Saturday Night – Old Favourites Part 1

This review is a tad late as things have been really busy lately with home renovations and a new project at work. Mick and Amy had us over dinner on Saturday November 9th. The first course was spicy shrimp with mint sauce and was paired with a 2005 Robert Mondavi Fumé Blanc.

"Not as good as earlier years"

The Mondavi was a pale yellow in colour and had a strong citrus/grapefruit aroma with hints of grass, lime and cat’s pee. The grapefruit theme carried over to the taste side of the wine which started with a soft vanilla flavour but had a hard grapefruit finish. The Mondavi surprised me as being more rounded than usual with blunted acidity and was much more mellow than usual as well. It was almost like the grapes used to make the wine were overripe.

It was still a good pairing for the spicy shrimp but I missed the typical razor sharp acidity that earlier years of the wine had.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick - 86, Mark - 88, Kathy – 86, Amy - 87, Overall – 86.75

LCBO Information –

Robert Mondavi Fumé Blanc
Vintages# 221887
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 24.95
Wine, White Wine,
12.7% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, United States
By: Robert Mondavi Winery
Release Date: May 10, 2008

Description - In 1966, in tribute to the Loire Valley's Pouilly-Fumé, the great California innovator Robert Mondavi dubbed his lightly-oaked Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc, Fumé Blanc. Its aromas include Granny Smith apple, citrus, mineral and light toast notes. It has a crisp, refreshing, fruity core and a vibrant, spicy, subtly toasty finish, making it a perfect partner for barbecued salmon.

*Note – the LCBO listing above is probably the 2006 vintage and not the 2005 reviewed above.

Cheers!

Mark

Click here for Part 2