Tasting - The Y Series Viongnier

 

This is the 2021 Y Series Viognier. It retails for $17 and is from Southern Australia. The tasting notes claim it is "attractive, floral, heady, perfumed aromas of peach & apricot skins. The wine is dry with loads of peach & pear fruit & an underlying pineapple freshness. It is medium to full bodied with quite rich, oily fruit supported by fresh acidity that cuts through giving balance. There are exotic notes of tropical blossom. Alcohol is balanced to warm & the freshness ensures the flavors last." Wine Folly describes a Viognier to be an off-dry, medium bodied white wine with notes of tangerine, peach, mango, honeysuckle, and rose. From my tasting, I found the color to be a pale yellow, and the aroma to be... generally unpleasant. I finally understood Boyer's description of "cat pee" with this wine as my initial thought after smelling it was "this smells like a diaper". Other than the diaper smell, I noticed some aromas of pear and vegetal scents like asparagus and grass. The taste was much better than the smell, thankfully, with more vegetal and herbal notes showing, as well as some honeysuckle notes. It had a medium body and was dry to off-dry. Although, I don't understand the peach and apricot that the tasting notes described. This was definitely a different experience than most white wines I've tried, but as a drank it grew on my more and I am excited to try more wines to open up my palate a bit more. 

Tasting - Mondavi Cabernet Sauvingion

 

This is the 2021 Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon. It was $12 and is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Dunnigan Hills AVA in California, USA. The tasting notes of this wine say it is "rich with cherry and blackberry flavors that are perfectly balanced with a hint of oak and a long fruit finish." Wine folly claims an average cab sav will have black cherry and black currant notes, with a full body, medium-high tannins, and medium acidity. From my tasting, I found it to have a deep purply red color with a fruit forward scent. Upon tasting, the blackberry and cherry notes came through strongly with an oaky, woody aftertaste. It had a full body that was pleasantly tannic but balanced, with a slight acidity. Overall, a very pleasant wine. 

Wine Dinner #2

 This wine dinner included three courses: Bruschetta with a Zinopolis Zinfandel, burgers with a Breca Garnacha, and Sfogliatelle with a Barrel Oak Goldie. 

First was the 2020 Zinopolis Zinfandel. This wine had a medium purpley red color, and smelled strongly of red fruit, specifically raspberry and cherry. Upon tasting it, the notes of red fruit came through strongly, with some spicier notes as well, specifically cloves. It was somewhat full bodied, dry, and tannic, with some slight vegetal notes. When tasting it with the bruschetta, the clove flavor came through even more, as well as some of the fruitier elements. What really made this pair great was how the acidity of the tomatoes cut the tannins of the wine and made the pairing very balanced.

Second was the 2016 Breca Grenacha. This wine had a brownish ruby color. From smelling it was very fragrant and perfumey, with notes of blackberry and cherry, and was very jammy. Upon tasting, it was very fruit forward with the jammy blackberry and cherry coming through, as well as some citrus notes, It was definitely full bodied, dry, and tannic, with some acidity coming through as well. My initial tasting with the cheeseburger was fairly simple, the tannins were a bit stronger and the berry flavors did not show as much. However, when my tasting partner and friend mentioned that his burger had mustard on it and he noticed a lot more complexity, I immediately added some spicy honey dijon mustard to my burger. When I tasted the wine again after a bite of my mustardy burger, my world was changed. Suddenly, the was a distinct sweetness to the wine I had not noticed before, while maintaining the strong tannic structure, The mustard on the burger also amplified the fruitiness and spice I had been tasting before. Overall, a very good pairing with the proper toppings.

The last wine was a 2013 Barrel Oak Goldie. This wine had a gold straw color, that was very fitting for its name. It smelled strongly of green apples, as well as pear, citrus, grassy, and melon. It is a blend of 50% Traminette, 50% Petit Manseng. Upon tasting, there was a very strong honey flavor and was only slightly acidic, but definitely very sweet, as it is a dessert wine. It had a medium to light body and also tasted of green apple, citrus, and melon especially honeydew. We paired this with a sfogliatelle, which is a traditional southern Italian pastry with a orangy citrus, creamy ricotta filling. The honey flavor complimented the crunchiness of the pastry well, and since the pastry is not overly sweet is was a delightful pairing. The citrus of the wine with the orange pastry filling was magnificent and it made a great dessert for our dinner. Alone, this wine was very sweet, but with the subtlety of the pastry it balanced very well.

We had a great night with each of our food and wine pairings, and I think we are definitely getting better at knowing which wines to bring for which types of food!