Drink Wine With Me

On a recent trip to my local discount wine emporium I found a very good Cote du Rhone that may rival the Perrin & Fils that is currently listed in my favorites box.  Seeing that the price was right and knowing I have had great success with lighter style French red wines, I decided that I probably couldn’t go wrong in purchasing this bottle.  Paul Jaboulet Aine Parallele 45 Cote du Rhone 2007 from France is medium bodied and slightly dry.  A blend of 60% grenache and 40% syrah, it had a pretty deep red color with a sweet, caramel and berry nose.  The wine is fruit forward at first with notes of blackberry and cherry and had a great spicy finish that I love in my red wines.  I think it had nice depth given the 14% alcohol and I experienced some mild tannins.  Paul Jaboulet produces this wine from 25 year old vines and ages it in stainless steel tanks.  I find Cote du Rhone to pair well with just about any dish from meat and fish to Indian and Thai cuisines.  This wine was rated 88 points from Wine Spectator and retails for under $12.

Last week I dined at Le Bernardin,  one of the top five restaurants in NYC and one of only a select few to be awarded three Michelin stars.  For foodies everywhere this is culinary heaven and the epitome of fine dining in the Big Apple.  I was given the wine list which was quite literally a book-pages upon pages of every varietal you could imagine.  Being that Le Bernardin is known for their fish and seafood dishes I knew it would be quite a challenge to select wines that would not only please the six other guests at the table  but would also complement every-one’s meals, especially when everyone agreed they wanted red wine only.  My two picks for the evening were both Pinot Noir from the West Coast.

Our first selection was Brick House Les Dijonnais Pinot Noir 2007 from the Willamette Valley.  This wine was very light red in the glass, so much so it had a pretty dark pink hue at the edges.  The aroma was of sweet red berries which led into  flavors of strawberries and raspberries.  A slight spiciness was detected on the back end of each sip.  This pinot is 13.4% alcohol and had pleasing acidity which led to a long and crisp finish.  It didn’t overpower my starter choices of smoked salmon topped with caviar and salted cod salad with white gazpacho sauce.  This wine retails for under $40 and has been rated 92 points by Robert Parker.

The second Pinot Noir was Lynmar Estate 2006 from the Russian River Valley.  This was my favorite of the two.  Darker ruby in color, it had more body and more intense aroma and flavor.  The nose was earthier with cherries and strawberries.  There was a higher concentration of  fruit flavors with more pronounced spiciness,  but overall it was extremely well balanced.  This pinot noir is slightly higher in alcohol at 14.4% and is available for under $45 in stores.  My main course was served with this wine-black bass with a sauce of ham and green peppercorns.  The combination of the sauce with the wine seems a bit unconventional but the wine didn’t detract from it at all.

Pinot Noir proves to be an extremely versatile red wine that can work for any occasion and can compliment almost any dish.  Oregon is becoming  a top producing region with most wineries using sustainable methods of production and organic grapes.

I never thought I would say this but I have found a 100% chardonnay that I am currently enamored with and have actually been buying on a regular basis.  The discovery of Au Bon Climat Chardonnay 2008 was made at a recent Court Street wine tasting.  I cannot stress enough to people who want to learn about wine how important it is to attend tastings and try as many different wine varieties as possible.  They are not only educational but so much fun to sit through.  They have led me to many excellent wines including this current pick.  Not one to ever order or buy a bottle of Chardonnay since it has always been my least favorite white wine variety, I was amazed with Au Bon Climat from the first sip.  Produced in Santa Barbara, CA this wine is medium bodied and aged in French oak, adding to it’s flavor and depth.  The aroma was soft and buttery with notes of melon.  The flavors of tropical and citrus fruits marry well with a good acidity and a slightly mineral finish.  Au Bon Climat works well with food but is also great on it’s own.  It is well worth it’s price tag and can be purchased for less than $20.

