Not So Common Cava

I search the internet quite often looking around for wine articles, books, hot topics in wine and such. Through a search I came across the book, The Bubbly Bar - Champagne & Sparkling Wine Cocktails. How cool! Not too many books out there about the topic, and you usually have to get a general cocktail book to find the 3 recipes they have for champagne. The book was written by The Bubbly Girl, Maria Hunt who has a blog and website of the same name. And her book has taken off! She's been on various tv and radio shows promoting the book and was on a book tour, which stopped by DC. Clearly I had to attend.

The event was sponsored by the American Institute of Wine & Food's (AIWF) DC Chapter and was a tasting of Spanish Cavas at Commonwealth in Columbia Heights, DC. Maria greeted me soon after I walked in, and I realized that her title of Bubbly Girl didn't just refer to her love of champagnes. She thanked me for attending her event and gave me a quick overview of what we'd be tasting that evening. 9 cavas!! Then she made her way around the room to greet guests and chat before the wines were poured.

Tasting notes were provided for all the wines from the tasting, but of course I took my own and will give you my 3 faves below.

Paul Chenau Cava Brut

Very complex in flavor with great acidity, this wine also showed melon and citrus on the palate. Great honey finish. Super cool label.

Juve y Camps Pinot Noir Rose

I didn't have big hopes for this one at first, I'm not the biggest rose fan. This was one of the few cavas of the evening where I got pronounced fruit aromas. Scents of strawberry and raspberry and the chalky minerality on the palate made me find favor with this rose.

Castilla Perelada Cava Brut Rosado Cuvee Especial 2007

Big Red is what I thought when I first put my nose in the glass. Ripe flavors of raspberry on the palate along with a slight hint of spice. A bit of residual sugar in this one balanced the crisp acidity. I think I found my New Year's sparkler!

Vino Italiano

The day was rainy and dreary, as it had been for the past few days...but how could I be dreary when I had an Italian wine tasting to prepare for and host! This idea of exploring the wines of Italy actually came from the client. She had an Italian wine at a restaurant and fell in love with it (the wine was Montepulciano, I'm glad she wrote it down :-) When it comes to Italian wines, most people just think Chianti and Pinot Grigio. But Italy has over 500 documented grape varieties and 20 wine regions. Clearly we have missed a few. Since my client wanted to learn more about Italian wines and maybe even discover some new ones that she loved, I figured I would pick some popular Italian varietals that Americans may not be too familiar with. So, on with the tasting.

Since it was raining and cold, I figured that people would be a bit tardy so I started off with Verdi Spumante for guests to sip on as they arrived and got situated. This spumante is made from the moscato grape using the 'champagne method'. It's pretty sweet, labelled 'demi-sec' which is about 33-50 grams of sugar per liter. I knew my audience though, and the Verdi was a hit.

The 1st white served was Marchesini Frascati Superiore which is a blend of trebbiano and malvasia grapes. The Frascati had a slightly honeyed flavor with a bitter herbal finish. Very light in body, this went very well with some of the light appetizers that were served. While this was a new wine for many of the guests, not too sure if they're interested in buying it by the bottle. Although, one guest did say that if she was somewhere it was being served, she would definitely drink a couple of glasses.

Since pinot grigio is one of Italy's most popular wines, and one that most people have tasted, I figured I should have it at the tasting but maybe just in a different way. Antica Corte's blend of pinot grigio and garganega fit the bill. Very smooth with light acidity the garganega added a bit of apple and pear flavors to blend with the typical citrus taste of pinot grigio. Slight acidity and minerality were also found on the palate. A nice alternative to your straight pinot grigio and very good as an aperitif or salads and chicken...or chicken salad!

At an in-store wine tasting I tasted and enjoyed the Mormoraia Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Made from the vernaccia grape (San Gimignano is the town it originates from) it was the 1st white wine to gain DOCG status in Italy. This particular style of Vernaccia di San Gimignano was aged in stainless steel for 4 months before bottling, lending to a very crisp flavor and a bit of strong acidity on the palate. Slightly almond-y and floral on the nose, but fruity citrus flavors like grapefruit were on the palate. Most of the guests liked this medium-bodied white and thought it would taste great with shrimp or a light fish.

