Candia Vineyards Noiret Vault Reserve

Continuing to dig through my pile of tasting notes that I've written over the past 6 months, I came across this gem that I had completely forgotten about. Enjoy!

Candia Vineyards Noiret Vault Reserve
Country of origin: USA
Region: New England
Appellation: New Hampshire (not an official AVA!)
Stats: 13 % ABV, dry
Cost: don't remember--$10-15 retail

Appearance: Deep, dark purple. Strong legs with maybe some gas bubbles
Aroma: Deep, dark cherries, toasted oak, and aromas of black pepper and spice.
Taste: Strong green & black pepper with an abundance of dark fruit--blackberry & currants. A tannic finish with a lingering pepper taste. Much like an Australian Shiraz

This wine comes to us from a boutique winery in Candia, New Hampshire. I stumbled across it during a visit to Abbey Cellars wine shop in Lincoln, NH and was intrigue because I had made wine from Noiret grapes in 2006. Noiret is a new hybrid grape varietal developed by the genuises at Cornell University and has only recently begun to be planted commercially for winemaking. This grape was designed to produce a robust, bold red wine in cold climate regions like New York, Pennsylvania, and other Eastern States. One would think that New Hampshire winters might be a challenge, but Candia pulls this off. They were the first to plant the grape in New Hampshire (a dubious accolade considering the paucity of wineries/vineyards in New Hampshire), and have been producing the wine from their grapes since at least 2006. The 2006 and 2007 vintanges have each won several bronze medals at various wine competitions.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Nashoba Valley Winery Chrysleton

Digging back through my stack of wine tasting notes, I came across the wine I selected for Thanksgiving Day dinner--Nashoba Valley Winery's Chrysleton. I had gotten an email update from Nashoba earlier in the week that recommended pairing the Chrysleton with turkey, so I decided to give it a try...

Nashoba Valley Winery Chrysleton
Country of origin: USA
Region: New England
Appellation: Massachusetts (OK, that's not an official AVA)
Stats: 11 % ABV, 1% residual sugar, 20% European elderberry/80% estate apple
Cost: $11 at the winery

Appearance: Light brownish-garnet (lightly brown edge).
Aroma: Vegetable berries. Hints of chocolate and tobacco with a broad apple background. A rather unique aroma.
Taste: Some vegetative berry/apple taste with some tobacco in the finish. Fruity, but also complex. Paired pretty good with dark turkey meat.

I had tasted this wine earlier in January 2008 during a tasting visit to Nashoba (read details here), so I was looking forward to a repeat/reminder. Was very pleased with how it paired with Thanksgiving dinner. The fat of the dark turkey meat added some depth to the fruity taste and it even smoothed out the acidic punch of the cranberry sauce. The fermentation notes on the Nashoba Valley website indicate that the elderberries are added to the fermenting cider until the desired color is obtained and then scooped out. If I was the winemaker, I might push the color a little to get a darker wine, but that might lead to a bigger tannic punch than he was wanting. The 6-12 months in oak barrels add a nice subtle touch. Not overly oaky, but just a little firmness in taste.

Salute,
a Wine Student

p.s. I'm stumped on the name. Is there a secret meaning to Chrysleton? Google searching turns up mainly links to the Nashoba Valley website, or other wine review websites (that review the NV Chrysleton). Is this an old English name for elderberry wine? Is this a secret code to the Masonic Order of Eastern Winemakers? Inquiring minds must know!

Laurel Lake Vineyards 2003 Cabernet Franc

I'm slowly getting around to writing up my back-log of wine tasting notes. This one comes from a couple of weeks ago when I decided to open a nice bottle of wine to accompany a steak dinner that I made for myself.

Laurel Lake Vineyards 2003 Cabernet Franc
Country of origin: USA
Region: New York
Appellation: North Fork Long Island
Stats: 12.5% ABV, dry
Cost: $20 at the winery

Appearance: Clear dark ruby red.
Aroma: Dark cherry initially, followed by black pepper, tobacco, vanilla, caramel, with a nice smooth oak finish.
Taste: Medium body with a strong fruit flavor. Cherries abound with strawberries peeking through. Hints of green and black pepper. There is an underlying greenness or herbiness. The lingering finish is a little flat without a big tannin punch.

For those of you who keep count, this wine won a Gold Medal at the NY International Wine and Grape Juice Competition (don't know the year). I had picked this bottle up during my tasting trip to Long Island this spring. I had a very nice conversation with the winemaker's wife (both were from Chile). Laurel Lake is a relatively young winery (1999), but the vineyard is one of the oldest on Long Island. I believe that it bears watching in the next few years as they grow and develop. Reasonable prices and good wine! The 2003 Cab Franc is still available at the winery, so take a trip!

Salute,
a Wine Student

Sandhill Crane Vintner's Select Riesling 2006

It has been awhile since my last post due to navigating through some personal upheavals in my life that abruptly happened in June. But don't fear--I've been saving my tasting notes for when I finally had the energy to blog again. That time has come so I thought I'd start off with a return to my Michigan roots.

Sandhill Crane Vintner's Select Riesling 2006
Country of origin: USA
Region: Michigan
Appellation: Southeast Michigan
Stats: 12% ABV, 1dry
Cost: no longer in stock

Appearance: Clear with almost no color but the very slightest yellow.
Aroma: Sharp bite to the nose, light fruit--pineapple/citrus, strawberry and some floral notes
Taste: Bold pineapple flavors that were much more aggressive than the nose would suggest. Lightly sweet tasting finish, but nicely balanced with the acidic tartness.

Sandhill Crane Vineyards is a winery that was founded just 5 years ago outside of Jackson, Michigan. I've been a fan of Holly's wines for some time and have really enjoyed seeing her skills and wines grow over the years. This 2006 Riesling has won several awards, including a Silver Medal at the 2008 Great Lakes Wine Judging. Memory is beginning to fail, but I believe that these grapes came from the western MI lakeshore area. Too bad that the wine is no longer available, as I would highly recommend this for a light summer sipper or possibly paired with a chicken stir fry.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Long Island Tasting Trip

This past weekend, I got to take a tasting trip through the wineries on Long Island's North Fork. OK, the real reason I was there was because my wife was riding her bike in the 100-mile Montauk Century Ride, but what else was I going to do while she rode her bike for 7-8 hours?

