Cooking
I wish I thought of Pim's great theme for the latest Wine Blogging Wednesday, the monthly event where food and wine bloggers write about a particular type of wine on a given date. Former hosts all picked quasi-educational themes. One might almost say wine geek themes—I mean, really, New World Riesling? Pim can wine geek with the best of us, but she encouraged readers to ignore grapes and regions and seek out wines with wacky names. When the owner of the wine shop heard me ask for a wine with an interesting name, he immediately handed me a bottle of Txacolina. I've loved this wine for almost three years now, and I thought about using this opportunity to promote this charming Basque wine. But I thought maybe that wasn't in the spirit of the theme, so I revised my request to include wines with humorous names. I had spied a few on the shelves and wanted someone's input about them. In the end, we decided on two bottles. Can I get a Woop Woop?
Tasting Note
An almost perfectly clear white wine with lively apple aromas, a fair amount of dusty minerality, and a citrus-peel zinginess. A solid acidity joins with a notable minerality to wake your palate before the flavor fades to a crisp finish with hints of banana and meyer lemon. Food
We enjoyed this wine with a whole Dungeness crab boiled simply and served with melted butter. I thought the wine worked quite nicely with this dish. This wine screams to be served with cleanly flavored shellfish, and it would no doubt complement light Pacific Rim fare in general. Mick Rosacci suggests pairing it with grilled steak, which I consider a bold move. General Thoughts
This wine had good acidity but it wasn't as strong as its zesty aromas suggested. The wine was more complex than I imagined, but not actually complex. It was like the person you meet at a party that you think will be a ditz until you get into a discussion about bestsellers you've both read. A Clean Slate
I served this wine on Christmas Eve. The structure of the wine held up to the braised short ribs and risotto, but its soft tannins didn't overwhelm. Overall a nice pairing. General Thoughts I liked this wine more than I thought I would. I worried that it would be one of these clumsy New World Bordeaux blends where the wine maker assumes that if some tannins are good, more are better. This wine offers depth and a pleasant taste, but doesn't need to be the center of attention at dinner. I'd buy it again, but I'm not pushing over little old ladies to get more bottles.
- Recent Tasting Notes
I'm making an effort to publish tasting notes again, lest you worry that we've become teetotallers. These wines were samples sent to me by wineries or their P.R. reps. I don't promise to review samples here or in a paid article, but I do...
- Wbw 6: South African Reds
When I saw the theme of "South African Reds" for this round of Wine Blogging Wednesday, I immediately knew who the host was. Jeanne, a South African expat in Britain, often educates us about food and wine from that country. Maybe I should offer to host...
- Wine Blogging Wednesday 4: New World Riesling
Some consider Spy Valley Wines to be one of New Zealand's best-kept secrets, which is perhaps appropriate given the winery's name, derived from Wairau Valley's nickname—a government satellite communications monitoring facility dominates...
- Wbw 4: New World Riesling
In the previous three Wine Blogging Wednesdays—the monthly wine blogging event concocted by Lenn—the hosts selected themes of New World Merlot from outside the U.S., Spanish Reds, and most recently Australian Shiraz. Enough with the reds...
- A Good House Wine
Melissa and I always keep our eyes open for a good house wine. This is the wine we pour for a simple dinner for the two of us or for just a couple glasses when we get home from work. If friends meet us at our place before we go out to dinner, this is...
Cooking
WBW 5:Wacky Brands of Wine
I wish I thought of Pim's great theme for the latest Wine Blogging Wednesday, the monthly event where food and wine bloggers write about a particular type of wine on a given date. Former hosts all picked quasi-educational themes. One might almost say wine geek themes—I mean, really, New World Riesling? Pim can wine geek with the best of us, but she encouraged readers to ignore grapes and regions and seek out wines with wacky names. When the owner of the wine shop heard me ask for a wine with an interesting name, he immediately handed me a bottle of Txacolina. I've loved this wine for almost three years now, and I thought about using this opportunity to promote this charming Basque wine. But I thought maybe that wasn't in the spirit of the theme, so I revised my request to include wines with humorous names. I had spied a few on the shelves and wanted someone's input about them. In the end, we decided on two bottles. Can I get a Woop Woop?
Tasting Note
An almost perfectly clear white wine with lively apple aromas, a fair amount of dusty minerality, and a citrus-peel zinginess. A solid acidity joins with a notable minerality to wake your palate before the flavor fades to a crisp finish with hints of banana and meyer lemon. Food
We enjoyed this wine with a whole Dungeness crab boiled simply and served with melted butter. I thought the wine worked quite nicely with this dish. This wine screams to be served with cleanly flavored shellfish, and it would no doubt complement light Pacific Rim fare in general. Mick Rosacci suggests pairing it with grilled steak, which I consider a bold move. General Thoughts
This wine had good acidity but it wasn't as strong as its zesty aromas suggested. The wine was more complex than I imagined, but not actually complex. It was like the person you meet at a party that you think will be a ditz until you get into a discussion about bestsellers you've both read. A Clean Slate
I served this wine on Christmas Eve. The structure of the wine held up to the braised short ribs and risotto, but its soft tannins didn't overwhelm. Overall a nice pairing. General Thoughts I liked this wine more than I thought I would. I worried that it would be one of these clumsy New World Bordeaux blends where the wine maker assumes that if some tannins are good, more are better. This wine offers depth and a pleasant taste, but doesn't need to be the center of attention at dinner. I'd buy it again, but I'm not pushing over little old ladies to get more bottles.
- Recent Tasting Notes
I'm making an effort to publish tasting notes again, lest you worry that we've become teetotallers. These wines were samples sent to me by wineries or their P.R. reps. I don't promise to review samples here or in a paid article, but I do...
- Wbw 6: South African Reds
When I saw the theme of "South African Reds" for this round of Wine Blogging Wednesday, I immediately knew who the host was. Jeanne, a South African expat in Britain, often educates us about food and wine from that country. Maybe I should offer to host...
- Wine Blogging Wednesday 4: New World Riesling
Some consider Spy Valley Wines to be one of New Zealand's best-kept secrets, which is perhaps appropriate given the winery's name, derived from Wairau Valley's nickname—a government satellite communications monitoring facility dominates...
- Wbw 4: New World Riesling
In the previous three Wine Blogging Wednesdays—the monthly wine blogging event concocted by Lenn—the hosts selected themes of New World Merlot from outside the U.S., Spanish Reds, and most recently Australian Shiraz. Enough with the reds...
- A Good House Wine
Melissa and I always keep our eyes open for a good house wine. This is the wine we pour for a simple dinner for the two of us or for just a couple glasses when we get home from work. If friends meet us at our place before we go out to dinner, this is...