Wine Dinner #2 - 4/8/15 - The Palisades

It was really sunny when we were seated!

Today, Will and I had date night + wine and food pairing night at the Palisades (which, coincidentally, is where we went on our very first date many moons ago).  The theme for this evening was Italian food and wine, and our waiter told us that this is the wonderful chef's favorite style of cuisine.  Here's the menu:

Potato Gnocci (potato dumplings with browned butter) paired with La Carraia Orvieto Classico (2013 - This classic Italian wine is pale yellow in color and offers elegant, intense aromas of Mediterranean flowers, citrus fruit, and apples.  Fresh and full bodied with good acidity.  Excellent balance with a long and pleasing finish.)

Braised Chicken (tomato and olive braised chicken over polenta) paired with Tiamo Chianti (2013 - This is a medium-bodied red wine that is superbly balanced with aromas of red fruits and violets.  Fruit forward, soft, and very elegant flavors.)

Taste of Italy Pizza (tomato, mozzarella, parmesan, kalamata olives, and pepperoni) paired with Bonaventura Rosso Toscano (2009 - ruby red color, smooth and elegant in the mouth and medium bodied.  Aromas of rose petals and dark cherry with hints of flavor from dark cherry fruit and some red licorice with a finish of earthy tones.)

Swirl and Sniff

And here are our reviews:

La Carraia
This wine was SO beautifully fragrant!  The nose was composed of ripe apples, honey, and what could have been papaya or mango.  It tasted like you were biting into the center of a ripe, juicy pear that had just been rinsed off with really cold water.  This was an easy drinking wine with a crisp finish.  With the gnocci, the acidity was mellowed out a little bit, but some of the fruitiness was also hidden.  I think I prefer the two separately!

Tiama Chianti
Our noses may have been a little corrupted by the delicious smells of our foods, but this second wine smelled like raw meat and rotten cherries.  It tasted earthy with super jammy notes and high tannins.  With the braised chicken, the tannin structure calmed right down and this turned into a very drinkable wine!  The fruit notes were brought out to play by the tomato seasoning and the butter-iness of the polenta really brought out the nice body of the wine.

Bonaventura Rosso Toscano
The Toscano had a TOTALLY different smell and taste than the Chianti.  On the nose, it was herbal and fresh, like you accidentally fell into your mother's herb garden and released a bouquet of smells.  It tasted just like the description above says: like dark fruits and licorice.  Because I am not a fan of anything remotely close to sassafras (including licorice and root beer), I really didn't like this wine on its own.  Will, however, loves that flavor and this was his favorite wine!  With the pizza, specifically with a bite of the pizza containing an olive, the licorice flavor was toned down allowing the fruit flavors to come out to play.  This really was a delightful pairing which turned an overwhelmingly one dimensional wine into something special.

Thank you, Palisades team, for a wonderful night and fantastic food!  This was the best gnocci I've
ever had!  We rounded off our meal with one of the legendary pizzas, a havarti and pear beauty.

Sad because the wine and food are gone :(

PIZZA!!!

Wine Dinner #1 - 4/4/15

Practicing Vaynerchuck's famous "sniffy sniff"

Tonight, we decided to spice up the traditional family Easter dinner by turning it into a wine and food pairing extravaganza!  Dad, Will and I hit up our local (pretty gucci) Kroger and spoke with the sommelier to find wines to pair with our meal.  With our main course, a meat lasagna, he recommended an Italian Chianti (which makes sense).  For our side of asparagus pan-seared in olive oil and salt, he recommended a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.  Finally, he suggested a Cava from Italy to pair with strawberries and a mild cheese as an apperitif.  Each of his suggestions were in the 10-12 dollar range.  In attendance were myself and my boyfriend Will, my sister Laura, my mom and dad, and my grandparents (Grammy and Pop pop).

Full wine details:

Ruffino 2012 Chianti Superiore from Pontsassieve, Italy

Fire Road 2014 Sauvignon Blanc from Marlbourough, New Zealand

Segura Vidas 2013 Brut Reserva Cava from Penedes, Spain

Our beautiful appetizer, all set up

We started things off with the Cava, and did the tastings collectively.  We smelled apple, pear, salt, vinegar, strawberries, and mineral water.  We tasted apple as the primary flavor, with a bitter aftertaste.  Pop pop and I both have colds, and it helped with our itchy throats :)  With the strawberries, the bitterness was cut in half and the wine was very good.  With the brie, the bitterness was amplified.  The strawberries were the best pairing, and it was fun to see Mom and Grammy, who don't normally like Champagne-style wines, really enjoy the taste combo.  Laura also tried the Cava out with white cheddar cheese-its and said the taste reminded her of the sea breezes of Portugal.

Asparagus and Sav Blanc!

Next we tried the Fire Road sauvignon blanc.  It had a really powerful, smack-you-in-the-face nose of green cantaloupe, passion fruit, mango, musk/catnip, osage orange, and coconut.  The taste really reminded me of the orange flavor of trident gum with high acidity and passion fruit.  The asparagus really knocked down the pucker-factor and played up the melon/kiwi gum-flavor.  I also thought it made a weird pencil eraser aftertaste.  We also tried it with strawberries and it was a hit because the strawberries met the strong fruitiness of this wine, and the sugars knocked the vinegar right out.

