Tasting Smoking Loon Moscato

Name: Smoking Loon
Variety: Moscato
Region: California
Country: USA
Price: $6.95  
Year: 2015
Winery review:  The 2015 Smoking Loon “Blue Loon” Moscato opens with enticing aromas of honeysuckle, overripe honeydew melon, sundried apricot and a touch of honey, peach and mandarin. The palate presents ripe melon, peach nectar and orange blossom honey. The bright flavors and refreshing acidity make this Moscato the perfect accompaniment to a wide variety of foods. Enjoy “Blue Loon” Moscato with brunch, light chicken dishes or summer appetizers. It’s also delicious served with biscotti, creamy desserts, or fresh fruits such as yellow or white peaches.
My review: Floral, lavander, and peachy smell. Very sweet but with some acid as well. Pineapple and other tropical fruits. Apricot and a lot of lychee. Thick and sugary.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Los Dos Grenache Syrah

Name: Los Dos Grenache Syrah
Variety: Grenache and Syrah
Region: Campo de Borja

Country: Spain
Year: 2015
Price: $8.95  
Winery review:  Almira’s 2010 Los Dos is a blend of 85% Garnacha and 15% Syrah fermented and aged in tank. Blue and black fruits, pepper, and incense inform the nose of this savory, layered red. It is a very good value meant for drinking over the next 3-4 years.
My review: Smells jammy and of fresh fruit. Slightly floral. Not good. Earthy like dirt with too mich alcohol. Not balanced and not enough actual fruit to taste. Fungus earthy aftertaste with the alcohol shooting up and burning the sinuses.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Buenas Viura

Name: Buenas Viura

Variety:Viura
Country: Spain
Year: 2015
Price: $6.95  
Winery review:   ¡buenas! Viura offers alluring notes of ripe, red grapefruit that intermingle with flavors of pear and wild flower on the palate. This refreshing white has invigorating acidity with a crisp, clean finish.
My review: Acidic but it's not too much. It's actually really clean and crisp. Nutty with some banana. Pretty tropical as well with some pineapple and then a lime finish.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Accrnym Chardonnay 2012

Name: Acronym Chardonnay
Variety: Chardonnay
Region: California
Country: USA
Year: 2012
Price: $6.95
Winery review:   Simple and soft, this Chard is a juicy, forward with hints of tropical fruit and a touch of vanilla. A nice acidity balances the rich fruit flavors.
My review: Apricot and peach with some smooth fresh scents. Flavors were overwhelmingly oaky with some smooth citrus. A good amount of oak, enjoyable. Really fruity and pretty good overall!
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Vinterra Pinot Noir 2015

Name: Vinterra Pinot Noir
Variety: Pinor Noir
Region:Marlborough
Country: New Zealand
Year: 2015
Price: $9.99

Winery review:   The Vinterra Pinot Noir displays ripe, sweet plum notes with an edge of complexity on the nose. The palate is rich and round supported by fine grain tannins.
My review: Smelled like unripe acidic strawberry. Tasted tannic and very dry. Jammy berry but with no remnants of leftover natural sugar. Ethanol and then hints or raspberry at the end.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Drink this Now Lesson 2

Lesson 2

Our set up including shot glasses, rocks cups, water cups (not pictured), wine glasses, a big wine glass, and a huge bowl to sub for the fish tank.

1. We lined up our glasses, chilled the white wine, and put a shot of wine into each container.
2. We filled the containers with a shot each of white wine. We did this during the first step.

The gerwertstraminer in all of our glasses and some crackers to chew on in between.

