At one point during the school year, Halley and I went to the local co-op, on a kick to try local wines. The closest we were able to find were a few scant ones from Upstate New York that didn't exactly look promising. However, a small Vermont vineyard was just granted permission (and funds) by the USDA to start selling their own wine. Thus, never again shall Halley and I be at a loss for local Vermont wines.
Read more HERE.
06 July 2008
30 June 2008
How full is your glass?
Apparently, it's OK to be a "glass is 1/3 full" kind of person--as long as you're a wine drinker. Good thing I knew that when I enjoyed this South American selection over the weekend.
"Bodega Enrique Foster Ique Malbec" (Argentina)
2007
Average Price: $12.00
Review:
I'll admit, I've been a bit out of practice with my wine reviewing this summer, not so much because I'm not drinking wine (the whites have been plentiful at the dinner table), but because I have no one to openly discuss the wines with and learn the lingo. I haven't been able to bring myself to openly admit my wine fascination to my family yet - I'll wait until Italy.
In the meantime, back to the Malbec. This was quite good. And, it made me realize that the Carmenere blend Halley and I tried back in May was much more Malbec than Carmenere (which is probably why we preferred it to the straight Carmenere). Anyway, before food, there was a very peculiar after taste to this that was faintly reminiscent of plastic. I'm sure there is a chemical reason for why this occurred (it could very well have been the mixture of plum and pepper and pre-dinner cashews that created this), but the point is that the flavor was off before dinner.
Dinner, however, consisted of lightly grilled salmon and a spicy peanut dipping suace which the Malbec partnered with beautifully. I was very excited, and I almosted said so at the dinner table. In general, I am finding that I prefer the why red wine pairs with food (though white was perhaps the best option for our light dinner pasta salad tonight.)
Anyway, I hope to keep blogging more on wine now that the summer is in full swing and I need something to do.
Buona sera tutti-
Emily
"Bodega Enrique Foster Ique Malbec" (Argentina)
2007
Average Price: $12.00
Review:
I'll admit, I've been a bit out of practice with my wine reviewing this summer, not so much because I'm not drinking wine (the whites have been plentiful at the dinner table), but because I have no one to openly discuss the wines with and learn the lingo. I haven't been able to bring myself to openly admit my wine fascination to my family yet - I'll wait until Italy.
In the meantime, back to the Malbec. This was quite good. And, it made me realize that the Carmenere blend Halley and I tried back in May was much more Malbec than Carmenere (which is probably why we preferred it to the straight Carmenere). Anyway, before food, there was a very peculiar after taste to this that was faintly reminiscent of plastic. I'm sure there is a chemical reason for why this occurred (it could very well have been the mixture of plum and pepper and pre-dinner cashews that created this), but the point is that the flavor was off before dinner.
Dinner, however, consisted of lightly grilled salmon and a spicy peanut dipping suace which the Malbec partnered with beautifully. I was very excited, and I almosted said so at the dinner table. In general, I am finding that I prefer the why red wine pairs with food (though white was perhaps the best option for our light dinner pasta salad tonight.)
Anyway, I hope to keep blogging more on wine now that the summer is in full swing and I need something to do.
Buona sera tutti-
Emily
28 April 2008
Everything you wanted to know about grapes?
Don't have a refined pallet? Have no idea what people are talking about when they say, "This wine is a dark violet. Smoke-tinged blackberry and blackcurrant on the nose, with complicating notes of cured meat and sweet vanilla. Suave and round, with supple tannins framing sweet raspberry and blackberry flavors. Finishes fleshy, sweet and persistent, with subtle lingering notes of smoke and spice."
WTF, Mate?
Well, I have a trick for you. Go HERE and just memorize what's supposed to be in each wine. Among 90% of the people you'll ever drink wine with, this will be good enough.
For Halley and I on the other hand, this is just the beginning. We must develop our pallets to the point that they improve upon these definitions. Oh god, I'm sounding pompous and sassy and I haven't even had a class of wine.
