2013 JENNER Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast

This is a good time of the year for Rose' wines and lighter bodied Pinot Noir's, they pair well with the flavors that foods from the grill take on as they cook.

There's veggies and salad items available from the Southern growing regions of the US, and the selection of seafood is starting to increase as well, which gives all of us options for fresh and healthy meals to choose from.

One of the staff at the West Lebanon liquor store mentioned to me there was a new powerbuy red wine that just came in, it had good ratings and positive reviews so I stopped by to try a bottle of it.

The Pinot opens with notes of strawberry, red raspberry, and hints of other red fruit, there's a spicy note as well in the nose. It has a beautiful color, it's not over, or under extracted with a translucent look to it. The palate starts with matching flavors of the nose, but after 20 minutes additional notes of cranberry, cola, and boysenberry develope, and the nose deepens also. It was quite good on the second day as well...

It's soft enough to be sipped on by itself, (and delicious) but there is enough acidity to keep it balanced and allow for a number of food pairings. Grilled Salmon with a chutney topping, flank steak with a blackberry reduction sauce, grilled rosemary/garlic lamb chops, grilled slabs of zuchinni and summer sqaush with a topping of your choice, etc...

Available at a number of NH liquor outlets in the powerbuy section for $12.99 per bottle, a great value at this price if you like Pinot's and perfect for those nice evenings out on the deck or patio.

Try it slightly chilled also....

Cheers!

Ed

2014 Da Luca Primitivo Puglia Italy

I tried this Primitivo at my friend Mark's house a week or so ago, and really liked it. We enjoyed it with a number of appetizers including bruschetta with a fresh tomato and mozzarella topping.

It opens with a black plum, blackberry and tobacco leaf note in the nose, the palate has juicy flavors of blackberry, blueberry, plum, and a hint of black raspberry on the tongue. It's quite drinkable and pleasant to sip on by itself, but would pair nicely with a number of foods.

I think grilled chicken with bbq sauce would be good, red sauce pasta, red sauce pizza (ziggy's 4 meat) teriyaki steak tips, pork roast done on a grill rotisserie....

Not a wine for long keeping in the cellar, but more of a great everyday sipper that won't break the bank.

Available at some NH Liquor outlets for $7.50 per bottle in the powerbuy section, at that price you could buy a case and make it your house wine. I did have to have it transferred to W. Leb from another store to get it, check with your local outlet to see if they have it.

Cheers!

Ed

2014 Housley's Century Oak Winery Old vine Zinfandel Inez's Vineyard Lodi

I've looked at this bottle in the power buy section of the W. Lebanon liquor store for a few months now, and what I had read about it up to this point about the wine hadn't convinced me to try a bottle.

 But a different review showed up in my search, which mentioned that this winery had been voted best of Lodi a couple of times. So that made me decide to give this a try...

When first opened, the nose has notes of blackberry, cherry, black raspberry, and a freshness that is intriguing. It tastes of red fruits with nice acidity that has a palate cleansing effect, and a lingering finish of fruit on the tongue. The tannins are fine and pleasant, not overly mouth drying. The color is red and translucent, not overly extracted and dark.

After 30 minutes the fruit notes blend together and a spicy note is added to the nose, with almost a hint of raspberry. The palate has all of the fruit notes mentioned above, blended together into a very tasty sip.

I enjoyed this wine with the wurst (sausages) in the picture, along with grilled summer squash and zucchini, topped with tomato-basil feta and a drizzle of traditional dark balsamic vinegar from Infuse Me (in the powerhouse mall) and baby Yukon potatoes seasoned with kosher salt, onions, pepper, olive oil and bacon..... delicious! a great match....

Day 2 brings notes of tobacco leaf and ripe fruit, cherry, black fruit, hints of cinnamon, and spice in the nose. The palate is blended fruit flavors that beg another sip, a nice medium mouth feel with a spice note and the same pleasant lingering fruit notes on the finish.

This is a well made wine, and a chance to try a single vineyard bottling that nornally would cost you a lot more...This will pair well with a number of foods from the grill, and red sauce dishes with meat in them.

Available at the NH Liquor outlets for $12.99 per bottle in the power buy section, that's about half it's normal retail price.... I think you could buy a case of this and enjoy it over the next 18 months or so with no problem.

Let me know what your thoughts are on this wine....

Cheers!

Ed

2011 Rodney Strong Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

A few weeks ago Peter asked me if I knew of any red wines that were ready to drink as soon as the cork was pulled from the bottle... (or unscrew the cap) ones that didn't need breathing time or storage in a cellar for years before being able to enjoy them. I have been considering an answer to his question since then...