I started the day on Saturday at Laurel Lake Vineyards mainly because I got up to the North Fork at around 10:30 AM, which was about 30 minutes before most wineries opened. Laurel Lake was the first winery that I came to that was open! However, the early bird does get the worm, because Laurel Lake was a gem. An interesting contrast because it is one of the oldest vineyards, but the winery had been started in 1999. A nice sized smaller winery that is an up and coming establishment. $4 to taste 4 wines. The winemaker's wife was manning the tasting bar--very nice and friendly and told me lots about the winery. Turned out she and her husband were from Chile (which was cool since I had just purchased some Chilean grapes this spring!). I tried the 2006 unoaked chardonnay (very nice and light) and then turned to the reds--2004 merlot (smooth), 2003 cab franc (spicy and peppery), and 2005 syrah (bold). All the reds were very good and I ended up purchasing the 2003 Cab Franc ($20) and 2004 Merlot ($18). This was the first time that I tried the sip and spit method of wine tasting since I was by myself and driving--a fairly good success with only 1 minor spill.

After Laurel Lake, I headed east to Pellegrini Vineyards. Again, another gem with a very nice tasting room staff. Larger place with 23,000 gal production. Although they had plenty of space for weddings and events, the tasting room had a nice and cozy feel. The girl I spoke with was young, but was very friendly and really knew the winery and the wines. She took the time to talk with me before I started tasting to get a feel for my wine tastes to make some recommendations on what to taste (nice touch). A little pricier with $4 for 3 tastes, but I managed to taste several of the reserve wines as well. Tasted a very nice rose made from cab fsauv grapes, along with a flight of very good merlots and a bourdeaux blend. Liked them so much I bought 3 wines--2007 East End Select Rose ($15), the 2001 Merlot ($20), and the 2004 Cabernet Franc ($20).

I finished my Saturday tasting at Macari Vineyards. Large family farm with 120 acres of grapes that sold grapes for years before opening the winery. Large tasting room, but I managed to score being served by the tasting room manager who was extremely friendly and told me a lot about the winery and the wines. Expensive to taste, though--$8 for 4 wines in a pre-selected wine flight. They had two main flights to choose from, but after I said that I really was looking to explore merlot, a special reserve red flight was brought out because they just happened to have a bottle of the expensive anchor wine open from the previous day. Overall--very good reds. I purchased a 2003 Merlot ($13) and their Sette--a blend of merlot, cab franc, malbec, and petite verdot ($15).

At that point I had to break away and go meet my wife at the bike ride end in Montauk. So glad I got to experience the wonderful summer traffic stall through the Hamptons. Nice place, but I sure wouldn't want to sit in that traffic again (coming and going)!

On Sunday, we had to drive through the North Fork again to get to the ferry, so I forced my wife to join me in tasting a few more wineries. We started at Bedell Cellars. Much fancier than any of the other places and expensive $8-12 for different flights of 4 wines. We tasted the $8 flight and sampled a chardonnay, a chardonnay/viogner blend, a rose, and a merlot. The tasting room staff was pleasant, but didn't talk with us a whole lot. Were more concerned about some smell coming from the wine fridge that I couldn't sense. My wife did like the 2007 First Crush White (chardonnay/viogner blend), so I bought a bottle for her ($18).

On the way east, we stopped in at Osprey's Dominion, which was a mistake. Cheaper tasting ($5/5 wines), but frankly not very good. Plus, the server refused to smile or engage us in conversation at all. So we drained the wine and left without purchasing anything.

Our last stop was at Corey Creek Vineyards, a sister winery of Bedell Cellars. In fact, we tasted a couple of the Bedell Wines that we did not taste at Bedell. A very good gewurztraminer and a wonderful unoaked chardonnay. They had a folk music guitar duo playing on their patio that overlooked the vineyard, so we purchased a couple glasses of wine and enjoyed the music and the view. Stayed so long, we missed our reserved ferry time and had to go on stand-by for the next one!

Overall I was impressed with the quality of the Long Island Wineries. I really enjoyed the merlots and cabernet francs that I tasted. I'm looking forward to writing reviews of the wines that I purchased!

Salute,
a Wine Student

Russell Orchards Winery Visit

My wife and I spent Memorial Day on Crane Beach. Gorgeous weather for a day at the beach--sunshine and hot! After getting our fill of surf and sand, we headed for home but made a quick stop at Russell Orchards to check out their fruit wines. From the size of the sign advertising their wine, I suspected that wine was not the primary focus of the place, and I was correct. If ice cream, baked goods, cold cider, or local produce is your object, Russell Orchards is the place. The tasting room, produce stand, ice cream counter, cider fridge, and bakery are all housed in their big old barn. It took a little bit of snooping around to locate the winetasting counter in the back corner of the barn. I was immediately turned off by tasting from small plastic cups instead of a normal glass (it's a pet peeve of mine). The tasting counter is also very small (less than 6 feet long). The poor gal behind it was trying to serve as many people as possible, but not physically possible to get more than 4-5 folks squeezed in.

Russell Orchards produces only fruit wines and cider and most everything that was open that day was sweet to some degree. Their Baldwin apple was pleasant--crisp, fruity, and the only dry wine available to taste. I was eager to try their blueberry (off dry), but couldn't get past the funky taste (like old leather soaked in medicine). Ditto for the black currant. I ended the tasting with their rhubarb wine--very interesting. Their rhubarb is completely colorless (looked like a bottle of vodka) and tastes only slightly of rhubarb. I'm guessing that they don't use much rhubarb in their recipe, but was surprised by the good body and mouthfeel of such a light version.

My recommendation--not a destination in and of itself, but a fun stop after a warm day at the beach. Go when it's less crowded for a more pleasant experience. Judging from the size of the parking lot, that may not be very common.

Salute,
a Wine Student.

Keuka Overlook Cellars Mulberry

I' was in the mood for having a little nightcap before bedtime this past week, so I opened a bottle of a dessert wine that I picked up during my last winetasting trip to the Finger Lakes region in New York.

Keuka Overlook Cellars Mulberry
Country of origin: USA
Region: New York
Appellation: Finger Lakes Region, Keuka Lake
Stats: 13% ABV, 11% residual sugar, 375 mL
Cost: $12 at the winery

Appearance: Ruby red with hints of orange
Aroma: Mulberries, I guess (it's been a while since I tasted or smelled a mulberry). Dark fruity nose with notes of citrus and cocoa.
Taste: Fruit forward. Not overly sweet considering the 11% residual sugar. It has an interesting smokey, funky aftertaste that got to me after awhile (didn't finish the bottle).

