Taking the world one wine at a time.
Grape 100% Carménère [car-min-YEHR] Facts Oh, Carmenere! What happened? You had such potential and there were such high expectations for you! There’s no doubt that Chile hedged their bets on Carmenere doing well, but I think it almost turned into a “novelty grape”, much in the same way as Pinotage in South Africa. As much buzz as their was surrounding Carmenere (as recently as a few years ago), the hype seems to have fallen…
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Wine: WaterbrookPlace: Columbia Valley, Washington StateGrapes: 95% Chardonnay, 5% ViognierPrice: $14-15
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Grapes 100% Sauvignon Blanc Facts Today I realized that this is the first New Zealand wine I’ve ever reviewed. Pretty crazy that it’s taken me this long, right? So what could have possibly caused this 2 year procrastination? Short-and-sweet, the sole reason is I’ve become bored of Southern Hemisphere Sauv Blancs and that I feel New Zealand has developed a reputation as “one trick pony” because of them. Most NZ SB’s taste…
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Grapes 100% Chardonnay Facts “Hang-on!!! Why doesn’t that bottle of Chablis have a handle?”Yup….. Carlo Rossi really screwed this one up for the French, didn’t he!?!? Even though his big-dirty-liter-jug-with-a-handle features the Chablis name, it’s about as far removed from “true” Chablis as you can get! So do me a favor, the next time you see this Californian imposter, you must only refer to it as CHAB-LIZ. Chablis is always white and always made…
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Grapes 70% Corvina, 25% Rondinella, 5% Sangiovese Facts Oh sure, I’d like to drink Amarone every day! But with what I consider a “decent” bottle starting at $50, and going swiftly upwards from there, my current budget just doesn’t permit those kind of extravagances. Side-note: I may get a part-time job… So, if you’re in the same position as me (financially that is), Allegrini might have the perfect answer for Amarone-addiction you with their…
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Grapes 100% Sangiovese Facts Ok kids, so since the weather has started warming up (at least here in Florida), we can start to break-out some rosé reviews! Rosés really are quintessential “patio wines”, but some guys have a problem drinking it (for the same reason they that have a problem wearing pink) i.e. they think it threatens their masculinity. Therefore, it’s my hope in this review to kill two birds with one stone,…
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Grapes 100% Cabernet Facts Admittedly I’ve bit on a little “Napa-binge” lately, for which there is very good reason: I lost faith. Napa just hasn’t been “turning me on” much recently. There’s so much out there, but I think so many wineries are resting on their laurels, pumping out good (but not great) juice, slapping Napa on the label, charging a premium and hoping for the best. Fair play to them though,…
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Grapes 80% Semillon, 20% Sauvignon Blanc Facts Dessert wines have developed such a bad reputation. As stupid as it sounds, if I have to hear one more person say “…wow…that’s sweet!!!” or “…I couldn’t drink a whole bottle of that!!!” I may very well stab myself in the eye with a wine opener. To me, it’s exactly the same as saying “…wow….this Filet Mignon is kind of beefy!!!” or “…this steak is great…but I…
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Wine: Hubert Brochard Place: Sancerre, Loire Valley, France. Price: $18’ish
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Grape 100% Chardonnay Facts It wasn’t that long ago that Pouilly-Fuisse [poo-yee fwee-SAY] had developed a fairly bad reputation among wine drinkers. Overuse of fertilizers and herbicides in the vineyards resulted in huge crops. These grapes were in turn picked from the vine too early, by the vineyards who were scared about achieving the perfect ripeness levels. The result wasn’t good! Thin, watery, overly acidic wines that due to the Pouilly-Fuissé, name weren’t cheap either!…
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Grape 100% Cabernet Franc Facts A well-made Cabernet Franc is without a doubt one of my favorite wines; although very few wineries produce a pure varietal wine from this little-know Bordeaux grape, and it’s usually overshadowed in blends by Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Pure expressions of Cab Franc are fairly difficult to find, but I can’t encourage you enough to try and seek out a bottle for yourself and let me know your thoughts!…
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I feel the need to start by pointing-out that this was a pretty-special pairing. If you’ve never actually taken the time to prepare one of the recipes featured in these food and wine pairings, I suggest you start right here! I will say that I’ve never actually taken the time to marinade steaks overnight before. I’m pretty old-school when it comes to how I usually cook my steaks, namely; liberally coating them with garlic salt…
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