Game Over

Ok. It's actually been a year. My 52 week journey to drink as much wine as possible has come to an end.
I finished this lovely year with a wine that I have had on multiple occasions. Yes, I know this defies what my original premise indicated, but what the heck.
I chose a Newman's Own Pinot Noir for $8.99 at Walmart.
You cannot go wrong with a Newman’s Own. It doesn't matter what varietal you pick. He, (God rest his soul) has it going on.
It tastes like a much higher priced wine, with flavors and notes that will compliment any dish you serve it with.
On that happy note, my blogging days have come to a lovely wine flavored end.
It's been so much fun to share my wine journey. I hope your wine journey continues. I know mine will.
Cheers!!

I indicated in my prior blog that I felt like spending. Well, that feeling was short lived. I spent a whopping $9.99. Actually, that was the sale price. This wine is normally $13.99.

I chose a 2009 Napa Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. I served it with a salad, which of course is not what the serving recommendation was on the back of the label, but it was all I could do for the evening.

The wine was ok. It had a bit of a spicy flavor, maybe a hint of chocolate notes and a peppery finish. For a Reserve, I did expect it to be a bit smoother. This wine does crave food somewhat and I think if I had served with a heartier dish, it would've complimented the wine and brought out more flavor.

All in all....not bad. I wouldn't run out and buy it again, but I wouldn't pour it down the drain either.

I hate to confess this, but I've found since living here in Scottsdale with this continual ongoing dry heat, I have been enjoying chilling my red wine. It's quite lovely and smoothes out the finish.

I think I may be on to something.

for next week...no clue.

Until then...Cheers!!

I don't know if it was the long day, or the brief conversation I had with my daughter before I got home about how much we miss spending time together, or if it was that I didn't have wine at all yesterday and was missing it, but the moment I took a sip of this Sauvignon Blanc I was transported to a warm sunny day on a back patio at a table with an umbrella and a smile came to my face.

I tasted citrus, melons, and pear and it was tart, but in a pleasing way, not in the way the makes your mouth feel tight.

This Chateau Ste Michelle 2010 Sauvignon Blanc from Columbia Valley Washington is just.....lovely.

I served with pan-seared tilapia and brussel sprouts. It was wonderful. I enjoyed every sip and decided the $12.99 spent was worth every penny.

Take a sip and you'll think of a summer day.

As I near the end of my year of wine journey, I think back fondly on every sip and every bottle. In a few weeks, it will have been year. I'm not sure if I'm going to continue....blogging that is. Wine drinking??? Absolutely!!!

Tune in next week for.....who knows, but I feel like spending!!

I have to say. This website I blog on has changed their format and I totally hate it. It's not as user friendly as before.

I personally enjoy using paragraphs and spacing and only this moment figured out how. My last blog was one long rambling blob of sentences.

Now, on to the wine.... This particular 2009 Pinot Noir hails from Buellton, California. Evidently this was once a huge ranching area, but now houses vineyards and wineries.

The back label has some interesting descriptive verbiage - earthy, newly picked raspberry, ripe strawberries, and locally grown mushrooms. Hmmmm.....I don't think I love this one. I noticed when I poured it into the glass, there a rusty hue. I thought to myself, I'll bet it's a bit earthy. I guess it only makes sense considering that it was a ranching area - which means cows - which means manure - which means earthy wine.

This wine craves food and would probably go well with the typical red wine dishes. Something very flavorful or spicy would likely help this Pinot Noir out a bit. I had it with a pretzel. My evening meal has long since passed and I wanted to blog on this before bed.

So, the $11.99 I spent at Fry's grocery store wasn't a complete waste. While I was there I also bought a quilt. There's nothing you can't buy at Fry's in Casa Grande Arizona.

On that happy note, I will bid adieu. I think I need to blog on a white wine next week. I'll try to buy one this week before I forget. Until then....Cheers!!

Middle sister

As predicted, this pales in comparison to last week's blog. I've had a full glass and I can't decide if I like it or not. I really liked the label. It's cute and fun. When I initially removed the cork from the bottle, it (the cork) seemed very spongy. Obviously, it was a rubber cork, but after a few chomps I deduced it was ok. It's a Santa Rosa, California blend of Zinfandel, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The last sentence on the back of the bottle reads "Now give me back my blouse". Now, that statement could be the cap on a variety of different entertaining stories. In this case, it's referring to sibling girls. Finally, to the wine. It's not bad. It has a nice bouquet with a bit of tobacco, and dark fruit. The taste is similar to the bouquet (which doesn't always happen). The only thing that turned me a little sideways was the finish - it ends a little rough and a bit metallic, but also had sort of a sweet note. I served it with a broccoli coleslaw salad, brussel sprouts and a top sirloin. It seemed like the wine tasted better while I was eating than after, but to be honest - I'm not sure. This wine is not bad, but it's not good. I would drink it again if it were offered, but don't know that I will buy it again. It would probably make a good sangria because of the sweet thing I mentioned. That's all I got. Until next week.....Cheers.