Keuka Overlook is a winery/bed & breakfast with a gorgeous overlook of Keuka Lake (now if I can only figure out where they got the name). The winery is located in the old red barn across the street from the B&B with the very cramped tasting room in the basement. I was intrigued with the mulberry wine because I used to pick mulberries as a kid. Mulberry pie is one of my favorite pies, so I had to try it. I'm not a huge fan of sweet dessert wines, but this was pretty nicely balanced. It's the aftertaste that is a little odd...

Salute,
a Wine Student

p.s. Sorry folks, no label picture. I apparently washed out the bottle and removed the label before I could remember to take a picture.

Fenn Valley Vineyard Capriccio NV

My darling wife made a big batch of spaghetti and meatballs for supper last night, so I descended into the cellar to select a wine to pair with the meal. After some head scratching, I spied my bottle of Fenn Valley Vineyard's Capriccio from Michigan. Yes, you read correctly, this wine was grown and produced in western Michigan along the shores of Lake Michigan.

Fenn Valley Vineyard Capriccio NV
Country of origin: USA
Region: Michigan
Appellation: Lake Michigan Shore (Southwest corner of the state)
Stats: 12.5% ABV
Cost: $12 at the winery (Michigan wineries can ship!)

Appearance: Deep purple red with nice legs, baby!
Aroma: Black cherries and hints of vanilla with a slightly tart finish.
Taste: Initial cherry with a tart raspberry finish. Good body and lingering finish. Soft and smooth tannins. This wine behaves like a good everyday Chianti. Good by itself, but even better with a tomato-based dish (such as sphagetti and meatballs).

Didn't think a good red table wine could be made from grapes grown in the cold climate of Michigan? Well, you obviously haven't read my blog in its entirety! You also need to go sample some Michigan wines. While white wines such as reisling and Gewurztraminer are definitely the stars, Michigan red wines are beginning to get notice beyond the wineries and the state as growing and vinification techniques are improving. I think we can all appreciate that Michigan's climate isn't well suited to grape varietals that require long hang times and hot temperatures to mature. Old Man Winter takes care of that! But a focus on cold-hardy varietals and hybrids is improving the outlook of red wine in Michigan. And Doug Welsh, the winemaker at Fenn Valley, is a pioneer in the Michigan winemaking world. Fenn Valley was actually the first Michigan winery I ever visited in 2001 after a few years of turning up my nose at them--yes, I was a CA wine snob when I first moved to Michigan! I credit Doug with opening my eyes to Michigan's possibilities thanks to his wines (I finally had the pleasure of meeting Doug at the 2007 Wineries Unlimited convention). If your driving north on I-196 along the shore of Lake Michigan, pull off to visit Sagatuck and then drive over the Fennville for a tasting tour of Fenn Valley Vineyards! You won't be disappointed.

Salute,
a Wine Student

2005 Can Blau Montsant

Grab your suitcases and find the nearest Concord jet, we're heading east--way, way, all the way across "the pond" to Spain! I did mention this was a blog on Random Wine Trails, didn't I? I was in the mood for a dark, hearty red a couple of days ago and chose the Can Blau 2005 from my cellar to while away the evening.

Cellars Can Blau, 2005 Can Blau Montsant
Country of origin: Spain
Region: Priorato
Appellation: D.O. Montsant
Stats: A blend of syrah, garnacha (grenache), and carinena (carignan).
Cost: $19.99 (label still on bottle).

Appearance: Lovely deep, dark purple-red.
Aroma: Initial burst of bright cherries, blackberries, and plum followed by a vanilla and coconut finish.
Taste: Smooth and fruity initial burst. Good mid-palette with a lingering finish. Some minerality in the end. Soft tannins that made this wine a pleasure to drink.

The D. O. Montsant appellation (Denominations of Origin) has only been recognized since 2002, but has experienced tremendous growth with the original 28 wineries blossoming to more than 40. It is located in northeastern Spain, in the Catalonia province to the east of the city of Tarragona. An inland area, the climate is Mediterranean, but Montsant is surrounded by mountain ranges which also give it a bit of continental flavor that results in large day-night temperature variations. During the dry season, the humidity from the ocean brings much needed rain. The area is very hilly with three main soil types. The syrah in this wine was planted in chalky soils, the carinena in sandy clay, and the garnacha on llicorella slate.

For those that really pay attention to these kind of things, Robert Parker gave this wine 90 points.


Salute,
a Wine Student

Wine Country Farms 2001 Late Harvest Műller-Thurgau

Well, I've been bouncing around the wine country lately. South America, Virginia, France, California, and Michigan... Well, let's head back to the West Coast but aim a little higher to the north and land in Yamhill Country, Oregon. Back in 2003, my wife and I took a little trip to Portland, the Oregon coast, Crater Lake, and of course the Willamette Valley wine country to celebrate our second wedding anniversary. What a fun trip--one highlight was taking an early morning hot air balloon ride across the Willamette Valley and then enjoying a champagne brunch!

But I digress, so back to the wine. This week, I've been enjoying a desert wine that we picked up on our Oregon trip as an after dinner aperitif, Wine Country Farms 2001 Late Harvest Műller-Thurgau. I really don't remember why we stopped at Wine Country Farms. I vaguely remember reading a review in Wine Spectator magazine, but I could be wrong. Perhaps we just read about it in the Yamhill County wine map brochure and were intrigued by the boast of "Voted Best Inn in Oregon's Wine Country", or it may have just been on the way to another winery and we pulled in. At the time, it was more of a B&B overlooking a vineyard that just happened to have a winery tasting room. The views across the vineyard and the valley were tremendous. This particular wine was produced and bottled for WCF by Eola Hills Wine Cellars in Rickreall, OR (near Salem), but WCF seems to have hired their own winemaker in 2006, so look for interesting things to come.

Wine Country Farms 2001 Late Harvest Műller-Thurgau
Country of origin: USA
Appellation: Williamette Valley, Oregon
Sub-appellation: Yamhill County
Cost: unsure, but the 2002 presently sells for $14 at the winery
Stats: 8% ABV, very sweet
Appearance: Dark golden yellow
Aroma: Apricots, strawberries, honey, and leechee fruit (I think). Smells almost like a mead
Taste: Apricots and raisins with a honey-sweet finish. Possibly a bit oxidized with the raisin taste, but still a good pre-bedtime finish.