3.  White Wine Smelling and Tasting:

• Shot Glass: Concentrated lychee, sweet and pair. These flavors are present but not very complex and I really have to think about finding them. Tasting was rough. It's kind of hard to drink. Acidic and metallic. There is a lingering taste of lychee and pair though which is nice. Some residual sugar. 
• Rocks Glass: Mellowed out, not as much fruit, smells more rotten and musty. More of an alcohol smell. When tasting it was a lot better. Not metallic at all. Those gross flavors from the shot glass are gone. It's smoother and softer and more of the fruit comes through. There's even a walnut or chestnut taste in the back. 
• Water Glass: I really can't smell much of anything. Maybe a hint that it's sweet? That's it. Tastes like it did with the rocks glass. Smooth, no metallic taste, and lots of lychee and pear. But this time, there was also a hit from the alcohol. 
• Wine glass: Ooooo this is why we drink out of wine glasses. The smell is so well concentrated and pleasant. There is some subtle fruit and sweetness. But at the same time, I can smell the crispness and the acid. The sweetness and acid balance each other out very well and the fruit complements well. Floral tastes came out at the end as well.
• Flared Glass: Similar to the water glass. You really can't smell much other than some sweetness. More sharp than the water glass though and the metallic taste returns. Not well balanced and very heavy on the alcohol. 
• Huge Bowl: Really no smell at all. Not even sweetness or alcohol. The flavor was washed out as well. It was like sweet water with some lychee. 

4. I found that even out of order, I still found that the larger glasses and flaired glasses gave less scent and that the smaller ones were more concentrated. I still found the wine glass to be a perfect vessel revealing subtle flavors and layers of fruit, acid, crispness, and sweetness. It is sooo good. When I whirled in the fishbowl, the wine smoothed out so much more and was easier to drink. Still more dilute though.

Our classes right after the Shiraz experiment. Only one cracker remains.

5. Red Wine Smelling and Tasting:

• Shot Glass: All I smell is wood. Taste is sharp, bold, and very oaky. Really not much of a fan of that. It was so overwhelmingly dry, tannin, and there was absolutly no fruit or layers. 
• Rocks Glass: Still the same woody scent but with a little more jammy black fruit. More smoky and jammy red and black berries. Good smoke, rich creamy body. 
• Water Glass: Smells are very very faintly of strawberry but so little smell. Oaky and smoky but not really any laying of flavor. 
• Wine Glass: Smells so much more complex. Some nice jammy black and red fruit, some smoke, oak, and even a bit of acid. So well balanced when smelling. This is what wine should taste like. It was peddle toned with the oak and then fruit just erupted. Blackberry, ripe strawberry, raspberry, tart cherry. So incredibly good and muddled together into a smoky jam. 
• Flared Glass: All I get out of smelling this is acid and alcohol. Tasted very much like tannins, acid, and some sharp, tart cherry. Some oaky and smokey jammy fruit stick around but so does a new metallic flavor. 
• Huge Bowl: No smell. Smells like the plastic in the bowl. The taste though isn't terrible. Sure, the acid is a bit overpowering. But there is a leather sort of taste that complements the jammy oxidized fruit. 

6.  In the bigger glass, with more surface area, there is certainly more to smell. But it's not as inviting. The smells in the larger flared glass are more acidic and of alcohol and not as much fruit. It's kind of unpleasant. In the smaller glass though, the taper helps concentrate the smell. And since there is a better bowl shape to the smaller wine glass, more of the fruit is exposed. The smell is much more complementary to the wine.

Drink This Now Lesson 1

The box of wine with my almost empty glass. The picture on the wine box shows a French Chateaux. The wine itself is deep ruby red in color. Each box contains four 750ml bottles!

After a Thursday tasting at the Vintage Cellar, a box caught my eye. It was a box from the Rhone Valley in France. The box has the equivalent of around 4 bottles and with a price of around $30 is quite a steal. While it was not listed as a particular wine in the book, I decided to use it for this lesson because there was another wine listed from the region. Additionally, I was told that it would pair well with meats and cheeses, especially spicy Italian sausage.

Name: Domaine du Grand Plantier

Variety: 60% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre, 5% Carignan

Year: 2015
Region: Rhone Valley
Country: France
Winery review: Domaine du Grane Plantier reveals a lively red color. Expressive on the nose, it is sustained by a pleasant complexity of matured red fruits. Soft and round on the palate, this wine is perfectly well-balanced. Ideal with roast duck, a carpaccio or chili con carne.
My review without food: The wine was pretty spicy and oaky. There was a hint of jammy dry fruit with absolutely no sweetness at all. It was wild and overwhelming but it mellowed out the longer it was in the mouth. Pretty good for steaks and other meaty dishes.