3 amazing wines....

So, I found myself in the company of 3 extraordinary men. One, I've been close to my whole life, another a rather bashful sort and the third a charming Texas native. Why extraordinary? Well they are sort of like the wines we enjoyed together....deep, textured, maybe a little misunderstood, and wonderful when you take the time to drink.

The first, a Black Cordon. Inky color, smoky, velvet taste, a beautiful smooth finish that kisses your tongue. This 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet retails for about $90.00. It is a beautiful Cabernet with 90 some-odd points from Wine Spectator. When I first smelled the bouquet, I thought to myself, I wish I had a perfume that smelled like this. We enjoyed it before dinner.

The next was an outstanding 2008 Pinot Noir. This is another California wine that will make your taste buds sing!! It's not Napa Valley, but rather a viticultural area that straddles Napa and Sonoma Valley. It retails for about $35.00. It's hard to beat this Pinot. It's exceptionally flavorful. Sometimes, a Pinot Noir can taste like a watered down Cab, but not this one. The flavor is immense, with berry, tannins and spice but still gentle on the palate.

Finally....the Shea. I know I liked it, but I barely remember it. It's from Willamet Valley in Oregon. It retails for about $52.00.
This is another outstanding Pinot Noir. Easy to drink, gentle flavor that could make a die-hard Cabernet fan cross over. Not sure of the significance of block 5, even though I have a vague recollection of hearing something about it....I tried to look it up and it appears to be a south facing section of the vineyard - but somehow that doesn't seem special enough.

At any rate, I would absolutely, positively buy each and every one of these wines again. They were each exceptional, extraordinary wines that contributed to an absolutely wonderful evening.

As a side note, the meal for the evening was an outstanding pot roast. Even though my Texas charmer worried that it wasn't quite tender enough - it was excellent. Served in a bowl with veggies - it was homey and tasty.
And get this - dessert was a homemade chocolate pecan pie with just a touch of cayenne pepper....OMG!! I ate until I couldn't eat any more. I think I actually waddled to the cab that took me home.

Wow...what an evening.

So, for next week.....Whatever...It will pale in comparison to this week. But until then...Cheers!!!

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

So, it's a Tuesday evening and I'm 15 minutes into my 45 minute commute home after a 10 hour day at work when it suddenly occurs to me that it is in fact Tuesday and it's blog night.

I don't have the energy or the desire to stop at Total Wine or any of the dozens of grocery stores that I have no doubt passed on my way home.

So......what to do...well, I rummaged through my wine cabinet (no, I don't have a wine rack here in my Phoenix abode), and all I have is a Hob Nob Pinot Noir, which I am 90% sure I have blogged on before. And, a bottle of Keeling Schaeffer, which I blogged on last week. I also have a case of Elyse in my closet, which I have definitely blogged on before.

Luckily, tucked behind the Hob Nob, I found a bottle of The Big Kahuna. I bought it for less than $6.00 at Fresh and Easy weeks ago.

So, I unscrewed the cap and poured myself a glass. At this point in the evening nothing could be too bad. I have to admit I enjoyed the bouquet, which was sort of grapey and sweet smelling. I was a little worried it would be sweet. But, it surprised me a bit. It's a bit light for a cab, slightly spicy finish with lots of berry notes, short finish and mild tannins. It was not bad at all.

As you can see by the picture, there is a surf board on the front label, so I assumed it's a California wine. Wrong!!! It's from Spain. I'm not sure where exactly as very little info is given.

The back label describes some guy from 1914 named Duke Kahanamoku who was evidently the father of surfing - so much so that anyone that anyone who achieves any level of expertise can be called "The Big Kahuna". What that has to do with wine, I have no idea and neither do the winemakers as that all the info on the back label.

Would I buy it again? Yes, I would. Mostly because it's such a cheap, but decent tasting wine.
So, for next week. No clue. Until then....Cheers.