Merlot - Still In Ohio, Not In Key West

Ya know, I have not been reading many wine magazines lately, as the internet has been my education tool lately. But, being in Ohio in Spring where the weather has been quite cool the past few days, I picked up a few copies of Wine Spectator, Wine and Spirits and Quarterly Review of Wines magazines to pass some time indoors. Paging through and trying to pass up all the advertising pages, now I know why I prefer the internet, one wine kept jumping out at me from each magazine. Of course, the sections that I go to most are the value for the money sections because I just cannot see myself paying hundreds of dollars for collectible wines. I do not "lay down" any wines. I want to drink the wine I purchase! I do find it interesting to read about these collectibles, but they are out of my league. OK, back to the wine that kept jumping out at me.

The 2004 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Merlot from Columbia Valley in Washington State is the wine I am speaking about. Now my husband is a die hard (drinks a bottle every nite) fan of the Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon. I am not a big Cabernet drinker, but have had a glass or two with him and it is a nice Cab for the price. So I thought, well, the Merlot is getting high ratings so let's give it a try. Now again, I am not a rating type person, although when I started my "drinking career" many years ago before the internet, I would depend on the wine periodicals to steer me in a direction. So with magazine in hand, I would visit my friend at the local wine shop and we would pick out my wines for the week. Back to the wine at hand as I think I am chatting a little much.

Columbia Crest Merlot is comprised of 96% Merlot, 3.5% Cabernet and .5% Cabernet Franc grapes with an alcohol content of 13.5%. I found this fact interesting -"During harvest a third of the fruit from the distinguished vineyards selected for this Merlot are not crushed. These whole berries are added to the wine during fermentation to create a unique aromatic and flavorful style with a soft texture". This wine I found does have a nice soft texture, as the tannins are nicely refined. On uncorking the wine, aromas of blueberry seemed to catch my attention. But on tasting the wine, I definitely would say I was tasting juicy plum flavors with a hint of that blueberry. The wine had a nice mouth feel and finish. At at price anywhere from $11-$13, depending where you purchase, I would recommend this 90 point rated (Wine Spectator) wine. I served it with good ol' spaghetti and meatballs, a good midweek comfort food. It went nicely with it, but maybe just a tad weak for the sauce. (I usually like a zinfandel with heavy tomato sauces). But it did make an excellent sipping wine for a "chilly" spring evening in Ohio. Now, back to the internet!

Cheers!

Versatile Viognier From WBW Not In Key West

Just wanted to again thank Marcus at Doktor Weingolb for a fun WBW#33. Throughout the day I have been checking out all the entries and WOW, I cannot wait to do a little more tasting of this region. This is such a good exercise for educating yourself on wines that you are not normally tasting.

Just wanted to add a little tid-bit for one of the wines I choose for WBW#33. The Laurent Miquel Nord Sud Viognier 2005 was a great wine to serve with fruit and cheese. The bouquet of the wine and the aroma of the fruit together, well...heavenly. My fruit salad consisted of watermelon, honeydew melon, cantaloupe and fresh strawberries. I picked up the strawberries at our Oxford Farmers Market on Saturday from Lucy at Boulder Belt Eco Farm. Delicious!

Cheers!

WBW #33 Languedoc-Roussillon

This is my first go at participating in WBW. Thank you Marcus at Doktor Weingolb for hosting this month’s Blog. I was thrilled that you decided to focus on the Languedoc-Roussillon area of France. Actually I was excited that you focused on any part of France, as it brought me back around to wines that I really enjoy and have not visited for awhile. The French selection in Key West can be a little thin at times. But since I am in Ohio right now, most wine shops are bursting with French wines. OK, enough chit-chat from me, on with the wine.