We took a short break at this point to clean our glasses and our palates before we started with the reds. There were smoked meats available, olives, pizza, and pasta. All the perfect Italian foods to pair with the Italian wines. Guests asked various questions about general food and wine pairings, wine temperatures...you know, the kind of stuff that people always want to know but are afraid to ask. Glad they felt comfortable enough with me to ask.

First red wine, Azelia Barbera d'Alba from Piedmont, Italy. The barbera grape is the 2nd most widely planted red grape, sangiovese (used for the popular Chianti is 1st). A very smooth example of barbera, this wine had very good acidity to balance with the medium tannins making for a velvety mouthfeel. Refreshing fruit flavors of raspberry and cherry were present on the palate with a spicy finish. Barbera most closely matches pinot noir in terms of flavors and style of wine. While of course you can pair Barbera d'Alba with any food with red or tomato sauces, this would also go well with salmon and light red meats.

Wine Enthusiast had an article in their October issue about Ripasso so I thought that I put one into the mix for this wine tasting. The Ripasso process is essentially the union of 2 wines: Vapolicella, a base wine made from fresh grapes, is poured over the skins, seeds, and pulp of dried, fermented grapes previously used to make Amarone. This combo undergoes a 2nd fermentation which results in Ripasso which actually means, 'passed over twice'. The resulting wine from Villa Mafei's Valpolicella Ripasso was a rich cinnamon and spice flavor with hints of cherry and almonds. The crowd loved the slightly oaky taste on the finish, definitely a crowd favorite. Paired with the salami and prosciutto the wine tasted even richer. Not too bad I might add for a bottle that was under $20.

Saving the host's request for last (so she could taste and assess the other wines with an open mind) we tasted the Montepulciano d'Abruzzo from Abruzzi, Italy. Similar in style to Zinfandel, this medium-bodied but heavily tannic wine showed strong ripe notes of cherry and crushed blackberries on the palate fading into a spicy vanilla finish. Great with olives, antipasto and just foods in red sauce in general. As the saying goes: "If it grows together, it goes together", and boy does this stuff grow and go together!

There's a Band-Aid in My Cabernet

The highlight of my month, WSET Tasting Club! Cabernet Sauvignon was the grape of the month. And with 9 people in attendance, we tasted, discussed, and gained a bit of understanding regarding the differences between the cabernets of different regions. Our Cabs were from Chile, Italy, France, Argentina, South Africa, California, and Australia.

As usual we did a blind tasting and tried to 'guess' where is wine was from based on the key flavors. This time was much harder for me as far as what wine was what because I don't have much experience with a wide variety of cabernets. So I was also excited because I would get the opportunity to taste cabs from different regions and pick up on the nuances in flavors and colors of the wine that give a clue to their region of origin. Was SUPER excited for the South African one since I'm really into wines from South Africa right now. Don't ask me why...

My excitement unfortunately was blown away when we went to taste wine #6 and it smelled a bit rubbery. We thought it may just need a bit of time in the glass. After tasting and evaluating 3 more wines we came back to good ole wine #6. Now it wasn't just rubbery, it was medicinal. The tasting notes read "Deep red / purple colour. Intense aromas of spicy black fruits, liquorice and tar. Bold and mouthfillling with bramble fruits, damson and black cherry, savoury tannins and an aromatic finish. Chunky, uncompromising style." It was compromised all right! One person said it smelled of Bactine...I smelled nothing but Band-Aids. Everyone agreed and proceeded to pour that wine out. Even worse for me because it was the wine I brought :-(

Now wines #5 and #7 were the winners for the best of the night, but I think #7 might have snuck in there because it was just much better than what we had had before, LOL!

Wine #5 Decero 2006 (Argentina)
Medium - high intensity with ripe red fruit aromas of red cherry and raspberry. Very jammy on the palate with a peppery finish. This wine is perfect to drink now.





Wine #7 Babarossa, Il Doso (Italy)
Deep ruby in color, the cab has a soft texture with spicy cherry and raspberry notes on the nose. It's medium tannins and oaky licorice taste make this a great wine for everyday drinking. Wouldn't necessarily grab a big steak for this one but red meat would go well with its mouthwatering finish.



