Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2017, Domaine de la Solitude

On By sandysoloIn French Wine, Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

Well, the name of this is fitting for these Covid times: Domaine de la Solitude. This basically describes my Covid living situation. In solitude. With wine. 24/7.

This is a typical southern Rhone Blend of the typical GSM- Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre.

The nose is dark and interesting. I can literally get something from each varietal and something different in each sniff. Dark red fruit and candied plums, smoke, game, and something floral at the top of the glass. Dried herbs the second go around. Then chocolate. Then dry earth.

On the tongue is smooth but not in an absent of tannins kind of way, rather in a way that all the aromas meld together harmoniously. It’s a smooth criminal. It’s chocolate and caramel covered cherries. There’s enough acid to keep it from becoming jammy but it’s still very rich. It’s decadent without being dessert-like.

Domaine de la Solitude is the place to be. I’d stay in solitude a little while longer for another bottle.

Salut!

Storytasting

On By sandysoloIn Storytasting, Storytelling, WineLeave a comment

Wine has the ability to create and tell the stories of people and places. It is tied to the history of the world and included many times in what some people call the greatest story ever told (the Bible.)  Wine is a story of the land and climate, the history of the place in which the grapes are grown, the tale of the people and culture who produce it, a lesson in the science of making it, and a memory to those who taste it.

You can debate what makes a wine “good” all day long, but I believe that good wine comes from memorable experiences. Yes, there are wines that are technically better than others. There are wines that are so good that they invoke a price tag of many hundreds if not thousands of dollars. But most of us normal people are not drinking those wines regularly, if ever.

Good wine creates good memories. Good is subjective and all it takes is a good experience to which it is tied for us to fall in love with the wine.

Think about a wine someone may have tasted on their honeymoon that was produced from 100-year old vines untouched by Phylloxera, grown in an ancient region of Spain, made by the first female winemaker in a family that has owned the winery for 150 years in an area that started producing wine when the Phoenicians arrived thousands of years ago. So many stories in the context of that one bottle of wine.

I had a really fun night in college with a box of Franzia that ended with my roommates writing “Hi Mom” in sharpie on the forehead of my other roommate who was passed out. It was also the night before her parents arrived for Parents Day. So, if you put a box of Franzia in front of me, I would probably commit a mortal sin to most oenophiles and drink it in order to awaken that  memory more vividly.  With one sip I  could feel as carefree as I did as a college student back in 1998 when I did not know a thing about wine. That is what makes Franzia good wine in this case. The memory of when I drank it straight from the spout on the box is a great one.

Wine has the ability to become a bookmark to our lives, saving the place of a moment in time in our memories.  Those memories can make the wine taste even better when we drink it again. Those moments come rushing back to you and you don’t care about the acidity level or the presence of gritty tannins.  The memory is all that needed to make that wine a good wine to the person drinking it.

The more often we can recall that memory by telling someone about it, the more often we get to relive that joy. As humans, we connect with each other through storytelling.  When wine lovers get together, they want to talk and share with each other. They want to tell their stories. The stories are often not so much about the body and structure of the wine, but a personal story in which that wine played a part.   Merging storytelling and wine tasting just comes naturally.  

When you purposely combine tasting wine with storytelling you get an experience called Storytasting.

Storytasting is an experience during which the wine tasting is driven by the stories behind the wine rather than the tasting notes.  Additional storytelling amongst the participants is also encouraged. Storytasting can inspire, uplift, and educate, but mostly it can connect us in a way that only shared experiences can.  

If you are interested in using wine as a jumping off point to a night of connecting with friends, family, or colleagues, go to the “Gatherings” tab.

Cheers to creating more wine memories! Salut!

Aphros, Lourerio, 2018

On By sandysoloIn Uncategorized1 Comment

Disclaimer: Today I found out I’m being furloughed at a company I’ve worked at for the past 16 years effective in one week (yes, you read that right, I was given one week’s notice) so forgive any typos or rants as I’ve consumed more than half of this bottle at the time I’m writing this.

