's 2005 trip to New Orleans.

What will Florida bring? We'll keep you posted!

Cheers and see you in a few weeks!

Mid-June Posting

Happy Father's Day! Hope everyone took some time today to enjoy their dads. We took Daryl out for Italian food (and I tried a nice Chianti), and otherwise, we relaxed.

Austin was all work, and unfortunately, we never had time to check out the music scene. It was a productive visit, however, and in a few weeks, we should know where we are going next. We did get out one night to eat dinner downtown with some friends, but other than that, the airport Hilton treated us very well. On our last night, we checked out their wine list--not too bad! Daryl found a NZ SB, which was very good, and I tried a Texas Chenin Blanc, light and crisp. You can read about Texas wines here.

This weekend's wine is a delicious Napa Cab: Twenty Bench 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon. Great, great Cab--rich, smooth, nice! Daryl grilled flatiron steaks, and Del made fried rice and stir-fried veggies with chicken. Twenty Bench is an excellent value at around $20, if you purchase it directly from the winery (see the website for details). We'll look for this one again.

As we anticipate moving in about six weeks, we're going into the back of our wine cooler, finding wines we don't even remembering buying, it's been so long. We'll be opening some of these bottles in the next few weeks, and we're looking forward to trying them.

Ohio WineFest

It was a hot and muggy day; thunderstorms threatened but never arrived, and we're hoping for cooler weather. We got out to the Ohio WineFest and despite the noon heat, enjoyed ourselves as much as we did last June. Daryl's mom arrived safely yesterday, so she brought the kids through the market, treating them to stuffed animals and Popsicles, while the two of us tried Ohio wines.

So many different wineries. Some from our area, the Miami Valley. Others from closer to Cincinnati and the Ohio River. And quite a few from the Grand River Valley in the north. Like we wrote last year, many of these wineries offered samples of sweeter stuff, like fruit and ice wines, even mead! We passed on those. Daryl stuck to dry white and reds, while I ventured to the slightly sweeter side, opting to try a blush and a raspberry-infused Riesling. That was good! (Daryl, however, was not impressed.)

Overall, we liked almost everything we tried but still found some of the wines to be on the syrupy, sweeter side when we didn't expect them to be. Our one complaint was that some of the wineries hadn't chilled their sample wines; I tried a warm Chardonnay, which probably would have been decent had it not been as warm as it was (we were pushing close to 85 degrees outside!).

We didn't take tasting notes, but the following is a list of the wineries we "visited":

Miami River Valley:
The Winery at Versailles: Daryl loved their Petite Sirah, and I thought their blush was tasty.

Ohio River Valley/Cincinnati:
Kinkead Ridge Vineyard and Estate Winery: Their Revelation wine is a crisp blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.

Woodstone Creek Winery & Distillery: They offered mead and also distill small batch spirits (not available to taste).

Amish Country
Breitenbach Wine Cellars

Grand River Valley/Northern Ohio
Debonne Winery

Ferrante

Maize Valley Market & Winery

I wish I wrote down which winery sold that raspberry Riesling!

It was a great couple of hours...spent some time in the market afterwards to pick up fresh-baked bread, Amish cheese and cookies.

For more information on Ohio wines, see here.

We'll be in Austin, Texas, next weekend for work. If we have time, we'll try to check out the scene. We hear there's great music.

Cheers!

Memorial Day Reading

In honor of Memorial Day, please check this out...

(We found this link on Mark Fisher's blog. Check it out here.)

That's a Cabernet...?

Before we begin this post, we'd like to note that this is a positive review...but we know what we like, and after four years of learning about wines and trying different varietals and vintages, we know what to expect. So, when we opened today's bottle of Barefoot Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, we were a bit shocked. Not bad shocked, but...let's say after trying very good Cabs and other reds (a recent Meritage comes to mind, as well as a tasty Zinfandel from Kendall Jackson which we drank earlier this week) this one tasted...weak??? Not bad weak, just different. "Light" would be the better word to describe this Cab. Simple, tasty--definitely tasty--but not a true, rich, full-bodied Cab. It is pleasant, and at $5 at our local Trader Joe's, you can't beat the price! However, if you're looking for the typical Cab, you won't fine it here. We enjoyed it, however, and thought it had a cute label.