Műller-Thurgau was a grape we first encountered on this trip to Oregon and have not run across since. This is a varietal created less than 125 years ago as a cross between reisling and Madeleine Royale and has been widely planted in Germany and makes up a large part of inexpensive sweet German wines like Piesporter. It was also heavily planted in the Oregon area, probably because it is an early-ripening grape suited for a slightly colder climate. M-T is known for producing fruity, but low acid wines, and most that we tasted on this trip were nice easy-drinking dry or off-dry sippers that would work well on the patio during the summer. Unfortunately, this grape has fallen out of favor because althought the vines are extremely productive, they produce mostly less interesting, flabby wines. That all being said, I wonder how the varietal would do being grown in the East or other more cold-climate states?

Salute,
a Wine Student

Leelanau Cellars Blueberry

On Saturday night, I was rummaging through the cellar in search of a bottle for the evening and came across this bottle of Blueberry wine from Leelanau Cellars. I had picked this up on a spur of the moment last January at one of the Meijer stores in Ann Arbor, MI while it was on sale. My original attraction was to use it as part of my reverse engineering of commercial blueberry wines to help improve the design of my own blueberry wine recipes. That had obviously gotten side tracked by the move to Massachusetts, so I decided to pop it open and see what I thought. I had a sneaking suspicion that it was a sweet wine, so I chilled it before opening. A quick test with an Accuvin residual sugar test confirmed that it was sweet--at least 2% residual sugar.

Leelanau Cellars Blueberry
Country of origin: USA
Appellation: Michigan
Cost: $4 at Miejer in Ann Arbor, MI
Stats: 100% blueberry, 12% ABV, 2% residual sugar
Appearance: Light red, clear and transparent
Aroma: Blueberries and citrus
Taste: Weak and insipid. Light blueberry taste is overwhelmed by the cloyingly sweetness.

My wife and I each took one sip and dumped the rest down the drain. Leelanau Cellars' motto is "A Taste of Northern Michigan". One of Michigan's oldest wineries and perched about half-way up the Leelanau Penninsula north of Traverse City, they should have first hand knowledge. However, from personal experience, I can honestly say that Northern Michigan can taste a LOT better than this. Please don't judge Michigan wines in general or blueberry wines in particular by this product. Blueberry wines can be made in a wide variety of styles, but this is just too overwhelmingly sweet to appreciate any of the blueberry character.

Sadly Saluted,
a Wine Student

Justin 2004 Savant

After polishing off a bottle of Rockpile Zinfandel during the aforementioned friendly gathering, I plucked my bottle of Justin 2004 Savant from the cellar as the finishing touch to the evening.

Justin 2004 Savant
Country of Origin: USA-Calfornia
Appellation: Paso Robles
Cost: Around $40 (I bought it as part of the Justin Wine Club)
Stats: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Syrah from 2 west side vineyards. The syrah was fermented in new American Oak barrels. The wine was aged in 38% new oak, 23% new American, and 15% new French barrels.
Appearance: Deep, deep purple with some lovely "legs"
Aroma: Black fruits, vanilla, toasted oak.
Taste: A complex and well-integrated wine. A balance of fruit and tannin on the tongue with good body and hints of black pepper. A long and lingering aftertaste of fruit and oak.

An excellent end to the evening. For those counting, this wine received a rating of 90 pts from Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Rockpile Winery 2004 Zinfandel Rockpile Ridge Vineyards

This past Saturday, we had some friends over for a casual evening of pizza and cards. They brought along a bottle of wine to share from their cellar. Rockpile Winery is a relatively new venture in Sonoma County, with the tasting room opening in 2004. The winery was started by the long-time grape growing Mauritson family, who initially started making wine under the Mauritson Wines label from their 260 acres scattered around the Dry Creek and Alexander Valley areas. Recently they turned their attention back to their original vineyards in the Rockpile AVA (which was declared the latest California AVA in 2002). This remote, high country growing area is noted for its proximity to Lake Sonoma and higher altitude (800-2000 ft) that keeps it above the coastal fogs that penetrate into the lower regions of the Napa and Sonoma Counties, resulting in greater sun exposure for the grapes. The Mauritsons have been farming and raising grapes in the Rockpile since 1868.

Rockpile Winery 2004 Zinfandel Rockpile Ridge Vineyards
Country of origin: USA-California, Sonoma County
Appellation: Rockpile AVA
Cost: ~$30 (based on 2005 price, but likely no longer readily available)
Appearance: Deep garnet
Aroma: Bright cherry nose with some hints of green tobacco.
Taste: Very fruit forward with hints of vanilla and oak. Smooth tannins and medium body. There was an underlying streak of green grass and other herbacious tastes, probably from too prolonged contact with the skins and seeds of slightly under-ripe grapes. Not a wine intended for long-term aging.

The overall consensus was a decent wine for casual drinking, but later vintages from this young winery have been more successful.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Chateau de Lascaux 2001 Coteaux du Languedoc

Was feeling a little down this weekend due to a combination of winter blues, struggling to get over a head cold earlier this week, and facing too much work to do next week, so I asked myself, "Who are the experts on all things morose?" The French, of course! When you're wallowing, why not wallow with the experts? So I headed to the basement and picked out a bottle of French wine from my collection. I only have 4-5 red French wines, so it wasn't too much of a difficult choice. I picked this bottle because I've had it for awhile and I vaguely recalled that it was moderately priced, and I must say that it fit my mood perfectly. Homey and comforting, not overly aggressive, it was a good wine to sip while watching the Food Network and pondering the universe.

Chateau de Lascaux, 2001 Coteaux du Languedoc
Country of origin: France
Region: Coteaux du Languedoc (centered around the city Montpellier in Southern France and extending from Narbonne in the west to the edge of Camargue in the east and up to the Cévennes mountains)

Stats: A blend of syrah, grenache, and mourvedre. Ratios unknown for this vintage.
Cost: Probably around $20. I bought it at Morgan & York (formerly the Big Ten Market) in Ann Arbor, MI sometime in 2003-2005.

Appearance: Lovely deep garnet. Not overly dark.
Aroma: Complex nose of black cherries, black currant, and strawberries with a finishing note of vanilla & toasted coconut. There was a hint of chalk when I first opened the bottle, but that had disappeared by the next day.
Taste: Smooth and mild. Mellow fruit forward in the beginning and finishing with just a hint of tannins. Very nice sipper by itself, but would get overpowered by strong tasting food.

Wish I had bought more than one bottle, as this is just the wine to break the winter doldrums and get you day-dreaming about walking through the hills of Southern France.

