ZippySauce

Saturday Night – Raising the Bar – Part 2

2012-01-22T13:41:00.005-05:00

The main course was Beef Tenderloin braised in red wine with a side of Gorgonzola polenta. This dish was paired with a 2008 De Marino Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile.

The nose caught me off guard as plum was the main aroma I was detecting with tobacco, blackberry, black pepper and green pepper in the background. The plum aroma was odd as I usually associate that with Merlot and not Cab. Tasting the wine you’ll find flavours of black cherry, blackberry and cocoa. The structure was a bit off for a Cab as the acidity was good but there was very little tannin there which gave the wine a thin mouth-feel. It was easy drinking and it was a very good pairing with the meal but I kept feeling like this was a Merlot or a Carmenere vs. a Cab.

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

I couldn’t find a LCBO listing for this wine but a quick web search puts this in the $15-20 price point. This wine is a decent value at that price and if the LCBO brings in the 2009/2010, I would be tempted to pick up a bottle.

The main course was very good, the flavour to the beef tenderloin was exceptional and it was cooked to a perfect medium rare.

For dessert, Jan did a Banoffee pie which is a caramel and banana based cream pie. I’m not a huge dessert fan but this was very yummy and a nice ending to the night.

I would like to thank Jan and Chris for the amazing food and for hosting the dinner. I joked at the end of the night that the bar, from their efforts and Mick’s new dishes, is getting set too high and that when I host next time that I will be doing frozen chicken fingers as the starter and Kraft Mac and Cheese as the main course to set the bar back to a much lower standard.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Raising the Bar – Part 1

2012-01-22T13:37:00.014-05:00

Chris and Jan were hosting this Saturday’s dinner at their place. They had a couple of new wines for us to try and some wonderful new dishes. I wasn’t going to blog this as I’m usually not comfortable reviewing wines outside of my house and Mick and Amy’s but the first wine was so good that I felt I had to write about it.

Orecchiette pasta with mixed greens and goat’s cheese was the first course. This was paired with a 2006 Dr. Hermann Erdner Treppchen Spätlese Riesling.

The nose on the Riesling had a strong petrol aroma with a mix of peach, honey and lychee in the background. The flavours to the wine were huge green apple with hints of orange and lychee. As this was a Spätlese, there was quite a bit of sweetness to it. The sweetness was a bit of a problem; there was enough acidity to the wine to keep it from being cloying but it was close to being too sweet. The savory tone of the pasta salad wasn’t quite right for this wine as a pairing; it was decent but a Kabinett would have been a better pairing. This Riesling paired with a poached pear salad or an apple walnut salad or any salad with some fruit in it would be a perfect match.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 88, Mark - 89, Kathy – 88, Amy – 89, Overall – 88.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

DR. HERMANN ERDNER TREPPCHEN RIESLING SPÄTLESE 2006

VINTAGES 181917
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 21.95
Wine, White Wine
9.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : M
Made in: Mosel, Germany
By: Weingut Dr. Hermann
Release Date: Nov 26, 2011

Tasting Note - A seamless white from start to finish. Lime, vanilla cream, peach and slate notes hold court as this stays fresh and balanced. It's very tasty now and ends with a nice snap of mouthwatering acidity. Drink now through 2020. Score - 92. (Bruce Sanderson, winespectator.com, Dec. 15, 2008)

The pasta salad recipe was very good. I liked the contrast of the warm pasta with the mixed greens and the sundried tomatoes. The timing of this recipe was good, as it was a lovely starter for cool weather we get this time of year.

Click here for Part 2

January Wine Club – Champagne

2012-01-20T11:39:00.063-05:00

This month for Wine Club we tasted two French Champagnes.

Here is the LCBO information for both -

LOUIS ROEDERER BRUT PREMIER CHAMPAGNE

VINTAGES 268771

750 mL bottle

Price: $ 67.95

Wine, Champagne

12.0% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : XD

Made in: Champagne, France

By: Champagne Louis Roederer

Release Date: Aug 20, 2011

Description - As Decanter magazine's Steven Spurrier puts it: 'it cannot be bettered.' It makes an excellent aperitif or a delicious companion to a light entree.

Tasting Note - A delicate Champagne, with spring blossom, smoke, yellow apple and anise flavors set on a fine-grained texture. The moderate finish is fresh and juicy, with the smoky note lingering. Better than previously reviewed. Drink now through 2019. Score - 90. (Alison Napjus, winespectator.com, June 15, 2011)

TAITTINGER BRUT RÉSERVE CHAMPAGNE

VINTAGES 814723

750 mL bottle

Price: $ 53.95

Wine, Champagne

12.0% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : XD

Made in: Champagne, France

By: Champagne Taittinger

Release Date: Oct 29, 2011

Tasting Note - A mature, dusty-minerally expression of champagne, with notable autolysis character of yeast and brioche, with bruised apple and dried citrus zest aromas. The palate is fullish and well balanced, though again dominated by mature flavours and mineral expression. A champagne for the table. Score - 90. (John Szabo, M.S., winealign.com, August 2010)

I won’t be going into much detail for either as I have already reviewed both here on the blog -

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/12/saturday-night-champagne-and-sheian.html

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/06/saturday-night-sparkling-night-with-in.html

Both wines were enjoyed by Wine Club members but the Roederer was the clear favourite. Julie was nice enough to provide the food for this meeting adn bought in Bruschetta and a Smoked Salmon ring. Both were served with a selection of crackers and made a good pairing for both of the Champagnes.

It was nice to kick off this new session of Wine Club with a Champagne toast and I’m already looking forward to next month.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Potatoes, Shrimp and Lamb ,Oh My! – Part 2

2012-01-08T16:18:00.003-05:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course Mick did grilled lamb with green beans and mashed potatoes and paired it with a bottle of 2001 Joseph Phelps’s Le Mistral which is a Shiraz/Syrah Blend.

The nose the wine was powerful with aromas of blackberry, plum, nutmeg and pepper. Tasting the wine, black licorice was the main flavour with some black currant and pepper. The structure on the wine was interesting as I found it hit the tongue big and then just disappears. The acidity was good but the tannin was almost non-existent. The wine was easy drinking but it might be past its prime at this moment. I was a good pairing with the lamb.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 86, Mark - 87, Kathy – 85, Amy – 85, Overall – 85.75.

There is no LCBO listing for this wine but if I remember correctly it is around a $25 price point.

For dessert Mick picked up a caramel cake and we had it with a bottle of Henry of Pelham 2005 Botrytis Affect Riesling. Both the wine and the dessert were excellent.

I like to thank Mick and Amy for hosting and Mick for all the wonderful food and for indulging me on my Champagne craving.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Potatoes, Shrimp and Lamb, Oh My! – Part 1

2012-01-08T16:14:00.005-05:00

Mick was hosting this past Saturday night’s dinner and had three courses on tap. After the Cristal last weekend, I had Champagne on the brain and was really in the mood for more. I called Mick just before dinner started and mentioned that I was craving bubbles and had a bottle of Perrier-Jouët Champagne nicely chilled and if anything he was making would pair with it. Mick answered that he indeed did have a course for it and to bring it by.

The course for the Champagne also happened to be the starter which was oven-roasted baby potatoes stuffed with bacon.
The last time we had the Perrier-Jouët Champagne I was disappointed - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/12/saturday-night-champagne-and-sheian_11.html as it wasn’t as good as the bottles we had in Las Vegas but this time it was much better. The flavours to it were much more like Vegas ones and it was a good pairing with the potatoes. Mick and I were wondering if that last bottle was slightly off as this one was so much better.

The second course Mick had on tap was Shrimp Bisque. Mick had a 2007 Roux Pere & Fils Clos des Mollepierres on tap as the pairing and we also had some of the Perrier-Jouët Champagne to go with it as well.

The nose on the wine was a mild nose with aromas of vanilla, lemon and a hint of lychee in the background. Tasting the wine a Macintosh Apple flavour dominated the wine with more oak than I was expecting from a French wine there as well. The structure on this wine was decent but it got a bit flabby as it warmed up. It made a good pairing for the bisque but the Perrier-Jouët Champagne was a much better one.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 85, Mark - 86, Kathy – 86, Amy – 86, Overall – 85.75.

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine -

ROUX PÈRE & FILS CLOS DES MOLLEPIERRES RULLY 2007

VINTAGES 169193

750 mL bottle
Price: $ 23.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Domaine Roux Pere Et Fils
Release Date: May 15, 2010

Tasting Note - Pretty lime blossom, acacia and citronella aromas and flavors highlight this elegant yet vivid white. Spice notes from oak aging add depth, and this lingers with citrus and spice accents on the aftertaste. Drink now through 2012. Score - 90. (Bruce Sanderson, winespectator.com, Dec. 15, 2009)

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Happy New Year! - Part 2

2012-01-01T16:00:00.001-05:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I did Beef Tenderloin with a port and shallot sauce with mashed potatoes with caramelized onions and a side of green beans. I went with another bottle I was looking forward to trying - a 1996 Chateau Margaux. Chateau Margaux is one of the five first growth Bordeaux and we hadn’t tried it yet, so I was eagerly looking forward to this.

The nose on the wine was a mix of eucalyptus, buttered lobster, rose, cherry, cassis and vanilla. Tasting the wine, cassis and black licorice are the dominate flavours to the wine. For the structure of the wine you will find fine silky tannins, good acidity and a lovely delicate balance to the wine. Mick and Kathy really loved this wine, I on the other hand was disappointed as I found it too thin and too precise, I like my Cabernet Sauvignon blends to be bigger and bolder with a huge mouth-feel to them and this wine was not that. I was a decent pairing with the food and I enjoyed it, just didn’t love it.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 94, Mark - 89, Kathy – 93, Amy – 90, Overall – 91.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

CHÂTEAU MARGAUX 2001

VINTAGES 176826
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 695.00
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Bordeaux, France
By: Compagnie Medocaine Des Grands Crus
Release Date: May 5, 2010

Tasting Note - Performing well from bottle, Chateau Margaux's 2001, which is somewhat reminiscent of both the 1985 and 1999, is an elegant, seamlessly constructed effort with a deep ruby/purple color, and a beautiful nose of flowers, creme de cassis, blackberries, and cedar. A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, and 4% Cabernet Franc, this forward, opulent beauty can be drunk now or cellared for 15-20 years. This is one of the most elegant wines of the vintage. Score - 93. (Robert Parker Jr., erobertparker.com, June 2004)
Please note that this is for the 2001 and not the 1996 reviewed here. Kathy found this bottle two years ago at the LCBO for $399. The $399 price for a Chateau Margaux was a heck of deal. For two years I had been looking longingly at this bottle in the rack and itching to try it. The wine was nice but just didn’t meet my expectations.

For dessert we did dark chocolate and a cheese platter and finished up the wine with the chocolate and opened a bottle of Yalumba Antique Tawny to go with the cheese.

It was fun New Year’s Eve and I very much enjoyed trying the two wines whose price point dictate that these are a once year type of occasion. I’d like to wish my readers a Happy New Year and look forward to discovering all sorts of new and wonderful wines in 2012.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Happy New Year! - Part 1

2012-01-01T15:52:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday, Amy, Mick, Kathy and I got together to celebrate New Year’s Eve. As this wasn’t just another normal Saturday night, we decided to kick the wine level up a notch or two. I have been on a Champagne kick this year so I decided to start the meal off with a bottle of Champagne with the starter appetizer.

The Champagne was a bottle of 2004 Cristal by Louis Roederer and the appetizer was an oven bake blue cheese and bacon dip with a selection of crackers. I have done this dip before; here is link to that review and the recipe - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/11/saturday-night-high-end-cab-night-part.html .

