Grüner Veltliner

Robin picked an Austrian wine Grüner Veltliner from Winzer Kremser Sandgrube. It's a white wine with 12.5% Alcohol. The grapes are Niederösterrich.  This wine costs around $15.99. 

Appearance: tiny bubbles, quick legs, and a 3 on the pee scale. Yes you read that right!  We got tired of trying to decide what shade of Amber the white wine was so we decided to use the hydration urine chart to describe the color of the wine. 

Nose: citrus, lemon, alcohol/acid, grapefruit, and gardenia 

Taste: fuzzy tounge, spices finish, lemon, mineral. Several members of the group think it has a taste and feel that resembles Alka Seltzer. 

Some claim that food improves the taste of the wine. Especially if it's a creamy cheese. 

Ratings: 

Erin 1

Rob: 2

Sherry: 2

Robin: 2

Sarah 2

Melissa and Sam got a different wine because they couldn't fine any Austrian wine. They got a New Zeland wine called Oyster Bay. Which they rated a 3. The rest of us were very jealous of their good wine choice. 

Zeller Schwartze Katz

We finally got the gang back together for a wine skyping session after a long hiatus.  For more information about how we got together check out our story/mission statement. 

We tried a Zeller Schwartze Katz Qualitätswein by Schmitt Söhne. Good German wine from the Zell vineyard in Longuich Germany with 9.5% alcohol. It says to be paired with light foods and served chilled. It's a steal at $8.99. Most of us had the 2014 vintage. 

Appearance: translucent amber, almost clear with quick legs

Nose: sweet, flowery, slightly citrus, honeysuckle 

Taste: fruity, Apple, pear, citrus, clean finish with no aftertaste 

Pairing: went well with various cheese and crackers, pretzels 

Ratings:

Sherry 3

Robin 3 

Erin 3

Sam 3

Melissa 3

We all really liked this wine but couldn't give it a 4 on the Brit scale since we didn't think it was a Superior culinary event (it was sooo light!). On a side note Melissa thinks that only red wines can be 4s. 🙄 See our post about the Brit scale for more information on our rating system. 

This is a great light wine that pretty much anyone would like.  Great to bring to a dinner with friends. Sherry called this a great patio wine. 

Chateau De Nages

Roses abound. This post is actually from 5/3/13 but we never published it.... I can't imagine why...

Appearance: pink with very slow slight legs

Smell: grapefruit, gardenia, berries maybe raspberries and blueberries

Taste: mouthfeel is wooly and scratchy with a smoother finish, short taste, we don't taste much berry at all, there is a citrisy note, ginger, semi dry, blueberry/raspberry combo taste.

Pairings: The Swartzwelders had spaghetti with meat sauce.  Brit had overbaked cod.  The Hogans had pasta primavera.  Stay away from chocolate while drinking this wine.  Food definitely brings out the taste of this wine.  Cheese improves this wine without a doubt.  It doesn't really matter what kind of cheese: Gouda, Brie, cheddar, English, etc it all brings out the berry taste and makes the wine have a slightly smoother texture.

Brit Scale Ratings

Melissa: 2
Brit: 2
Robin: 2
Gerry: 1
Erin: 2
Sherry: 2

Fratelli Bellini

Tonight we tasted Vino Bianco's Fratelli Bellini from Rufina Italy.  It was a 10.99 white wine in a SHARK BOTTLE!  Yes, I Erin Swartzwelder picked this wine.  It's a shark bottle.  Do I really need to explain my choice?  The entire Smeal clan was together for this one: Sherry, Brit, Robin, Jim, and most of the children and spouses attended as well.  :) 



None of us paired the wine with anything since we didn't end up tasting until 9:15ish. 

Appearance: The wine had legs, tiny bubbles, and was a ginger ale color.

Nose: We smelled citrus, honeysuckle, and it smelled DRY.  Robin pointed out that since it is 12% alcohol it will probably taste dry as well.  (GEE thanks).

Taste: We agreed that it was a light tasting wine.  It is citrus-y and it tastes just like it smells. DRY

Rating on the 4 point Brit Scale: (we needed a refresher on the Brit Scale and if you would like to know more about our rating scale click here.)

Brit 2
Robin 2
Sherry 2
Erin 3
Melissa  2

I must say that the coolness of the shark bottle MAY have influenced my rating.....

Brit's Corner April 2014

Brit's Corner April 2014 (not to be confused with Kiner's Korner, the popular post-game show of the New York Mets which was hosted by Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner through the early years of Mets TV broadcasts).  What?  No, his show was about baseball not wine.  But having dated some the biggest Hollywood names during his playing years he probably learned a thing or two about wine along the way.  Yes, that was my odd little way of paying tribute as Ralph passed on earlier this year. 

