Martin's Rake

Name: Martin's Rake

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: Marlborough

Country: New Zealand

Year: 2022

Price: $12.99

Winery Review: Nicely done from the start, beginning with hints of stuck flint and going through some honeyed tree fruit and citrus flavors. It's a touch creamy on the midpalate, imparting some extra richness, before fading a little abruptly on the finish. (Joe Czerwinski) - 89

Wine Folly Review: Page 165- 166 of the book talks about Sauvignon Blanc and mentions the flavors of honeydew, grapefruit and white peach which I all taste. I especially smell the grapefruit. New Zealand is included on page 166 and it mentions more ripe pear and kiwi. On these pages passionfruit and gooseberry which I do not taste. On page 262-263 New Zealand wine is specifically talked about. More than half the wine from this country is Sauvignon Blanc and more than half is from Marlborough.

My Personal Review: I really enjoyed this wine. This is one of my favorite Sauvignon Blanc that I have tried. When smelling the wine I get strong notes of peach and grapefruit. The other flavors I get when I am tasting are pear and kiwi. This wine is also acidic which I enjoy. I tried it first with my dinner which was tortellini with an artichoke sauce. The two complemented each other well. Overall, I enjoy the wine and the acidity of it.

Clos du Bois Chardonnay

Name: Clos du Bois

Variety: 100% Chardonnay

Region: California

Country: United States

Year: 2021

Price: $9.99

Winery Review: Enticing aromas of toasted peanuts and buttered popcorn lead to fresh apple and pear flavors nicely accented by vanilla and caramel notes. This medium - to full - bodied wine has lots of personality in a buttery style (Jim Gordon) - 90

Wine Folly Review: Page 96-97 in the book describes chardonnay as having hints of butter, pineapple and yellow apple which I taste. It also said hints of starfruit and vanilla which I did not find present in the wine. California chardonnays have more hints of yellow apple and pineapple than most as well as lemon zest and pie crust which I also taste in the wine. I definitely did not get nutmeg. On page 288 California chardonnays are described as having hints of caramel and creme brulee which I also got hints of. 

Personal Review: I was not the biggest fan of this wine, but chardonnays are not one of my favorite wine grapes. Overall I am getting more hints of flavor than I usually get in a wine. I am mainly getting apples, pineapples and a buttery texture. The smell of this wine does not go along with the flavors. The smell is more tangy and has hints of broccoli. This wine is better when drinking as my first instead of drinking after a sauvignon blanc. Overall, this wine was okay but not amazing in my personal taste.

Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc

 

Name: Oyster Bay 

Variety: 100% Sauvignon Blanc

Region: Marlborough

Country: New Zealand

Year: 2022

Price: $11.99

Winery Review: A pure nose of guava, gooseberries, lime and a grassy character. Fresh and bright with high-toned acidity in a texture palate with a mouthwatering finish. Simple, but tangy and delicious. Drink Now (James Suckling) - 90

Wine Folly Review: Page 262-263 talks about New Zealand wine with Sauvignon Blanc being about half the wine produced and Marlborough talking about half of the acres of vineyards in the country. The book mentions the high acidity which I tasted as well as residual sugar which I did note on my glass while drinking. Passion fruit was also mentioned which I did not taste. On pages 165-166 Sauvignon Blanc wines in general are

discussed. I tasted notes of peach, kiwi and ripe pear but not passionfruit and pea shoot.

Personal Review: I really enjoyed this wine and it had an excellent flavor profile. Guava was mentioned in the winery review and I tasted that in this wine. I also tasted peach, kiwi, and ripe pear, but I especially liked the flavor profile from the guava. I appreciated the high acidity present and tartness to the wine. This was interesting because I noticed residual sugar in my glass. The temperature of the wine also made it crisper. Overall, this was a very enjoyable acidic white wine. 

I drank this wine at a cold temperature and without food. 

Wine & Cheese Night

 This Wednesday I went over to my friends place with a bottle wine, 3 cheeses, and some crackers and had a great time trying out all the combinations. 

These are the three cheeses I paired all of the wines with. The one on the left is a garlic goat cheese. It was very creamy but was had a bit too much of a garlic flavor to pair well with the wines. In the future I would do an unflavored goat cheese as it would pair better. Without the wine it was my least flavor cheese as the garlic was a bit overpowering on its own as well. The bottom right is a Vermont cheddar. I enjoyed this cheese and it was very interesting paired with the wines. On the top is the Gouda and it was my favorite cheese. Without the wine it was a more mellow flavor than the other two cheese and had hints of nutty flavors.

The three cheeses that were paired with the wines

The first of the wines was a Bay Bridge Strawberry Moscato. Obviously this had a strong taste of strawberry but I also tasted oranges, mandarins, and lemongrass. Overall this wine was very fruity. My personal preference is drier wines so the fruit was too much for my liking. This worked well with the creaminess of the goat cheese but clashed with the garlic flavor as it was overpowering the wine. I believe the garlic would have complemented the wine well if it was not so strong in the cheese. The next was the cheddar which was not the best with this wine. The cheddar created a tangy flavor when mixed with the fruitiness of the wine. The last cheese I was surprised by as I enjoyed the gouda with the Moscato. The cheese mellowed out the fruitiness of the wine and the wine brought out the nutty flavors in the gouda. The gouda was a bit creamy too which was a good mixture of texture. I would definitely have that combo again.