I was looking forward to trying this Champagne as the $65 Roederer was our highest rated Champagne on the blog so far and was my personal favourite for 2011, trying Roederer’s top Champagne was something I was excited about. The Cristal definitely gets full marks for packaging, as the bottle was in a lovely golden box that was sealed closed by a 2004 sticker on the front. Opening the box, cradled firmly in the center of the box was the bottle wrapped in yellow/gold cellophane. Taking the plastic cellophane off the bottle and seeing a clear heavy glass bottle with its gold labeling on it was impressive as it was one of the nicer looking bottles of wines I’d seen in a while. If you got this box as a gift and opened it up, there would be no doubt in your mind that its price tag was north of $100 just by the details in the packaging alone.

After popping the cork and pouring out the first glass, I was shocked as I was picking up its nose from more than a foot above the glass. The Cristal’s nose was, by far and away, the most powerful nose of any Champagne I’ve tried to date. The nose was a pleasant combination of orange zest, lime, lilac and yeast. Tasting the wine, it hits your tongue big with creaminess and fruit and finishes crisp and clean. I initially found lime as the dominate flavour but it changed to melon after a few sips and then to mandarin and then mango. It was fascinating to try this wine every few minutes as the flavours of it melded into something else. It worked very well with the blue cheese dip but Mick liked it more on its own than with food.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 94, Mark - 94, Kathy – 94, Amy – 93, Overall – 93.75.

Here is the LCBO information for the wine –

CRISTAL BRUT CHAMPAGNE 2004

VINTAGES 268755
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 286.95
Wine, Champagne
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Champagne, France
By: Louis Roederer
Release Date: Aug 20, 2011

Tasting Note - The 2004 Brut Cristal has put on quite a bit of weight since I first tasted it earlier this year. It is a powerful, structured Cristal layered with considerable fruit. Chardonnay seems to play the leading role in 2004, at least today. Cristal is often accessible young, but that is far from the case here. This is a serious, painfully young Cristal that will require considerable patience. Readers who are willing to spend some time with the wine today will find a super-impressive, complete Cristal. The 2004 Cristal is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. This is Lot L033331E100008, disgorged January, 2010. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2034. Score - 97. (Antonio Galloni, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2010)

I had pretty high expectations for this wine and it exceeded them. I never thought I’d find a white wine or sparkling wine that I would put on par with Insignia but Cristal is right there. As a side note, we also open a bottle of the $65 Louis Roederer about midway through the first course as I was curious to see straight up how the two would compare; it wasn’t even close the Cristal smacked it around which was shocking as it is a very good wine in its own right.

Click here for Part 2

December Wine Club – Bonus Tasting

2011-12-16T16:45:00.004-05:00

After our regular six month long session of Wine Club we change up the format and do a bonus tasting. In the first six months, I buy a case each month and we split the case eleven ways and do a tasting with the 12th bottle and normally have another bottle of something else as a comparison bottle. For the bonus tasting there is no take home bottle so it is just two bottles for the tasting and that’s it; this usually allows us to pick up a couple of wines at a much higher price point than usual.

Here is the LCBO information on both of the wines we had for the bonus tasting –

BERINGER PRIVATE RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005

VINTAGES 149955
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 99.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.6% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, USA
By: Treasury Wine Estates
Release Date: Jun 11, 2011

Description - This vintage is being offered at a special one-time reduced price. Robert Parker awarded it 92 points and Stephen Tanzer rated it 94.

Tasting Note - Offers richness, concentration and depth while remaining elegant and supple, focusing on the ripe, spicy currant, mineral, herb and sage notes. Ends with a measure of finesse and polish, with the right mix of tannins. Drink now through 2016. Score - 93. (James Laube, Wine Spectator, Oct. 15, 2008)

YALUMBA THE SIGNATURE CABERNET SAUVIGNON/SHIRAZ 2006

VINTAGES 528356
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 51.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: South Australia, Australia
By: Negociants International
Release Date: Sep 3, 2011

Tasting Note - The 2006 The Signature Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz is composed of 69% Cabernet Sauvignon and 31% Shiraz. Deep garnet-purple in color, it offers intense notes of blackberry preserves, warm cherries, black currant cordial plus an earthy / gamey undercurrent and nuances of marmite toast. The tight-knit medium to full-bodied palate is firmly structured with a high level of grainy tannins, high acid and just enough savory flesh giving a long finish. Approachable now, it should be best 2012 to 2018. Score - 91. (Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2010)

The two wines were both excellent but in different ways. The nose on the Beringer’s was more aromatic of the two with cassis, raspberry, green pepper and leather whereas the Yalumba it was black pepper, strawberry and mint. Tasting the two wines, the Beringer’s had flavours of cherry, mint, coffee and a leathery flavour to it. The Yalumba was all fruit with blueberry, blackberry and raspberry notes. The structure on both was good but the Beringer’s was more tannic than the Yalumba and the Yalumba acidity was more pronounced than the Beringer’s.

I brought in bars of Lindt 70% dark chocolate and a LaRocca Hazelnut Bomb Chocolate cake to go with the wines. The general consensus was the Beringer’s was the favourite with the dark chocolate and the Yalumba was the better wine with the Cake. Overall the Yalumba was the bigger hit as most people liked both wines equally but once the price points were taken into account (the Yalumba at just over half the price of the Beringer’s) was the winner.

We will be looking at more wines again for Wine Club in January when we start the next session and I’m already looking forward to it.

Note - the Blog is probably going to be quiet until the New Year as the next couple of weekends we all have different Christmas obligations to attend so we won’t be together again until New Year’s Eve. So I will take this time to wish my 3 or 4 loyal readers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Champagne and Sheian – Part 2

2011-12-11T16:35:00.011-05:00

Click here for Part 1

The Perrier-Jouët Champagne we first tried down in Las Vegas earlier this year and the four of us loved it. Amy when we got back located some at the LBCO and we picked more up. I was itching to try it again and review as we never did this when we were in Las Vegas.

The nose on the Perrier-Jouët was a combination of roses and truffles. Tasting the wine you’ll find an interesting mix of lime and Crème Brûlée flavour to it. I was surprised to find the acidity was quite tart and not as smooth as I remember it being from Las Vegas. It was an OK pairing with the Seafood but was a strong paring with the Alfredo. I think the tartness of the wine worked against the heavy rich flavour of the Alfredo.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick –87, Mark - 89, Kathy – 85, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

PERRIER JOUET GRAND BRUT CHAMPAGNE

LCBO 155341
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 64.95
Wine, Champagne
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Champagne, France
By: S.A. Champagne Perrier Jouet

I’ll be honest and say that I think we were all a bit disappointed with the Perrier-Jouet as it was nowhere near as good as the one from Las Vegas; it could be that as it is non-vintage, the bottles in Las Vegas were in stock for a while whereas ours was just purchased so we were tasting completely different years/batches. We still have a bottle each of the Perrier-Jouët so maybe in a year or two it will improve.

Side note here, the past its prime Beringer’s Chardonnay still made a decent pairing with Alfredo but the wine had taken on too much of a caramel/butterscotch flavour to it and made it very one dimensional.

For dessert, Sheian brought Red Velvet Cake and a bottle of sweet Mosel Riesling to go with it. I was stuffed to the gills at this point and didn’t try the Cake but the Riesling was quite nice. The ladies had very clean dessert plates so I can assume the dessert was good too.

Thanks to Mick for bringing the oysters, and to Sheian for the dessert and Riesling, it was fun night and it always a good time adding Sheian to our normal Saturday night dinners.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Champagne and Sheian – Part 1

2011-12-11T16:30:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday night our usual band of four was joined by one more; Sheian joined us for dinner. Sheian is a friend of ours who is in her twenties and doesn’t mind hanging out with us old folks for an evening of food and wine.

I had three wines on tap for the evening – a bottle of Taittinger Champagne, a bottle of Perrier-Jouët Champagne and a 2004 Beringer’s Napa Valley Chardonnay.

The Champagnes were picked to go with the first course and hopefully everyone would have some left to try with the main course as well. The Chardonnay was meant to go with the main course. Unfortunately, the Chardonnay which was lovely a few years ago was past its prime; still drinkable but not anywhere near as good as I remember it being. I really have to stop saving favourite white wines for special occasions and start drinking them in a more timely matter. With that said we will just review the Champagnes in this Blog.

The started was shrimp cocktail and oysters and the main course was a Wolfgang Puck Chicken Alfredo recipe.

I will review the Taittinger first and then in part two review the Perrier-Jouët.

The nose the Taittinger was an interesting mix of lemon, lime, melon, yeast and some vanilla aromas. Tasting the Champagne you’ll notice a creamy lime flavour to it that is both easy to drink and refreshing at the same time. The structure on the wine was good as the acidity was fresh without being too tart. It was a decent pairing with the seafood but really good with the Alfredo.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick –89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 89, Overall – 88.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

TAITTINGER BRUT RÉSERVE CHAMPAGNE

VINTAGES 814723
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 53.95
Wine, Champagne
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Champagne, France
By: Champagne Taittinger
Release Date: Oct 29, 2011

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Yeah, but what is the name of the recipe?

2011-12-04T15:25:00.030-05:00

Mick and Amy hosted this past Saturday night’s dinner. We usually alternate weeks but the Sheian dinner is this upcoming weekend and then our next dinner is New Year’s Eve and both of those are mine so Mick ends up doing back to back dinners.

Mick broke out a new recipe "Jerk Shrimp" to which I replied, "Yeah, I know you made them but what is the name of the recipe?" Thankfully Mick has a good sense of humour about these things.

He paired this course with two different Rieslings, 2007 Max Ferd. Richter Kabinett Riesling and 2008 Kung Fu Girl Riesling. This double pairing was also used for the second course as well. We have reviewed both of these wines before and decided not to review them again.

The "Jerk Shrimp" was good and the Max Riesling was easily the better pairing as the Kung Fu Girl got a touch funky at times with the food. The "Jerk Shrimp" recipe was pretty good but Mick with grilled shrimp has set the bar pretty damn high so I can’t say this was the best shrimp he has ever done but they would be in the top 5.

The second course was Honey Ginger Chicken Satay with the above pairings. Once again the Max Ferd. Richter Riesling was the better pairing but it was closer this time and the Kung Fu Girl was a decent pairing.

The main course was a new BBQ Chicken Wing recipe and Mick paired this with a 2008 Sebastiani Zinfandel. These BBQ Chicken Wings were different as Mick usually does his wings in more of a drier style and these were quite saucy. They were a nice change of pace but Mick, as with the shrimp, has set the bar very high for chicken wing recipes and these weren’t the best wings he has ever made. On the other hand I did clean almost every scrap of meat and skin of these tasty treats.

The nose on the Zinfandel was big with blackberry, butterscotch and menthol aromas with traces of plum in the background. Tasting the wine, you’ll find lots of wild berry flavours and some vanilla lurking there too. This wine was a huge fruit bomb on the nose and in the mouth but in a good way as I was very easy to drink and went great with the ribs. It reminded me of 2000-2003 Rosenblum Zinfandel. I like the more complex Zinfandels like Seghesio but it was a very nice change to get back to a more straightforward one like this.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick –89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 88, Overall – 88.25.

Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

SEBASTIANI ZINFANDEL 2008

VINTAGES 672667

750 mL bottle
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Sebastiani Vineyards
Release Date: Jun 25, 2011

Description - Wine & Spirits magazine, and Tim Fish of the Wine Spectator, each scored this superbly priced Zin 88 points.

Tasting Note - Quite lithe and lively for Zinfandel with very engaging notes of red cherry, raspberry pie, plum and cinnamon toast on the nose. The palate is dry and medium-full bodied with a bright acidity and well integrated, balanced ripe tannins. Impressively structured with lots of fruit without being jammy. Very nicely made. Perfect for beef kebabs or lasagna. (VINTAGES panel, April 2011)

Interestingly enough we have reviewed this exact Zinfandel before back in July and I had forgotten about it -

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/07/saturday-night-hey-buddy-great-1000.html.