Hope everyone is having a lovely Memorial Day weekend. We attended two parties: a retirement and a graduation. Kath was excited that she didn't have to cook two nights in a row! Today, we cooked out: steak for us and hot dogs for the kids. Good stuff.

Happy Memorial Day!

Catching Up Again

Once more, we've neglected the blog. The month of May has almost passed, and we haven't even done a quick update. The weather has been gorgeous, and with Mother's Day, Daryl's birthday and several visitors, we have been eating and drinking well--maybe a little too well! Here's a quick wrap-up of what we've sipped this month.

With the arrival of the warm weather, we've opened some favorite bottles. Daryl picked up a case of our favorite Rose: Ortman's Syrah Rose. It is crisp and delicious when served chilled, and we love it. We should have enough to get us through the summer...or at least until the move. We've also picked up Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, another perfect summer wine. Crisp, lots of tropical fruit, simply delicious. Unfortunately, we didn't write down the names of the wineries, but you generally can't go wrong with NZ SB. The price is great, too. We picked up one bottle for $12 and another for $19 (and the Nobilo we usually drink is around $11).

At the start of the month, we opened a nice Spanish red: Finca Sandoval, 2002, D.O. Manchuela. It is 91% Syrah and 9% Mouvedre. The Mouvedre gives it a nice elegance, and we didn't notice the usual peppery notes we taste in Syrah. We paid around $30 for it and enjoyed it.

On 18 May, we tasted a Meritage (pronounced like "heritage") from Paso Robles: Norman Vineyards Buzzard Tree 2004 Meritage Red Table Wine. Meritage refers to a wine made from a blend of grapes, and this wine is 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Cab Franc, 13% Merlot, 6% Malbec and 3% Petite Verdot. Unfortunately, we didn't jot down any tasting notes but clearly remember liking this wine. At around $15, it is an excellent value for a red.

A couple of upcoming wine events we hope to attend: The Ohio Wine Fest and Festival of the Vine. We attended last summer's Ohio Wine Fest and liked it. Ohio produces a lot of dessert-type wines, generally not to our liking, but we tried a nice Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio from the northern part of the state and bought a red from the Cincinnati area, which still sits in our rack. We'll try that one this summer before the movers come and let you know what we think (we remember it being good but a little unusual when we tasted it last year). As far as the Festival of the Vine goes, it is a new festival and not much has been written about it yet (please see Dayton-area blogger Mark Fisher's comments on this).

We're sending out virtual champagne toasts to all the proud new moms and dads in our circle of extended family and friends: a new baby boy and twin girls! Cheers and good health to both families!!!!

Finishing the Wrap-Up

More than one post for April and actually written on a Saturday, no less! We didn't cover this week's wine in yesterday's post, so here goes...

On Thursday, we opened a Pinot Grigio from California, Bocce 2004. Very clean, bright, simple and exactly what we look for in our warm weather wines. We finished it tonight with Daryl's General Tao's chicken.

Daryl stopped by the wine bar for a Friday afternoon tasting before going to pick up pizza. He brought home a new red: Eric Ross Old Vine Carignane 2005 (Lodi). It has a delicious, tart blueberry aroma and is a lovely, clear red. It hits mid- to back of the palate with hints of berry. Very smooth and inky like a Syrah but lacking that peppery bite. We enjoyed it, and as we're always looking for dry reds, we'll keep an eye out for this varietal again.

Enjoy the weekend!

Catching Up

Our first and most likely only post for April...time to catch up!

We celebrated Easter with friends and opened Fetzer Chardonnay and Mackenzie Cabernet Sauvignon. Both very nice. We started the afternoon with mimosas made with sparkling wine from Australia and Oregon. Lovely!

Last summer, we attended a wine tasting featuring Juno Wines from South Africa (post here). A local grocery store had two of their wines on special, so we picked up their 2004 Shiraz. It was just as good as we remembered it. One thing very unique about this wine is that it is aged in oak barrels, which give it creamy toffee and caramel notes. It's not as sharp or peppery as a typical Shiraz. It's a good value at around $11.