After going through the 8 wines (the corked one doesn't count) I may not be able to tell an Australian cab from a Chilean cab but I can definitely tell the color and flavor differences between Old World (France, Italy) and New World (everywhere else). It was best explained by a member that Old World cabernets smell more of lean fruit like cassis and blackberry while New World's smell of lush fruit like plum. I'll have to keep that one in my memory bank.

Walk Around Wine Tasting

This past week Rick's Wine & Gourmet hosted a walk around wine tasting with Tri-Cities Distribution. With 6 different tables and over 20 wines to try, I definitely had to pace myself. I started at Table 6, it was closest to the door and empty at the time. They had 2 French wines, a red and a white, and 2 sherries. The French white (2007 Sacha Lichine La Poule Blanche) was a crisp slightly earthy blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Viognier. The blend of Chardonnay and Viognier really toned down the herbal, grassy quality of the Sauvignon Blanc so the wine had bright citrus notes with crisp acidity and a very floral aroma. The French red (2007 Sacha Lichine Le Coq Rouge) had a very complex red fruit flavor with a hint of earthiness from the French soils. This blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Grenache also exhibited hints of spice and pepper on the finish. Sherries are typically after dinner drinks and would definitely ruin my palate for the rest of the wines, I came back to these at the end. What table will I visit next?

The least amount of people were at Table 2, so that's where I went! Out of the 4 wines at this table, there were 2 with grapes I've never tasted before. So excited that I will be able to check off a few more grapes on my application for the Wine Century Club. Both wines were from Quinta do Alqueve in Portugal, the first, a 2008 that used the Fernao Pires grape and was aged in stainless steel. Citrus and tropical fruit aromas on the nose were followed by a zesty mineral character and pineapples. One of the best wines I had never heard of. Next up was there Tradicional a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Periquita and Trincadeiro. The flavors on this were somewhere between a Burgundy and a Bordeaux. Very rich aromas of plum and blackberries appear on first swirl and blend with a subtle oak and earthiness on the palate. Very heavy mouthfeel like a a cab or merlot but the rich, ripe fruit flavors of a pinot. The best thing about them outside of the taste of course, they're both under $12!

Table 1 had an interesting red blend, 2006 Yard Dog Red. The blend of Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot is I'm guessing Australia's answer to Bordeaux. Very dark, almost black in my glass, I didn't expect a lot at first glance. Intense aromas of black fruit and sweet spice. Ripe plum and blueberry flavors carry over to the palate and are balanced by a soft acidity and a good bit of alcohol. I would love to try this one with barbecue, and at $12 a bottle I will definitely try this again.

I'm now 10 wines into the tasting...luckily there were cheese and crackers or pate at every table. My tastebuds were definitely getting tired! But a true wine taster must forge ahead :-) My favorites from Table 3 were the 2007 Domaine Terlato & Chapoutier Shiraz/Viognier. I love this blend. The Viognier always lends a floral, perfumey aroma to the spicy, smoky Shiraz. This Australian style shines with flavors of blackberry and raspberry. Barbecue with sauce or a smoked brisket would be a great pairing for this blend. Still in Australia, I tasted the 2008 Two Hands Angel's Share Shiraz. On first sniff, this shows aromas of coffee and licorice. Not the greatest smells together, good thing the taste is different! The flavors of Coke, pepper, black cherry, and raspberry redeemed this wine from interesting aromas. I love the spicyness of this wine and it lingered on into the finish. You could actually store this wine and drink it in a few years.

The wine of note from Table 4 was the Zolo Torrontes, 2008. I may be a little biased though because I love Torrontes but the peach, honeysuckle and floral aromas get me every time. The tropical fruit flavors and slight acidity only make me want to buy the bottle. At under $10, this wine came home with me.

I'm officially pooped now and have also remembered that I still need to drive home after the tasting, on to the sweet wines! I know I will only have a sip or 2 of each of these.

NV Quinta de Honor Ruby Port - A great after dinner drink for sipping, this ruby colored port is medium bodied, smooth and smells and tastes of black cherries.

2008 Two Hands Brilliant Disguise Moscato - Smelling this wine was like walking through a peach orchard. Fresh, ripe peach flavors with a bubbly, sugar finish. This was a sparkling moscato. Not too bad, would definitely need a fruit tart or a creamy dessert to eat with this.
NV Manzanilla Romate Sherry - Made from the Palomino grape, manzanilla sherries are pretty typically very high in alcohol. This one is no exception. I've been told that I need to be at a sidewalk cafe in Spain in order to appreciate this style.
NV Amontillado Romate Sherry - I always pick this one correctly in a blind tasting because it has a strong almond finish. Hints of honey were also present.