Six months later we all went up exactly one point in our rating and the Blackberry notes on the nose are on both but from there the characteristics on the wine vary greatly. Not sure if the six month of addition aging made the difference, the bottles weren’t from the same barrel, or the food made the difference or all of these reasons but the two reviews were quite different.

For dessert, Amy picked up a Baco Chocolate Cake which was a nice way to end the evening. Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and to Mick for the three great new recipes.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Mick’s cooking for six – Part 3

2011-11-27T13:10:00.003-05:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course Mick did barbequed Prime Rib with a Shiraz reduction sauce and sides of baby potatoes and green beans. I did up a batch of the Blue Cheese and Thyme Poppers as a side to go with the Prime Rib.

Chris and Jan brought a bottle of 1999 Chateau D’Agassac, Haut-Médoc as a pairing for the Prime Rib.

The nose on this was a nice mix of lead pencil shavings, tobacco, plum and black licorice. The flavours to the wine were raspberry, cherry and cocoa. The balance on this wine was very good with soft tannin, nice acidity and not much heat. I liked that the fruit was still very much there despite this being a 1999. The one small issue I had with the wine was the finish, as its lovely flavours disappeared way too quickly. It was a very good pairing with the food and also very nice just on its own.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick –87, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 89, Overall – 88.

There was no LCBO listing for this wine. I did some web searching on it and it looks like the bottle goes for around $50US so probably if the LCBO did carry it you would be in the $65-70 range. Not a bad value for this wine.

For dessert Chris and Jan brought Blondie’s and Raspberry Chocolate squares and a bottle of Peach wine and a bottle of Raspberry wine. Both desserts were very good and I really enjoyed both of the dessert wines.

All the food and wines were amazing tonight and were only surpassed by the truly excellent company. It was wonderful having Chris and Jan over for a usual Saturday dinner. Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and to Mick for all his hard work with the food. Thanks to Chris and Jan for the great wines and desserts.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Mick’s cooking for six – Part 2

2011-11-27T13:04:00.016-05:00

For the second course of the night Mick did his version of Insalata Caprese in which he adds Avocado and Red Onion to the usual Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil combination.

Mick picked a 2010 Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa to pair with the dish.

The nose on the wine was an interesting combination of grapefruit, gooseberry, pear and moss aromas. I was surprised on how strong the nose was on this wine, as with a number of Sauvignon Blancs you really have to swirl the glass to get any aroma at all, whereas on this one the nose was very easy to find. The flavour to the wine was lime, gooseberry and a touch of vanilla lurking around in the background. The balance on this wine was very good with crisp and refreshing acidity. This wine was a good pairing with the food but even better on its own. A bottle of this on ice during a hot summer’s day while idly killing the day on the deck would be awesome.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick –87, Mark - 90, Kathy – 85, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.5.

Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

MULDERBOSCH SAUVIGNON BLANC 2010

VINTAGES 933424
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Western Cape, South Africa
By: Mulderbosch
Release Date: Jun 25, 2011

Tasting Note - Light lemon-yellow in the glass. Fresh and invigorating aromas of green grass, asparagus, lime blossom, fresh herbs and mineral. Dry, medium bodied, with bright and tangy acidity. Crisp finish features savoury herbaceous notes. Good length. A very nice South African Savvy with some Loire and New Zealand influence evident. Enjoy with garden salads, steamed clams, or grilled chicken breast. (VINTAGES panel, May 2011)

As you can see on the ratings there was a fair difference from my 90 to my wife’s 85 and this can be explained quite simply – the bitch be crazy… just kidding. Kathy enjoys the big acidity and razor sharp crispness of French Sauvignon Blanc or the big fruit of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and isn’t a big fan of middle ground Sauvignon Blanc like this one. I, on the other hand, do really like the middle ground between those two pillars of the Sauvignon Blanc community which I find South African wines usually fit into.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Mick’s cooking for six – Part 1

2011-11-27T13:00:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday night Mick and Amy were hosting and Chris and Jan joined as for dinner. Mick had a couple new wines on tap and Chris and Jan brought a bottle to go with the main course so we will be looking at three new wines today.

The first course was Spanish Toasts and Mick paired these with a 1995 Don Jacobo Rioja.

The nose on the wine was big with aromas of strawberry, black licorice, cedar and fresh vine tomatoes. Tasting the wine, you’ll find dried cherry and mint flavours. The structure to the wine was slightly off balanced, as it was more acidic than tannic which gave the wine a narrow mouth-feel. I liked this wine but felt with the almost non-existent tannin and the dried fruit flavour that it was just past its prime and if you have any of this wine, drink it now. It did make a good pairing with the Spanish Toasts but the Auka Malbec we had a few weeks ago when Mick first did this recipe was a better pairing.

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

Here is the LCBO information for this wine -

DON JACOBO GRAN RESERVA 1995

VINTAGES 923748
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 27.95
Wine, Red Wine
12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Region Not Specified, Spain
By: Bodegas Corral
Release Date: Apr 30, 2011

Description - The extra cellar time means this wine is almost perfect upon release. It will, though, still reward further time in a cellar, but why bother when it's this good?

Tasting Note -Ethereal nose with bright fig, spice and strawberry aromas, the palate is elegant with mature fruits balancing fine tannin. To be savoured. Score - Gold Medal. (Decanter World Wine Awards, 2010)

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – High-end Cab night – Part 2

2011-11-20T21:42:00.011-05:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I did beef tenderloin Oscar (Béarnaise sauce, shrimp and lobster topping) with sides of baby potatoes and sugar snap peas.

We actually opened and poured out the 2003 Paul Hobbs "Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard" Cabernet Sauvignon with the first course so we could try it and the Grgich Hills side by side. With the blue cheese dip the Grgich Hills was the better pairing, so let’s see how they both do with the main course.

The nose on the Paul Hobbs was cedar, tobacco, plum, dried cherry and leather at first and then as the wine sat for a bit and opened up, coffee aromas dominated the wine. With the blue cheese dip the two flavours we got from the wine was dark chocolate and orange liquor. The dark chocolate wasn’t a big surprise but I was stunned to find the orange liquor flavour on a Cab. As the wine sat for a while the orange liquor went away and was replaced with blueberry but dark chocolate stayed as the primary flavour. The structure on this wine was perfectly balanced but with more acidity and tannin which gave the wine a much bigger mouth-feel than the Grgich Hills Cab. With the beef tenderloin, the Paul Hobbs really shined as the pairing was heavenly. Funny enough the Grgich Hills got a bit funky with the beef tenderloin, it was still a decent pairing just nowhere good as it was with the blue cheese dip.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 91, Mark - 90, Kathy – 92, Amy – 91, Overall – 91.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

PAUL HOBBS BECKSTOFFER TO KALON CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2006

VINTAGES 118794
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 224.00
Wine, Red Wine
15.3% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, USA
By: Paul Hobbs Imports Inc.
Release Date: May 10, 2011

Tasting Note - Not surprisingly, the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard is a profound Cabernet Sauvignon. The equivalent of a Bordeaux first-growth Pauillac, it boasts abundant quantities of creme de cassis, lead pencil shavings, cedar, and subtle smoky oak and espresso notes. Atypically sexy for a 2006, it is full-bodied with oodles of concentrated black fruits, stunning purity and length, and a finish that lasts for nearly a minute. It should hit its apogee in 3-4 years, and last for three decades or more. Score - 96+. (Robert Parker Jr., erobertparker.com, Dec. 2008)

Please note that this listing is for the 2006 and not the 2003 reviewed here. Once again this was a wine purchased in the US. Kathy was actually the one who put this in the cart and I remember questioning her on the $265 US price tag (close to $400 Canadian after duty, taxes and exchange).

The overall rating of 91 gets this wine into the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Reds.

Now a bit of disclosure, the four of us got into a bit of heated debate over our ratings on this wine. Mick and I, when rating wines, will take price point into account whereas the ladies don’t. Mick and I both loved this wine and I can say it is easily in the top five red wines we have ever tried and yet I gave it a 90 and Mick gave it a 91. My issue with this wine is its price - at close to $400 a bottle this is not an everyday wine and while I really liked it, I like the 2003 Insignia better and it is $265 Canadian a bottle. This is why I feel I have to take price point into consideration, if I can get a wine for less money that I like more, then in my mind that is going to hurt the rating. I can see where the ladies have a point that you should just rate the wine strictly on its merits of the wine and not the price but unless you are Bill Gates or Warren Buffet, price is an issue. The nice thing is with Mick and I worrying about price in our ratings and the wives not doing so the overall rating is usually pretty fair.

For dessert I picked up a Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Bombe cake. Amy was the only person who had some of the Paul Hobbs left at this point and was gracious enough to share a sip with each of us. This pairing was even better than the Paul Hobbs and beef tenderloin pairing and had me looking with longing at my now very empty wine glass.

It was a fun night and nice to try some higher end wines for a change but at the end of the day lower price point wines with get you just as drunk!

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – High-end Cab night – Part 1

2011-11-20T21:39:00.009-05:00

Sheian was supposed to come for dinner this past Saturday but cancelled earlier in the week. As I had been mentally planning this meal for weeks and I had some really good Cabernet Sauvignon in mind, I decided to go that route anyways. I had a 2003 Grgich Hills Cab and 2003 Paul Hobbs Cab on tap for the night.

I also had 4oz of St. Agur blue cheese in the fridge that I needed to use up and decided to go appetizer searching on the web and came across this recipe -

http://www.passion-for-parties.com/blue-cheese-appetizers.html

and found a recipe called "How to Make One of the Best Blue Cheese Appetizers You Will Ever Taste". As the first ingredient was bacon I decided to go with it as the starter; I mean how you can go wrong with blue cheese and bacon! The recipe also called for 4 ounces of blue cheese which is exactly what I had on hand.

I will review the Grgich Hills first and then do the Paul Hobbs in part 2.

The nose the Grgich Hills brought out my happy face as big notes of green pepper, cassis, coffee and eucalyptus dominated this wine. Tasting the wine, huge fruit flavours of raspberry, plum and strawberry jumped out of the glass at you. The balance on this was damn near perfect with good acidity, silky smooth tannins and great fruit and no noticeable heat. The only small issue I had with this wine is it needed a slightly bigger mouth-feel. This wine was really good on its own but with the blue cheese dip it was stunning and one of the better pairings I’ve had in a while.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 90, Mark - 90, Kathy – 91, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.25.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

GRGICH HILLS ESTATE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007

VINTAGES 71407
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 69.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Grgich Hills Cellars
Release Date: Jun 25, 2011

Tasting Note - This blockbuster of a wine is certified biodynamically grown. Opaque ruby with a hint of garnet. Cassis, mocha, mineral/graphite, black licorice and woodsmoke. Dry, fruit driven, but with good structure from velvety tannins. Big, lushly textured wine that may be cellared 2+ years. Also a good choice for dishes such as veal medallions in a red wine sauce. (VINTAGES panel, May 2011)

The wine listed is the 2007 and not the 2003 reviewed here. I’m pretty sure I picked this wine up in the US for about $70 US so about $100 Canadian. Looking on the web the 2003 also seemed to be getting higher ratings than the 2007. I really liked this wine so I will be strongly considering picking up a bottle or two of the 2007.

The Blue Cheese dip was hit as everyone enjoyed it. I asked Mick if he would change anything and he wasn’t a big fan of the chopped walnuts sprinkled on top and we kicked around ideas and thought switching the topping to pecans might be interesting. There were leftovers that I heated up in the oven the today and found that the walnuts warmed up on top weren’t as in your face as the ones added after cooking last night so that too might be an idea. One thing I will note is this appetizer was very filling so keep that in mind if you are doing for a dinner party.

Click here for Part 2

November Wine Club – Carménère

2011-11-18T11:30:00.011-05:00

This month Wine Club got together for our final regular meeting of this session and will wrap up this final session next month with a ‘bonus’ tasting. This month we looked at two Carménère’s from Chile. The San Pedro 1865 was the take home bottle and the Calina was the comparison bottle.