I was fortunate enough to travel to Vancouver for the 2010 Olympic Games.  It was truly an experience that I will never forget.  The excitement and positive energy of the city was amazing not to mention it’s picturesque beauty of the skyline set against the mountain backdrop.  On Valentine’s Day we had dinner at Five Sails restaurant located in Canada Place.  I selected a bottle of Jackson-Triggs Proprietor’s Grand Reserve Shiraz 2006 from the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia.  This full bodied wine was deep purple in the glass and we noticed black pepper and a chocolate aromas.  Flavors of red cherry, currant, chocolate, vanilla, and spices were present on the palate.  I found this wine to be perfectly balanced with a long, smooth finish.  It is 14.3% alcohol and is fermented in both French and American oak barrels giving the wine mild tannins.  This shiraz went very well with all of our meals.  Five Sails is currently offering their special Olympic menu.  My delicious dinner consisted of Austrian style ravoli filled with spinach and ricotta cheese with a hazelnut brown butter and arctic char with a creamy sauce of mushrooms and root vegetables.  For dessert a decadent Valhrona opera cake perfect for the Valentine’s Day holiday.  This was a wonderful dinner with a gorgeous view of the Olympic rings and a fabulous bottle of wine. 

I must also comment on a white wine I had while stopping in Seattle on my way north.  Hudson Shah reisling was just what I needed after a very long flight from the east coast.  Hudson Shah is produced in Washington State and is made of 100% reisling.  It was straw yellow in color and had hints of honeysuckle and pear on the nose.  Peach and pear flavors were nicely refreshing combined with  mineral notes and pleasing acidity.  This wine is available for under $11 in Washington State at retail and  is also available at many high end restaurants in select cities including many of my favorites here in NYC.

So far I am extremely impressed with the wines I have tried from this region.  I am really looking forward to my next trip and to trying more wines that BC and Washington have to offer.

I have spent the last two days shopping Hoboken’s various wine retailers to see what new selections would catch my eye.  At several locations Mark West Pinot Noir 2008 was prominently featured so I decided to see for myself what this much respected red wine had to offer.  Produced in Graton, Sonoma County, CA by Mark West Winery this pinot noir has a lot of bang for the buck and won’t empty your wallet.  Their focus at Mark West Winery is to create affordable wine that anyone can enjoy by retaining the same elements and quality of a pricier pinot.  After two nights of drinking heavier, more tannic cabernet sauvignon this wine was a most welcome change.  It had a beautiful light translucent ruby color in the glass and a mouthwatering strawberry aroma.  The palate was very fruit forward with concentrated cherry, raspberry, and strawberry flavors with some spiciness from it’s oak aging.  I paired this wine with three different  cheeses: brie, Port Salut, and aged gouda.  It paired well with all of the cheeses and would be the perfect red wine to pair with just about any dish.  I am not surprised that Mark West Pinot Noir won it’s category in a blind tasting.  If you prefer a lighter style red wine that is full of fruit but not too sweet you will really like this pinot noir.  It is a delicious and versatile red wine and is available for under $13.

What could be better on a blustery cold evening than to curl up on the couch with a perfectly balanced bottle of red wine?  Lately this winter we have been finding ourselves doing this regularly on the weekends.   Last night’s pick was Yalumba Shiraz Viognier 2007, a medium bodied red wine from South Australia.  Yalumba is run by the Hill Smith family and is the oldest family run winery in Australia, turning out excellent quality wines for 150 years.  This red wine is a blend of 94% shiraz and 6% viognier and is 13.5% alcohol.  In the glass it has a deep purple color with the aroma of minerals and spices.  Once it opened up we experienced flavors of tart fruits primarily currants and plums that were well balanced with tannins and gave this red a long and refreshing finish.  We really liked this wine  for it’s easy drink-ability as it wasn’t too sweet or overly dry.  Yalumba Shiraz Viognier is a great everyday wine that should satisfy any red wine fan and is well priced at less than $13.