At this point we all sat down around the table for the main course.  The Chianti smelled like meat, formaldehyde (mom), Italian bitter grapes (pop pop), musty, and raspberry.  It had medium tannins and was relatively dry with a slightly oily consistency.  It tasted like a hint of smoke with underlying fruit with a nice spicy feel.  Laura said it tasted like Jesus's blood.  With the lasagne, the tannins were knocked right down and the red berry flavor came out.  We also tried it with garlic bread.  Will said the garlic bread made the wine taste bitter, but I thought it was a nice pair with the fat of the butter softening the wine.

Laura helped us out with a family selfie.

We also tried a Lambrusco wine with the lasagna.  Mom said this one smelled a lot like pears, but I picked up bubble gum and an herbal sense.  Laura said the smell reminded her of the multiple broken colors of granite used to distinguish the style of the Baroque era.  It tasted super sweet and fruity which worked with the tomatoes of the lasagna, but I preferred the drier pairing.

Overall this was such a fun experience that added excitement to our Easter dinner!  I think everyone had a great time, learned a little something, and enjoyed some good wine!  We finished up the night with some coffee to cleanse the palate and perk up after the food coma.

Dessert coffee

Dad enjoys the Cava

Wine Tasting #7 - 4/2/2015

My nose came back!  This wine tasting was much more successful.  Also, my apologies to those of you who viewed this post before it was complete.  I hit publish early on accident!

Wine #1
Name: Grande Reserve des Bastides
Variety: Gaillac
Region: Gaillac
Country: France
Year: 2013
Price: $9.95
Shop/wine critic/winery review: A crisp and fruity blend featuring 20% of the herbaceous Sauvignon Blanc, 50% creamy Loin de L'oeil and notes of fresh apple and crisp pear, plus a touch of herb from the 30% Mauzac.  It has a bright feel, with a hint of mineral on the finish.
My review: Clearish-golden color, though SUPER pale.  Smells like fresh cut hay, pomegranate, citrus-lime in particular.  Tastes like really sour grapefruit.  It opened with a burst of crushed herbs, had a sweet mid-palate, and finished harshly with the sour grapefruit aftertaste.  Semi dry.

Wine #2
Name: Sean Minor
Variety: Pinot Noir Rose Vin Gris
Region: Carneros
Country: California
Year: 2013
Price: $8.95
Shop/wine critic/winery review: The Vin Gris is a bright and vibrant salmon color with cherry, strawberry, cranberry and ripe watermelon aromas on the nose.  ON entry, the wine displays bright strawberry flavors.  Throughout the mid-palate and finish, raspberry and cherry fruit characters are balanced with spicy and crisp acidity that lingers creating a refreshing and lengthy finish.
My review: This one had a delightfully peachy color, which was not what I expected when I read Pinot Noir.  It smelled like bread dough, which the pourer seemed to hate on, honeycrisp apple, and one of those beeswax honey straws you get at apple orchards.  It tasted like apple again with a sassy tart opening which smoothed out to a mellow finish with a lingering vanilla aftertaste.

Wine #3
Name: Terre di Poggio
Variety: Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Laude
Region: Abruzzo
Country: Italy
Year: 2012
Price: $8.95
Shop/wine critic/winery review: This opens with dark aromas of leather, tobacco, cured meat, plum, and prune.  It shows soft tannins and loads of dark fruit on the finish.
My review: Really pretty ruby red color, but it smelled like a brown wine with hints of bacon and smoke.  I really couldn't get much out of this bouquet.  It tasted like an apple yet again, with big citric acid notes.  Meredith said the aftertaste reminded her of a communion wafer, which I thought was interesting.  Really couldn't get a lot out of this one.




Wine #4
Name: Charles Thomas
Variety: Cotes du Rhone
Region: Rhone
Country: France
Year: 2013
Price: $8.95
Shop/wine critic/winery review: 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre,.  Has grown organically since March 2009 (in conversion).  Part of the vineyard is plowed with horses.  Average age of the vines: 30 years old.  Clear ruby wine with overtones of red berry fruits.  Round and supple with smooth aftertaste.  A good all around red wine for meat courses, poultry, and light cheeses.  Best drunk now while fresh with good keeping up to 4 years.
My review: This had a lovely garnet (brownish red) color and a big nose!  On first sniff, I got straight up hickory smoke.  On second sniff, I got floral notes, melon, maybe baby's breath flowers?.  It tasted like black pepper with big tannins and unripe fruit/melon rind.  It had a little hint of leather, and I feel like there was some fruit hiding in there that would come out if it were allowed to breathe a little more.

Wine #5
Name: Peter Mertes Riesling Platinum
Variety: Riesling
Region: Rheinhessen
Country: Germany
Year: 2013
Price: $8.95
Shop/wine critic/winery review: This quality Riesling is crisp, clean, and easy drinking.  Floral and fruit aromas suggest sweet melon and honey with enough acidity to ensure a beautifully balanced and versatile wine.
My review: This was a pretty clear Riesling, with orange blossom, cut grass, and honey on the nose.  It tasted like peaches and lime peel.  It was really quite sweet, but it didn't leave my mouth coated in sugar like the Moscatos we've had in the previous weeks.