"Crappy pictures like this is why Amy is the official Zippy Sauce Photographer and not me!"

Here is LCBO Information for both of them -

SAN PEDRO 1865 SINGLE VINEYARD CARMENÈRE 2008

VINTAGES 249201
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Maule Valley, Chile
By: Vina Tarapaca Ex Zavala
Release Date: Sep 17, 2011

Tasting Note - Complex and very flavourful Carménère with aromas of coconut oil, cassis, plum, underbrush, cloves and pipe tobacco. Dry, plush and fruity with velvety tannins. Very good aroma replays, with nice acidity wrapped around the fruit to make it beautifully lively. A refined, fruity/savoury wine with a very long finish. Enjoy with hearty ratatouille, rabbit stew, grilled eggplant or bison steaks. (VINTAGES panel, July 2011)

CALINA RESERVA CARMENÈRE 2009

VINTAGES 951079
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 15.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Central Valley, Chile
By: Jackson Wine Estates International
Release Date: Aug 20, 2011

Tasting Note - The 2009 Vina Calina Carmenere Reserva is a blend of 80 percent Carmenere, 12 percent Merlot, 5 percent Syrah, and 3 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. After a short maceration, the juice was fermented and transferred to an equal percentage of French and American oak barrels, of which only 15 percent were new. This winemaking technique avoided extracting carmenere's natural herbaceousness and overwhelming the fruit flavors with new oak accents. Black fruit and mild smoky aromas greet the nose, and black plum and blackberry flavors are carried on a velvety body that finishes in a pleasing, balanced finish. (John Foy, nj.com, Sept. 8, 2010)

The first time Wine Club look at Carménère was way back in the first session so it has been a number of years since we had it. Physically there was quite a difference between the two wines as the Calina was in a normal bottle whereas the 1865 came in a very heavy glass bottle like you would find more often in higher end wines. The 1865 bottle was also nicely wrapped in custom 1865 tissue paper. The heavy bottle and tissue paper isn’t something I’d expect from a $20 bottle of wine and it made a nice impression on everyone.

The aromas for both wines were easy to find but quite different from each other. The Calina had aromas of cocoa, raspberry and plum and the 1865’s aromas were black currant, strawberry, licorice and pine needle. Tasting the Calina you find a blueberry and tobacco flavours with high amounts of acidity. The 1865 had much more fruit flavours to it with currant, strawberry and lime notes. The 1865 had less acidity and more tanning to it and combined with the big fruit gave this wine a much bigger mouth-feel and better balance to it than the Calina. I liked both wines but thought the 1865 was easily the better wine of the two and more than justified extra $4 of sticker price.

Sean, one of our Wine Club members, was nice enough to bring in some food for us to have with the wine. He did Nan bread with olive oil, garlic, stir-fried mixed sweet peppers, onions and chicken and then topped with melted cheese. The food with excellent and went very well with both wines.

Eight of the ten Wine Club members preferred the 1865, one was torn equally between both of them and one liked the Calina better.

This session was a very good one and I’m already looking forward to the bonus tasting next month.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – New foods and Egyptian hieroglyphics – Part 3

2011-11-13T14:35:00.006-05:00

Click here for Part 1

The main course of the evening was Grilled Lamb Burgers with Eggplant and Tzaziki and a side of grilled Sweet Potato fries with Chipotle mayo dip. Mick picked a 2008 “A to Z” Pinot Noir from Oregon as the pairing for this dish.

Before I get to reviewing this wine, I have to poke fun at Amy; not only is Amy the official Zippy Sauce photographer (so you have her to thank for all the lovely pictures on this Blog) but she is also nice enough to take notes on the wines for us as well. It is her note taking that I’m about to poke fun at. The first wine/review of the evening is written in a lovely easy to read flowing script but as she has more to drink the quality of the note taking goes dramatically downhill from there. By the third wine/review it gets very dicey. The current notes I’m working off of for this review are so bad I think I need a Rosetta stone to translate it as I’m pretty sure the notes are no longer in English. Under taste I’m pretty sure she has a picture of the Egyptian god Anubis holding a Scarab as her description!

The nose on the A to Z is a pleasing mix of black licorice and cherry aromas. Tasting the wine you will find a colossal Raspberry flavour to it and not much else; I don’t believe Raspberries have this much Raspberry flavour to them but I like Raspberry so this isn’t all bad. Structure on the wine is fairly balanced but once again we have a wine where the acidity is stronger than the tannin. The wine does have a good finish to it that lingers for a while. This Pinot also had a much bigger mouth-feel to it than the first one. I wasn’t crazy about this wine by itself but it made a good pairing for the lamb burgers.

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

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

A TO Z PINOT NOIR 2008

VINTAGES 229781
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 21.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Oregon, USA
By: A to Z Wineworks
Release Date: Jun 25, 2011

Description - This wine ranked # 75 in Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2010.

Tasting Note - Lively, deftly balanced and refreshing in style, with pretty raspberry and cherry flavors playing against hints of spice and chalk. Finishes with impressive length. Drink now through 2016. Score - 90. (Harvey Steiman, winespectator.com, Dec. 15, 2010)

Amy picked up a Basket and Robbins Chocolate Ice Cream cake for dessert which was yummy.

I’d like to thank Mick for cooking up three new recipes and all were very good. It is impressive to try three new recipes and go three for three like he did. Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting, as we all had a good time with lots of laughs.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – New foods and Egyptian hieroglyphics – Part 2

2011-11-13T14:33:00.005-05:00

The second course was Prosciutto and Mozzarella "Sandwiches". These were interesting as the ‘bread’ (top and bottom) of the "Sandwiches" was actually grilled Eggplant. They also had a roasted red pepper puree in the center with the Prosciutto and Mozzarella. Mick paired these with a 2006 Raphael Dubois Nuits St. George Pinot Noir from Burgundy.

The nose on this had a strawberry and cherry aroma that was more artificial like Starbursts Candies with some mushroom and smoke lurking in the background. There was lots of fruit to be found when drinking this wine with Cranberry, Strawberry and Cherry flavours to it. The wine was very easy drinking with nice acidity and soft tannin and a good finish. The balance to the wine was slightly off as it was more acidic than tannic. It was a good pairing with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 88, Mark - 88, Kathy – 87, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.5.

This was another wine I couldn’t find a LCBO listing for but once again Mick knew the price was $36. I liked this wine but honestly feel that at $36 it was a touch on the pricey side and not something I’ll be jumping to get another bottle of at that price point.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday night – New foods and Egyptian hieroglyphics – Part 1

2011-11-13T14:29:00.013-05:00

This past Saturday, Mick and Amy hosted our weekly Saturday night dinner. Mick had three new recipes on tap and three new wines for us to try as well.

The first course was grilled Spanish Toasts which, while simple to make, were very tasty. The Spanish Toasts were made from sliced baguettes topped with a roasted tomato and garlic spread and Manchego cheese. Mick picked a 2006 Auka "Don Alfonso" Malbec to pair with them.

The nose on the Malbec had a huge leather aroma to it with a touch of white pepper, dried cranberry and orange rind in the background. Tasting the wine you will find dark fruit (Black cherry and black currant) as the main flavours with some truffle flavour to round things out. The structure on the wine was decent but it was more acidic then tannic and had a slightly hot finish to it. The pairing though was dead-on and was one of the better food and wine pairings we’ve had in a while.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 88, Mark - 89, Kathy – 89, Amy – 88, Overall – 88.5.

There was no LCBO listing for the wine which is a shame as I would have liked to get more of it. Mick recalled the price as being $22. $22 is a fairly high price point for a Malbec but this wine does justify it as it was that good.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Cab Night – Part 3

2011-11-06T15:28:00.001-05:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I did Grilled Beef Tenderloin with Blue Cheese (St. Agur) and Zippy Sauce with side of Green Beans and pan fry Potatoes with onions.

As glasses were getting low at this point we broke out the third Cab of the evening and uncorked a 2002 Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.

The nose on the KJ was more what I expect from a California Cab; cassis, mushroom, green pepper and lavender with a mossy aroma lurking in the background. If the nose was typical California Cab then the taste was even more so, I swear on my first sip I heard the bass beats from “California Love” with Tupac and Dr. Dre come to life in my head; huge cassis and raspberry notes to this wine. It was very smooth, easy to drink, lots of fruit, good acidity and tannin and great lingering finish. It was a decent pairing with the main course but not as amazing as I thought it would be from my initial tasting

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 87, Mark - 89, Kathy – 85, Amy – 88, Overall – 87.25.

Here is LCBO information on the wine –

KENDALL-JACKSON GRAND RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007

VINTAGES 678615
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 35.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Jackson Wine Estates International
Release Date: Nov 27, 2010

Tasting Note - The 2007 Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is superb. Dense creme de cassis notes intermixed with fruitcake, coffee bean, and tobacco leaf are found in this fat, fleshy wine, which displays excellent purity, density, and richness. It should drink well for 15 or more years. Score - (90-93). (Robert Parker Jr., erobertparker.com, Feb. 2010)

Note – This is for the 2007 and not the 2002 reviewed here.

For dessert Kathy picked up a decadent Chocolate cake that was a good pairing with the KJ.

I had fun trying 3 uniquely different California Cabs and am enjoying these nights where we just stick to one grape. I still have more Merlot that is getting long in the tooth as well as some Pinot Noir and Shiraz so I see more of these one grape evenings in my future.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Cab Night – Part 2

2011-11-06T15:25:00.004-05:00

The other wine we had with the appetizers was the 2002 Vina Robles Cabernet Sauvignon.

The nose on the Vina Robles was quite different than the Rutherford Ranch as its main aromas were chocolate, vegetal, peat moss and a rich earthy aroma; there was little to no fruit to be found on the nose. It must have been Cab disguise night as I would have guessed this was a Cab by the nose but would have thought it was a French Cab by the nose and not a California Cab. There was one flavour to this wine and it was raspberry, big huge raspberry flavour dominated everything else in this wine. This wine had a much bigger mouth-feel to it than the Rutherford Ranch as the tannin, acidity and fruit were nicely balanced in this wine. The finish was short but it least it stay around long enough to say good-bye unlike the Rutherford Ranch which came for the food and left before anyone noticed it. The wine was a good match to the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 87, Mark - 87, Kathy – 84, Amy – 86, Overall – 86.

There was no LCBO listing for this wine but I remember it being in the $20-23 price point.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Cab Night – Part 1

2011-11-06T15:22:00.006-05:00

Two weeks ago I mentioned that I have a number of reds that are getting past their prime and needed to be drunk so I did an all Merlot night to use up some of them. Last night I went with an all Cabernet Sauvignon night to use up some older cabs.

With Cabernet Sauvignon as the wine of the night it was easy to come up with the main course (beef) and dessert (chocolate) as both of those foods pair very well with Cab. I did however need an appetizer to start things off so I did a web search and found this recipe –
http://www.matchmywine.com/index.php?mod=match&p=details&id=352 for Blue Cheese and thyme poppers. As this was a new recipe I decided to hedge my bets and also make Asiago wrapped in Prosciutto as another appetizer in case the poppers didn’t work out so well.

I had three Cabs on tap for the night, 1999 Rutherford Ranch, 2002 Vina Robles, 2002 KJ Grand Reserve but will review them one at a time. The first review will be of the 1999 Rutherford Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon.