A fantastic display of several different styles of wine, from different grapes and different regions. Rick's always does a fantastic job of offering good affordable wines and allowing customers to taste before they buy. Recommendations from your favorite wine merchant or magazine are great but at the end of the day, only you know what you like. Get out there and taste more wine!

Rain or Shine?

I know that Labor Day is the unofficial end of summer, but did it have to end so abruptly?? It's been raining here one minute and the sun is shining the next. And the cold front came in the very next day! So with summer being over, kids back in school, but it's not really fall yet...what do I drink in the meantime between-time? I'm not ready to let go of the summer completely and pull out the big Cabernets and Zinfandels, but I also can't continue to drink sangria or the light crisp summer whites that I've grown accustomed to...

On the suggestion of my wine merchant, I went out on a limb to try something that I've never had before, something that I believe is between the seasons so to speak. I opened a bottle of Paul Lehrner Blaufränkisch. Blaufränkisch is widely planted around Austria and produces a dry, fruity red wine that is sort of like the baby to a Zinfandel and can be served slightly chilled. Receiving a 90 in Wine Spectator, I had great expectations for the Paul Lehrner. Very aromatic, this wine smelled very earthy with rich black fruits. The palate hits you with spice at first, then settles down to fruit flavors of blackberry and black cherries. Slight hints of oak follow on the smooth finish. Expectations exceeded.

With the spicyness in this wine, I believe it would go great with barbecue sauce (a fav of mine!) or smoked meats. I actually drank this as an aperitif because I'm watching my food intake for my fitness boot camp, my 'cheat' meal was on Labor Day :-). I did use some wine preserver for this one so I can try it with food this weekend. Nothing like a little wine and barbecue to hold onto the summer...

The Darker the Berry, the Darker the Wine

Cahors is Back, Cahors is Black, Cahors is Malbec! That statement was on the cover of the promotional materials for wine tasting I attended yesterday at The Dupont Hotel. Cahors is one of the lesser known wine regions of France, but with the fine representation yesterday, that won't be the case for long.

Cahors, located in Southwest France, became an AOC in 1971 and is now making its move to center stage with the growing popularity of Malbec around the world. Cahors producers 19.5% of all the Malbec in the world...but the greater known Malbec regions in Argentina produce over 70%. Well, Cahors was doing Malbec long before Argentina. Malbec from Cahors is affectionately nicknamed "The Black Wine" due to its dark color in the glass. At present, Cahors wine must be made with at least 70% Malbec. It's often blended with Merlot to offer rounder, mellower characteristics or Tannat to reinforce the Malbec grape flavors and to allow for greater aging potential. Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon are prohibited in Cahors blends.

Typical flavors of French Malbec are violet, black currant, cherry, licorice, vanilla, menthol, and truffle. The Cahors wines of the tasting were divided into 3 categories which made it easier to know what you may like and how to pair it before you even took a sniff or sip. Tender & Fruity, Feisty & Powerful, and Intense & Complex. The Tender & Fruity is most suited to the American palate with the fresh fruit flavors of cherry and black currant and light tannins. These wines pair perfectly with poultry or grilled meat and can even be served as an aperitif. My personal favorites were the Feisty & Powerful ones. These wines showed much more complex fruit flavors, heavier tannins and great balance in the blend.

Wines of Note from the Tasting:

Chateau la Coustarelle Grande Cuvee Prestige -- aged for 1 year in French oak but didn't impart a strong oaky taste on the palate, smooth flavors of black fruits and violets were present

Chateau Pierre Le Grand -- fresh flavors of blackberry and woodsy notes on the palate with a slightly chalky finish. great balance of fruits and tannins.

Chateau de Chambert -- very earthy on the nose but black cherry and minerals on the palate. 25% of this wine was aged for 1 yr in French oak which softened the tannins a bit and lended to a round complex finish. definitely an example of a 'black wine' with its dark dark inky color in the glass.

Chateau Armandiere Diamant Rouge -- slight hint of oak on the nose but replaced by strong black fruit and mushroom flavors on the palate. pretty high tannins in this one but the black cherry flavors provided a great balance.

