Summer Abroad

If you wonder why I haven’t posted here lately it’s because I’ve been traveling. A trip around the world can take a lot out of a guy. That’s right, I said around the world. Five continents and at least six different countries. You didn’t know I was gone? Neither did my wife—and she was with me.

Okay, you called my bluff. We actually didn't leave the country—or go further than about one hundred miles from home—all summer. But we have had a few wines from around the world and I’ve been saving up the reviews. (You can read that as too lazy to write and post them.) I think we had a South American wine over the summer, but I don’t remember it and didn’t save the bottle or the website as I did with the others. We’ve had a couple of American wines recently too, but Sue reviewed one (Jarhead Red) and the others are some favorite ones (like Red Truck) that we’ve already reviewed. Here—from Australia, Europe and Africa—are what we remember. All of them were in the range of ten to fifteen dollars.

I’ll admit that we bought an Australian 2004 Woop Woop Shiraz only because of its name. Woop Woop describes this Shiraz as “deep in colour with great intensity, bursting with blackberry fruit juice, blueberry jam and masses of clean varietal Shiraz fruit” and “well balanced with black liquorice, pepper and spice giving tremendous flavour and length.” I’d say that it was true to that description. If that sounds a little dark and heavy, you’re right. And if you’ve been following Sue’s tastes and mine, you can guess that I liked this one and she didn’t. So that would be one thumb up from us.

We’re no experts with French wine and know next to nothing about how to choose one. So, I can’t really tell you how or why we picked a French 2006 Vieille Ferme Blanc. Vieille Ferme describes this blend of Viognier, Vermentino (called Rolle in southern France), and a few other grapes as having “lots of peach and pear fruit backed by a round, creamy finish.” It was a light type of fruity wine—which is exactly what I don’t like. In this case though, Sue and I agreed that we didn’t care for it much. That’s not to say that it wasn’t a good wine—it just wasn’t for us.

Our South African 2005 Fleur du Cap Pinotage was forgettable. And by that I mean that neither Sue nor I can remember too much about it. We didn’t hate it, but we didn’t love it enough to want to remember to buy it again either. Fleur du Cap describes this one as having a “dark ruby colour with purplish edges,” “ample berry fruit aromas dominated by plum and sweetish mulberry flavours,” and “rich and ripe plum flavours…supported by a good tannic structure.” Like the dark Australian Shiraz, it’s one that I liked and Sue didn’t so much. Another one thumb up.

Sue and I have almost always agreed on liking Spanish red wines and a 2006 Tapeña Tempranillo was no exception. Spanish riojas and tempranillos are often dark enough for my liking, but light enough for Sue. Tapeña describes this Spanish red as a “rich, bold blend of fruit, earth and structure, rounded out by a deliciously soft mouthfeel. We think of this Tempranillo as something like Pinot Noir in blue jeans.” A Pinot Noir in blue jeans? I’m not sure we would have come up with that, but we can agree that the wine has a hint of “luscious red cherry fruit wrapped around an earthy, intense center” with a finish “long and layered with a hint of coffee and chocolate and a pinch of spice.” Actually, we wouldn’t have come up with any of those words either. But we do give it two thumbs up and we’re buying more.

So, without leaving home, we made it around the world this summer. I don’t think any of these are strictly summer wines though. Let us know if you try them too.

Vacation

Chef Mickey

So, I just got back from vacation and while I was away I decided to try some new cocktails. I don't typically drink hard-alcohol, but I decided to dabble a bit..... rather than just sticking with the typical beer & wine..... it was vacation after all.

Although this is "The Whinery"..... I thought I'd share a few of the tasty concoctions that I enjoyed on my trip.

At the Big River Grille, I tried a Raspberry Ice Pick (Stoli Raz, Tangueray, Captain Morgan's, Chambord and a splash of Sprite) and it was lovely. Smooth, refreshing and despite all the booze -- very mild -- this is one that could sneak up on you and knock you off your nut!

I also tried (on a different evening of course) Big River's Chai Latte Martini (Voyant Chai Cream Liqueur, Kahlua and chilled coffee), which was also lovely -- but didn't taste like there was much "power" in it.... just like a $9.00 glass of chocolate milk in a pretty glass.

While at the Leaping Horse Libations, I was able to try a Poolside Lemonade (Bacardi O, Bacardi Raz and Sweet & Sour) -- yum! The only problem is that when you are poolside, these go down like lemonade -- and they are far more potent than that. They are cool and refreshing, but will catch up to you in no time.

At Chef Mickey's (Contemporary Hotel) I had a Mudslide Martini (Bailey's, Vanilla Stoli, Kahlua, vanilla ice cream) and it was delicious. It was lovely and rich, but again, it tasted like an expensive chocolate milk in a fancy glass (decorated with chocolate syrup)-- but it did have a bit of a kick.

I may try to recreate some of these at home.

OOO RAH!

So a couple weeks ago Darren, Clare and I were in the wine store trying to chose a wine for that evening (well, not so much Clare - she just has to touch everything and make me nervous because she's attracted to the most expensive bottles for some reason). I saw this red and with Darren's former college roommate being a Marine and all, we decided to try it.

Jarhead Red is "a wine made by Marines, for Marines (ed. note: I didn't know Marines drank wine, but you learn something new every day I guess), on California’s Central Coast. Net proceeds from the sale of this wine benefit the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, which provides educational assistance to children of U.S. Marines, with special attention given to children of fallen Marines". So far so good - red wine (always good) and a good cause.