The nose on this wine was complex with cherry, chocolate, cocoa, evergreen and some cedar lurking in the background. Tasting the wine the cherry flavour carried over from the nose but it was more a medicinal cherry flavour than a fresh cherry flavour. The tannins were very soft to almost non-existent whereas the acidity was higher than I would have liked. The wine also had a very thin mouth-feel and disappeared almost instantly on the finish. If I blind tasted this wine, I would have guessed it to be a Sangiovese rather than a Cabernet Sauvignon. It wasn’t a bad pairing with either of the appetizers so that was a plus.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 84, Mark - 84, Kathy – 85, Amy – 85, Overall – 84.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

RUTHERFORD RANCH CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2008

VINTAGES 73817
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, USA
By: Rutherford Wine Company
Release Date: Sep 3, 2011

Description - A fantastic value from Napa Valley, this ready-to-drink Cabernet includes small amounts of Merlot, Syrah and Petite Sirah, adding to its depth and appeal. It features ripe blackcurrant, cherry, cedar box and cinnamon notes wrapped in sweet, silky tannins leading to a lengthy finish. Enjoy over the next four years partnered with lamb chops or herb-crusted roast beef.

As you can probably tell by the fact the LCBO is selling the 2008 and we had a 1999 that I had this bottle on the rack for a few years and hence my urgency to drink it now.

The Blue Cheese and thyme poppers were pretty good but were missing that little something to make them stand out. Mick suggested less thyme and we kicked around the idea of melting shredded aged Cheddar at the end of the baking. I also think that switching from Stilton to Danish blue might be interesting as that would have given them more bite. The one good thing was the poppers were a great pairing with both the Rutherford Ranch and the Vina Robles as both wines got better with the poppers than on their own.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Curse you Blackened Scallops! – Part 2

2011-10-30T10:44:00.016-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the second course, Mick did skillet grilled Mussels and Clams with parsley and Chorizo sausage. Mick went with a 2006 Domaine Joseph Voillot Vieilles Vignes Volnay as the pairing for this course.

"Someone forgot to take a picture of the Calms and Mussels before they got eaten *cough* Amy *cough*"

The nose on this Burgundy Pinot was huge strawberry with some pepper and pine needles in the background. The flavour to the wine was a combination of strawberry and cranberry. The wine had lots of acidity but a thin mouth-feel and a short finish. I thought it was OK on its but really like it with the Clams and Mussels as a pairing.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 87, Mark - 86, Kathy – 87, Amy – 86, Overall – 86.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

DOMAINE JOSEPH VOILLOT VIEILLES VIGNES VOLNAY 2007

VINTAGES 91884
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 37.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Domaine Joseph Voillot
Release Date: Sep 4, 2010

Tasting Note - Better aromatic ripeness and more complexity come at the price of less elegance on the earthier red pinot fruit nose that leads to delicious, rich and relatively full-bodied flavors that are supple and culminate in a youthfully austere finish. In sum, there is just more depth here. Drink [from] 2011+. Score - 88. (Allen Meadows, burghound.com, April 2009)

The clams and mussel dish were a new recipe as well and while it was good and I finished every bit of it, Mick has set the bar pretty damn high for mussel recipes and he has a couple of other recipes that I enjoyed more than this one.

This gets us to Mick’s Blackened Scallops as the next course with the Willy Gisselbrecht Gewürztraminer pairing. The scallops were their usual excellent standard but unfortunately the pairing was not. It was a decent to good pairing but it just was ‘the pairing’; like where you take a sip and smile and go ‘That’s it!’ so the quest continues. Curse you Blackened Scallops! Why must be so excellent yet some darn tricky to pair with. On the upside, Mick will just have to keep making them until we do find that perfect pairing so maybe this isn’t the worst fate out there.

For dessert, Mick picked up a decadent double chocolate cake which looked amazing but I was too full at this point to try. I can add that judging by the three clean plates around me that it must have been pretty good.

Thanks to Mick for his hard work and to both Mick and Amy for hosting.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Curse you Blackened Scallops! – Part 1

2011-10-30T10:41:00.007-04:00

A few weeks ago Kim had us over for dinner - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/10/saturday-night-chez-kimmie.html and I did the wine pairings for that meal. One of the courses she did that I wasn’t sure about what to pair with was the Avocado and Cucumber salad, as I have found that Avocado is tricky to pair with. I went with an off-dry Gewürztraminer and it made a great pairing.

Mick has a great recipe for Blackened Scallops with an Avocado and Corn relish served on tortillas but it has been our nemesis for wine pairing as we have tried tons of different white wines and not had much success. The best pairing to date was an off-dry Prosecco and it was decent pairing but not perfect. I believe it is the Avocado that is making this dish tough to pair with. I told Mick at the time, he had to do his Scallop recipe again and I would bring another bottle of this Gewürztraminer to pair with it. As tonight was Mick’s turn to cook, he was nice enough to add the Scallop recipe to the menu so we could try this pairing. Mick however had a couple of courses on tap before we got the Scallops.

The first course was grilled Brie with a tomato and garlic topping. Mick paired this dish with a 2009 Domaine Clos Gaillard Pouilly-Fuissé.

The nose on the wine was aromatic with strong vanilla, lime and white grapefruit notes and with a touch of cinnamon and lilac in the background. Tasting the wine, white grapefruit from the nose carries over to the taste. The wine was a lot oaky than I would have expected from a French Chardonnay. The acidity levels were up there too but that did help offset the oak. I liked this wine on its own but wasn’t a huge fan of it as pairing for the Brie as it got funky at times with the cheese.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 86, Mark - 84, Kathy – 86, Amy – 85, Overall – 85.25.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

DOMAINE CLOS GAILLARD VIEILLES VIGNES POUILLY-FUISSÉ

VINTAGES 187658
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 27.95
Wine, White Wine
13.4% Alcohol/Vol.
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Favre Gerald
Release Date: N/A

The grilled Brie was a new dish for Mick and I have to say I liked it. The weather was cool on Saturday and the warm gooey goodness of the Brie and crackers was great comfort food.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Getting Mellow with Merlot

2011-10-23T11:00:00.026-04:00

After having the 2003 Beringer’s Napa Valley Merlot at Mick’s house last week -
http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/10/saturday-night-just-four-of-us-part-1.html which was really good but the fruit was fading on it big time, I thought it would a good idea to use my bottle of it up. A few years back I went on a Merlot binge and still have a number of 2001-2004 Merlots that I need to drink soon. I decided to make the evening’s theme ‘Foods that pair well with Merlot’. The first course was an Anti-Pasto and the main course was Lemon Cream Prosciutto Pasta.

Since I was making a couple of dishes that went well with Merlot, I decided we needed a couple of Merlots to go with these dishes so I found a friend to go with Beringer’s – a 2003 Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Merlot. This would be a nice comparison as both are in that $27-34 price range, both are from California, both are from well-known wineries and both were from 2003 and needed to be drank.

As we reviewed the Beringer’s last week, this Blog will just focus on the KJ Grand Reserve.

The nose on the KJ was very aromatic with plum, allspice, coffee and dark chocolate. What was very cool/freaky is after about 20 minutes the nose on this wine changed dramatically and most of the earlier aromas disappeared and were replaced by a maple/vanilla fudge aroma. Tasting the wine that plum aroma carried over as it was also the main flavour to this wine. As much as loved the nose on the wine, it lost me a bit upon tasting it as it was overly acidic and you got a coffee like bitterness in a mid-palate that I wasn’t a big fan of. The wine got much better with the meat and cheese of the Anti-Pasto as the acidity and bitterness seemed to be neutralized with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 87, Mark - 87, Kathy – 86, Amy – 86, Overall – 86.5

There was no LCBO information on this wine as it was purchased years ago but it was in that $27-34 price range.

The KJ and the Beringer’s Merlots were long gone by the time we hit the main course so I cracked a bottle of 2001 Joseph Phelps ‘Napa Valley’ Merlot. I have reviewed this wine before so I won’t go into much detail but I will say I found the Phelps Merlot the best of the three by a wide margin.

For dessert I risked life and limb by going with a non-chocolate dessert as our local supermarket was carrying a couple of desserts from LaRocca’s Fall line. I went with a Salted Caramel Apple Flan as it was something we never had before. I really liked it as it was something different. The Flan was sweet but not overly so and I opened a bottle of 2005 Botrytis Affect Late Harvest Riesling to go with it. This too has been reviewed (see top five dessert, sparkling and port wine to your right) before so I won’t go into detail but I will say it and the Flan were a great pairing.

Three bottles of Merlot and a bottle of dessert wine for four people certainly means we had a good time (which made Sunday a touch rough). As I have more Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon that is getting past their primes, we will be having a few more of these types of nights before the end of the year and I can’t say I’m sorry about that.

Cheers!

Mark

October Wine Club - Gewürztraminer

2011-10-21T11:18:00.008-04:00

For our October Wine Club meeting we looked at Gewürztraminer from Alsace. The take home bottle was a 2008 Willy Gisselbrecht Gewürztraminer and it was done in an off-dry style. The comparison bottle was a René Muré and it was done in a dry style.

Here is the LCBO information for both wines -

WILLY GISSELBRECHT TRADITION GEWURZTRAMINER 2008

VINTAGES 928390
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : MD
Made in: Alsace, France
By: Willy Gisselbrecht & Fils
Release Date: Jul 23, 2011

Tasting Note - Pleasant notes of peach, ginger and lychee greet the nose here. A touch off-dry, well balanced and lovely with citrus, peach and spice tones in the mouth. Ideal for spicy Indian curry dishes featuring chicken or lamb. (VINTAGES panel, Sept. 2010)

RENÉ MURÉ SIGNATURE GEWURZTRAMINER 2009

VINTAGES 61218
750 mL gift
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Alsace, France
By: A. & O. Mure
Release Date: Aug 20, 2011

Description - The Muré family have been growing grapes in Alsace since 1648. Their wines always express the classic characteristics of each grape variety they use. This Gewurztraminer is sourced from 29-year-old vines and displays aromas of intense lychee and rose petals. It's dry, full bodied and spicy. It will delight as an aperitif or pair it with exotic foods like lamb curry.

Gewürztraminer is a variety of grape that I’m not a huge fan of as the wonderful lychee and floral nose always reminds me of dessert wines and then when you taste a dry wine with a slight bitterness to it, I find that is a shock as it wasn’t what I was expecting. That said we have never done Gewürztraminer on its own for Wine Club so I felt it was time.

The Willy Gisselbrecht Gewürztraminer I had tried before a few weeks ago at the dinner Kim hosted - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/10/saturday-night-chez-kimmie.html so I won’t bother reviewing it again here in much detail and will focus on the René Muré instead.

The nose on the René Muré was stronger than the Willy Gisselbrecht and had nice aromas of lime, lychee, rose and Mandarin orange. Tasting this wine you’ll notice a dry wine with grapefruit and spice flavours. I like the nose more on this wine but thought the flavours on the Willy Gisselbrecht were nicer.

Tracey, a Wine Club member, bought in spicy hummus, spicy Guacamole dip and tortillas to go with the wines. Both wines were a good pairing for the wines but I enjoyed the Willy Gisselbrecht more.

While I’m not a huge fan of Gewürztraminer, I did enjoy both of these ones and I will be forever grateful to the grape for being one of the only wines that pairs with Avocado.

Thanks to Tracey for the yummy food and I’m already looking forward to next month’s meeting.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Just the four of us – Part 3

2011-10-16T10:29:00.001-04:00

Click here for Part 1

The main course of the evening was a layered Mexican Salad which had just about everything in it; lettuce, tomato, black beans, grilled chicken, sour cream, tortillas, just to name a few ingredients. Mick went with a Dubois Brut Cava as his pairing for this dish.

The nose on the cava was mild with aromas of yeast, strawberry and vanilla to it. Tasting the wine, crisp citrus notes dominated this sparkling wine. There was a bitterness to the wine though which came through at odd moments and really took away from it. It was an OK pairing with the food; sometimes good and sometimes not so good depending on which ingredients you had.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 82, Mark - 83, Kathy – 85, Amy – 85, Overall – 83.75.

There was no LCBO listing on this wine, which isn’t a surprise as Mick said this was a wine they brought back from a trip from Cuba. I would guess this wine was in the $10-15 dollar range if it was carried at the LCBO.