Salute,
a Wine Student

King Family Vineyards "Michael Shaps" 2005 Monticello Viognier

For Valentines Day, I ended up working from home while I oversaw some home remodeling projects. That also gave me some time to run up the street to our local seafood store and buy some local Cape Cod bay scallops for dinner. I'd like to say I had dinner on the table by the time my wife got home from work, but the truth is it took longer to make than I anticipated. But we eventually sat down to a wonderful meal of Bourbon Bacon-wrapped Scallops, asparagus spears, and sun-dried tomato risotto. To go with the meal, I chose a bottle of "Michael Shaps" 2005 Monticello Viognier from King Family Vineyards. What a delightful choice!

As you might guess from the name, this wine is from Virginia. King Family Vineyards is located just outside of Crozet, VA which is about 20 miles down the road from Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Charlottesville. We stopped by the winery on the way home for the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I was trying to get to Monticello to take a tour of the estate, but we didn't arrive until 30 minutes before closing. Fortunately, there are a number of Virginia wineries in the area, so we availed ourselves of their hospitality. King Family Vineyards had been written up in a recent Wine Spectator article, so we made that our final destination. Believe me, this is a place to go to admire people with money. The winery is set on the edge of a huge horse farm and no expense was spared in its construction. Very beautiful setting. A shame it was a chilly day and we couldn't sit on the patio to admire the view while sipping a glass of wine.

"Michael Shaps" 2005 Monticello Viognier
Appealation: Monticello, Virginia
Cost: roughly $25
Appearance: Very delicate clear yellow. Almost colorless
Aroma: Apricots, pineapple, and kiwi (my wife thinks I'm dreaming about the last one, but I swear I smell kiwi)
Taste: Full bodied. Burst of apricots, pineapple, and other citrus. Very pleasing tang and minerality in the lingering finish.

Paired very well with the scallops and risotto!

Salute,
a Wine Student

Catena 2005 Malbec

Third in my series of South American Malbec tastings...

This was the most expensive malbec that I could find at the store, so I bought it to round out my price range of $10-$20. Turned out this is the best one of the bunch!

Catena 2005 Malbec
Winery: Bodega Catena Zapata
Country: Argentina
Region: Mendoza
Made from grapes sourced from 4 different vineyards ranging from 2850-5000 feet altitude (now that's some high altitude!). Aged 12 months in 70% French Oak (20% new) and 30% new American Oak.
Stats: 13.5% abv, pH = 3.78, TA = 5.13 g/L

Appearance: Deep, deep purple. Essentially opaque to the eye.
Aroma: Dark cherries, blackberries, and black currants. Underlying oak and leather with some spice notes.
Taste: A very complex, but mild wine. A weave of cherry, toasted oak, leather, and chocolate with mild tannins and even some floral notes in the finish. Long lingering finish.

I think this wine actually has the acid balance to drink as a stand alone wine, not just with food.

Salute,
a Wine Student

La Posta 2006 Malbec Angel Paulucci Vineyard

Continuing on my South American malbec tasting and reverse engineering experiments, the next wine on the docket is La Posta 2006 Malbec. Interestingly, this is a single vineyard wine made from grapes from the Angel Paulucci Vineyard.

La Posta 2006 Malbec Angel Paulucci Vineyard
Stats: 13.9% ABV, pH = 3.68, Total acidity = 3.96 g/L
Cost: $16.99 at Acton Wine & Spirits, Acton, MA
Region: Argentina, Mendoza Region, Ugarteche

Appearance: Deep purple, huge legs
Aroma: Big fruity nose with loads of cherries, blackberries, blueberries.
Taste: Big initial fruit burst with cherries and blackberries predominating. Very mild tannins and a smooth finish. Not much lingering after taste.

For those who like to keep score, this wine received a 90 pts rating from Wine Advocate.

I tasted the wine before and during a dinner of spaghetti & meatballs prepared by my lovely wife. The wine improved tremendously when drunk with the meal. The low acid was a good compliment to the acidic tomato sauce. This wine needs to be drunk with food. Otherwise, it's fairly forgettable. I get a kick out of the reviews that I've found online that describe this wine as "well-structured wine that is incredibly full of life". Sorry, I just don't see it. Good Italian food wine, but otherwise, pretty bland.


Salute,
a Wine Student.

I Made Vineyard & Winery Management Magazine!

Earlier this week, I received my latest copy of Vineyard & Winery Management magazine. I got a free subscription to the magazine when I attended the Wineries Unlimited 2007 convention in Valley Forge, PA last March as part of the registration fee. Part of this issue was devoted to advertising the upcoming Wineries Unlimited 2008 convention, but it was full of pictures from last year's convention. Imagine my delight when I discovered that I was included in a picture! On page 47, in the bottom right hand corner is a picture of one of the seminars, and way in the back, silhouetted against the wall, you can see me completely engrossed in the speaker while seated in a classic Thinker pose. I think this was one of the presentations on making ice wine given by a microbiology professor from University of Ontario. I did find that presentation fascinating--different glucose metabolic pathways in yeast in a high sugar environment that produce acetic acid and glycol to balance the osmotic pressures.

See, I told you it was fascinating!

Salute,
a Wine Student

Terrazaz 2006 Malbec

Since I'm planning on make wine from Chilean Malbec this spring (see post), I decided to do some competitive intelligence and reverse engineering on some commercial malbecs. I went to a couple of local wine stores and purchased 3 bottles of Malbec in the $10-$25 price range. I was a little disappointed that all I could find was Argentinian Malbec (even when the shelf at the Acton Wine & Spirits was proudly labeled "Chilean Wine"). Yes, I know that's two different countries, let alone wine growing regions, but I reasoned that both regions are located in high altitude arid valleys, so the resulting wine should be similar enough for my purposes. I started opening the wines this week, and will report on each in turn.

Terrazas Malbec 2006 (Wine Spectator ranking: 88 pts)
Cost: $10.99 at Westford Liquor
Country: Argentina
Region: Mendoza
Altitude: 1067 meters (3500 ft) above sea level

Stats: 13.5% ABV, pH = 3.70, total acidity = 4.05 g/L

Appearance: Deep, dark purple--very hard to see through with nice long legs.
Aroma: Big fruity nose with loads of blackberries, cassis, and plums. There's a background smell that I'm still trying to figure out if it was toasty oak or mold.
Taste: Fruit forward with initial broad blackberry. Mellow tannins with a hint of vanilla. Ended rather abruptly with a flat finish and not much lingering after taste.

