CellarBlog - 2008-04-14
Date: Mon, Apr 14, 2008 Wine Tasting
In my lifetime, I have tasted thousands of wines and dozens of varietals, but I know there are dozens more that I haven't tried and every now and then one catches my eye.
Over the weekend, in Oregon, they held the Greatest of the Grape event and Giradet Wine Cellars won with their Baco Noir.
I had nver heard of Baco Noir, fortunately there is a Wikipedia Entry, It looks interesting and they do ship to Virginia...I'll make sure to order a bottle and let you all know how it is.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-14
Date: Mon, Apr 14, 2008 Wine Tasting
This is my 300th post. These 300 posts have occurred over almost 2 and half years of writing (yes, I am aware for some people, 300 posts is a week's worth of blogging ;)) and drinking. Its amazing as I look back over the time how much has changed, and yet how much as remained constant, that's one of the reasons I love wine :). And, hopefully, like a good wine, my writing only improves over time.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-10
Date: Thu, Apr 10, 2008 Wine Tasting
Another wine festival coming up: The Chesapeake Bay Wine Festival is June 7th at White Fences Vineyard. Its small, but they have some nice wineries participating and part of the proceeds go to the local YMCA.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-07
Date: Mon, Apr 7, 2008 Wine Tasting
If you are in McLean this Wednesday (April 9th) around 1900, you might want to check out a special wine tasting of Delectus Wines at The Vineyard:
The owner/winemaker Gerhard Reisacher will be in the store to pour a selection of his current releases, including the 2002 Syrah Mt. George from their cellar library. The tasting will begin at 7PM. Do not miss this opportunity to try the wines and meet the man behind the wines of one of Napa Valley's elite.
It is only $15. Call 703.288.2970 for reservations. This is a great opportunity to chat with a world-class winemaker.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-06
Date: Sun, Apr 6, 2008 Wine Tasting
It is nice to see Virginia wines getting noticed outside of the state. Though a note to Katherine Calos, if you are going to give friends a white from Virginia make it a Viognier, something we grow really well -- anyone can do a Chardonnay.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-06
Date: Sun, Apr 6, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wine: 2007 Breaux Muscat
Review: The Breaux Muscat was a Cellar Club selection for March. I like Breaux's Cellar Club because they are not afraid to try new things and experiment with different varietals. This is the first Muscat made at Breaux, and the only one outside of Burnley's Moon Mist I have seen in Virginia (feel free to Google me wrong on that).
The wine is a blend of Muscat Canelli and Muscat Giallo (Yellow Muscat). This is a fruity wine with strong flavors of honey and a very floral aroma. It is a good spring/summer wine. Excellent with light foods or by itself.
Price: N/A
Grade: 90
CellarBlog - 2008-04-05
Date: Sat, Apr 5, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wine: 2005 DelFosse Cuvee Laurent
Review: This is a unique wine that is a blend of 45% Chambourcin, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Petit Verdot and 10% Cabernet Franc. I first tried this on our trip to Charlottesville and liked it so much I took a couple of bottles home to age.
Surprisingly for a blend, this wine does not feel complex (compared to a Bordeaux or a Meritage). The wine had a taste of chocolate and cinnamon with a touch of strawberry and a soft finish very very few tannins. A really good food wine.
Price: $19
Grade: 90
CellarBlog - 2008-04-04
Date: Fri, Apr 4, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wine: 2002 Burnley Vineyards Riesling
Review: Founded in 1976, Burnley Vineyards is one of the oldest wineries in Virginia. I have had this wine sitting in my wine cellar for 4 or 5 years, well beyond the shelf life of most Rieslings.
This wine is made in the Germanic style, it is fermented as cold as possible and then additional Riesling juice is added. This creates a very tropical wine with hints of pineapple and pear. The wine was sweet with a nice, soft finish, although it did feel like the wine was on the edge of turning. Overall, a good value and newer vintages have not increased in price.
Price: $12
Grade: 80
CellarBlog - 2008-04-04
Date: Fri, Apr 4, 2008 Wine Tasting
This has been sitting in my inbox forever, but I just got the chance to look at it recently. Truly Fine Wine is an importer specializing in German wines, in particular small production Rieslings producers. They have a great selection of hard-to-find Rieslings and a really good introduction to German wines, something I know almost nothing about.
Anyway, check them out.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-03
Date: Thu, Apr 3, 2008 Wine Tasting
I can't make this Nebbiolo Vertical Tasting at Breaux, but it looks like a lot of fun. Breaux does make a good Nebbiolo, and they are sampling Italian Nebbiolos as well.
Speaking of things I cannot make, the Wine 2.0 Spring Fling is coming up on April 24th. From an email I received:
The next Wine 2.0 is fast approaching and we wanted to make sure you were in the loop. Join 200 leading wine industry, technology and venture capital leaders for an evening of new opportunities and great wines at Crushpad's new urban winery location.
We expect well over 40 wineries and producers to attend including a great selection of wines from Crushpad.
If you're a winery or a company that wants to participate please contact kendall@radcru.com or more information.
RSVP's can be made to Cornelius@radcru.com
One of these days I will make it to this, because they always seem like a lot of fun. If you are in San Fransico and want to check out some of the cutting edge wine vendors, this is the place. Thanks goes out to RadCru for putting on this event.
CellarBlog - 2008-04-01
Date: Tue, Apr 1, 2008 Wine Tasting
This is kind of a cool idea...a place for wine lovers to meet. Sadly, for those of you local, no matches within 100 miles of DC.
CellarBlog - 2008-03-27
Date: Thu, Mar 27, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wine: 2002 Chateau Monbrison Bordeaux
Review: The great thing about the Margaux appelation is that I am always finding new treasures. This wine was rated one of the best wines under $50 and I agree. Laurent Vonderheyden has created an elegant wine, complex with hints of plum and a tobacco aroma. Not an intense wine, much more subtle with a medium palette
Price: $39
Grade: 90
CellarBlog - 2008-03-26
Date: Wed, Mar 26, 2008 Wine Tasting
Wine: 2003 Francoise Chauvenet Volnay
Review: This wine is from the Côte de Beaune area, which is in the southern part of Côte d'Or. It is a lighter Burgundy, but with a deep ruby color. The wine had a hint of mint and was very earthy, not very tannic. Overall, a good every day wine, but not exceptional.
Price: N/A
Grade: 80
CellarBlog - 2008-03-24
Date: Mon, Mar 24, 2008 Wine Tasting
Despite living so close to it, I had never visited Chrysalis. Part of the reason for that is their affinity for the Norton grape, but more than that it just hadn't been on my radar. Well, I finally corrected that a few weeks ago.
Their setup is a little unusual for a Virginia winery: The tastings are actually held in a large building that is separate from their "tasting room". The tasting room is very small, so this arrangement makes sense. They have three tables set up in the building where they do the tastings and they run group tastings at set times during the hour. So, you get your tasting ticket, go the table where the next tasting is going to start and wait until the appointed time.
Their wines make heavy use of Norton, so if you love that grape you need to visit this winery. In my case, I was impressed with their Petit Verdot and their Tannat, both grapes that are not seen often in Virginia and both excellently done.
I also enjoyed Sarah's Patio White and Red, excellent summer wines.