I have learned pretty recently that I really seem to enjoy high acid wines that are sur lie aged. If you are not sure what that means, it means the wine was aged on the lies (pronounced “leez.”) Still not helping? The lies are the dead yeast cells and gunk that exist after fermentation. That might sound gross to you – it sounds gross to me – but it adds this nutty flavor to the wine that I really like. Especially when combined with an acidic wine. Fruit and nuts are paired for a reason – they are great together. In wine aromas, this is no exception in my opinion.

This wine is from Vinho Verde in Portugal and is made from Loureiro, a grape that I have little experience with. By little I mean none. It has been mentioned in my Advanced Spanish wine class but I can’t say I’ve ever purposefully and knowingly had it. I’ve had my fair share of Vinho Verdes so I definitely have unknowingly consumed it.

On the nose it’s lemon and walnuts followed by peach and grapefruit. It’s a citrus party and they invited their friend walnut to join in. I can see how some might find this odd, but I find it so interesting.

On the tongue, its a lemon and citrus party. Light bodied it dances on your tongue a bit before Mr. Nut shows up to add some complexity. There is also some herbi-ness (I decided I do not like the word herbaceous and am opting to make up my own word going forward: herbi-ness). The nuttiness almost fools you into thinking it’s a little creamy but it’s not really, maybe slightly not as light body as it would be otherwise but just a little. it’s medium way minus if anything.

This is a great wine if you want something easy drinking and light but also not so simple. The sur lie aging adds that little bit of je ne sais quoi, that zha zha zoo. It turns a simple wine you’d drink by the pool on a hot day into a wine you want to enjoy with some apps and friends.

I got this from wine.com and will again for sure.

Vallado, Touriga Nacional, 2017, Douro

On By sandysoloIn Douro Valley, Portugal, Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

Quarantine made me dip into my Portugal stash. I wanted to let it all age a little longer, but Covid made me open it. I needed something special or at least a special memory. So I opened this Valldo Touriga National, thinking that maybe I was tipsy when I tasted it in Portugal and it wasn’t as good as I remember. I was wrong.

For the record, I saw this at the PA state store so I don’t feel bad rubbing it in your nose like I usually do when I write about the wine I brought back that you can only get in Portugal.

It starts with a smokey earth aroma that I love. Like if you set dirt on fire. I’m telling you that smells awesome. It’s better than the dark fruit that comes next. I get some vanilla at the top of the glass. There is something minimally herbaceous but I can’t place it. Maybe dried sage. My allergies are acting up today.

On the tongue it’s some red licorice, Barley ripe blackberries. Leather. Smokey. Medium body. Nicely acidic. Smooth tannins.

Just a good wine from the Douro where I wish I was right now.

2015, Tesoro de Bullas, Monastrell

On By sandysoloIn Wine, wine review1 Comment

I just realized earlier in the year that I like Monastrell. I don’t think I’d had it on its own and not in a Rhone Blend where it appears by its French name of Mouvedre. I had a Monastrell while I was in Switzerland a few months ago. I ordered it because I didn’t love the other wines they had by the glass and that particular wine had an interesting story involving a monastery. See my travel blog, Sandy Solo, if you want to read more about my love for old monasteries.

I haven’t had enough to truly understand what I like about it so I’m intent on drinking more of it until I figure it out. Enter this Monastrell I purchased from Total Wine.

It has the most yummy nose, like butterscotch cherry earth. But it’s the earth part I really like. It’s sort of campfire meets sweet tobacco. It’s not not totally one or the other but a marriage of them both. There is some cocoa too. Maybe I like it because the fruit is buried under these other aromas which I find super interesting. The fresh cherries are there but they are surrounded by a force field of the other aromas.