Anyway, the most intriguing one to me seems to be the Carmenere, in which one can find " flavors of coffee, various fruits, spices, such as cinnamon, green pepper and chocolate."
WTF, Mate?
Well, I have a trick for you. Go HERE and just memorize what's supposed to be in each wine. Among 90% of the people you'll ever drink wine with, this will be good enough.
For Halley and I on the other hand, this is just the beginning. We must develop our pallets to the point that they improve upon these definitions. Oh god, I'm sounding pompous and sassy and I haven't even had a class of wine.
Anyway, the most intriguing one to me seems to be the Carmenere, in which one can find " flavors of coffee, various fruits, spices, such as cinnamon, green pepper and chocolate."
20 April 2008
Scandalous!
topix is claiming today, "There are no rules for pairing food and wine," and asking us to discuss.
Could this be true? Is all the struggle to find the perfect Reisling to go with my medium rare Tenderloin all for nothing?
My personal opinion is that yes, there must be rules. I feel like if the wine causes a reaction with the food in your mouth, either exacerbating, enhancing or dulling the flavor of the food, then there must be rules as to what goes with what, even if it's as simple as pairing with like textures. I'll give you an example. One of the times we had the Black Sheep (reviewed below), we made a spicy Thai Peanut Chicken flatbread pizza. The pizza: fantastic. The wine: fantastic. The two together = mouth on fire and perhaps a little too much flavor to be enjoyable. Thus, it's because of instances like that that I feel a newbie such as myself needs to be told that great wine + great food does not always equal great meal. There, I just gave you a real.
There are no comments yet, but my prediction is that this one's going to be epic.
Could this be true? Is all the struggle to find the perfect Reisling to go with my medium rare Tenderloin all for nothing?
My personal opinion is that yes, there must be rules. I feel like if the wine causes a reaction with the food in your mouth, either exacerbating, enhancing or dulling the flavor of the food, then there must be rules as to what goes with what, even if it's as simple as pairing with like textures. I'll give you an example. One of the times we had the Black Sheep (reviewed below), we made a spicy Thai Peanut Chicken flatbread pizza. The pizza: fantastic. The wine: fantastic. The two together = mouth on fire and perhaps a little too much flavor to be enjoyable. Thus, it's because of instances like that that I feel a newbie such as myself needs to be told that great wine + great food does not always equal great meal. There, I just gave you a real.
There are no comments yet, but my prediction is that this one's going to be epic.
17 April 2008
Wine Night!
It's 70+ degrees out still and perfect. The kind of weather that makes you want to take a half an hour or more to get to class, nice and light and comfortable. Thus, we kept our wine selection tonight just that: airy and fruity. (Or, at least, we tried.)
Selection:
"Protocolo 750 mL" Vino De La Tierra De Castilla (Spain)
2005 (No varietal listed)
13% Alcohol
Price Paid: $7.99
Thoughts:
Well, according to my roommate, this wine was not light and fruity, but that's just because she only likes grape juice. Halley and I, well, we're a little stumped, slightly impeded by our lack of vocabulary. I think I'm actually going to have to agree with my roommate on this one and say that it isn't light and fruity, however it's not rich and heavy (and amazing) like the Black Sheep. There's a definite difference. Though, there's also less taste of berry as there was in the Argentinian wine from last week. Halley says, "It doesn't have a smooth finish...you definitely need something to chase it with. It just like stays on your tongue." I totally agree. It's not a bad wine, and I don't know if it's just a table wine either (though, thechnically, it's supposed to be, according to Google). We paired it with Ranch dip and Kettle Lightly Salted Chips and maple roasted organic cashews and it seemed to work with those. I think overall, we're going to have to go with "mediocre" on this one. Not good. Not bad. Just a decent, tolerable red wine for under ten bucks.
I think the greater significance of this wine night however is that we've learned two things tonight. 1) We need to take wine classes 2) As amazing as the co-op is, we are definitely still limited out here in middle-of-nowhere Vermont by our wine selection (and our budget as college students).
