Tasting- Chateau Morrisette Vidal Blanc

 

Name:  Chateau Morrisette Vidal Blanc

Variety:  Vidal Blanc

Region:  Chateau Morrissette

Country:  United States

Vintage:  2022

Price:  $21

Critics Review:

"Primary aromas include peach blossom, lanolin and Gala apple dusted with confectioners' sugar. Crunchy acidity gives this medium-bodied wine plenty of cut and a tart finish."

- Chateau Morrisette 2011 Vidal Blanc (Virginia) Rating and Review | Wine Enthusiast

Wine Folly:

Page 121:

    This mentions that Vidal Blanc is an ice wine.  This means the grapes have to naturally freeze in the vineyard.  I just thought it was interesting because I remember in the lecture videos that harsh temperatures can kill grapes and ruin a harvest.  Some of the specific flavors and aromas mentioned with this wine were pineapple, lemon curd, honeysuckle, apricot, and lychee.  I was definitely able to get a lot of the pineapple, but I also got some peach too which was interesting because it was not mentioned.  

My Personal Review:

    I honestly really liked this wine, it was probably the second sweet wine that I have drank all semester.  It was very light bodied I thought and refreshing given the warm weather we were having.  I got a lot of fruit up front, specifically the pineapple, followed by a sweet finish

Tasting- DaVinci Chianti

 

Name:  DaVinci Chianti 

Variety:  Sangiovese

Region:  Tuscany

Country:  Italy

Vintage:  2020

Price:  $20

Critics Review:

"DaVinci Chianti is a well-balanced wine of medium weight with jammy flavors of ripe plums, cherries and red fruit. It has a deep crimson color and is a lively wine with a soft mineral finish and round tannins that linger in long, peppery finish. This wine pairs perfectly with all starters, pastas and meat dishes."

Da Vinci Chianti 2020 | Wine.com

Wine Folly:

Page 162:

Some of the specific flavors and aromas mentioned are cherry, roasted tomato, sweet balsamic, oregano, and espresso.  I was definitely able to get the cherry, and oddly enough the balsamic towards the end.  It wasn't like the typical balsamic smell, but more just the vinegar-like notes that I could smell.

Page 162:

This page just talks about the aging specifications in Chianti, which is interesting because I genuinely had no idea that Chianti wines were named based off their aging and quality requirements.  For Chianti wines that are aged for two years, they are called "Riserva" which is what this wine is.  

My Personal Review:

This was my first time ever trying Sangiovese wine, and I honestly was not a huge fan of it at first but it definitely grew on me.  I felt like this wine was fruit forward, as I was able to get the cherry off the rip.  But as it went, I was able to get a little bit of vinegar followed by a tannic finish.  Overall, I'm not sure if I would buy this wine again because the price before discount was something like $43, but it was marked down to $20.

Drink This Now Lesson Blog Report #2

    For the second Drink This Now lesson, I decided to go with lesson #1.  In this lesson, we were to go buy a type of wine, some hard cheese, and lastly pair this wine with some foods to see how it evolves.  In addition to the pairing with cheese and foods, we were to try the wine upon opening and take notes, and let it sit for two hours and then try again and see how it has changed.  After that is when you try it with the cheese.  I went with parmesan as my hard Italian cheese.  As far as the pairing goes, I paired this wine with grilled chicken covered in cheese, bacon crumbles, and raw onions. 

For the wine:

Cotes du Rhone Apellation d'origine protegee

The cheese:

I went with Kroger brand Parmesan

Dinner:

Step #1: Initial reaction to the wine

    When I opened this wine up and pouring the first glass and took a sniff, I was immediately taken punched with fruity aromas.  I was really preparing for a super fruit-forward wine.  As far as specifics of aromas, I was able to get plum heavy, some blueberry, and a little bit of blackberry but I was not positive on that.  As far as color goes, this wine is a darkish purple color.  No debris or anything in the wine.  Now onto trying the wine, the fruity flavors, again, specifically the plum, were very present, but honestly not as strong as I had imagined they would be based off the smell which kind of surprised me.  I was also surprised about the spice this wine punched, specifically on the aftertaste.  So much so that after my first sip I even coughed.  It seemed to soften up though as I worked through the first glass.  