For dessert Amy picked up a Chocolate Baco Cake for dessert. I skipped dessert as I was full at this point but judging by the clean plates around the table, I’m sure it was yummy.

Thanks to Mick for all his hard work in doing up three excellent recipes that Kathy and I hadn’t tried before. And thanks to both Mick and Amy for hosting the dinner. It was great to get back to a normal Saturday night.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Just the four of us – Part 2

2011-10-16T10:23:00.016-04:00

The second course of the evening was Grilled Calms with Serrano ham. These were paired with a 2009 Leopard’s Leap Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa. If you have been reading this Blog for a bit then you know my feelings about South African Sauvignon Blanc, as I feel it is best in the world so I was excited to try another one.

The nose was very aromatic for a Sauvignon Blanc, no glass swirling needed to find the nose here! It was a nice mix of gooseberry, cat’s pee, green apple and a little bit of lychee in the background. The main flavours to the wine were grapefruit, lime and mango. The flavours really popped with the Clams and made a great pairing. I loved the big fruit on the wine but my one complaint with it was it needed a touch more acidity to it. Normally South African Sauvignon Blanc are a nice balance between the steely, crisp French ones and the fruit driven New Zealand styled ones, I found this one leaned too much to the New Zealand style. That said it was a great pairing with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 88, Mark - 88, Kathy – 90, Amy – 88, Overall – 88.5

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

LEOPARD'S LEAP SAUVIGNON BLANC 2009

VINTAGES 203356
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 12.95
Wine, White Wine
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Region Not Specified, South Africa
By: Leopards Leap Wines
Release Date: Jan 22, 2011

Description - This fresh and zippy South African Savvy is a great palate refresher, or enjoy it with grilled prawns with a moderately spicy sauce.

Tasting Note - Crunchy summer fruits & lemongrass nuance in '09; elegant & crisply dry. Score - 3 Stars (out of 5). (Christine Rudman, Platter's South African Wine Guide, 2010)

For $13 a bottle this wine is a heck of a value and I would recommend it as a must buy. It had a lot going on for this price point and with its big fruit flavour it should be a good pairing for a number of dishes.

The calms were good. I’d never had Serrano ham before and it looks exactly like Prosciutto. It was nowhere near as salty as Prosciutto is and had more sweetness to it. Mick talk about doing the recipe again and using Prosciutto instead and Kathy told him not to as she liked the sweetness of the ham and its contrast to the saltiness of the clams. I’d say my lovely wife nailed it right on the head with that assessment.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Just the four of us – Part 1

2011-10-16T10:18:00.007-04:00

It seems like it has been forever since just the four of us had a normal Saturday night dinner together so it was nice to get back to normal. Mick and Amy were hosting the evening and Mick had couple of new dishes on tap for the night.

The first course was hickory smoked chicken wings with a 2003 Beringer’s ‘Napa Valley’ Merlot.

The nose on the Merlot was busy with plum, nutmeg, cocoa, black pepper, eucalyptus and cedar. Tasting the wine, you’ll find a blueberry and chocolate flavour to the wine. The structure on the wine was lovely with silky tannins, soft fruit and decent acidity. This was a very easy drinking Merlot. My one concern with it was the fruit was fading and if you have any bottles of this in your cellar, I’d suggest drinking it now as in a year or so this wine will be well past its prime. The pairing of the smoked wings and the Merlot was very complimentary to each other. I enjoyed how the Merlot supercharged the smokiness of the wings.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 89, Amy – 88, Overall – 88.75

I joked about Amy’s rating being an 88… it would have been a 89 but it wasn’t a Riesling so she took a point off! :)

The LCBO didn’t have a listing for Beringer’s ‘Napa Valley’ Merlot. When they do have it in stock it usually ranges between $27-34 a bottle. Mick mentioned to me that he bought this in the US years ago for $17.

The Merlot/wing combination was excellent and I enjoyed the wings. I won’t say these are the best wings Mick has ever made, as he has done so many amazing types of chicken wings over the years that he has set the bar pretty damn high, but these were very good.

Click here for Part 2

Vegas Baby! Part 2

2011-10-11T11:58:00.000-04:00

Click here for part 1

For our Sunday night, we hit Japonais, the Mirage’s Japanese restaurant. Mick and Amy picked this as their choice and to be perfectly honest I wasn’t excited about going. I found by the end of the night I was eating my words as it was awesome; the food and wine were both terrific. We started with Sushi, then some appetizers from the main kitchen and then more appetizers but from the smoke/fire grill and then an order of ribs and we finished up with dessert.

For the Sushi, we decided to go with some Champagne to start and pick a Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut Champagne. This wine was amazing with the Sushi and we still had some left when the first appetizer showed up. The first appetizer was a thin sliced strip steak in a ginger/soy marinade that you cooked yourself on a super-heated rock which was brought to the table. I figure the ginger/soy combo would mess up the Champagne pairing but was stunned to find that it wasn’t just a good pairing it was an even better pairing than the Sushi one. The bottle was getting low at this point and we still had more food coming. We kicked around different wines on the list briefly but in the end decided to go with another bottle of the same Champagne. It handled the sweet and sour Calamari wonderfully, slammed the Crab Cakes, was stellar with the smoke/fire grilled Sea Bass, Spicy Sliders and even worked with the ribs.

The absolute worst it ever got in a pairing was good and I was beginning to believe there was nothing this wine wouldn’t be awesome with. I wasn’t the only one that loved it as the first thing Amy did when we got back was looked on the LCBO website to see if they carried it as she wanted more and sent me a link -

PERRIER JOUET GRAND BRUT CHAMPAGNE

LCBO 155341
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 64.95
Wine, Champagne
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Champagne, France
By: S.A. Champagne Perrier Jouet

I ordered 3 bottles today (Mick and Amy are taking 1 of the 3). We didn’t review it in the restaurant but if we did, I would be shocked if the overall group rating wouldn’t have been 90+.

That night at Japonias was great, as was the whole trip and I’m already wanting to go back to Vegas and I have only been home a day.

Cheers!

Mark

Vegas Baby! Part 1

2011-10-11T11:15:00.026-04:00

Over the Thanksgiving long weekend, Mick, Amy, Kathy and I went to Las Vegas. We flew direct from Hamilton Airport to Las Vegas via WestJet which was awesome. We stayed at the Mirage while we were in Vegas and availed ourselves to a couple of their in-house restaurants. On Saturday night we went to Onda, which is the Mirage's upscale Italian restaurant. Below are some of Amy's photos for the night

The dinner was excellent and we ate way too much. For wines we went with a Sauvignon Blanc from Sancerre AOC of the Loire region of France and a Chianti from Italy. I do not remember the brands for either but we did enjoy both. Onda was voted best Italian restaurant in Las Vegas and after the meal we had there it was easy to see why.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Chez Kimmie

2011-10-02T11:09:00.023-04:00

Our good friends, Kim and John, hosted a dinner party last Saturday night for Mick, Amy, Kathy and I. I offered to provide the wines for the night and Kim e-mailed me the menu before the dinner so I could figure out the pairings.

Here is the menu :

Baked Crab and Cheese dip with Nachos

Zucchini stuffed with quinoa, cherry tomatoes and garlic

Avocado and cucumber salad with cilantro

Oven roasted Chicken breast with walnuts and quinoa with sides of mash potatoes and baby carrots

Cheesecake

So what wines would you have paired with these dishes?

For the Baked Crab and Cheese dip with Nachos, I went with a 2008 Edgebaston Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa. I like South African Sauvignon Blanc as I find it a nice middle ground between the crisp mineral style of the Loire Valley in France and the lush fruit-forward New Zealand styled ones. It turned out to be a very good pairing. Mick enjoyed the pairing but thought a French Sauvignon Blanc would have been better as its higher acidity would have cut through the richness of the dip better. We have reviewed the Edgebaston before -

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2010/05/saturday-night-were-back-part-1.html so I won’t be reviewing it again here.

The second course was the Zucchini stuffed with quinoa, cherry tomatoes and garlic. I went with a 2001 Joseph Phelps ‘Napa Valley’ Merlot as my pairing here as I thought a nice fruit-forward California Merlot would be a good match. This was probably my weakest pairing of the night as age has unfortunately begun to catch up to this wine as the fruit is no longer as dominate as it once. On the upside the wine was still very good and it while it wasn’t a perfect pairing it was still a very good pairing. We have also had this wine before -

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2009/06/saturday-night-kim-cooks-up-storm-part_7866.html (strangely enough, it was at Kim and John’s place when we had it before) so we didn’t rate it again.

The third course of the night was the one wine of the night we hadn’t had before so I will review this one. As soon as Kim mentioned Avocado as an ingredient, I started to sweat a bit on this pairing. Mick’s Blackened Scallop recipe that we all love so much uses Avocado as a main ingredient and this is a pairing that Mick and I have struggled to get right. I believe it is the Avocado that throws us the curve ball. As Avocado has a slight sweetness to it, it really messes with a dry wine. So I needed something off dry for my pairing. I remembered that I just picked up a case of Willy Gisselbrecht Gewürztraminer for an upcoming Wine Club and it was made in an off dry style. I decided to roll the dice and go with it as the pairing.

The nose on the wine had the lychee aroma which I was expecting from a Gewürztraminer with some green apple, rose and little vanilla in the background. Tasting the wine before the meal it was a touch syrupy or cloying with mango, lime and honeydew flavours to it. It was interesting mix of flavours that I wasn’t sold on but didn’t mind. With the food however completely different story; it was an amazing pairing. The oiliness and sweetness of the Avocado completely neutralized that cloying element that bothered me earlier and the mango and lime popped out big time as this wine really came to life. Mick mentioned that it may be time to do his Blacked Scallop recipe again and try it with this wine as he liked the pairing as well.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 88, Mark - 90, Kathy – 90, Amy – 87, Overall – 88.75

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

WILLY GISSELBRECHT TRADITION GEWURZTRAMINER 2008

VINTAGES 928390
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : MD
Made in: Alsace, France
By: Willy Gisselbrecht & Fils
Release Date: Jul 23, 2011

Tasting Note - Pleasant notes of peach, ginger and lychee greet the nose here. A touch off-dry, well balanced and lovely with citrus, peach and spice tones in the mouth. Ideal for spicy Indian curry dishes featuring chicken or lamb. (VINTAGES panel, Sept. 2010)

The main course of the evening was oven roasted Chicken breast with walnuts and quinoa with sides of mash potatoes and baby carrots. The dish was excellent but by this point I was beginning to fill up. I went with an old favourite as a pairing for this one and had two bottles of 2006 Kendall Jackson Chardonnay on hand. I really like this pairing and wasn’t the only one who did as we had no problem killing both bottles.

Kim had a very tasting Cheesecake on tap for dessert which was amazing but I had to fight a bit to get through it as by this time I was stuffed to the gills. I didn’t bring anything to pair with this course as I figured after five bottles of wine for six people we would have had enough wine for the night.

It was a fun night and words cannot express how truly grateful I am to Kim for all her hard work she put into crafting some truly wonderful dishes. Thanks to Kim and John for hosting the night and hopefully the six of us will get together more often.

Cheers!

Mark

September Wine Club – Primitivo

2011-09-18T11:37:00.008-04:00

This month Wine Club got together and tried a Primitivo from Italy and a Zinfandel from California. Primitivo and Zinfandel are genetically the same grape. I have tried a number of Zinfandels but have never tried Primitivo before so I was curious to see how Italy would craft the wine compared to its California cousin.