Our set up. We've got out box of wine, Parmesan cheese, crackers, and salami. The wine paired so well with the salami!

The goal of this lesson is to understand how food and wine can complement each other. Since the person at the wine store said that the Rhone Valley wine would pair well, I'm excited to taste what flavors emerge. Since the wine itself is so spicy and pepery, I'm especially excited to see how it marries with the sausage. Below I will write out responses to each number from the lesson. My friend joined me for the lesson and we really enjoyed sharing our perception of the wine as it changed with each food.

1. The color is ruby red. It smells strong and pungent. Spicy and overwhelming. Tastes sharp and peppery. Some really dark red fruit is present as well. Heavily tannic and very dry. Perhaps even a little bitter.

2. After time and oxygenation, the wine opens up a little bit and allows more fruit. It's certainly more appealing and not as spicy. Maybe even some unripe strawberry.

3. I paired the wine with Parmesan cheese from Kroger. The wine became nutty, more oaky, and sweet mature strawberries. There's also another fattier taste that might be just the cheese. But, I think it's more than that. I just can't put my finger on the exact taste. There's more red fruit like tart cherry. Smoother and more fruity certainly but not really lighter. Super smoothy.

4. I paired the wine with peppered salami from Kroger. I predict that the spice from the meat with quell the tannins and spiciness of the wine. The sausage alone was so overwhelmingly peppery. At first, they kind of fought and it got really spicy. But then the fat calmed everything down and the pepper went away. Strawberry and other fruits really popped out but it was more earthy then sweet. It complemented the meat taste nicely and brought out the savory, smokey flavors even more. This wine is certainly meant to pair with meat and it wouldn't have nearly the same effect with asparagus or other vegetables.

5. A few hours out, the wine tasted spoiled. Sure, the peppery aromas and taste were gone, but what replaced it was not a smooth wine. The wine tasted like cheap cooking wine. Like it was well on its was to becoming straight vinegar. Bitter, off putting, and heavily oxidized. I guess it was nice that the pepper taste had calmed down. But, it would be good to find a happy medium between a dark tannic wine and an grape vinegar.

Tasting Protocolo 2015

Name: Protocolo
Variety: 50% Airen, 50% Macabeo
Region: Tierra de la Castilla
Country: Spain
Year: 2015
Price: $6.95 Winery review:  The 2015 Protocolo Blanco is a blend of 50% Airen (the most commonly planted white grape in the world) and 50% Macabeo, also known as Viura. It is crisp, light, with hints of grapefruit and white currant. It is relatively dry, clean, and just about everything one would expect of a wine at this price point, only better.
My review: Smelled overly acidic but the tasting was surprising. Certainly some acid but some odd sweetness in the back of the mouth too. Some sparkling taste but no bubbles. Carbon taste and refreshing. Would be really good chilled.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Rubus Colombard, Ugni Blanc

Name: Rubus Colombard
Variety: Gros Manseng
Region: Southwest
Country: France
Year: NV
Price: $7.95
Winery review: Fresh, clean and lively with intense exotic fruit aromas. Crisp, clean and zesty in the mouth, it offers delicate flavors of citrus fruit and grapefruit, and a long lingering finish.  
My review: Smelled sweet and floral. Tangy and sweet with some lingering acid. Good balance with some sugar to finish off. Hints of citrus, specifically tangerine and lime.
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Baron de Lajoyosa Gran Reserva 2005

Name:Baron de Lajoyosa
Variety: 50% Grenache, 30% Tempranillo, 10% Carinena, 10% Cabernet
Region:Cainena
Country: Spain
Year: 2005

Price: $9.95
Winery review:  #8 World Wine Writers, Best Wines in the World

It is a wine of beautiful appearance, color dress mature and well covered with light shades of cherry development. Its primary aromas of ripe red berry fruits. The palate expands exceptionally ripe and round: warm and fleshy, long, proud finish.