Step #2: Let the wine open up for a few hours and try again

    After leaving the cork off the wine for a few hours and revisiting, I was able to notice a pretty big difference in both the smell and the taste.  Trying the freshly opened wine, you are punched by the fruity aromas on your first sniff.  This is not really the case after letting the wine sit for a little bit.  It is almost like the wine has mellowed itself out during this timeframe which I really enjoyed.  As far as any other aromas I was able to pick up that were not previously there, I kind of got a little bit of chocolate or vanilla, I'm not really sure how to describe it but it just smelled silky.  Now for the tasting, it was pretty much the exact same as smelling in terms of how much it had mellowed out.  You could definitely still get the plum notes but not as dramatic.  The spice that hit me at the end of first trying it was no longer there, as the wine finished velvety smooth.  I was definitely able to get some vanilla which I thought was weird because that was not listed as a descriptor for either Grenache or Syrah, the two grapes in this wine.  

Step #3:  Try the wine with cheese:

    So, after trying the wine initially, waiting a little bit, and then trying the wine again, we are to try the wine with the hard Italian cheese.  Just as a reminder, I went with parmesan.  I took a bite of the cheese by itself first to try to get a feel for it, and it was definitely very potent by itself.  I took a drink of wine while I was working on the cheese and I could immediately note how much bigger the fruits tasted.  Its like the cheese brought out what I was smelling initially.  Also, the spicy element I was able to taste before was completely gone.  The wine finished extremely smooth, and the fruit was jumping.  I honestly liked this wine so much more with the cheese because it seemed to like disarm it in a way.  As far as how the cheese changed, it definitely softened up a bit too but honestly I could not taste a huge difference, maybe because of how elevated the fruit flavors were in the wine.  

Step #4: Trying the wine with dinner:

    So after I had let the wine sit for several hours and tried it with cheese, next up was trying this wine with dinner.  Like I mentioned earlier, I had grilled chicken covered in cheese, bacon pieces, and fresh onions.  As a side dish I had corn on the cob with butter and Cajun seasoning.  As far as the chicken goes, I felt like the wine got a little bit of a bitter taste to it when I tried it with the cheese bacon and onion, I had a bite without all that stuff and just the grilled chicken and the wine kind of went back to its normal mellowed out form, so not much to tell there.  Other than getting a tad bitter with the cheese, bacon, and onions, there was not really much change going on here.  A little disappointed with the lack of change in this pairing, but it definitely did not ruin the meal or anything.  As far as the corn on the cob goes, also the same.  Could have been the Cajun seasoning but I felt like it just made the wine get more bitter.  I also enjoyed this meal and wine with my parents, so we finished the bottle at dinner.  

    Overall, this lesson was actually really cool.  Being able to see how the wine evolved from something that comes out from the jump and really gets after you to a wine that mellows out and becomes very silky smooth was interesting.  

Tasting: Cotes du Rhone Appellation d'origine protegee

 

Name:   Cotes du Rhone Apellation d'origine protegee

Variety:  65% Grenache, 35% Syrah

Region:  Les Vignobles Foncalieu

Country:  France

Vintage:  2021

Price:  $12

Critics Review: 

"This Côtes du Rhône blend sets off a red berry explosion on the nose with cherry candy and fresh cranberry. More smokey dark prunes and dried tea on the palate with soft-textured tannins. A fair level of acidity keeps the ripe fruits vibrant. Juicy, well-balanced and quaffable."

Co-op, Côtes du Rhône, Rhône, France 2021 (decanter.com)

Wine Folly:

Page 117:

    This is the flavors and aromas expected in a grenache wine.  Mentions stewed strawberry, grilled plum, leather, dried herbs, and blood orange.  This is interesting because the only two I was able to really pick up on is the strawberry and grilled plum.  

Page 172:

    Now this is the flavors and aromas of Syrah.  Highlights blueberry, plum, milk chocolate, tobacco, and green peppercorn.  I was definitely able to get the blueberry and plum right off the nose, and after drinking I could get milk chocolate in the finish and tobacco in the spice. 

My Personal Review:

    I tried this wine for the first time by itself and one of the things I noted immediately was how much this wine punches you straight away with the fruity aromas.  I was able to get blueberry and plum, especially the plum as it was highlighted as an aroma in both grenache and syrah.  I was planning for a super fruit forward wine after smelling, but after I tasted it I was taken aback by the spice this thing came with.  That could come due to the hints of tobacco in this wine.  Specifically in the aftertaste.  Overall, very good wine and I would definitely buy it again.  