Bay Bridge Strawberry Moscato wine

The second wine I tried was a Sauvignon Blanc which is usually my preference as I like drier wines. I tasted honey, lemongrass and a strong sense of white peach in this wine. This was an overall enjoyable wine and on its own my favorite of the three. For the goat cheese the garlic made the wine extremely bitter and was not a good pairing. The creaminess of this cheese also did not work as well with this wine as the sweeter ones. For the cheddar the contrast between the sharpness of the cheese and acidity of the wine worked well. It enhanced both flavors without making them too strong and overpowering. The gouda was again my favorite cheese pairing with the wine. The slightly softer texture works in unison with the wine. As well the cheese was sweeter which worked with the acidity and bitterness of this white wine. This wine also brought out the caramel in the cheese with the honey flavors in the wine. 

The second wine, a Sauvignon Blanc

The last wine was a winking owl white zinfandel. Winking owl is a great brand for cheap wines as the run around $4. This wine was also sweet and I tasted hints of strawberry, peach and blackberry. I enjoyed this wine more than the strawberry Moscato as it was less sweet and fruity. This zinfandel was also smoky and had hints of hickory. For the goat cheese the garlic worked a bit better with the fruit presence in this wine over the others.  But the garlic was still overpowering. For the cheddar the sweetness, hints of blackberry and acidity cut the sharpness of the cherry more than the others. This wine was the best pairing with the cheddar in my opinion.  The tangy fruit flavors worked in this combo. Again this wine paired best with the gouda. The smoky and hickory in this wine worked in unison with the gouda again bringing out the nutty flavors of the gouda. And the texture combo was again a winner with the two. 

The final wine, a white zinfandel

Overall, this was an amazing experience that taught me a lot about wines. I enjoyed the Sauvignon Blanc on its own the best but thought the white zinfandel paired the best with the cheeses. This was surprising because I usually enjoy dry wines the best. As well, I enjoyed the gouda the best of the cheeses with the wine. When I do this again I have good insight to picking better pairings and learning more about my personal preferences. 

Valentine's Day Wine Dinner

This valentine's day my boyfriend and I cooked dinner and tried 3 different wines all from Clos du Bois a vineyard in California. We tried a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot, and a Pinot Noir with pork chops, garlic couscous and broccoli. Trying three dry red wines from the same vineyard made it easier to compare the tastes of each wine and establish my personal preference. 

Our dinner: pork chops, couscous and brocolli

This first wine is a Cabernet Sauvignon which was a tannic red wine. In the initially tasting I got baking spices and blackberry as well as hints of black cherry and cedar. On its own its a strong wine that is full bodied. For me its a little much to drink on its own but worked great with the pork. It cut through the fattiness and became less tannic and brought out the acidity of the wine. The pork also brought out the cedar flavor in the wine and the wine brought out the pepper flavor in the pork. This wine was okay with the couscous, the did not complement each other but the were not opposites either. The broccoli on the other hand countered the taste of the wine and they clashed. A bell pepper would have been a more appropriate vegetable for this wine. I think an even fattier meat would work even better with this wine

Our first wine a Cabernet Sauvignon

The Merlot was much sweeter, and for my personal taste too sweet. As a more savory dinner it did not pair as well. Before trying the food I immediately smelled chocolate when doing the swirl & sniff. This was an interesting layer to the wine. I also tasted plum and cherry but overall the wine was sweeter and less tannic than what I am used to. With dinner it was not the best pairing. The wine did not complement the fatty pork as well since the tannic flavor was not there. It was just okay with the couscous as the flavor profiles weren't similar but did not clash. This wine did work much better with the broccoli though as the dried herbs in the wine were brought out. I did try this wine with a piece of chocolate after which worked with the chocolatey notes in the wine. I think a sweeter sauce would work better with this wine.

Merlot was our second wine of the night

The last wine we tried was a Pinot Noir and it was my favorite! It was a good mix of the other two wines in my opinion. It was more tannic than the merlot but not as overpowering tannic as the Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a good wine to drink without food but also paired nicely with the meal. Initially I tasted the cloves, cherry and raspberry flavors. Once trying it with the pork I got some allspice flavors as well. The wine also worked well with the fattiness of the pork and any fattier of a meat would have overpowered the wine. The pepper of the pork was also brought out by the wine. The couscous also paired well with the clove in the wine. Lastly the broccoli worked better with this wine than the others. There was a bit more of a match with the hibiscus and dried leaves flavor but it would have been interesting to try a mushroom dish to taste the hints of mushroom in this wine. 

Our third and final wine: Pinot Noir

Overall this was a really fun experience and trying wines all from the same vineyard made the notes in the wine more related to the grape than the region. It was interesting to note the differences as I have never compared different red wine grapes to each other. I have mostly had Pinot Noir before because that is what my parents drink but this helped confirm my own personal test. I also enjoyed pairing the wines and foods myself and will definitely do experiments like this again.

The Caubernet Sauvignon and me!                                                    The Merlot bottle and me again

My favorite of the three, the Pinot Noir, and me!

A to Z Pinot Noir

Name: A to Z Pinot Noir

Variety: 100% Pinot Noir

Region: Oregon

Country: USA

Year: 2021

Price: $21.99

Winery Review: This widely available Oregon Pinot avoids the sort of winemaking tricks that take away detail and specificity. It is broadly flavorful with brambly blackberry and black cherry fruit, along with a streak of licorice. (Paul Gregutt) - 90

Wine Folly Review: Page 269 goes into United States Pinot Noirs which are described as rich, red berry aromas. As well, they are light body, juicy acidity and spice flavors from oak aging. For the red berries I taste raspberry as well as the acidity and spice flavor.  Page 150-151 talks about Pinot Noirs in general.

Raspberries and cherries are mentioned as part of the flavor profile which I taste, but I do not taste the cloves, mushrooms or vanilla.

Personal Review: This is another go to wine for me. It is rich which I enjoy. I also lightly taste cherries and strongly taste raspberries. This wine is acidic and spicey which I enjoy. I tried it with my dinner which was tortellini and marinera sauce. I feel like the two do not complement each other well but the wine was great on its own.