My review: Smoky with some cherry notes and a nice sweetness upon first drinking. Some tannin and interesting light texture. Jammy with lots of black and purple fruit. Perhaps, plum. Clove and nutmeg with other baking spices. Quite nice!
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Castle Rock Cabernet Sauvignon 2012

Name: Castle Rock
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Region: Columbia Valley, Washington
Country:USA
Year: 2012

Price: $8.95 Winery review:  85- Wine Enthusiast. This wine offers aromas of herbs, black cherry and spice, showing a bit of heat. The dark-fruit flavors have good intensity, with dry, astringent tannins backing them up.

My review: Jammy with a good punch from the tannins without it being overbearing. Not too sweet but some residual sugar helps sweeten it up. Some fruit with blackberry, plum, cherry, and even some licorice. 
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Cantina di Casteggio

Name: Cantina di Casteggio

Variety: Croatina 80% and Uva Rara 20%
Region: Lombardy
Country: Italy
Year: NV

Price: $7.95 Winery review:  SANGUE DI GIUDA (Judah's blood) name of the wine because of it's deep ruby red color, with purple hues just like blood! The Judah's part of the story is a bit trickier... part local folklore – (i.e. legend) goes something like this: After Judah’s betrayal and hanging, Jesus forgave him and allowed Judah to come back on earth, specifically in the area of Oltrepo’ by the town of Broni. When the local farmers recognized him, they wanted to kill him, but they spared him when he helped to heal their vines that had been affected by a disease. In return, they named the grape after him. Another explanation is that this wine is a "traitor" because it is so delicious that you can get tempted without much effort. Regardless of what you like to believe, this wine is just incredibly delicious!
My review: This one was a lot of fun. Not a sparkling wine exactly, but there was certainly something that gave it some spark. It tasted like sparkling grape juice but better! Hits the tongue kind of like poprocks- strawberry poprocks. Some red berry tastes with lychee and blueberry. Really cool!
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Oxford Landing Shiraz

Name: Oxford Landing Shiraz

Variety: Shiraz
Region: South Australia
Country: Australia
Year: 2014

Price: $9.99
Winery review:  For such a competitively priced offering, this delivers a lot of complexity. Dried herbs, anise, chocolate and coffee notes add nuance to the raspberry fruit. It's medium bodied and supple, with a lush, lingering finish. Drink now–2020.
My review: I really liked this one. Earthy and grassy with some black fruit. Jammy and oaky with some blackberry perhaps. Certainly many baking spices like nutmeg. Good body and a well balanced wine. 
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Tasting Aveleda Praia

Name: Aveleda Praia

Variety: Blend
Region: Vinho Verde
Country: Portugal
Price: $8.95
Winery review: 

It's rare to find a Vinho Verde – the famously light and refreshing "green" white wine of Portugal – that isn't delightful, but this is one of the best of the breed. And there's no better time to quaff these wines than in the spring and summer. This version is lightly effervescent, with a lively acidity that wakes up the palate. It combines lime and peach flavors with a whiff of sea breeze. Somehow it manages to be both ethereal and penetrating.

My review: Woah. This one was pretty acidic. Acidic and citrusy yet also pretty clean to the pallet. The chill lightens up the acid and lets so light fruit revel itself. Really lemony and limey with a metallic aftertaste. Sort of like ethanol. 
 
I tasted this on its own with no food.

Winery Visit- Chateau Morrisette

The sign welcoming us to Chateau Morrisette!

Winery: Chateau Morrisette

Location: Floyd, Virginia

Date Opened: 1978

This large building houses the tasting room, a store, upstairs private room, and all wine production facilities.