Based on my experience so far, I believe the choices come down to most of the wines in the $8.00 to $13.00 price range you find on shelves everywhere. These wines are made to be enjoyed immediately, without any delay. That price range is the sweet spot for retail outlets, and where most consumers feel comfortable spending their money when they just want something to have that night or the coming weekend.

The wines from WA State offer a good to great price to quality ratio in that price range, and are usually well made. I have tried some Italian wines lately that were quite good at a fair price, and within 20 minutes were ready to drink (prep time for your meal) Spanish Tempranillo bottlings usually satisfy nicely for $8.00 to $12.00 and are delicious right away.

If you want to step up a price range ($18 to $25) then for sure the Cabs and Merlot from WA State can be a very nice experience right away. Try some of the bottlings from J. Lohr, their wines have been on a roll the last few years...Two Italian reds come to mind in that price range, Palazzo della Torre by Allegrini, and Bertani - Original Vintage Edition. 

I can recommend the red wines from Rodney Strong, the wine making team does a great job across the price ranges and especially the single vineyard bottlings and the reserves. The Reserve Cabernets are delicious as soon as they are released, and will gain additional nuances over 5-7 years of cellar time.

When opened, nice notes of red and black fruits with a spicy component in the nose. Matching flavors with a smooth mouthfeel, some spicy notes and lingering fruit on the finish. After 30 minutes the nose leans more towards blackberries, black plums, the spice note is still there, it has developed more of a plush mouthfeel with mixed blackberry, cherry and plum flavors with a nice lingering finish suggesting another sip... no food required to balance the wine. It's just delicious... it was like this when I first got the wine club shipment in 2014, and it's still good now at almost 7 years from the vintage date.

 Available at Total wine in Natick MA for $34 per bottle, or if you buy other "pick 6" qualifying bottles you can get it for $30.59 per bottle.... worth every penny for an anniversary dinner, or some other special occasion.

Life's short, and you have only so many bottles in your life, never drink a bad one....

Cheers,

Ed

2016 Villa Pozzi Nero D'avola Sicily

I said I would review this wine in the last blog post, I did open the bottle at the end of a long day, I ended up enjoying 3/4 of the bottle that night....

What I can tell you about this wine is that it had the same nose and flavors of the Stemmari, but with deeper notes of the fruit in the nose leaning more towards black fruit than red fruit. The palate reflected the  flavors of the nose, and had a bit more of a full mouth feel. It felt like a better made wine, more of a dinner companion than a pizza wine.

I liked both of these wines, and as I mentioned in the review of the Stemmari, these are both a nice change of pace from a Chianti for a Friday night pizza or a meat based pasta dish.

Available at the NH Liquor outlets on sale for $9.99, Italian wines also qualify for a 15% discount if you buy a case... so that makes this wine available for $8.49 per bottle. A great price for an everyday wine, or on pizza night.

Also available at Total wine in Natick MA for $6.99 per bottle, or $6.29 per bottle if you purchase 6 or more qualifying wines.... are you kidding me?  You would pay for the gas if you drove down and bought a case at that price....

Give this wine a try and let me know your thoughts....

Cheers!

Ed

2015 Ste Michelle Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 50th Anniversary special bottling

This is a nice bottling from a very good vintage in WA State, the blend is composed of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 4% Syrah, and 1% each Malbec, Cab Franc, and Petite Verdot.

It grabbed my attention right from the start, the Merlot opens first in the nose, then the Syrah chimes in with it's distinct WA State deep funky notes (in a good way), then after 45 minutes the Cab Sauv opens up, and then the rest of the grapes fill in making for a very aromatic, tasty red wine.

Notes of blackberry, black raspberry, cherry, tobacco leaf from the Cab Franc, ripe raspberry, and a hint of vanilla in the nose. Cherry, black raspberry, blackberry, red or black plum on the palate.
Wow, what a great tribute to their beginnings in WA State....

I enjoyed this with an Angus hanger steak cooked medium, seasoned with Kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, and topped with my garlic herb butter, recipe courtesy of Olga....

I might also try this with grilled rosemary/garlic lamb chops....

Available at Wegman's in Natick Ma for $11.99 per bottle, Total wine in Natick for $10.99 per bottle, and some NH Liquor outlets for $16.99.

Get some while it's available... I believe you could drink this over the next 2 to 4 years no problem.

Cheers,

Ed