The Whites of France

Last night was another meeting of the WSET Tasting Club. Ok, so that isn't the official name but that's what we have for now. This was the first time that the whole group was able to get together since the class...and let me just say that this group is a riot. Well, so am I...I guess. At least Peter thought so since he hadn't heard me say more than 5 words during our 11 weeks of class :-).

The night started with a ridiculous spread of cheeses and charcuterie presented by Dona and her hubby Chris (thanks guys!) Then we headed to the patio for pre-tasting sips of Ken Forrester Sauvignon Blanc. I proceeded to be eaten alive by mosquitoes as I sat enjoying the wine and conversation, to the point that I actually thought I was breaking out in hives! No big deal, the wine was great and I'm not really a big sauvignon blanc fan. But I will give this one a 2nd glance in the wine shop, very fruit, crisp with high acidity but not the grassy herbal taste I'm used to with sauvignons.

Back inside we sat down to a placemat with 12 glasses and people began pouring out the wines in their paper bags (this was a blind tasting). We entered out wines on a spreadsheet when we came in and then they were wrapped. The spreadsheet was printed out so we could match the wines we tasted to what we thought they were. Funny thing though, we had 2 red wines in front of us and 1 red on the sheet. Found out later that the 2 reds were the same thing! If that wasn't funny enough, we had 7 whites on the list...but only 6 in front of us. The joke behind that was that 2 of the whites that we were tasting were the same thing AND 2 of the ones on the list were still in a bag on the living room floor!! They never made it into the tasting, HAHA!! We all got a good laugh out of that one.

But enough about the tasting shenanigans. On with the notes. There were actually 7 whites and 1 red, one of the whites was a champagne.

First up, a 2007 William Fevre Chablis. I brought this one, seeing as though I actually went to this winery on my trip to Burgundy, it was a natural choice. And a great choice. Chablis is the greatest example of Chardonnay in my opinion, with its dryness and high acidity, there is no oak aging so the fresh citrus fruit flavors and minerality come through on this one. Clearly I was able to select this one correctly blind.

2007 Sancerre -- Not your average sauvignon blanc, with flavors of apple and banana on the nose. The palate was surprisingly different with crisp grapefruit and lime. Medium on the finish but a great wine that is ready to drink now, but can age. My 'guess' was correct at first, then I 2nd guessed myself and got it wrong.

2007 Entre Deux Mers -- A youthful white with citrus, limey fruit on the nose. Dry with high acidity, this wine displayed the citrus flavors on the palate along with grass and mineral notes. I don't believe this wine will get much better with aging so I would drink it within the next year. This was my first taste of an Entre Deux Mers from Bordeaux and I was very pleased. With that being said, I didn't get this one right either.

2002 Les Pierres Girard Anjou Blanc -- At 7 yrs old, this already developed wine was a bit closed on the nose fruitwise, just giving honey, stewed scents. After a bit of swirling we got the intensity on the palate. Fairly high in alcohol and body, rich tastes of pear, pineapple, and apple came forth. A bit of almonds and minerals on the finish, I think this one has done all the aging that it's going to do.

Michel Turgy Reserve Champagne -- Since we could clearly tell this was a Champagne we actually tasted it first, but it was in the 5th tasting spot. Pale and lemon green in color, the nose of apple and yeast that are typical of champagne came through. With racing acidity on the palate and an intense taste of toastiness, yeast and melons. A very good example of a true champagne, some of the tasters believe this could actually get even better with age. I'm not one to age champagne, I say pop the bubbly when you buy it!

2006 Castelmaure Corbieres -- Well, when you have a white wine tasting and someone brings a red...it's not too challenging to blind taste. Medium garnet colored in the glass, this developing red had red fruit and smoke on the nose and the palate. While very balanced, the Corbieres offered no real depth in its flavors. Perhaps a bit more time in the bottle will allow development of richer and riper flavors.

2007 Trimbach Riesling -- Pale, lemon green in color this Riesling stayed true to form. Scents of honeydew melon and petrol floated from the glass before the swirl. On the palate were more citrus fruit flavors and even sort of the taste of petrol. Very well balanced with alcohol and acidity, this wine was very good and will get even better with a bit more age. My confidence was back up with this one, I got it right!

