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

Beaujolais

We are all trying a Beaujolais today.  The Swartzwelders and Hogans has Domaine Pignard Beaujolais 2011.  Brit has domaine des Rosiers Moulinavent.  Both wines are similar in grapes, region, importer, and even the labels are similar.

 

Appearance:  deep red purple, cherry colored, no legs

Smell: cherry, fruity, butter, black raspberries, hint of pepper

Taste: peppery, slight cherry, thin fine texture and finish, very light wine that doesn't stay with you long which incourages you to drink more, not as fruity as you would think, hints of raspberry.

Pairings: robin had a bacon cheese burger, the Swartzwelders had a digiorno, Brit had a meatball sandwich and a salad for dinner.  Gouda brings out the peppery taste and changes the midnote, cheddar really brings out the fruity taste and is a hit with the wine.  Chocolate and fruit needs to be avoided while enjoying this wine.

Brit Scale Ratings

Brit: weak 3
Robin: 2
Erin: 2
Sherry: weak 3

The One Minute Wine Master Quiz

One day, hanging out at Barnes and Noble, Melissa came upon a book called "The One Minute Wine Master."  Inside is a quiz to help pinpoint some wines you may enjoy.  We took the book home with us, and Melissa and I took the quiz.  I have been using the suggestions to help guide my wine choices for the exchange.  Given that some of us are "wine selection" challenged, (not naming names) I thought I would post the quiz.  All credit for the quiz goes to Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan, MW, author.

Note: These types of quizes rarely work out well for me - I frequently don't fit into one or more of the categories perfectly, but it was fun to take and see which season I mostly fit into. According to the quiz, I am a Spring and Melissa is a Fall.

The reason I like this quiz is because it introduced me to some new wines that I had never heard of before. I used the results for my last selection, the Grüner Veltliner, and now I am a fan of that wine.  Since one of the purposes of our wine exchange is to broaden our knowledge of wines, I figured this quiz was a good starting point for new wines.

Enjoy!

The One Minute Wine Master Quiz

Question	3 points	2 points	1 points	0 points
1.How do you take your coffee or tea?	Black/nothing added	A little milk or cream	A lot of milk or cream	I don’t drink coffee or tea
2.  How much sugar do you add to your coffee or tea?	None	A teaspoon	Two or more teaspoons	I don’t drink coffee or tea
3. What type of chocolate do you prefer?	Dark, bitter chocolate	Milk Chocolate	White Chocolate	I don’t eat or like chocolate
4.  How often do you put lemon on your fish?	Never	Sometimes	Always	I don’t eat fish
5.  What is your favorite juice	Apple	Orange	Lemonade	I don’t drink juice
6.  How spicy do you like your food	Extremely hot	Medium	Mild	None
7.  If you compare the body of a white wine to the body of heavy cream, whole milk, or skim milk, which would you prefer?	Heavy cream	Whole milk	Skim Milk
8. If you compare the body of a red wine to the body of heavy cream, whole milk, or skim milk, which would you prefer?	Heavy cream	Whole mile	Skim milk
9. What type of perfume or cologne do you like?	Spicy/Intense	Sweet/candied	Floral/fresh	I don’t like perfume or cologne
10.  What type of gum do you prefer?	Spicy (cinnamon)	Bubble gum or fruity gum	Fresh (mint, violet, etc)	I don’t chew gum
11.  What is your favorite snack?	Something rich like a chocolate or a candy bar?	Something savory like chips or crackers	Something light like a piece of fruit or carrot sticks	None of these

 Total Points:

Key: Spring: 1 - 13 Points

        Summer: 14 - 19 Points

        Fall: 20 - 25 Points

        Winter: 26 - 33 Points

Based on the season, the following wine recommendations are made (sorry, Jennifer, but I couldn't reconstruct the colorful, nifty answer wheel in your book, so we are reduced to a list)

Spring: Riesling, Savignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Albariño/Alvarinho, Grüner Veltliner, Marsanne/Roussanne, Anything Rosé, Beaujolais, Berbera, Pinot Noir

Summer: Soave, Chenin Blanc/Steen, Torrontés, Viognier, Dolcetto, Bonarda, Monastrell, Nero D'Avola, Cabernet Franc, Merlot

Fall: Chardonnay, Gewürztraminter, Pinot Gris, Carménére, Tempranillo, Sangiovese, Pinotage, Syrah/Shiraz, Garnacha/Grenache, Primitivo/Zinfandel

Winter:  Cabernet Sauvignon, Tannat, Nebbiolo, Melback, Petite Sirah, Amarone, Aglianico, Touriga Nacional, Merlot, Zinfandel

Grüner Veltliner Ried Sandgrube

So we all have our Grüner Veltliner Ried Sandgrube most of us have the 2011 version and Brit has another vendor with the same wine grapes and year.

Appearance: light, no leggs, slight bubbles

Smell: grapefruit, butter, yeast, lemon, ginger

Taste: grapefruit, lime, mild tasting, very short finish, no after taste, smooth texture, very light and pleasant.  The colder it is the more citrusy it is.

Pairings: salmon stuffed crab meat with as araguus went very well with the wine according to the Swartzwelders, pork also complements the wine according to Brit, pairs well with a sharp cheddar, flavored cheddar also goes well, not good with chocolate though because it highlights the flowery tastes too much.  This is a very simple, light wine.

Brit Scale Ratings:

Brit: 3
Pap: 2 (he likes red flavored wines)
Robin: strong 3
Sherry: strong 3
Erin: 4

Tasting Gerd Anselmann

On Friday, February 8th virtual vino history was made.  Three families gathered around their computers and Skyped while tasting the same wine for the very first time.  We discovered many interesting things.  Including that Skype three way calling is only meant for platinum users and that Brit has his own tasting scale (which we hope he will post later).

We tasted a Riesling-Spätlese (Spätlese literally means "late harvest"), from the Pfalz region of Germany. The vintage (for us) was 2009.  The bottle recommended pairing the wine with spicy, sweet, or sour food (basically anything except salty stuff lol).

The Hogans tasted it with a smoked gouda cheese which made the texture of the wine smoother. They also tried it with a dark chocolate, but didn't think the wine was sweet enough to hold up to the sweetness of the chocolate. The Swartzwelders paired their wine with Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate and we thought it enhanced the cinnamon taste of the wine.

Appearance - ginger ale or honey colored. Light

Nose - sweet and very fruity

Taste - apple, pear, apricot, cinnamon, medium body. "Mouthfeel" - woolly

Overall Ratings (out of 5 stars):
Sherry - 3 stars
Erin - 4 stars
Sean - 0 stars
Brit - 3-4 stars
Melissa - 3.5 stars
Robin - 3 stars
Gerry - 3.5 stars