Final Recommendation:
A good wine to have on hand (for cheap) to have for when you're stressed and just really need a glass of wine to help you relax. (The website does say, after all, "Gulpable." - Editors' note: This is not an accurate claim.)
Selection:
"Protocolo 750 mL" Vino De La Tierra De Castilla (Spain)
2005 (No varietal listed)
13% Alcohol
Price Paid: $7.99
Thoughts:
Well, according to my roommate, this wine was not light and fruity, but that's just because she only likes grape juice. Halley and I, well, we're a little stumped, slightly impeded by our lack of vocabulary. I think I'm actually going to have to agree with my roommate on this one and say that it isn't light and fruity, however it's not rich and heavy (and amazing) like the Black Sheep. There's a definite difference. Though, there's also less taste of berry as there was in the Argentinian wine from last week. Halley says, "It doesn't have a smooth finish...you definitely need something to chase it with. It just like stays on your tongue." I totally agree. It's not a bad wine, and I don't know if it's just a table wine either (though, thechnically, it's supposed to be, according to Google). We paired it with Ranch dip and Kettle Lightly Salted Chips and maple roasted organic cashews and it seemed to work with those. I think overall, we're going to have to go with "mediocre" on this one. Not good. Not bad. Just a decent, tolerable red wine for under ten bucks.
I think the greater significance of this wine night however is that we've learned two things tonight. 1) We need to take wine classes 2) As amazing as the co-op is, we are definitely still limited out here in middle-of-nowhere Vermont by our wine selection (and our budget as college students).
Final Recommendation:
A good wine to have on hand (for cheap) to have for when you're stressed and just really need a glass of wine to help you relax. (The website does say, after all, "Gulpable." - Editors' note: This is not an accurate claim.)
12 April 2008
The 2007 Vintage
Apparently, the 2007 Bordeaux wines are the best since the 2003 selection, which consisted of the grapes exposed to France's deadly heat wave.
Significance: This year, French whites are as en vogue as portraits of Carla Bruni.
Significance: This year, French whites are as en vogue as portraits of Carla Bruni.
Wine of the Week - All-week edition
*Our selection for Wine Night this week ended up being more the selection of the week since we didn't really have much time for more than a quick glass periodically.
Finca El Portillo Pinot Noir 2006 Valle De uco Mendoza, Bodega (Argentina)
13.5% alcohol
Price paid: Under $20
Honestly, this one does not get our most favorable review to date (because we've reviewed so many). It is definitely what I would call a table wine. The presence of the darker berries gives it an after taste that is just a little too tart to enjoy without food. It's been a couple days now since we finished the bottle and I don't remember how it tastes. This compared to the Black Sheep which I haven't had in almost two weeks and I can still tell you what it tasted like. (Thick and spicy. Mmm.) In other words, if mouths have memories, this is not a wine they remember. Which again, would make it a good Pinot to have when there is something else to feature, such as a citrus pasta or caper chicken dish. Oh god, now I'm hungry.
Recommendation: Next time you're at a food tasting, bring this wine along.
Finca El Portillo Pinot Noir 2006 Valle De uco Mendoza, Bodega (Argentina)
13.5% alcohol
Price paid: Under $20
Honestly, this one does not get our most favorable review to date (because we've reviewed so many). It is definitely what I would call a table wine. The presence of the darker berries gives it an after taste that is just a little too tart to enjoy without food. It's been a couple days now since we finished the bottle and I don't remember how it tastes. This compared to the Black Sheep which I haven't had in almost two weeks and I can still tell you what it tasted like. (Thick and spicy. Mmm.) In other words, if mouths have memories, this is not a wine they remember. Which again, would make it a good Pinot to have when there is something else to feature, such as a citrus pasta or caper chicken dish. Oh god, now I'm hungry.
Recommendation: Next time you're at a food tasting, bring this wine along.
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