Tasting- Green Fin Red Table Wine

 

Name:  Green Fin Red Table Wine

Variety:  Red Blend (Could not find specifics but I think heavy pinot noir?)

Region:  California

Country:  United States

Vintage:  2020

Price:  $4.99 (Trader Joe's)

Critics Review:

The price is unbelievably cheap for the flavor. It’s about a $5 bottle, but it sips like it’s at a higher price point. It’s on the sweet side; heavy on fruit notes (berries), but not so sweet that it goes down like a Moscato. This red is absolutely sip-able on its own, even at room temperature, when it’s harder to fake good flavor compared to a chilled temperature. Bonus: It’s made from organic grapes. Next time you’re in Trader Joe’s, try picking up a bottle.

Wine Folly:

Page 288:

    Mentions that while cabernet sauvignon and oaky chardonnay is what California is best known for right now, the zinfandel, Syrah, and petite Syrah all highlight the fruit-forward flavors of California, which I thought was interesting because this wine was very fruit forward and it was from California, so I would not be surprised if this wine featured some of those grapes. 

Page 189:

    Some of the specific flavors and aromas mentioned in a zinfandel are blackberry and strawberry.  I do not know for certain if Zinfandel is included in this blend, but I got a heavy dose of blackberry so I figured I would not that.

My Personal Review:

    For what I paid for this wine, it was phenomenal.  I would 100% buy this wine again.  I got heavy fruit aromas the first time I sniffed it and that did not change once I tasted it.  Some of the fruits specifically were blackberry and cherry.  On the label of the wine it mentions soft mocha flavors, I was not really able to get this, but I did get the very smooth finish.  This is probably the best value wine I have ever had. 

Wine and Dinner Blog #2

     A few friends and I just recently went on a cruise for spring break (see the sunburn and Hawaiian shirt) and we all purchased the drink package.  So with all the alcohol and food I could ever want, I figured it would be irresponsible of me if I did not enjoy some wine on this trip.  Unfortunately, I was the only one of the people on the cruise that is currently taking this class, but that definitely did not stop me from having some fun with different wines.  The last night on the cruise I knocked out the second wine and food pairing and it was honestly phenomenal, especially since I did not have to do any dishes this time around.  

    So, for the meal, I started things off with a Caesar salad for the appetizer.  For the main course I had a New York Strip steak with a combination of mashed potatoes and vegetables.  And to finish things off with dessert I went with a baked Alaska, which I was a little bit nervous about because I had never had one or even heard of it, but I figured I would try it.

    Now, getting into the specifics of the wine.  The first wine I had was a Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio.  With the steak I had a Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay, and with the Baked Alaska I had a Santa Helena Merlot.

#1:  Caesar Salad paired with Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio

Starting off with the wine by itself:  this wine was extremely light bodied and a very refreshing way to kick things off after a day of being in the sun.  I was able to get strong fruity notes off this wine with a dry, but not very tannic, finish.  Really the only fruit flavor I could get was tart apple.  

    Now moving onto the pairing, and I was pleasantly surprised.  I feel like the salty element of the croutons in the salad went hand in hand with the refreshing element in the wine.  The Caesar dressing kind of threw me off a little bit because tasting it without the wine I just thought it tasted normal, but when I took a bite and followed it with some wine, I felt like the garlicky flavors in the dressing really got brought out, which I was not the biggest fan of, but it was not very overpowering.  I don't necessarily think this pairing really brought anything out that wasn't tasted prior, but definitely a good pairing.

Specifics of the wine:

Price:  $20 for a bottle

Variety:  Pinot Grigio

Region: Veneto, Italy

Specifics of the Salad:

    Just Caesar dressing, chopped lettuce, and croutons.  Nothing fancy at all

#2:   New York Strip paired with Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay 

    I really enjoyed this Chardonnay.  It had a mild tannic finish but it was not overpowering.  Some of the specific flavors I was able to get were apple pie, but not apple or anything very fruity as weird as that is.  I was also able to get oaky/buttery flavors in this wine which was cool because I had always heard how Chardonnays can have a buttery finish but I had no clue how that could be a flavor in wine until I tasted it.

