InTo Zin

Yep, yesterday at the grocery store I found a Zin from Lodi...one of our favorite wine countries. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite as good as I wanted it to be.

In To Zin was a smooth wine, but not as big & bold as I expected. The label at the store said bold, but it was more grapey and lite. It would be a nice sipping wine on the deck. It might be good the next day. We let it breathe for an hour, but still didn't have that zip or spice I expected in a Zin

Hinojosa Malbec

A few weeks ago at Downtown Uncorked, we tried a nice drinking wine (& affordable, too)

Hinojosa is a nice malbec that has enough flavor to enjoy, but not too complex. You'll taste plum & vanilla. Of course, it has a good volume of oak, but not overpowering.

We've had this wine several times since that day...and will enjoy again & again.

Hinojosa
Malbec Roble
2008
Mendoza

Wine Tasting for Wedding

A few weeks ago I bought several bottles of wine at Sam's so we could have our personal tasting and decide which wine to serve at Ashley's wedding. That first night we opened Paul Newman's red. It's just a plain wine...no pizazz. I thought I could donate to charity if we used this wine, but it is not good enough to share.

Next we had Inkberry that I bought at our local grocery store. It was pretty good. Ashley really enjoyed it and we all liked it better than Newman's.

Inkberry
Mountain Estate Shiraz Cabernet
Central Ranges Australia
Delicious, dark flavor. Small clusters of grapes with fantastic dark "inky" color. Will enjoy again

Since that time, I discovered that our wine club has a not advertised special on several wines. Since Lava Cap is one of my favs, we decided to order a case of each of their reds at 50% off. Now we have a variety of wines: Syrah, Merlot, Cab Sauvignon & Cab Franc. Can't wait to get them and share with our friends.

Casas de Pirque

Out of the wines we get from our local wine club, this was better than normal.  We enjoyed sipping on it, but it was much better the following day.

Casas de Pirque

Reserva

2007 Maipo Valley

Cabernet Sauvignon

Deliciously complex, rich & polished, exhibiting rich plum, blackberry & spice.

Borghese Chardonnay

Yummy & rich!!!

That's Borghese's Chardonnay.  We tasted this wine after a private tour of the vineyard.  This wine is often used at wine dinners and paired with a steak.  It holds up well because it is so rich...not too buttery nor too oakey.  Just right!

Last night, I cooked a rib-eye soaked in Cognac - very tasty - with potato balls & sauteed mushrooms.  We had shrimp salad set in a half avocado.  To end the meal, I made Chocolate Mousse.  When I first started making the mousse, it wasn't turning out right.  After I whipped the chocolate smooth, I folded in more egg whites.  It set well and had a deep chocolate flavor.

Borghese

2005 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay

North Fork of Long Island

Nestled in the North Fork of Long Island's Bordelaise microclimate, Castello di Borghese Vineyard has crafted classically proportioned wines since 1973.  Blessed with a 210 day growing season and sandy soils, Long Island's first estate vineyard ferments vintage after vintage of critically acclaimed wines.

Estancia Cabernet

A few weeks ago we had April & Jesse Saginor for dinner. They brought a bottle of Estancia Cab which was fun to drink.  A nice Cab!  We'll drink this again

Estancia

2007

Cabernet Sauvignon

Paso Robles

After sunset, temperatures drop as marine fog sweeps in, lingering until dawn.  These cool evenings & warm days create a longer growing season, allowing grapes to ripen to perfection.  

Deeply concentrated & intensely flavorful displaying dense black currant, lush chocolate, & dark cherry fruit flavors followed by a long, supple finish.

New Wines

Steve, Ashley & I ended up working out on the deck this afternoon. It was a beautiful day so we opened a bottle from our local wine club. We had Blake Slate Pinot Noir. It was very light & fruity. None of us cared much for it. Ashley suggested putting ice in the glasses like Sangria. Even that didn't make it taste better. If you light fruity, you'll like this wine.

With dinner, we had Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc-Viognier, as recommended by Rachael Ray's magazine. It was also a fruity wine, but more balanced. Flavors were more of a melon. It was very refreshing and enjoyable with our meal.

Oak Lane Chenin Blanc

We joined a local wine club that allows us to try their wine tasting each Thursday night for free. Wine Styles is the local store & you might have one in your area. Steve & I had fun at our first one. Each month we also get 2 bottles of wine from different wineries. It's fun to try something new from a wide variety of vineyards. We're also looking forward to their monthly pick-up party where wine members get to taste wines they are considering stocking in the store. Hopefully we will make the April party.

The first wine we tried at home from our wine club is Oak Lane's Chenin Blanc blend with Sauvignon Blanc. It's a nice wine that I could enjoy on a summer afternoon. Just enough fruity taste to keep drinking.

Oak Lane
Chenin Blanc-Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Stellenbosch, South Africa

For centuries, Oak Lane has been the majestic BEau Joubert entrance. It symbolizes the historic & long-standing dedication to creating award winning wines, demonstrating a rare combination of early drink ability & longevity.

A crisp, medium-bodied dry white wine made in a new world style. Enjoy now or cellar under optimum conditions.

Channing Daughters Chardonnay

We bought this wine at the end of our trip to Long Island last summer. We thought we'd stop at one last vineyard and boy am I glad we did. It was one of our favorites...and the prices were better, too.

Enjoyed in Feb 09. I love this wine because it is rich and delicious. Although I enjoy a fruity Chardonnay in the summer. This Chardonnay is nice & bold, full of butter & oak flavors.

Channing Daughters
2006 L'Enfant Sauvage Chardonnay
The Hamptons, Long Island

L'Enfant Sauvage is made from grapes harvested from our sculpture garden and Black Kiln Vineyards. This wine was fermented in new French & Slovenian oak barrels with naturally-occurring wild yeast & took over one year to complete primary fermentation. All the fruit was handpicked, whole cluster-pressed, handled minimally & bottled by gravity. Cheers!

Wine Styles in our hometown

On our way home, Steve stopped by Wine Styles. It's a cool store here in College Station, Texas. They divide the wine according to tastes, fruity, rich, bold, and so on. That means a bold merlot may be mixed with a cabernet. The store manager pointed out some wines and gave us some tastes. We settled on a Cabernet Cauvignon.

Maxwell Creek 2004
Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa

Steve & I both liked the various flavors this wine provides, making it a complex red wine. I liked the deepness of each flavor, too. When we had some the following night (tonight), I noticed a woody, piney taste that I hadn't noticed the day before.

Maxwell Creek recommends pairing this Cab with beef & barbeque.

We will definitely enjoy this wine again, especially since we can get it locally.