I tried the wine again the next day after it had sat for ~18 hours under a vacuvin seal and found a good improvement. The aeration brought out a little more tannin pucker, but I still missed the finish. Overall, a nice inexpensive wine, but rather forgettable. I think the addition of a little tartaric acid to give the finish a bit of a bite would go a long way in improving this wine.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Grape Pomace Good for your Smile!

As if we needed another reason to like wine, it turns out that the left-over dregs after fermentation (the pomace) can yield polyphenol extracts that inhibit bacteria that cause tooth decay (see story)! Apparently, these extracts inhibited glucosyltransferases from two different bacterial strains by a whopping 85%. Bacteria in the mouth use glucosyltransferases to anchor themselves to the teeth and become resistant to toothbrushing. Even better, the research was done at the University of Rochester Medical Center and Cornell University using red grape pomace donated from wineries in the New York Finger Lakes. Cabernet Franc pomace was the best of the three varietals tried (over pinot noir and noiret). Could this be the start of a interstate anti-bacterial rivalry--"Our grape gunk is better than your grape gunk!"? Will this cause the lowly Cab Franc to be the new pinot?

Of course, we're years away from actual drug treatments derived from grape pomace, but at the moment, I can't get the picture of a dentist smearing fermented grape skins over my teeth out of my head! That would be a picture worth a thousand words!!

Salute!
a Wine Student.

Nashoba Valley Winery Visit

After church today, my wife and I decided to run down to Nashoba Valley Winery in Bolton, MA before we came home to watch the Patriots game this afternoon. Something I've been wanting to do ever since we moved here, but just haven't found the time yet. We left church at 11:00 and decided to see what restaurants we could find on the way to grab some lunch rather than go back home and fix lunch. Well, Bolton, MA is not exactly known for the quantity of restaurants within the city limit. We saw a grand total of two. One was a pizza joint inside of a tacky looking tourist trap just west of the I-495 interchange, and the other was J's Restaurant located on the winery grounds inside the old farm house. We opted to try J's Restaurant. The hostess informed us that they were normally booked solid, but had a little lighter traffic today because of the football game and had a free table available. Wow, what a find! The brunch spread was simply amazing: Cinnamon raisin French toast, gourmet egg strata, sausage, home fries with truffle butter, smoked trout and bluefish with capers, pork taquitos, Japanese seaweed salad, pumpkin bisque, farfalle pasta with sun-dried tomatoes and cream sauce, toasted banana bread, and three different salads including a nut salad with pecans, walnuts, macadamia, pistachios, and dried cranberries in a cinnamon caramel sauce. And then there was the cheese and dessert table! All that for $18.50 per adult.

After we were satiated, we ambled down to the winery and found a space at the tasting bar. Nashoba Valley specializes in fruit wines, especially apple. We started with the dry whites. First, a Baldwin apple wine that tasted nothing like apples--big burst of pineapple and citrus. Then a Chardonnay made from Massachusetts grown grapes--a big, full bodied, slightly buttery chard. Third, a Gravenstein apple wine with a little stronger apple taste, but still tasted almost like a sauvignon blanc. The last white wine we tasted was a dry vidal blanc. Another nicely made wine with big fruity nose that finished with a distinctly foxy taste.

Moving on to the reds, we sampled a blueberry/merlot that was quite good. A 50/50 blend of blueberry and New York merlot that was fermented separately and aged in oak before blending and bottling. Dark garnet color with very nice light berry aromas and smooth finish. Next was Chrysleton, a dry elderberry-apple wine that was an easy sipping light red. The elderberry added color and complexity to the apple wine. Almost like a róse.

We finished our tasting by sampling the dry blueberry and semi-dry blueberry wines. Good, but not my favorites. The dry blueberry was complex with strong tobacco and leather aromas and tastes. Perhaps a little too heavily oaked. The semi-dry blueberry was just lightly sweet, but had some oily notes in the finish.

All in all, a very enjoyable visit with some surprising fruit wines. All of the single varietal apple wines were almost indistinguishable from a white grape wine. I'd be interested in serving them along side a sauvignon blanc or perhaps a viognier to see difficult it would be to tell them apart. We ended up buying 5 wines to sample later, and those reviews will be posted here, so stay tuned.

The winery itself is in a wonderful location. The views across the orchards and vineyards are wonderful in mid-Winter, and I can only imagine how beautiful the views are when the trees and grass are green. They have plenty of picnic tables and space for summer picnics, as well as an outdoor space for weddings and gatherings. The tasting room is quite large, but the tasting bar is very small. The wine for sale is spread across a large area, but I can only imagine how crowded the tasting bar area gets in the middle of summer!

Salute,
a Wine Student

David Coffaro 2005 Barbera

On Saturday afternoon, I finished my chores and wanted to open a bottle of wine while I watched the Patriots advance to 17-0. After a little hemming and hawing in front of the wine racks, I chose a bottle of David Coffaro 2005 Barbera. Now, a lot of people don't care for barbera as a single varietal. It is used a lot for blending, but I've really enjoyed David's Barberas. I buy these as futures, but they might still be available in stores around San Francisco and Sonoma mostly.

David Coffaro 2005 Barbera
Cost:I paid ~$13 as a future. Retail now would be around $20-25.
Stats: 75% Barbera/15% Sangiovese/10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.2% alcohol
Appelation: Sonoma County
Sub-appelation: Dry Creek Valley
Appearance: Clear, dark maroon, almost inky. Nice legs!
Aroma: Big fruit nose filled with black cherries, currants, and raisins with hints of vanilla and toasted coconut.
Taste: Smooth, fruity foretaste. Almost floral. Big pepper and spice finish with a slight tannic pucker.

I've been drinking this solo, but it would undoubtedly pair very nicely with a steak, hamburger, or tomato pasta.

Salute!
a Wine Student

Plymouth Winery & Plymouth Bay Winery Visit

Earlier this fall, my wife and I took a day trip to Plymouth, MA. We spent the morning and early afternoon on the Duxbury Beach, enjoying the fall ocean breezes on a sunny, but somewhat chilly day. After lunch, the tide soon began to attempt to sweep our blankets away, so we packed up and decided to stop in Plymouth to walk around the waterfront. I must confess that I knew there were a couple of wine tasting rooms, so I gently pushed that option!