Last weekend we opened a red from Napa Valley: Scout's Honor, Venge Vineyard, 2003. 73% Zinfandel, 14% Petite Sirah, 13% Charbono. We both enjoyed this wine: rich in color and very grapey and earthy in taste. Very nice with grilled steak.

The warm weather has finally returned to Ohio. Time to start looking for crisp whites and cool, dry roses that we love drinking this time of year. So many wines and so little time!

Catalunyan Red

Another new wine--for us--this week: Priorat from Catalunya, Spain. This was another wine we read about, like the Pinot Blanc, but hadn't seen until recently. It's a great find.

Barranc del Closos 2002 Priorat (denominacio d'origen qualificada): 70% Garnacha tinta, 30% Carinena. Very nice red wine. Medium bodied, low acidity, medium tannins for a red--"just smooth and nice" to quote Daryl. Great for relaxing after a steak dinner. Priorat has a reputation of producing high quality wines (see above link), and we weren't disappointed. This wine is more complex than a Rioja, more dense...but not as complicated as a California Cab or a Syrah. At $20, this wine is a great value. The other day, Daryl found a Priorat in our local wine shop priced over $100.

This is a great, uncommon wine--if you come across one, pick it up!

Hi, Arnold!

A New White

We had read about Pinot Blanc in Food & Wine maybe a year or two ago and were intrigued. However, we never came across a bottle (nor did we look very hard) until this past week, when our local wine store offered as part of their weekly tastings. It is a new favorite, and we'll keep an eye out for it as we move into the warmer months.

Saint Gregory Pinot Blanc 2006 (Mendocino): Very, very nice white! Vibrant. Nice acidity and sparkle to it (not to say that it's bubbly--rather light and crisp). We tasted tropical fruit, but nothing specific popped out. How to compare it: it's not quite as light and crisp as a Sauvignon Blanc; it has a certain richness, a depth. But it isn't oaky or dense, two things we don't look for in whites.

From the label:

...we employed traditional Burgundian winemaking methods such as 100% barrel
fermentation in French Burgundy oak barrels...

We tasted absolutely no oak--a plus as Daryl doesn't care for oak, and Kath can take it or leave it but feels a little goes a long way.

We'll add this wine to our summer rotation.

Celebration Part II

Happy Belated St. Patrick's Day! Hope everyone had a great celebration. We kept ours low key: Daryl stopped at the wine bar for some Smithwick's and Pinot Noir, and Kath stayed at home enjoying the last of a delicious Riesling.

Last weekend's celebrations went very, very well. The par-tay was well attended; everyone mingled, ate and drank. We weren't expecting many wine drinkers, so to start, we only offered a 1.5L bottle of Fetzer Chardonnay and a Charles Shaw Shiraz. However, we kept opening more and more bottles! Good times.

Our new bottle for this weekend was a gift from our friend Pascale, who travels to Napa once a year. This was a bottle she brought back from last year's trip, and it's one of her favorites: V. Sattui Winery 2004 Johannisberg Riesling (St. Helena, CA). Daryl's reaction: Fun and exciting. Vibrant fruit flavors, including a touch of kiwi. Dry but not red-wine-dry. We both noticed that unlike other whites we tend to drink, this one wasn't "crisp"; instead, we'd describe it as smooth--but not syrupy, a common feel for sweeter, smoother wines. It's a clear yellow with a slight hint of green.

Interesting to note that V. Sattui's wines are only available at the winery or online.

From this year's trip, our friend brought us a 2005, same wine. We'll keep that for another time.

Wine Book Review #1

FRENCH WOMEN FOR ALL SEASONS, Mireille Guiliano

One of the joys of learning about wine is reading about it--for pleasure. We subscribed to a couple wine magazines, and while we gleaned some useful information from these publications, we didn't renew our subscriptions, preferring to learn by recommendation and tasting. However, in our library we have a few books dedicated to wine, and we thought we'd discuss some of these here.