One sip and I taste the smokiness which I like and ripe cherries. But barely ripe cherries. I wish they were a teeny bit more ripe tasting. Then there is some unsweetened cocoa. I would say this is almost full bodied but not quite. Very medium. Or medium plus as others would say. But I like very medium. More people will understand that. More of my people anyway.

Overall I love the nose on this, and just like the wine. I could smell it all day. I may wear it as perfume tomorrow. While I might not buy this particular wine again, it has only made my intrigue with Monastrell grow.

2017 Sobon Estate, “Rocky Top,” Zinfandel

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I rarely meet a Zin a don’t like. Today was a day for a rarity, I guess.

Earthy prunes and raisins. And I hate raisins. The earthiness presents itself to the nose more like campfire ash which I don’t hate. But the prunes quickly takeover so enjoying the campfire doesn’t last long. I get a little vanilla and baking spices by keeping my nose closer to the rim. But any further the prunes are waiting for me.

All I can taste is the prunes. And this is only slightly higher in acid than “wedding wine” which is very low on acid and tastes almost flat. This isn’t flat but almost is. Almost flat prune juice.

I keep tasting it, thinking my mind is playing tricks on me. But it’s really not and I need to give up and find something else to drink tonight. I read good things about this bottle of $20 wine. It’s not bad, I’m just not a fan. Ok, maybe it’s like 20% not good and 80% not my jam. I threw up prune juice on a long car ride when I was a child. This is digging up that memory…I gotta go.

2015 Tenuta Del Portale, Aglianico del Vulture

On By sandysoloIn Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

Something newish that I don’t drink often for no particular reason: Anglianico. Again, this was a Total Wine purchase.

On the nose it’s really interesting: at first I loved the nose and the deep earth- like the mud a foot down not on the surface. Salty olives and dark fruit mix it up together. And then I get something more pungent that I don’t particularly love that I can never describe. If I keep my nose closer to the top of the glass, I get the carmel from the barrel. So this kinda smells like a sweet and salty snack.

There is definitely a salinity to the taste which I seem to enjoy. The tabacco covered berries is interesting too. And there is that pungent note right at the end but it tastes less offensive than it smells. And there are definitely some sandy tannins.

I think I may have committed infanticide and opened this a bit early. But I’m not exactly going to age a $14 bottle I got at a wine supermarket. My wine fridge takes reservations mainly from good stuff I bring from a trip or my more pricier purchases and gifts. And it has limited availability at the moment.

Overall I’m not in love but fascinated by the interesting aromas. So while I may not purchase this again, I’m enjoying it now for what it is. Something different.

2016 Cruz Alta Chairman’s Blend, Mendoza

On By sandysoloIn malbec, Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

I haven’t had a Malbec for quite some time for no particular reason. I have a few bottles in my “cellar” from my trip to Mendoza a few years ago. (my cellar= my wine fridge.) Those bottles are special and maybe I don’t think anything at a store can live up to them so why bother. Maybe that was the underlying reason.

I guess I’m over it because I’ve been having a hankering for Malbec lately. I purchased this “blend” on a stock up trip to Total Wine recently. I use quotes because this is 75% Malbec and by California standards, they could call this a Malbec, call it a day and not tell you it’s 15% “other stuff.”

I do not like Cab Sauv. I don’t like the aromas. They are literally not my jam. But I do like the general structure of a Cab so in small quantities, I like what it does for a blend as long as the pyrazine is overridden by other aromas. If you don’t know, pyrazine gives wine that green pepper /vegetal aroma. I. Kit a fan in red wine. It doesn’t bother me so much in Sauv Blanc, although the more varietals of white I try, I am learning that Sauvy B is not my favorite.

Anyhoo, on to this “blend” of mostly Malbec…I like the nose on this a lot. It’s pretty earthy up front. But definitely fruity. Like you baked a blackberry pie in the dirt. With a little nutmeg and cocoa sprinkled in. Which sounds gross in real life but in wine aroma speak, means yumminess to me. There is a bit of sweet cigar as well but just a teeny bit.