It was after Labor Day, so the crowds weren't bad. The streets were busy, but not overrun, and we easily found a parking space on Water Street. We first stopped for an ice cream cone, and then headed for the good stuff! Our first stop was the Plymouth Bay Winery, which was located at the back of a parking lot behind Isaac's Restaurant. There were 3 other couples at the tasting bar who graciously made room for us. They had only tasted two of the wines on the tasting list, so they agreed to wait for us to catch up. I don't remember the name of the server, but he was a hoot. He was semi-retired, very enthusiastic about the wines, and desperate to tell stories about the wines, the winery, and his life. So enthusiastic that he frequently forgot what he had just got done pouring, so we got a double shot of several wines! That always makes for a happy wine tasting!

Plymouth Bay Winery focuses on fruit wines like cranberry, cherry, and raspberry, as well as a white grape wine and a red wine made from Concord grapes. Most wines were off-dry to sweet, with Drydock White the only dry wine. Although I am not a sweet wine fan, I thought they were well made and balanced. The Drydock White was my overall favorite. I don't remember what grape varietals made up this blend. Vidal and Chardonnel? You'll have to visit to get the real answer. They were pouring two cranberry wines--Cranberry Bay and Cranberry Blush. The Cranberry Bay was straight cranberry finished too sweet for my taste. The Cranberry Blush was a blend of cranberry and white grape wine (vidal I think), which I thought was too light on the cranberry. The Concord grape based Colonial Red missed the spot for me, but I'm not a fan of Concord grape wine. Jam and juice, yes, but I don't like my wine tasting like grapes. My biggest complaint was the use of plastic water drinking cups instead of a wine glass.

After completing our tasting, we walked by Plymouth Rock and then wandered back up Water Street to find Plymouth Winery. Although one of the largest winery in Massachusetts (10,000 gallon production), this tasting room requires a sharp eye because it's located in in Village Landing Marketplace, an artist colony-type strip mall, with only a small sign to announce its presence. Given the warm welcome we received at Plymouth Bay, we were rather taken aback by the frosty reception upon our entrance into Plymouth Winery. Yes, it was busy with tourists, and yes, it was late afternoon, but smile for pete's sake!

Another long list of sweet fruit wines, but there were four dry offerings. The Mayflower Red is made from California Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and aged in American oak barrels. Decent, but not enough body with some off acrid tastes in the finish. I can't give you full tasting report because we quickly tired of the pushy tourists at the bar, the very small plastic pee cups, and the surly server. After a couple of tastes, we left to explore the rest of the town.

I look forward to going back to Plymouth Bay Winery to see how the new vintages taste. I will think twice about going to Plymouth Winery again. The names are confusing, especially with Plymouth Colony Winery west of town!

Salute!
a Wine Student

Lone Oak Estate Vineyards 2004 Merlot

Note: This is a previous post from a different blog in order to consolidate.

9/19/2006 Last weekend, I popped open a bottle of Lone Oak Estate Vineyards 2004 Merlot. I purchased the bottle when I visited the winery in early April this year for $18.95. All estate grown grapes from the wineries' vineyards just east of Jackson, MI. Deep red color, with some nice legs. Hints of tobacco and spice in the nose. Notes of pepper, bright cherry and cranberry flavors on the tongue. A little tart and tannic, this wine should age nicely for a few years (thank goodness I bought another bottle a few weeks ago!). Interestingly, the bottle I opened was not completely degassed as my Vacuvin pulled quite a bubble head.

I drank about 1/3 of the bottle on Friday night, about another 1/3 on Saturday, and finished the bottle of Sunday. The wine definitely improved with a little oxygenation after opening. The tannic taste had mellowed a bit by the second tasting.

Regards,
a Wine Student

Cherry Creek Wine Cellars Visit

Note: This is a copied post from a previous blog in a consolidation attempt.


10/10/2006 This weekend, my wife participated in the Reeds Lake Triatholon in Grand Rapids. My reward for going along and being her sherpa during the event (and the rain) was to be able to stop at some wineries on the way home. In the end, the only winery we visited was Cherry Creek Cellars at exit 127 on I-94 west of Parma. A word of advice: do not get confused and turn into the first paved driveway after exiting the freeway, you'll end up pulling into the parking lot for a new adult entertainment establishment. Since this isn't that kind of blog, we beat a quick retreat and found the correct gravel driveway. The winery/tasting room is housed in a smallish metal shed nestled in the midst of several vineyards. A two-year old vineyard of chardonnay beckons as you walk around the side of the building towards the tasting room door, which is framed by a trellis covered with some red grape vines bearing bunches of ripening grape clusters. Inside, the nicely furnished tasting room is on the small side. The tasting bar curves along the side of the room and will comfortably allow 6 people to belly up for some tastin'. I say 6 because while two other couples came in while we were tasting. While everyone still had some elbow room, I was glad that we were in the middle of a purchase when a 3rd couple walked in--eight would have begun to be crowded. The young guy behind the bar looked way too young to serve wine, but he was very knowledgable about the wines and how the winery operated. Did not catch his name, but he was a very pleasant server. A second bonus was that a lot of winery equipment was scattered around the back of the building, since harvest and crush season is rapidly approaching, so I got to salivate over a big rotary bladder press.

We enjoyed the visit, especially their dry red wines. The 2002 Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, and Enigma (100% cabernet sauvignon) were quite good. The Cabernet Franc and Enigma were surprisingly dark, lucious flavor bombs made from 100% MI grapes. Very reminiscent of CA cabs instead of the weaker MI cabs that I've experienced before. Made in the French style with all three spending time in 100% French oak.

I was not quite as impressed with the whites--more vegetable and barnyard flavors. There were also a number of semi-sweet grape and fruit wines. The apple was rather good, but the cherry and cranberry were far too sweet for our tastes.

I'd recommend visiting Cherry Creek Cellars. For those not traveling along I-94, they have a second tasting room in Cement City near the Irish Hills area and the Michigan International Speedway. The Parma site is the mothership, started 4 years ago when the winery was founded. Due to the increased tourism traffic near Cement City, that site brings in more income, but the wine is made at the Parma site. While they wait for their grapevine plantings to mature, they source their grapes and juice from other Michigan vineyards. I've got to make another trip when the winemaker is around to be able to pick his brain. He definitely knows how to make good reds from MI grapes (the recent accolades at the MI Wine Festival bear this out). This is a winery that has bears keeping an eye on in the future.

Regards,
a Wine Student

Lone Oaks Estate Vineyards Michigan Chardonnay

Note: This is a copied post from a different blog in an attempt to consolidate.