(In today's case, this is only my opinion [Kath]; Daryl wasn't keen on reading what I would describe as a women's lifestyle manual.)

In 2005, Mireille Guiliano's French Women Don't Get Fat became a bestseller, and I picked up a library copy, wondering what the fuss was all about. Turned out it was a little gem of a book. Guiliano, President and CEO of Clicquot, Inc., advocates adopting a traditional French woman's lifestyle to avoid obesity. Eating simply and moderately, choosing fresh, seasonal foods, incorporating simple, natural exercise into one's daily routine (she doesn't get our obsession with fancy gyms when a simple stroll will do wonders for the body and mind)--these are some of the secrets that help keep French women among the slimmest in the West.

French Women for All Seasons elaborates many of her previous suggestions and includes more tips and secrets on how to be a French woman--anywhere, in any season. She discusses ways to eat seasonally, recommending buying local produce only when it's in season. Ever wonder how to wear a scarf? Guiliano gives pointers throughout on how to use this versatile accessory. There are plenty of recipes, ranging from simple ("Leek Soup") to complicated. There are more tips on entertaining and exercise--all keeping with the seasonal theme of this book.

And wine? Well, there is an entire chapter devoted to wine and food pairings. And you couldn't ask for a better advisor, given her life-long involvement in the world of wine (both her books are also part-memoir). She simply describes well-known varietals and how to effectively taste each and partner with food. After mastering the basics, she encourages her readers to seek lesser-known wines. And always, she recommends Champagne as the perfect wine (true Champagne, not sparkling wines from other regions). She considers wine an everyday food, something to be enjoyed in moderation and for good health.

It doesn't get any better than that!

Celebration Part I

It's celebration season...one promotion, two birthdays, four visitors. Yes, I am constantly cleaning the house. On to the fun stuff: the wine.

On Thursday, Daryl was promoted and while the official ceremony takes place next Wednesday followed by a party at our place next weekend (that'll be "Celebration Part II"), we still had to pop open some sparkling wine to celebrate. Our pick? L'Hereu de Raventos i Blanc CAVA Brut. It's one of our favorites: dry, grapey, light. We opened it that night and still have about two glasses remaining.

Last night, some friends stayed with us for their last night in Ohio before they move to California (near wine country, lucky!). We'll miss them, but we had to celebrate their new venture with a special wine. We opened L'Aventure Optimus 2003 (Paso Robles). It's a blend of Syrah (64%), Cabernet Sauvignon (33%) and Petit Verdot (3%). Marvelous. Smooth, dry, but not overwhelming. As we drank together, we didn't take notes nor reflect upon the finer nuances of this wine. Rather, this bottle marked a special moment--a gathering of good friends before a long separation.

(And now we have to go to California!)

We'll continue promotion and birthday festivities this week...look for an update next weekend.

Cheers!

Petite Sirah

I am keeping this post simple, as I completely forgot about it! We opened this bottle last weekend, and I did a very rough draft (wine name, a couple tasting notes, website link) which I intended to complete the following day.

Hah! (This was written 2 Mar. However, the Blogger date has this at 25 Feb, when I did the rough draft)

That was almost a week ago, so here goes.... We have a small wine fridge, maybe holding around 50 bottles when full. Every so often, we reach way in back and pull out a surprise bottle. When the hell did we buy this?! Last weekend's wine was one of these surprises, and it was good.

Trentadue Winery 2002 Alexander Valley Petite Sirah. We are still familiarizing ourselves with this varietal, so excuse the very basic notes. This wine was bold and dark. Inky. It stained our teeth. It had a similar boldness to a big cab, and we love big, dry reds so this impressed. Excellent. We'll continue to try more Petite Sirah.

And that's it. Not a very good write-up. I try to write our impressions the same night we open a bottle and usually with a glass of wine at hand.

Happy sippin'!

Good whites

We're back, for this weekend, at least. It's been snowy and cold recently; we've spent a lot of time at home in front of the fire or watching movies. We've also tried two tasty whites.

