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.

Keeling Schaefer

I know the picture is a bit dark, but I hope you can see what an absolutely totally cool label is on this bottle of wine. I want to find a way to remove the label and frame it.

According to the lovely lady who poured the tasting I so enjoyed, the owners/winemakers have this piece of art in their home and loved it so much, they put it on the wine label. I can see why.

My brother and I stopped in Willcox, Arizona, which is evidently the up and coming wine mecca of Arizona. He has tried the wine before and absolutely loved it, so we stopped for a tasting.

It's a 2007 Home Place Reserve Syrah. It retails for $38. I thought that a tad bit pricey, but the flavor is quite nice.

The tasting notes boast that the wine has been aged three and half years in French oak. It's rich, complex, fruit forward, loaded with berry, sage and deep fig notes.

Normally, I think wine labels are a somewhat of a stretch in terms of describing the wine, but I think this time I would agree. If I were a wine snob I guess I would focus on the complexity and structure of the wine as it seems to have so much happening from the moment it hits the tongue and continues for a time after the swallow. The finish lingers in a pleasant way that makes you want to take another sip.

So, not only is the label totally cool, the wine verges on exceptional. My only slightly negative complaint is that I think it's a bit overpriced.

Would I buy it again?? Yeah…I would!

What will next week bring? I wish I knew.

Until then....Cheers!!

Russo

Tonight is going to be a quickie. It's late and I have a boatload of work to do.

But, I did make the time to polish off this lovely 2010 red wine from Frances Coppola wineries in Geyserville, California. It's was on sale for $9.99 (normally $12.99 at Fry's grocery store).

On the back label, it states something to the effect of "everyday wine for everyday life". That's quite catchy and accurate as I would drink it every day. It's a nice, easy drinking, unassuming wine. It would go well with red meat dishes as well as a nice stand alone. It's flavorful with lots of dark berry notes, easy lingering finish, gentle, peppery and without being overwhelming. Maybe a bit smoky, but not too much.

Rosso means red in Italian. As a red table wine, it's a nice blend of something. Although I'm not sure what grapes are involved, I know I like it.

This was a good pick.

Next Tuesday is wide open...Until then...Cheers!!

Spring Thing Wine Dinner at Flemings

If you've never been to a Flemings wine dinner, I would like to suggest that you go. They are typically wonderful three to four course meals paired with exceptional wines.

They are a bit pricey at $85 per person, but you get more food and wine than you can possibly eat or drink.

We've only been a handful of times and have always enjoyed it thoroughly. This time was slightly different in that the entree was not quite as fabulous as it had been historically.

The appetizers were fresh vegetable bruschetta and north Atlantic lobster salad in phylo cups with a 2010 Riff Pinot Grigio della from Venezie Italy. It was a nice light Pinot with lots of citrus and pear notes and was excellent with the lobster salad. Yes, I had several glasses.

The first course was a mixed green salad with beets, wontons, cucumbers, red onion and grape tomato with a olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It was served with a 2010 Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley and was outstanding. It was lovely on the palate, smooth... almost delicate. I think the acidic balsamic complimented it somehow because it was a perfect match. Yes, I had several glasses.

The entree is where things were quite so wonderful. I had the Mahi-Mahi with a red wine butter sauce. This was served with a 2009 Napa Valley Merryvale Chardonnay. This wine was quite nice as well. It wasn't too oaky, but still had a nice flavor. Unfortunately, the fish was overcooked and bland. The red wine butter sauce did nothing.

My hubby opted for the filet mignon instead. But even that wasn't great. It was not seasoned well and was somewhat bland. But, it was served with a lovely cab-syrah. My hubby and I are sitting here trying to remember the name of it, and neither of us can. It was one I've heard of (and probably tried) before, but the name escapes me.

Finally, the meal was beautifully ended with a blueberry cream brulee. Cream brulee is my all time favorite dessert. I was thrilled to finish the evening this way and it was nicely complemented with a Mionetto Prosecco. Yes, I had a few glasses.

So, you can see how there is no shortage of food or wine at one of these events. Even though the entree wasn't as good as it normally is, we still had an exceptional evening. Great wine, some great food and great company.

Tune in Tuesday for the next adventure. At this point, I have no idea what, but I'm sure some label will reach out a grab me.

Until then....Cheers!!!

I love CA!!

Again, I find myself at Fresh and Easy and saw this wine. It was only $4.99 and I considered it to be something along the lines of a "2 Buck Chuck" wanna-be. So, I bought it thinking it's only $5.00, it's not a big deal if I have to pour it down the drain.

You'll notice the words in the heart are fuzzy and difficult to read. Well, that's just the way my phone camera took it and actually, that's how it looks to me without my glasses. It reads the same as the back label, which basically states that I Love CA wine owner's mission is to produce a great tasting wine at a great price. They go on to state that they are producing from one of the most well known wine regions in the world - California, so the end product wasn't too hard to achieve.

This is the I Love CA Merlot. It was actually quite nice. Smooth, easy, and flavorful with notes of berries and chocolate. It has a gentle finish. I will buy it again. I think this is very drinkable and tastes like a much higher priced wine. It's definitely a stand alone, but I'm sure would go very well with the typical red wine beef dishes. I had it with chicken-veggie pizza and a spring mix salad and it was perfect.

The back label does not describe specifically where in California the grapes come from, only that they have "sourced the wine from some of the best vineyards in California". Whatever that means... they got it right.

I noticed I Love CA also has a Cabernet Sauvignon, and a Chardonnay. I will likely sample them all before the summer has started.

I mentioned I may blog on Dr. Loosens Reisling. Still haven't made it to the wine store for that one, but it's on my list of things to do.

I do have an exceptional wine event coming up. Im going to Flemings this weekend in Tyson's Corner in Virginia for a wine dinner. Flemings events are always filled with fabulous food and exceptional wines. I'll try to take some wine notes and blog on that on Sunday.

Until then....Cheers.