8/28/2006 Last night, I opened a bottle of Lone Oak Estate Vineyards Michigan Chardonnay to have with dinner (Lone Oak website). A very pleasant, dry chardonnay that paired nicely with BBQ turkey burgers, coleslaw, and corn-on-the-cob. A very light yellow color, the wine exhibits delicate floral, melon, and apricot aromas with just a hint of sugar in the nose. Unoaked, it has a slight tang on the tip of the tongue and a slight buttery feel as it moves towards the back of the throat. Not a strong taste, just some herbaceous green notes. Thankfully, none of the overwhelming butter and oak that I’ve come to dread in a chardonnay. The wine tasted much better when drunk cold. As it warmed up in my glass, I began to get a bit of a barnyard aroma in the nose. Attractively priced at $12.95, this is a decent wine for a hot summer day.

I believe the wine was made from estate grown grapes, although I would have expected a vintage label on the bottle. Since it was a non-vintage label, that may mean this is a blend of more than one vintages or blended with a vintage from another winery.

The bottle was purchased in early May 2006 at the winery and was stored in my basement wine cellar since then. Best place to find the wine is at the winery, but the Cork 'n Cap in Jackson carries Lone Oak wines. If others know of off-winery places to purchase Lone Oak wines, please let me know.

Note added 1/14/07: Lone Oak has made excellent progress in self distributing their wines around Michigan. See their website for the extensive list.

Justin 2003 Obtuse

What is the essence of college football except watching the BCS National Championship game and sipping a glass of port?

Jeez, how pretentious am I? Usually, I'm swilling a beer while I'm watching football (serious, I'm being truthful), but I opened my bottle of Justin 2003 Obtuse last night to mourn the end of the weekend and didn't feel like breaking into anything else tonight.

Anyway...

Justin Vineyards & Winery is a growing commercial enterprise in the Paso Robles region of California (www.justinwine.com). My wife and I visited there about 3 years ago. Given it's location (15 miles west of Highway 101 at the end of some winding country roads) outside of Paso Robles, you'd expect a rather sleepy little country winery. But these folks have some serious marketing strength and have build a fairly large company. I'm a big fan of their cabernet sauvignons and was a member of their Wine Society for a few years until moving to Massachusetts. I've built up a small library of wines that aren't readily available in wine stores, so I certainly relish them when I open a bottle.

Justin 2003 Obtuse
Stats: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% alcohol
Price: $75
Appellation: Paso Robles, CA
Appearance: Dark ruby purple
Aroma: Dark cherries and dried currants.
Taste: Surprisingly subtle. Dark cherries & currants on the foretaste without the high alcohol taste of a typical port wine. Gentle on the palate with smooth tannins. Silky, lingering aftertaste. A port that lets the fruit shine without overpowering alcohol.

Salute,
a Wine Student

Atteca Old Vines 2005

Since moving to the East Coast, I've decided to purposefully explore more of the European wines that are more common in wine stores around Boston. Having gotten my wine tasting start in California and the Midwest, I'm more versed in California and other West Coast wines, plus the usual Australian, Chilean, and New Zealand wines. I will admit that the language barrier is a definite bias--if I can't read the label, I really don't know what I'm buying. Add in my natural dislike of gambling, and it's difficult for me to take a $20-30 bet on an unknown wine. However, with a little help of my local wine guys, I'm going to explore more European wines!

That being said, this wine is from my cellar. It was given to me as a going away present this fall prior to our move, so I don't know the cost. A little Googling indicates you can find this wine for $14-18 around the country.

Atteca Old Vines 2005
Stats: 100% Garnacha from vineyards 3000 feet above sea level, 14.5% alcohol
Winery: Bodegas Ateca
Country: Spain
Region: Aragón
Appealation: Calatayud (~230 km northeast of Madrid) The satellite photos look fairly mountainous with a lot of farms in the valleys (what would we do without Google Earth?).

Appearance: Deep purple, clear
Nose: Alcohol burst with big blackberry jam aromas, almost like a fruit brandy. There's some underlying smokiness and oak.
Taste: Very fruity with lots of blackberries, dark cherries, and currants. Hint of leather and chocolate in the background. Mellow tannins. Initially smooth with a long finish, the high alcohol leaves a definite dry, pucker taste in the roof of your mouth.

My recommendation: don't stop drinking it! Just keep slurping away and you'll only hit that dry, pucker mouth once! Jokes aside, the high alcohol does make me think twice about taking another sip while I'm drinking this wine. I'm not a big fan of the current high alcohol, big fruit taste fad that's common in California wineries. At almost 15% alcohol, we just about in fortified wine land. This would seem to be an example of an Old World winery trying to produce a wine that appeals to New World wine tastes. Do they really think we're that simple?

I am intrigued by the picture on the label. Is that supposed to be bamboo leaves or wheat stalks? No bamboo that I know of in northeastern Spain, so that's probably not it. Wheat stalks may be the ticket, although perhaps it's firework trails captured in an open exposure format. My picture doesn't do it justice, so make sure you pick up a bottle at your local wine store and decide for yourself.

Salute!
a Wine Student

Blacksmiths Sparkling Maine Cranberry

I seem to be on a fruit wine kick at the moment. Of course, that may helped by the fact that it was New Year's Eve and I didn't have any other champagne in the cellar! My wife and I enjoyed this wine over a meal of Shrimp & Vegetables Stir-fry and home-made egg rolls while awaiting the beginning of 2008.

Blacksmiths Sparkling Maine Cranberry
www.blacksmithswinery.com
MSRP: $15
A blend of 75% cranberry & 25% Vidal Blanc
9.5% Alcohol by volume
Color: Light orange-pink
Aroma: Initial burst of cranberries and citrus with a floral finish
Taste: Sweet cranberry with a nice medium body and lingering finish. Nice balance of acid and sugar for a nice sippin' bubbly. Not overly effervescent.

Due to current Maine law, Blacksmiths is unable to sell or ship outside of Maine. However, their wines can be purchased at the winery and a number of retail shops and restaurants around the state. I purchased this wine at Big Jack's in Boothbay Harbor, ME for $16.99.

In the fall of 2006, my wife and I visited Blacksmiths Winery in South Casco during an anniversary trip to Maine & New Hampshire. I'm not going to try to remember all the details, but they make a variety of wines from local Maine fruit and grapes from New York and Washington state. I particularly liked their Columbia Valley Lemberger, but I drank that bottle a long time ago! Now that we're living in New England, we'll have to make a trip back to Blacksmiths for another visit.


Salute!

A Wine Student