Here is the LCBO Information –

CIGNOMORO PRIMITIVO DI MANDURIA 2007

VINTAGES 211078
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, Red Wine
15.2% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Puglia, Italy
By: Cignomoro
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - A very intriguing and complex nose offering aromas of spiced plum, vanilla, new leather and smoked meat. Dry with a sweet fruit core, fine tannins, good weight and a generous mouthfeel, this is a powerhouse of a wine. Full bodied with a medium-long finish. Enjoy with grilled bison steaks, or lamb chops. (VINTAGES panel, March 2011)
NAPA CELLARS ZINFANDEL 2008

VINTAGES 126607
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 24.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Sutter Home Winery
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Description - An unbeatable value from Napa Valley, this intensely fruity Zinfandel is sourced mainly from the warmer sub-appellations of Calistoga, St. Helena and Pope Valley. Notes of blackberry, pepper, smoke and spice on the nose. The palate proffers delicious fruit and spice supported by gentle tannins. The finish is long and luxurious. This Zinfandel-lover's dream makes an ideal companion for barbecued baby back ribs, or pulled-pork sandwiches with a robust sauce.

The Primitivo was the take home bottle for Wine Club whereas the Zinfandel was the comparison bottle. The nose on the Zinfandel was typical California Zinfandel with big aromas of Strawberry/Blackberry/Raspberry with a touch of eucalyptus in the background. The Primitivo had more of an earthy aroma to it with loam, all spice and plum being the main aromas. Tasting the Zinfandel you initially got sour cherry as the flavour but it finished with more of strawberry flavour to it. The Primitivo flavours were a combination of plum and nutmeg.

Erik, a Wine Club member, bought in Chili, three strong cheeses and fresh baguettes to go with the wines. All of the foods were an excellent pairing with the wines. I liked the Zinfandel more than the Primitivo on its own; the big fruit flavours made it a very easy to drink wine. With the food I really liked the Primitivo as the Zinfandel got a touch lost aginist the food whereas the fruit in the Primitivo came more to the forefront and made it an amazing pairing.

Both wines were enjoyed by Wine Club and opinions on which was better were split right down the middle. I liked that while both wines were very different in style and taste and yet both wines were very good in their own unique ways.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Cab Night – Part 2

2011-09-04T11:52:00.005-04:00

Click here for Part 1

The Stag’s Leap ‘Fay’ was the other wine in our little head to head competition.

The nose on it was a mix of dark cherry, green pepper and cedar. Tasting the wine, cocoa and eucalyptus were the two dominate flavours with the barest amount of cassis hiding in the background. This wine certainly had a bigger mouth-feel to it than the Ferriere did but it was also much more tannic and with the lack of fruit came across as being exceptionally dry. It was OK with the Beef Tenderloin but, like the Ferriere, it got much better with the dessert.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 86, Mark - 86, Kathy – 85, Amy – 86, Overall – 85.75.

The wine was OK but it was also $79 US a bottle and for that price I was expecting a bit more than ‘OK’.

Overall I was disappointed with both wines as they were both around an $80 price point. For $80 I want a little magic or something special and while both of the wines were decent neither were as good as they should have been for that price. The $65 Robert Mondavi “Oakville” Cabernet Sauvignon that we had when Mick’s mom was over for dinner was a much better value as I would easily take a bottle of it over either of the two wines we had tonight. On the other hand, unless you try them you don’t know how good they can be.

I’d like to thank Mick and Amy for a fun night. They will be away for the next two Saturday night dinners so things will be quiet on the Blog for a bit.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Cab Night – Part 1

2011-09-04T11:37:00.010-04:00

Our local grocery store had a great sale on Beef Tenderloin so I ended up picking up a 3.1Kg Beef Tenderloin. Over 6lbs of meat for 4 people is a little much but I figured I could use up the leftovers over the next day or two. Since the main course was going to be huge I didn’t bother with doing an appetizer. I did pick up a chocolate cake for dessert which means I had two dishes that pair wonderfully with Cabernet Sauvignon. As I had two courses I decide to go with 2 Cabs in a little head to head competition.

I picked a 1995 Chateau Ferriere from the Margaux region of Bordeaux which was a birthday gift from Mick and Amy for my wife. I also grabbed a 1999 Stag’s Leap “Fay” Cabernet Sauvignon which been on the rack for a while and I wanted to try it.

Normally I break these articles up by course but today I’m going to break them up by wine as I will review the Ferriere first and the Stag’s Leap in the second part.

The nose on the Ferriere was a mix of raspberry, cedar, smoke and marzipan. The wine had subtle flavours of plum and cocoa. I did find the wine a bit ‘thin’ as the fruit was very mild and the tannin and acidity were very soft. It was an OK pairing with the Beef Tenderloin but was quite nice with the chocolate cake.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 85, Mark - 87, Kathy – 85, Amy – 87, Overall – 86.

It is nice having great friends like Mick and Amy as you can ask questions you really should be asking like ‘how much was the wine?’ Mick recalled it being on sale for $80. I asked about the price as I was going to Blog about it here and it is kind of hard to review correctly without knowing the price. I liked the wine but wasn’t blown away by it; it may be that as it was a 1995 that the wine was a touch past its prime.

Click here for Part 2

Friday is the new Saturday

2011-08-20T11:25:00.009-04:00

Mick and Amy were off on vacation Saturday so we decided to get together Friday night after dinner for some chocolate and wine. We picked up some Brix and Lindt dark chocolate and grabbed a bottle of 2001 Beringer’s "Knight’s Valley" Cabernet Sauvignon from the wine rack.

The nose on the wine had rich notes of dark chocolate, caramel, blackberry, eucalyptus and cedar. Tasting the wine, before having any chocolate, flavours of cassis, coffee and cocoa were present. I was a little shocked as the wine seemed very much like a French Bordeaux then a California cab. Mick jokingly called it "Cotes de California". Having dark chocolate with the wine caused a strawberry flavour to appear and dominated the wine. The structure on the wine was good but it was quite tannic which made the wine seem very dry at times.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 87, Mark - 88, Kathy – 87, Amy – 88, Overall – 87.5

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

BERINGER CABERNET SAUVIGNON (V)

VINTAGES 352583
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 34.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Beringer Vineyards
Release Date: N/A

*Please note that the LCBO information above is for the current Knight’s Valley (2008) and not the 2001 reviewed here.

I’m noticing recently that Amy and I keep having the same ratings on wine which worries me as either her taste is improving or mine is going downhill. :P

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Blackout dinner – Part 3

2011-08-14T15:27:00.012-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For dessert, Kathy and I broke with tradition of Blackout dinner and picked up scones, Devonshire Double clotted cream and strawberry jam for the evening’s dessert. The scones were on display when we went shopping on Friday and looked amazing so we picked up a 4 pack of raison scones and a 4 pack of cranberry and white chocolate scones.

Mick had a 187mL bottle of 2006 Dr. Loosen Beerenauslese Riesling to pair with the dessert.

I was surprised and a bit disappointed at the nose as it was very mild with hints of lychee and floral. Usually most dessert wines have big aromatic noses that you can just lose yourself in. Tasting the wine though more than made up for the mild nose, as it had lovely flavours of nectarine and green apple. The balance on this wine was stunning as the sweetness was perfectly countered by the crisp acidity of the wine. This is one of the best tasting dessert wines I have had in a while. It was a great pairing with the dessert.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 90, Amy – 90, Overall – 89.5

There is no LCBO information as Mick and Amy picked this bottle up in the US for about $10 which was an incredible deal in my opinion.

Blackout anniversary dinners are always a good time and this one was no exception to that. Thanks for Mick and Amy for hosting and I’m already looking forward to next year’s one.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Blackout dinner – Part 2

2011-08-14T15:21:00.014-04:00

The main course was four huge steaks, Zippy sauce and corn on the cob and it was paired with a 1996 Beringer’s "Napa Valley Private Reserve" Cabernet Sauvignon.

The nose on the wine was big with green pepper, cloves, cedar, loam and black pepper. Tasting the wine before the food, you found more of an earthy and cocoa flavour to the wine with not much fruit left and the wine was incredibility smooth and easy drinking. For the structure of the wine, the tannins were super soft and silky and there was good acidity. The fruit flavors of Blackberry and Blueberry really came to the forefront with the medium rare steaks and I found myself enjoying the wine much more with the food. The tannin disappeared completely with the steaks and caused the wine to get lost against the food at times. The wine was really good but with the super soft tannin and mild fruit, I do think this wine was a couple of years past its prime and can’t help but wonder how amazing this bottle would have been then.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 91, Mark - 88, Kathy – 90, Amy – 90, Overall – 89.75

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

BERINGER PRIVATE RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005

VINTAGES 149955
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 99.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, USA
By: Treasury Wine Estates
Release Date: Jun 11, 2011

Description - This vintage is being offered at a special one-time reduced price. Robert Parker awarded it 92 points and Stephen Tanzer rated it 94.

Tasting Note - Offers richness, concentration and depth while remaining elegant and supple, focusing on the ripe, spicy currant, mineral, herb and sage notes. Ends with a measure of finesse and polish, with the right mix of tannins. Drink now through 2016. Score - 93. (James Laube, Wine Spectator, Oct. 15, 2008)

* Note – This wine is the 2005 and not the 1996 reviewed here, the 1996 was picked up this year by Mick and Amy for about $139.

Mick’s steaks were killer and probably the best ones I have had in a very long time.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday night – Blackout dinner – Part 1

2011-08-14T15:18:00.005-04:00

Back in 2003, Ontario and a good chunk of the eastern US lost power - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_Blackout_of_2003. When the blackout occurred, I’d been planning on grocery shopping that night as there was no food in the fridge. Kathy and I decided to walk up to Mick and Amy’s and see where they stood for food. We caught Mick in the driveway when he was getting home and he had four large steaks that he’d been planning to cook up that night for dinner and to use for meals over the next couple of nights. As he had a ton of steak to get through, we joined him and Amy for dinner. The one thing we had plenty of at home was wine so we offered to bring a couple of bottles to go with the steaks. Mick did up the steaks and some corn on the cob and the four of us enjoy a great meal with a couple of bottles of wine. The wine that night was going down way too easily so the four of us walked back to our house to get a third bottle and we killed that too. It ended up being a great night and every year since we get together for steak, corn and wine to celebrate that night.

For the first course Mick broke tradition and started us with some chips and sour cream as a starter and paired this with a 2009 Eradus Sauvignon Blanc.

The nose on the wine was mild with apricot, grapefruit and orange zest aromas. Tasting the wine it started with a nice apricot flavour but finish with a grapefruit flavour. The wine had a bitterness in the mid-palate which I didn’t care for but other than that was decent. It went well with the chips and dip.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 86, Mark - 84, Kathy – 84, Amy – 86, Overall – 85.

Here is the LCBO information

ERADUS SAUVIGNON BLANC 2009

VINTAGES 225557
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 14.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Region Not Specified, New Zealand
By: Eradus Wines
Release Date: Jul 14, 2011

Description - Ottawa-based wine critic Rod Phillips gave this wine a score of 4 1/2 stars (out of 5) in his online newsletter. He recommended enjoying the wine with a 'wide range of white fish and seafood.' (www.rodphillipsonwine.com, Jan 19, 2011)

Tasting Note - Eradus continues a successful run with this year's Sauvignon Blanc. As usual, it's fairly pungent and herbal upfront, but then delivers waves of passion fruit. It's concentrated and fairly full-bodied for a Sauvignon, with a lingering finish.
Click here for Part 2

Saturday night – Mick’s Mom joins us for dinner – Part 2

2011-08-07T14:21:00.015-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the third course I did Hummus with Pita and a Tomato salad with Greek feta and fresh herbs. I paired this with a 2006 d'Arenberg “The Hermit Crab” Viognier-Marsanne. This wine we have had a number of times so I won’t be reviewing it in detail. It was its usual excellent pairing with the hummus and was good with the tomato salad.