Laurent Miquel, Nord Sud Viognier 2005 Vin de Pays d’Oc was my choice of white wine to submit to WBW. This winery is based at Ch Cazal Viel in the AOC of St. Chinian in the Languedoc area. I will not go into more discussion of the area as Marcus has already given us lots of info on this part of France.
This Voignier was a lovely soft pale yellow in color. It had an alcohol content of 13.5%. Bursting aromas of peach, honeysuckle and maybe a whiff of pear escaped the bottle as it was uncorked. These flavors followed right along when I took my first sip. Since this wine is aged in French Oak for 5 months, a touch of oak, but mostly a nice creaminess was experienced on my tongue. The right amount of acidity was present to give it a nice balance and to keep it fresh and lively as it approached its firm finish. The Laurent Miquel, Nord Sud Viognier is no wimpy wine! In fact, I would consider using it as an aperitif or even an after dinner wine, although it is not sweet. It definitely would stand up to any zesty food or pungent cheese and fruit.

I would highly recommend this wine and for the price of $14.00. Yes Marcus, I know I am a dollar below the limit, but I did not want to pass up this opportunity to share this value for the dollar wine!

Also please check out our entry to WBW on Wine Sediments!
Cheers!

"Then & Now" J. Lohr Winery Not In Key West

Hi All ! Today I have a post on Wine Sediments about my "Then & Now" project Part 2. If you got a moment, please check it out.

www.winesediments.net

Cheers!

Wente Wine In Ohio

Years ago when I was just beginning my education in the wine world, and enjoying every moment of it, I was lucky enough to have my good friend Lee working in the wine business. She and another friend of mine, Al, lead me through many tastings with many bottles of wine. At one of the wine festivals here in Ohio, there was a private tasting of Wente Vineyards Wine and Carolyn Wente was present. Lee ask me if I would like to attend with her and, of course, you know the answer to that request. It was a nice event and I felt cool being able to meet someone who was part owner of a winery, especially a winery with a history like Wente's. They are the oldest family owned and continuously operated winery in California. The Wente Family established their winery back in 1883 and it is now managed by the fourth and fifth generation of the Wente Family.

Every once in awhile I pick up a bottle of Wente Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc because it is a good wine for the price, under $12.00. I choose a bottle of their 2004 Livermore Valley Sauvignon Blanc which had a beautiful, almost clear straw color to it. Alcohol content was 13.5%. On opening, there were aromas of gooseberry and citrus climbing into my nose. On the palate I found the same flavors of the gooseberry, citrus and also I may have detected a hint of grass. It was a lovely dry, crisp wine with just the right amount of acidity to give you a little smack on the tongue. Served it nicely chilled for that Spring evening, that wound up giving us a little chill later as the sun went down!

Cheers!

Happy Mothers Day From Key West & Ohio

Happy Mother's Day !!!

Cheers!

Vin De Savoie Not In Key West

The weather is so awesome right now with temps around 80 and just a slight breeze, low humidity (no I am not in Key West but OHIO!) Birds singing and the annoying bumble bees trying to get at my wine, Ah, I love Spring! But it only leads to one thing, yep, nicely chilled white wine. I cannot stay away from the White French Wines at the moment since they are so available to me. So last night was no exception. I was into the Savoie Region again. I just had to chill and pop open a Domaine Labbe' 2005 Vin De Savoie Abymes. This wine is made from 100% Jacquere grapes, which is the main grape in the Savoie area. The Savoie region is located on the lower slopes of the Alps. And yes, this grape is different from the Sauvignon grape, not by much, but seems maybe a little brassier.

Uncorking the wine, fresh, crisp apple aromas emerge from the bottle. That nice aroma of apples follows right through to the taste, plus that "pucker-up" citrusy-lime smack in your mouth flavor plays on your tongue. It is a simple lightly straw colored wine with nice acidity and low alcohol at 11%. At $10.99 a bottle it is perfect for sipping outside on these lovely Spring evenings. I cannot stay inside on days like this!

I am so glad mother nature and wonderful wine makers provide us with such good wine to start the end of our days!

Cheers!