2006 Trimbach Pinot Blanc -- It was fairly tough to pinpoint what I smelled with the pinot blanc, I just knew that I smelled something. Good thing I was tasting with a group. Once someone pinpoints a smell, that's all you need. Wet wool, someone yelled out...and that is exactly the smell I got from this one. Very dry on the palate but a very intense taste of hay and pineapple with a medium finish. A good wine to drink as an aperitif right now or let it sit in your cellar for awhile and see what happens. As this was the only wine left on my list, there was no guessing or thought process involved in selecting this one :-)

Pinot on My Mind

On Monday night my WSET tasting club kicked off with its first meeting. There were only 3 of us for this one, but we knew we had to get it started or else we would never do it. I'm so glad we did! The meeting was great...and now I'll plan my schedule around the tasting club schedule....the 2nd or 3rd Monday of each month.

This month was a horizontal tasting on Pinot Noirs, with a Cabernet Sauvignon thrown into the mix to check our tasting skills. Our host for the month, Tim, had a fantastic setup. He served us an apertif of Chardonnay from Sonoma Cutrer. His wife, Ann Marie (a definite hostess with the mostess) had prepared trays of cheeses and charcuterie and pistachios. The glasses were placed at the table on a sheet with numbers that corresponded to each wine. We had tasting sheets from the Master Sommelier program to assess each wine by aroma/flavor and structure charateristics. There were even spit cups to use while we assessed the wines. I clearly went back after the tasting to finish off the glass of what I liked!

As for the actual tasting of the wine, all 5 wines were tasted blind, and we all kinda knew which one was the Cab (Wine #2) first sip. The smell gave it away too, it had a slighty earthy, musty character. It was a Chateau Greysac Medoc, tasted delish though.

Wine #1
Regional Bourgogne
A slight floral hint appeared on the nose while flavors of red fruit, fresh raspberries were apparent in this dry red. There was also an earthy, soil component. The rest of the tasters noted that this wine had probably seen time in a French or American Barrique. I definitely need more work with 'oak' tasting.

Wine #2
Chateau Greysac Medoc
The dryness and high tannins of this wine were a dead giveaway. The black fruit on the palate confirmed what we thought, this was the cabernet.

Wine #3
Cote Nuits Village
Aromas of red fruit and strawberries practically jumped out of the glass on this one. Hints of florals and soil also appeared on the palate. This wine also saw time in a French Barrique. But that strawberry... I went back for a full glass.

Wine #4
Chalone Monterey
After tasting the 'original' pinot noirs from Burgundy, it was a bit easier to tell that this one was from California. While having the dryness and medium tannins that are indicitive of Pinot Noir, the red fruit flavors in this wine weren't nearly as fresh and ripe as the Burgundies. We didn't believe that this wine spent any time in oak.

Wine #5
Saintsbury Carneros
Hints of spice and black fruit were present in the aromas and on the palate in this one. Off-dry with medium tannins, this wine had a great fruity finish...that I actually did finish ;-)

Again, a fantastic tasting for our 1st one. We continued the evening talking about wine, books, travel, a whole lot of stuff! Then we had our coffee and prepared our minds for the 1 1/2 hr drive back home. Thanks to the O'Hare's!!!

Spain in the Summertime

This past Sunday, I had the privilege of attending a free wine tasting of Spanish whites at Cork. Now I'm pretty familiar with reds from Spain and even some of their fortified wines, but with it being the middle of summer, I had to put the reds down. I do love my Albarinos right now, but would definitely like to see what else Spain had to offer as far as white wines are concerned.

The tasting consisted of 3 tables with 2 wines each starting with sparklers and ending with an aromatic and crisp white. I have definitely found some new wines to sip this summer, I even sat at the bar after the tasting to have a full glass of a couple of my faves. And I can add a few more grapes to my Century Club list, 100 grape varieties here I come! Here are the wines and tasting notes (according to Cork) listed below:

2008
Avinyo Vi diAgulia
Penedes

Undergoing a secondary tank fermentation, this wine has a slight fizz that made it a perfect wine to start the tasting with. With crisp, fresh flavors, this wine is best enjoyed with friends at a picnic or the start of a cookout. Serve well chilled.