    Now for the pairing specifically, I thought that the steak itself might have overpowered the chardonnay a little bit, but it paired well.  I think this may have been the buttery sauce that was coated on the steak because it really brought out the buttery flavor in the wine.  It felt like this combination almost diminished the apple pie flavors I was getting before.  One thing that really surprised me was the combination of the mashed potatoes with the wine.  Again, it was how buttery the potatoes were that seemed to really fit like a puzzle piece with the buttery finish of the wine.

Specifics of the wine:

Price:  $17 for the bottle

Variety:  Chardonnay

Region:  Sonoma County, California

Specifics of the steak:

New York Strip with buttery glaze, mashed potatoes, and vegetables. 

#3:  Santa Helena Merlot paired with Baked Alaska:

    The wine specifically punches you in the face with fruity flavors.  I had never really smelled a wine before where I was immediately able to take a step back and be like woah.  Some of the specifics I was able to get were blackberry and raspberry.  After tasting the wine, I was able to get a little bit of sweet vanilla on the finish.  This wine felt a little bit more fuller bodied, and it was not very tannic on the finish but the alcohol was definitely present.  Even when just smelling the wine you could definitely get big whiffs of the alcohol.   

    As for how these two paired, it was an odd pairing.  So baked Alaska is kind of like Neapolitan ice cream between two graham cracker-like things and then roasted marshmallow on the top.  The wine with the strawberry part of the ice cream was the part that threw me off because it was like the wine and the ice cream went against each other almost.  It was like the strawberry came off as really bitter when pairing it with the wine which I did not like very much.  But, drinking the wine with the roasted marshmallow/graham cracker part was phenomenal.  It was like the fruity elements of the wine were still present but the sweetness of it got exacerbated.  So a weak start for this pairing, but a strong finish.  

Specifics of the wine:

Price:  $7 for a bottle

Variety:  Merlot

Region:  Central Valley, Chile

Specifics of the food:

    Graham cracker, roasted marshmallow, and Neapolitan ice cream.

Tasting- Black Box Chardonnay

 

Name:  Black Box Chardonnay

Variety:  Chardonnay 

Country of Origin:  Australia

Region of Origin:  Monterrey 

Vintage Year:  2019

Price:  $4.99

Critics Review:

"Black Box Chardonnay is a vibrant white wine that comes in a light and transportable box. This box wine has refreshing hints of crisp apple and a touch of oak to accentuate the smooth finish. It also makes the perfect pairing with foods like chicken, white fish and soft cheese. Black Box Chardonnay wine is the perfect choice for outdoor and on-the-go occasions, from hanging by the pool to camping with friends. Each 500 mL box contains about 3 glasses of wine with 14% alcohol by volume. The convenient, compact box is shatterproof and resealable, making any outing easy."

Black Box Chardonnay White Wine Box Wine Price & Reviews [4.6 Stars] | Drizly

Wine Folly:

Page 96:

    Some of the specific flavors and aromas mentioned for chardonnay are yellow apple, starfruit, pineapple, vanilla, and butter.  This makes sense to me because I was able to get some pineapple in the taste of the wine, but nowhere in any description about this specific wine did it mention pineapple so that was kind of reassuring to win that one in terms of being able to pick up specific flavors and aromas.

Page 207:

    This page mentions that Margaret River, Australia is one of Australia's top ranking regions for Chardonnay.  I found this interesting because it mentioned these Chardonnay's tended to have more mineral and fruit flavors due to the sandy, granite-based soil which I was definitely able to pick up on.  It also mentioned that this region produces both oaked and un-oaked styles of Chardonnay.

My Review:

    This wine was a little bit higher in alcohol, coming in at 14% alcohol.  I could definitely taste that, as this wine came in with a little bite to it.  I also noted that this wine has a very tannic finish, which honestly surprised me.  If I had not known what color the wine was, I honestly would have thought it was a red because of how tannic it is.  Honestly, I was able to get more oak than I was able to get fruit, although fruity aromas were present.  Specifically, pineapple and green apple which I thought was weird because nowhere in any description did it mention pineapple.  I would probably give this wine another try because it was fairly cheap and not bad for the price.  I did not have this wine with any food.