ZUANI vigne (D.O. Collio) Blanco 2005. An ass-kicking wine, to quote Daryl. At 13% alcohol, this wine surprised us. It tasted light and refreshing, complementing our chicken and spinach pasta, but wow.... A glass-and-a-half each knocked us out. Our wine store owner recommended this, and we thank her! It's fruity and dry, but not as light as a pinot grigio or even a sauvignon blanc. For a much better description of this wine (we drank this a couple weeks ago and didn't take notes), please click here.

Fun With Mac and Cheese--that's been the theme of our meals this week. It's just one of those weeks where I hit the pantry and skim through the Kraft magazine to come up with dinner. Last night, it was taco-flavored macaroni, tasty with sour cream and lots of cheddar cheese. Daryl stopped at the wine store on the way home and picked up the following (again, recommended by the owners): Loosen Bros. 2005 Riesling "Dr. L" (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer). Ooh, very nice! Light, fruity, sweet--the tiniest hint of syrup but not enough to make it "thick". Low alcohol at 8.5%. We enjoyed a glass but didn't feel sleepy afterwards. We have enough for 2 glasses tonight (it might be a little light for the minestrone soup) and we're looking forward to it.

When it comes to whites, we almost exclusively drink Rueda or N.Z. Sauvignon Blanc. These were nice surprises, and we'll look for them again.

Cheers!

I hate titles...

..but I love good wine! Which is why not much thought has gone into this week's title. Pfffttt... On to the wine.

Anyway, it's been a good wine week, thus far. Last Friday, we opened the second bottle of William Hill Aura 1997 Cab (see previous post for review). Second time around it was perfect. But, at $80, we're all done. For now. It was worth it, and we highly, highly recommend this wine.

Tonight, I wasn't in the mood to cook, save for mac-n-cheese for the kids. Daryl ordered subs and stopped at our wine shop to pick up a bottle. McLaren Vale Kangarilla Road 2004 Shiraz ($21). We love strong, dry Shiraz and this was excellent. Peppery--as one would expect--exciting (Daryl's words), delicious.

This weekend, we're having dinner with friends...enjoying a quiet weekend before the upcoming Colts vs. Bears event. Our friends, who are moving to California (close to Napa, lucky!), are opening a special bottle. Looking forward to that.

Until Saturday...

Comfort wines

This week, we've been drinking tried-and-true wine: familiar wines from familiar producers, old favorites from new wineries.

Rueda/Verdejo: One of our favorite whites. Brilliant, sparkling, zesty. A little citrus, a touch acidic. We opened a bottle two days ago from a winery we've never tried. Unfortunately, we already recycled the bottle, and we didn't record the name. It was good, as we expected. We haven't tried a bad one yet, and we drink this often, especially during the summer.

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc: Our other top white! Daryl picked up a bottle this afternoon from our wine shop. Matua Valley 2005 S.B. Excellent wine--crisp, clean, fruity. Delicious! We served this with honey mustard chicken and fried rice.

And for our table wine during the week, we drank Two-Buck Cab. It's a decent wine, but after last Saturday's William Hill...

Go Pats!

Some great wines

New Year's was fun--we drank prosecco and cava and watched "Extras". So much for wild and crazy times, but hey, we have little ones at home...

Last night, we had some fellow wine lovers over for chicken parm (Daryl's specialty). We opened a special bottle: William Hill Winery Aura, 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)*. Gorgeous, gorgeous wine! We aired it upon opening, not sure how well it had aged. At first sip, it was a little dry, a little tight. As we ate, the wine opened in our glasses--a perfect, dry cab, mellow yet rich. Just perfect. Special significance here: We met in 1997, and the first bottle of wine we ever shared together, back before we had any idea what we were drinking, was from William Hill. Daryl found the '97 at our wine store and picked up two bottles. The other we're planning to open on 19 January, our actual anniversary.

Our friends brought their favorite bottle of champagne: Mario Lanza California Champagne. Another wonderful bottle! Not too dry, not too sweet. Very nice following dinner and before the chocolate cake.

*If you check out the William Hill site, they ask for your birthdate to enter.

Go Patriots! Go Giants! Go Buckeyes!

Until the next...