Avinyo Cava
Penedes

This Cava uses the traditional grapes of Parellada, Xarel-lo, and Macabeo to create this fresh sparkling wine. It is also aged on the less for 18-22 months giving a toasty, biscuity flavor on the palate.

2007
Ameztoi Txakolina
Getaria

I had never heard of this wine or grape before in my life. But I'm sure glad I am now familiar with it. While not a sparkling wine in the sense of how it is made, but this wine uses residual carbon to give it a kinda natural 'spritzy' quality. With lime on the nose and the palate, this was definitely my favorite! Drink this as an apertif or with shrimp cocktail.

2008
Ostatu Blanco
Rioja

A blend of the viura and malvasia grapes, this wine has steely, mineral aromas. This is mainly due to the fermentation in stainless steel tanks. On the palate you get hints of bright lemon and ripe citrus fruits. Another perfect choice for these dog days of summer.

2007
Do Ferreiro Albarino
Rias Baixas

I already have a love for Albarino's, and this is another producer I can add to my list. Do Ferreiro actually adheres to organice principles in cultivating the grapes and ferments each parcel separately so that they maintain their individual character until blended for the final product. This albarino had sort of a chalky aroma, tasted of ripe peach in the palate.

2008
Vina Mein
Ribeiro

This wine is a blend of treixadura, godello, and laueria with small amounts of albarino, torrontes, albilla, and cano for good measure. Many rivers crisscross Ribeiro, which creates a cool, damp environment perfect for making clean, crisp whites. Aromas of honeysuckle, apricot, are present. On the palate, it’s slightly dry, but light bodied and refreshing, with tart apple and citrus flavors. Pair seafood with this one but go easy if you use lemon.

For the Pinot Lover in You

This past Sunday, I attended a Wine Speak brunch hosted by Brenda Harrison and VinoLovers as part of their 'Wine Wisdom Weekend'. The weekend hosted several African American vintners to come out to showcase and speak about their wines. For the brunch, Mac McDonald of Vision Cellars was the featured speaker...and boy what a treat! If only everyone that talked about wine had the passion that this man has. Sitting in my chair and listening to him speak, it was like we were in my living room sipping a few glasses of wine and having a conversation. He discussed everything from how he met his wife, to how he got started in the business, and why you should always clean your glass at wine tastings. And his Pinot Noirs, to die for!!! I've had a couple before, but at this event I had the opportunity to taste some that I'd never tried. I'm so glad he also mentioned that I can find his wines in DC! A review of some of the wines I tasted is below.

OH! I can't end this post without mention of the bread pudding Brenda Harrison made and the white Hennessey cream sauce. White Hennessey is now on my 'must have' list!

Vision Cellars Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

This deep ruby colored Pinot jumps out of the glass with aromas of plum and ripe dark fruits. Once you taste it, spicyness and toast and cherries come to mind. This wine has a solid finish and as Mac McDonald says, "My wine is to drink now." So buy a bottle and enjoy once you get home.

Vision Cellars Marin County Pinot Noir

Not to be too biased ;-) but this one is my fav! The juicy berry aromas pique your interest of what's in the glass. The blueberry and pomegranate taste makes you fall in love. Then there's the hint of smoke on the finish that leaves you waiting to take that next sip.

Vision Cellars Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

Rich aromas that are typical of your great Pinots are found in this one, blueberry and cherry. On the palate the cherry bursts through with dense, but elegant flavors. Slight hints of spice provide a long, smooth finish.

I Just Wasn't Thinking

OK, so I'm in my 8th week of classes toward my WSET Advanced certification and realized that I was missing out on a golden opportunity. I have so far tasted over 50 grape varietals and taken notes in class, but until this week...it never dawned on me to blog about the wines I taste! DUH!!

Well, better late than never. I have about 80 wines to write up and review so that I can catch up. Good thing that I don't have a day job! Just so I can feel like I'm starting off on the right foot, here is the first wine I tasted in WSET.

2006 Chablis "Le Prieure" Cave des Vignerons de Chablis

Burgundy, France

Very pale and lemon-green in color, this Chablis had an aroma of melon on the nose. While high in acidity the light body of this wine balanced it out and left you with citrus fruit and mineraly, flinty flavors on the palate. This was a great example of Chablis and can be aged or is a perfect wine to drink this summer with oysters.