This Christmas I was given a bottle of Devonian wine  from 2 very dear friends of mine with a request that I blog about it.   Devonian dry red wine is produced by Anthony Road Wine Company located in the Fingerlakes region of New York State.  I have been meaning to make the trip to the wineries in this region and being originally from Syracuse I really have no excuse as to why I have yet to tour that area.   This particular winery uses only grapes grown in the region for all of their wines.  This red variety is a blend of cabernet franc, lemberger, pinot noir, and rougeon.  Some of these are aged in oak and then blended together to form the finished product.  When my boyfriend and I opened the bottle we were struck with a strong cherry nose and huge black cherry flavor.  This red wine is all fruit and very delicious.  It is smooth and has a slight acid to it that is on the back end of the finish.  This is one of several Fingerlakes wines that I have tried recently and based on what I have tasted I am hoping to make a trip there before the year’s end.  Thanks to Denise and Neil for the great recommendation!

From time to time I will include in my blog wines that aren’t necessarily expensive but go slightly above the $25 per bottle parameter that is the premise for this blog.  One such wine is from the ever popular producer Ridge out of Sonoma County, CA-the Ridge Geyserville Red 2007.  Ridge has been producing highly rated red wines for over 40 years.  This is the first of their wines that I have tasted.  The Geyserville Red is a zinfandel blend composed of 58% zinfandel, 22% carignane, 18% petite syrah, and 2% mataro.   This variety has an earthy aroma with flavors of blackberries and plums.  Notes of pepper, spices, and some light oak were also present.  The presence of tannins and acidity give way to a really nice finish.  This wine has all the character and flavor that I look for in red.  If you are looking for a good quality wine to take to a dinner party this would be an excellent choice.  It retails for approximately $35 per bottle and can be held for a decent period of time.  Ridge Geyserville Red has been rated 91 points by Wine Spectator.

Even though it technically isn’t wine per se, sake in American terms is referred to as rice wine.  That is enough of a reason to include in this blog a recent and impressive find-Moonstone Coconut Lemongrass Sake.  I am not one to drink sake on a regular basis but really enjoy drinking it with my sushi.  Produced by Sakeone in Forest Grove, OR this is a Nigori Genshu  sake infused with coconut and lemongrass essence.  The taste is as delicious as the name sounds.   Each sip is filled with a tasty combination of citrus, spices, lemongrass, and of course a light coconut flavor as it finishes on the tongue.  It is creamy in appearance and has an aroma reminiscent of a tropical island.  Sake is much higher in alcohol content than traditional wine and this variety is 18%.  Moonstone also offers other infused flavors including asian pear, raspberry, and plum.  After loving their coconut lemongrass version I am definitely going to try their other flavors as well.  In addtion to sushi, this sake also pairs well with spicy cuisine and fruit based dishes.  Moonstone infused sakes retail for under $12.

For someone who primarily drinks red wine especially in the cold winter months I seem to be discovering quite a few white wines that I am really enjoying.  Recently while preparing a delicious dinner of chicken with green curry sauce my boyfriend selected Arboleda Sauvignon Blanc, a medium bodied white that he purchased at a wine tasting.  Arboleda wines are produced in the Leyda Valley located in Chile.  Chilean wines are gaining in popularity based on their high quality and affordable prices.  This sauvignon blanc is no exception.  When poured this wine has a pretty straw color and concentrated aroma.  I found it to smell rather buttery with notes of grass and minerals.  The flavor of fresh tropical fruits and slight citrus was well balanced with a nice acidity.  According to the wine makers notes this wine has 14 % alcohol and notes of asparagus and green chili.  I didn’t really taste either of those but this wine did pair extremely well with our spicy Thai meal.  This wine scored 90 points from Wine Advocate and retails under $20.   Arboleda Sauvignon Blanc is another fine white wine choice and another great representation of Chilean wine making.