Upon opening the bottle, the first sniff made me a bit nervous. The wine smelled a bit acidic and I was afraid it would be vinegary. The first sip was very light, and while the Jarhead Red website states: "Jarhead Red is a robust, full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon. It was aged in French oak barrels for eight months. It offers flavors of plum, cassis and black currant with fine tannins on the finish" it took awhile for any flavor to begin to show up after sipping.

The wine definitely improved after being in the glass a bit - if you were to get this wine, I'd recommend opening the bottle and letting the wine breathe a bit before taking the first sip. I think we paid about ten dollars for the bottle, and if you're looking for something that supports a good cause and could be a conversation piece, if you can find this wine it would be a good choice.

This is posted in honor of Lt. Col. Brian P. O'Keefe USMC, currently serving our country in Kuwait.

So the dingo ate your baby, huh?

I just couldn't face the stove tonight, so we got take-out from a local Italian place. The food's just okay -- but it's cheap and easy and I didn't have to cook it. As the Big Dubya left to pick up our order, I suggested.... how 'bout I open a bottle of wine -- he accused me of talking dirty and then said he'd be back shortly.

I went to the wine rack and grabbed a bottle of 2005 Jim Jim Shiraz. I know very little about this wine, but it was purchased at a wine shop in the Berkshires which described it as "Big" (there was a sticker on the bottle).

There was no price tag on this bottle.... I know the wine shop specializes in good wines that are less than $15 and these guys have it listed for $10.99, so.... I'll say it's in the $10-$12 range.

I put the bottle on the kitchen table, grabbed some glasses and the corkscrew...... then I noticed the bottle's a screw top. I know screw tops are all the rage these days and that lots of reputable, high-end wines are moving in the screw top direction..... but I'm just not there yet -- I immediately thought "Ugh, we're screwed".

I opened the bottle and waited for dinner to arrive. The big guy thought that the acidity of his marinara conflicted with the wine and accentuated the tannins in a less than complimentary fashion. His feeling was that this wine probably would have been better had it been paired with steak, as he enjoyed his after-dinner glass more than his during-dinner glass.

The Big Dubya and I agreed that we wouldn't have classified it as "Big"..... we were thinking more "Medium". He was able to appreciate the berry flavors at times and he called it subtle whereas I didn't really find it to be very fruity.

I'd be more apt to describe it as mellow and almost a little flat -- there wasn't a ton of flavor which isn't meant to be a criticism..... it almost adds to it's versatility -- this is a wine that might work well with a buffet -- it wouldn't interfere with most foods.

Bottom line -- good, not great -- I'd buy it again if it were on sale.

D'Vine Wine

Lone Star Chardonnay

A close friend of mine, who lives in Texas, sent me a wonderful care package after I had surgery back in March. In that care package was a bottle of wine from D'Vine Wine of Texas. This white wine was from their Vintner's Select Wines and was called "Lone Star Chardonnay." According to the website, it has a peach flavor. Last night, my husband and I finally got around to popping the cork and giving it a try.

Why did it take so long? Because I am not a huge fan of Chardonnay. I normally find them to be too dry for my taste. But my husband needed a white wine to cook with so he opened this one up and we imbibed on the rest with dinner.

The first sip was actually quite delightful - very fruity and light - not dry at all. Unfortunately, the delight didn't last long for me - I thought the aftertaste was a tad bitter, though my husband thought it was fine. Would I buy this one again? Probably not, but it was a nice change from the usual Chardonnay.

3 out of 5 grapes.

Summer, Summer, Summertime....

I'm a red wine girl.... I like a nice glass of red wine on a chilly evening.

Problem is.... it's July -- and although the humidity has finally broken here in CT, it's still in the mid-80s. I'm not complaining -- believe me, I'm not complaining -- but..... a glass of rich red wine that warms your insides just doesn't call to me this time of year -- so what does that leave? white wine. I know nothing about white wine.

We have some friends coming for a visit this weekend and so, I asked the Big Dubya to pick me up a bottle of wine. He asked what I wanted..... and I struggled.... I just honestly don't know.

I hemmed and hawed and came up with pinot grigio.... I wanted light and sweet -- something cold that that I could sip leisurely.....

Anyone want to suggest a good white?

Talk me into (or out of) giving Yellow Tail another try

Several years ago, a guy at work told me that Yellow Tail was a terrific affordable (a.k.a. cheap) wine. So, when I saw it on sale.... I picked up 3 bottles (it was something like 3 for $20).

One night, the Big Dubya and I decided a glass of wine would be nice and we busted open a bottle of the yellow tail -- I want to say it was Merlot, but I can't be sure.

It was disgusting -- I would have preferred to drink a glass of Robitussin. We didn't even finish the glasses -- we poured them down the sink, followed by the rest of the bottle. If I recall, the Big Dubya noticed something suspicious about the cork and so we deduced that it was probably just a defective bottle -- those who'd recommended it had never steered us wrong before.... we must have just gotten unlucky.

Well here we are..... it must be 4 or 5 years later, the other two bottles are still on my wine rack. Not sure why I haven't either opened them or thrown them out -- but, I haven't.

Do any of you have an opinion of Yellow Tail that you'd like to share?