The first thing I noticed about Chateau Morrisette is how much they love dogs! From their website, to their accessories in the store, to the cute puppies walking around to property, to the dogs and paws adorning the wine glasses. These people love dogs! This love stems from back in the 1970's when Dave Morrisette went to college with the family's dog Hans. When Dave returned to the winery, Hans followed him through planting, growing, and harvesting. It didn't take much time for Hans to become a figure in Chateau Morrisette. To honor Hans, the winery put together Black Dog, which is a blend of Chambourcin, Cabernet, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. It was so good, I purchased a bottle to take home.

The winery itself was stunning. Situated about an hour away from Blacksburg in Floyd county, two buildings sit a top a mountain overlooking the beautiful valley. One building is a smaller older building that houses the restaurant. The other, a large chateau, houses the winery with tasting rooms. Walking in, a large chandelier welcomes you to the wooden lodge. Retired wine barrels provide shelving for the winery's merchandiser including dog collars, dog leashes, wine, wine bottle openers, and other wine related decor. 

This picture does no justice, but the winery overlooks a beautiful valley.

Production:
This winery itself doesn't grow many grapes of its own. It grows mostly native varieties such as concord and Niagara. They do their best though to make all of their wines with Virginia grown grapes. The tour guide said that they can't grown most varieties because of the high elevation. When grapes are brought in in crates, they are crushed outside in a machine and then brought inside where they ferment in steel vats. As expected, white wines are separated immediately from skins and stems while red wines are fermented with skins and stems. They are then aged in steel or oak barrels. Oak barrels are made from French or American oak. Those aged for longer periods are put in the angel room at 55`. It's called the angel room because a small amount of wine evaporated during the aging process for the "angels." Additional details of production are included below.

Wine is filtered after fermentation to remove settlement.

Red wine is fermented in the tanks to the right with larger doors to allow for the removal of skins and stems while white wines are fermented on the left side with the smaller doors.

One of their oak barrels. Each barrel has indicates the type of wine, the year, and has some reference to dogs.

Wines are bottled and labeled on site using this machine. The label portion is in repair so the process has been slowed down so that labeling can be done by hand. 

 

 

 

 

 

Wines are either sold at the winery or boxed and prepared for shipment.

Tasting:
1) Vin Gris: tart cherry and peachy. Dry with a clean pear finish. Crisp and quite refreshing!
2) 2015 Viognier: Acidic from citrusy fruit including lemon. Some apricot underneath. Clean tasting with an orangey aftertaste.
3) 2014 Cabernet Franc: Really good! First wine made by the family in 1976. Jammy and smoky notes with some black berry fruit and black cherry. Some pepper and tannin but nothing too overbearing.
4) 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon: I got some earthy and herby smells and perhaps a taste of beets. Some sort of fragrant root vegetables really come through. Smoky licorice, black burrent, with a berry finish. Very layered wine!
5) The Black Dog: My favorite of all the wines I tasted! Blend of Chambourcin, Cabernet, and Merlot. Smelled of baking spices and particularly nutmeg. Some residual sugar enhances the berry flavors and underlying fruit.
6) Our Dog Blue: A blend of Riesling, Traminette, and Vidal Blanc. Tasted apricots and lots of melon. Particularly cantaloupe and honeydew. Peachy and refreshing. Started with firm acidity but finished with a nice fruity pallet.
7) Sweet Mountain Laurel: Tasted like grape juice with an added kick! Grape juice taste faded to firm acidity to an apricot taste. Tropic fruits stayed on the pallet at the end.
8) Red Mountain Laurel: Tasted like welch's grape juice with some tart cherry added in. Crisp but very sweet. This wine and the Sweet Mountain Laurel were the first sweet wines made by the winery in 1978 and are made with native grapes.
9) Farmhouse Sangria: This fun merlot/orange juice/cherry/lime juice blend lit up the taste buds. It was truly unique and tasted like a traditional red sangria with some smoke and orange fading to a strong flavor of lime.
10) Sweet Mountain Apple: Tasted like cough syrup but also like an overly sweet and thick hard cider. The granny smith apples used in production were evident.

My friends and I after visiting Chateau Morrisette