It’s very cocoa berry in the mouth. Like cocoa covered raspberries with a hint of vanilla. It’s veering towards low acidity but not quite low, still very ripe but not quite cooked.

Overall I’m pleased. It’s enjoyable. Extra enjoyable at $14 a bottle. Would drink again.

2018 Martin Codax Albarino

On By sandysoloIn Albarino, Spanish Wine, Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

Summertime, Summer Wine.

I’m finally writing about something you can get at Total Wine and don’t need a passport and a large suitcase in order to enjoy.

Tropical fruit, grapefruit, a little lime up my nose. The minerals express themselves as wet rocks, but not just after a rain. More like day old wet stone.

In my mouth it’s a lime and grapefruit fest. I had a few sips with my Mexican dinner and it actually went really well with the spice. It had a richness to it with the food. Without it, the lime and grapefruit are tart and the wet stone adds a bit of mineral flavor. I bet if I drank this while eating something salty I’d guzzle it down in a flash.

If you’re really into citrus fruit, you’d like this. It reminds me of a Paloma if it had a wine cousin. It’s not complex or terribly interesting, and pretty high in acid but I’d drink this again on a hot day with some spicy guac. And since I can get it in Delaware at Total Wine, I probably will.

Salut!

2018 Montedas Servas Elscohas Rosé

On By sandysoloIn alentejo, Portugal, Uncategorized, Wine, wine reviewLeave a comment

If you don’t know already, I love Portugal. Love is probably not strong enough. Obsessed is likely more accurate. Covid-19 is ruining my chances of taking a fifth trip there at some point this year. I literally ache I miss it so much. I realize me not travelling is not important in the grand scheme of life right now. But I’m going to allow myslf a pity party this Memorial Day Weekend, during which I will drink this rosé in order to console myself.

I had lunch at Montedas Servas while in Portugal last September while on a vacation whose sole purpose was to visit two wine regions: The Douro Valley and Alentejo. Alentejo surprised me just a bit. I mean I wasn’t shocked that I loved it, but it was more beautiful and authentic than I had ever imagined.

In a nutshell, Alentejo is made up of small medievil villages on hilltops with cork trees, vineyards and vast open beauty in between. I encountered very little tourists, and yet there was so much to see. I hired a private tour guide to arrange two days of vineyard tours. She did not disspoint and you can read about it in my other blog, Sandy Solo.

As I was saying, I had lunch at Montedas Servas, but no tour. But it was some of my favorite wine from the trip. I had this rosé and a red at lunch and I couldnt not leave there without buying a few bottles. The problem was this was near the end of my trip, so my extra suit case for wine was full and I already had additional bottles that were going to have to go home in my regular suitcase.

My tour guide said she would ship me the wine, so I purchased two bottles of the rosé and 4 of the red. The total in true Portugal fashion: 42 Euro. I almost died. I think the rosé was like $5USD a bottle. I still don’t understand how that is even possible.

So to the tasting.. This is definitely cheering me up a bit. Although Im also sad I didnt get more of this delicious rosé.

It has the most delightful nose of fresh strawberries. There is a slight mineralness to it as well. I do get some darker red fruit the deeper I go. There is also something minimally vegetal, like wet, green leaves after a spring shower, but the beautiful summer strawberry is the clear winner here.

On the tongue the strawberry is accompanied by a ittle bit of orange peel. And the mineral notes give it a little bit of freshness. Its a teeny weeny bit more medium bodied and I like it that way.

This is not a refreshing rosé to cool you off on a hot summer day by the pool. It’s an appetizer. Drink it in the shade. If you can get your hands on it. Which you can only do by going to Portgal.

On my next trip, I am making a detour back here to pick up some more, even if I’m up north drinking Vino Verde. This is a solid 4.5/5 as far as rosés go. It gets extra love for the price.