But I digress (already)... while we're on baseball news, I've recently acquired two bottles of fine cabernet sauvignon from Napa Valley's Hall of Fame pitcher, Tom Seaver.  Yes, THE Tom Seaver he of multiple Cy Young Awards and one  NYMets World Championship ring turning the lovable losers into World Series Champions in 1969, The Miracle Mets.  After retirement he returned home to California to grow grapes hoping to make fine zinfandel.  He looked long and hard for bargains on Diamond Mountain until he found the parcel he needed and the rest is history, as they say. Except that the land was ripe for cabernet sauvignon, not zinfandel.  Tom groused but followed his wine maker's advice and planted cabernet.  Within a few short years he was making 94/97 rated wines only in small batches sold directly to the consumers-no outlet stores. So I got on the mailing list for the 2011 and sure enough in February I received an offer to buy two bottles, one each of GTS and NLS bottles. The price was a little steep for me but hey, this is Tom  Seaver and I'd heard great reviews so I signed up and in a couple weeks they arrived in sunny Corpus Christi Texas much to my delight!

Back on track - my new quest is to find drinkable wines, even pleasant wines, for $10. or less.  Yes, tough one there, how is this possible?  Well, I think it is thanks to the modern explosion of the wine making business.  There are just so many possibilities you never know what you will find.  Today I'm reviewing a Clos Du Bois Merlot 2011 from Geyserville, CA. The wine was dark red, full legs, aroma of dark fruits and spice.  The taste confirmed the dark, musky fruits with spice or pepper notes but a pretty well integrated and balance taste.  I think "mission accomplished" on this one, good value wine, probably score a 2+  but nice.

Let me share one more under-$10. bottle: The Immortal Zin from Peirano Estate Vineyards, 2012  Sells for $11.  The wine was purple, full bodied, fruity and spicy. The taste was full and bold and very tasty! I recommend it.  Gave it three stars on the Brit scale.

Next time a review of six wines from a Wall Street Journal holiday special offer.  Were they naughty or nice?  Find out next time.....

Brit Smeal

Unoaked Chardonnay

We tried the Dominican Oaks California Unoaked Chardonnay from 2012.  

Appearance: golden yellow with legs 

Smell: pear, apple, slight lime, grape

Taste: very slightly fizzy, smooth mouthfeel, pear, apple, short smooth pear beginning note, tart green apple finish, very light bodied.

Pairings: cheese was fine with the wine according to Brit.  The Swartzwelders had burgers and coleslaw for dinner.  Brit had salmon for dinner.  The Hogans had chicken parmasean for dinner (which we think effected their rating).  Heavy food and chocolate do not go well with this wine.  Please note that our wines we consumed after dinner and not with dinner.

Brit Scale Ratings:

Brit: 3

Sherry: 3

Erin: 4

Robin: 2

Melissa: 2

Brit's Corner June 201

Brit's Corner - June 2013
I've been searching for great bottles of red wine under $15 lately, and have been partially successful. Two cabernet sauvignon's have come to my attention. First was our wine club selection for Friday, June 14th, Rodney Strong 2010 from Sonoma County. Rodney Strong has a good reputation of producing good wine at a reasonable price and this selection was no exception.  Priced at $12-15 this was a good value.  I also sampled a Robert Mondavi Private Selection 2010 cabernet sauvignon, about same price.  Robert Mondavi also has a similar reputation and also did not disappoint.

First, bear with me for a geography lesson... both Sonoma and Napa are about equi-distant from the northernmost end of the San Fransisco Bay area, which is called San Pedro Bay.  They are about 20 kilometers north of the bay and about the same distance from each other (east to west).  One could expect the grapes in these two areas to be very similar as they have the same soil, weather, etc...  And they were. 

The Rodney Strong cab had quite a bite at first, with pepper and smokey oak overpowering any other flavors, in the initial sips (also a buttery taste).  This subsided with each sip giving way to a nice, pleasant taste where one could taste the fruits better and a typical Cabernet flavor; very enjoyable. 

The Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon was very similar, but perhaps just a bit less bite initially, but also it didn't seem to fade as quickly.  By the end of the first glass both wines had pretty much lost their bites and the dark fruits shone forth. Rodney Strong had maybe a cherry hint while the Mondavi was maybe more of a plum, but otherwise very similar.  I rate both a 3 on the Brit scale, although maybe a weak 3 and admitedly, I tasted the Rodney Strong on an empty stomach.  I had no cheese or other food to sample with the wine to get a better culinary experience.  The Robert Mondavi was a different story, as I had lasagna for lunch before tasting it.  That probably impacted the tasting.

In summary, both wines are from generally the same region, same grape, same vintage, and very similar in flavor.  I like them both!  Up next, I'll share some Merlot experiences!

Until next time, here's wishing you good eats, and good wine treats!

- Brit