Irene wanted the recipe I used to make the hummus -
http://mideastfood.about.com/od/appetizerssnacks/r/hummusbitahini.htm so here it is. Couple of notes, it asks for 3-5 Tablespoons of Lemon – go with 3 Tablespoons and not a drop more. I like lemon but find any more than the 3 Tablespoons and it is too much. Also it asks for 2 cloves of garlic… just do the 2 cloves as any more and the garlic will over power everything.

Irene wanted the recipe I used for my hummus -

For the main course, Mick and I decided to ‘kick it Old School’ and went with NY Strips with Zippy Sauce and grilled veggies as a side. I picked a bottle of 2002 Robert Mondavi "Oakville" Cabernet Sauvignon as my pairing for this course.

The nose on the wine was anise, cedar, raspberry, blackberry and green pepper. Tasting the wine you’ll notice big fruit flavours of black cherry, blackberry and cassis. Considering this wine was a 2002, I was very surprised at how much fruit was there. The structure on the wine was very nice with soft tannin, good acidity and great fruit; this wine has aged very well. It was a great pairing with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 90, Mark - 90, Kathy – 87, Amy – 89, Overall – 89.

There is no LCBO information on this wine but I’m pretty sure I picked this up at the LCBO years ago for around $60.

For dessert I picked up a La Rocca “Ruby Red Velvet” cake for dessert which made a nice ending to the meal.

It was fun having Irene join us and it was a fun night of good food, wine and conversation and you really can’t ask for much more than that!

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Mick’s Mom joins us for dinner – Part 1

2011-08-07T14:14:00.002-04:00

The past Saturday night we had Irene, Mick’s mom, join us for our usual Saturday night dinner. Mick and I split up the menu for the night and we ended up with a five course meal for the evening.

The first course was Kettle chip Smoked Salmon bites and we paired this with a Masottina Prosecco.

The nose on the wine was a pleasing mix of yeast, lime, roses and lychee. Tasting the wine you get an initial flavouring of lemon that transitions to a lime flavour on the finish. The structure on the wine was good as the crisp acidity really brought this sparkling wine to life. It was a decent pairing with the Smoked Salmon bites but once we finished those, I brought out the extra chips and the leftover lemon/cream cheese topping and the wine paired amazingly well with just the chips and dip.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 88, Overall – 88.25

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

MASOTTINA EXTRA DRY CONEGLIANO VALDOBBIADENE PROSECCO SUPERI

VINTAGES 216317
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, Sparkling Wine, Other Sparkling Wine
10.7% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Veneto, Italy
By: Masottina
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - Masottina has been producing wines since 1946. Aromas of apples, peach, and floral. The palate is very dry, with a racy acidity and fantastic fruit throughout. Very well structured and expertly made. This lively and delicious bubbly is the ideal aperitif for casual or formal affairs. (VINTAGES panel, July 2010)

For the second course Mick did Spicy Shrimp with Mint Sauce… well he brought the ingredients for the Mint sauce and had me make the mint sauce (not that I’m bitter about this or anything!). I was out of Fume Blanc so we had to use a Sauvignon Blanc instead. I went with a 2007 Henri Bourgeois "Les Baronnes" from Sancerre as my pairing. We have reviewed this wine before so I won’t be going into great detail on this one. It was a good pairing with the Spicy Shrimp though a touch shy of being as good a pairing as the Robert Mondavi Fume is.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Hey Buddy, great 1000 Island dressing... sigh

2011-07-24T11:34:00.010-04:00

This past Saturday Night, Chris and Jan joined Mick, Amy, Kathy and me for dinner. Dinner preparations ended up being a bit of an adventure as Mick was at home making his sauce for his chicken wings and I was making dipping sauce for my shrimp when both of our houses lost power at around 3:30pm. I was annoyed as I had fresh herbs, mayo and lemon juice in the food processor and was just about to puree them when the power went out. I left them there hoping the power would come back on but 30 minutes later no power. I ended up unplugging the food processor and going up to my office and used the battery backup for my computer to get enough power to finish pureeing the dip. Mick ended up moving the sauce pan from his now dead electric stove out to the backyard and used his BBQ to finish making the sauce.

Thankfully by 5:30pm the power was back on so the dinner was still on.

The first course I did poached pear salad and paired it with a 2007 Lingenfelder Kabinett Riesling. We have reviewed the wine before so I won’t do a full review of it. It wasn’t the greatest pairing as the sweetness of the poached pears was throwing the wine. If I do the poached pear recipe again, I will use a Spätlese Riesling as it will have enough sweetness to stand up to the pears.

For the second course Mick did two types of chicken wings, a cayenne based recipe served with sour cream and lime and my favourite wing recipe made from Dijon and marmalade.

He paired them with a 2008 Sebastiani Zinfandel.

The nose on the Zinfandel was huge and filled the room just after being poured out; Aromas of black licorice, chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg with a hint of black berry in the background. Tasting the wine I was surprised as it wasn’t as fruit forward like most Zins are, instead flavours or pumpkin, nutmeg were the main flavours with some currant lurking in the background. Structure wise it had good acidity but was a touch tannic. With the tannin and the flavours to the wine, if the French made Zinfandel this would be how they’d make it. I found it was too dry/tannic on its own but it was an amazing pairing with the chicken wings.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 88, Mark - 88, Kathy – 86, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.25.

Here is the LCBO Information for the wine -

SEBASTIANI ZINFANDEL 2008

VINTAGES 672667
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Sebastiani Vineyards
Release Date: Jun 25, 2011

Description - Wine & Spirits magazine, and Tim Fish of the Wine Spectator, each scored this superbly priced Zin 88 points.

Tasting Note - Quite lithe and lively for Zinfandel with very engaging notes of red cherry, raspberry pie, plum and cinnamon toast on the nose. The palate is dry and medium-full bodied with a bright acidity and well integrated, balanced ripe tannins. Impressively structured with lots of fruit without being jammy. Very nicely made. Perfect for beef kebabs or lasagna. (VINTAGES panel, April 2011)

I really liked this Zinfandel for being a little different from the normal California ‘fruit bomb’ Zinfandels and at $18 this wine is a good deal and I may have to grab a bottle or two for my cellar.

Mick’s wings were really good and even though I love the Dijon and marmalade ones, I was finding myself going back to the cayenne ones just as much as I was going for my favourite ones.

For the next course I did grilled shrimp with herb mayo dipping sauce with a tomato and corn salad and blue tortillas. Mick was nice enough to grill the shrimp for me while I got the rest of the food made and plated. I paired this course with a 2008 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc. We have review Kim Crawford enough times that this blog could almost be called "Kim Crawford presents Zippy Sauce food and wine blog" so I won’t be reviewing again here. I will say that it was a very good pairing with this course.

Mick did a great job on grilling the shrimp. I was disappointed with my new herb mayo recipe; it had so many different ingredients (mayo, lemon juice, fresh parsley and oregano, cumin, chili powder, fresh garlic, salt and pepper) that I expect more from it. Instead it tasted exactly like 1000 Island dressing, not that there is anything wrong with 1000 Island dressing but after prepping all those ingredients it was disappointing to realize that I could have just gone out and spent $2 on some Kraft 1000 Island dressing and had the same results.

For dessert Jan and Chris bought a very nice selection of gourmet cupcakes and a bottle of 2008 Henry of Pelham late harvest Riesling. I didn’t review the late harvest Riesling, as I don’t like to rate wines that guests bring (excluding Mick and Amy of course). With this wine though, I should have reviewed as it was excellent as were the cupcakes.

It was a fun night and I would like to thank everyone for the foods and wines they added to the dinner and look forward to doing this again sometime soon.

Cheers!

Mark

July Wine Club – Sparkling Wines

2011-07-23T11:24:00.013-04:00

This past Thursday, Wine Club got together to try two sparkling wines, here is the LCBO information on both -

SEGURA VIUDAS BRUT RESERVA CAVA SPARKLING

LCBO 216960
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 14.55
Wine, Sparkling Wine, White
11.8% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Region Not Specified, Spain
By: Heredad Segura Viudas

DUFOULEUR PÈRE & FILS BRUT CRÉMANT DE BOURGOGNE 2007

VINTAGES 207993
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, Sparkling Wine, Other Sparkling Wine
12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Dufouleur Pere Et Fils
Release Date: Apr 16, 2011

Description - All grapes grown in Burgundy are allowed in Crémant de Bourgogne, which is made using the traditional method and must be aged for at least nine months. This version comprises Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Aligoté. Vintage-dated Crémant de Bourgogne is relatively rare in our market. This one features lovely bread dough, citrus and apple aromas. Dry and fresh, with the breadiness balanced impeccably by the citrus. Quite flavourful, this is a great, well-priced, affordable indulgence for everyday enjoyment.

The Cava was the take home bottle and the Crémant de Bourgogne was the comparison bottle. I was excited about trying these two sparkling wines as I have been addicted to the Louis Roederer Champagne recently.

The nose on the Cava was of moderate intensity with lime, yeast, pear and faint floral notes in the background. Lemon and grapefruit flavors were the dominate flavors to the wine. The structure was good with lively acidity bringing the wine to life. Without food this was my favourite of the two but with food the Crémant was better.

The nose on the Crémant was weaker in intensity than the Cava with lemon and grass notes as the two main aromas. The main flavours were gooseberry and lime. This wine was much more fruit forward than the Cava. The structure on the Crémant was good with fresh acidity and fruit.

Kathy, one of our Wine Club members, did chicken skewers to go with the wines which made a good pairing for both of them though the Crémant was better with food than the Cava.

I liked both wines but wasn’t in love with either. They were fun to try but I don’t see myself rushing out to buy more of either.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Lobster, oysters, shrimp & Champagne... and that's just the first course – Part 2

2011-07-17T13:32:00.007-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the final course of the evening, I did Chimichurri Steak with a corn and tomato salad and side pitas. I paired this with a 2000 Chateau Franc-Maillet Bordeaux from Pomerol.

The nose on the wine was made up of mushroom, pine and blackberry. Tasting the wine you’ll find tobacco, dark chocolate and blueberry. The structure on the wine was off as it was too acidic and lacking enough tannin to balance out the acidity. The wine also had a short dry finish to it. I wasn’t that keen on this wine on its own but it got better with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 85, Mark - 84, Kathy – 83, Amy – 82, Overall – 83.5.

"Amazingly dark cork!"

There was no LCBO information on this wine as I purchased in the US years ago. I can’t remember what I paid for it but a web search put it between $30 and $47 US ($45 to $60 CDN after exchange, duty and LCBO markup). I will say for that price point there are much better Merlots on the market and would go with those instead.

We finished up the night with a LaRocca Lemon Tart for dessert which was a nice light dessert after all of that food.

It was a shame that Sheian couldn’t make it but it was a fun night with Mick and Amy never the less.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Lobster, oysters, shrimp & Champagne... and that's just the first course – Part 1

2011-07-17T13:20:00.003-04:00

This Saturday Night we were supposed to have Sheian join us for dinner but due to a late flight home and an early morning shift at work she couldn’t make so it was just the four of us for dinner.

When Sheian is coming for dinner, I usually like to ‘step up my game’ on the food front and tonight was no exception. The first course was a Lobster, oysters and shrimp on a bed of ice with seafood sauce and lemon. I wanted to make the platter memorable so I used two different sized plastic containers to make a bowl out of pure ice for the center of the platter. I was sure how this would turn out but it ended up looking really good and the platter looked amazing.

I paired this with a bottle of Louis Roederer Champagne (which has been reviewed recently so I won’t be doing it here). I will say that the seafood and Champagne starter did go down very well together.

For the second course I did an Italian Anti-Pasto with Mozzarella di Bufala , Tomatoes, Basil and a side of cold cuts and olives and roasted red peppers. I paired this with a 2007 Cigliano Chianti Classico.

The nose on the wine was big as it filled the room just after being poured out into the glasses. Aromas of cherry, raspberry, cigar box and eucalyptus made up the rich nose. Tasting the wine you get cherry and black licorice flavours to start with and herbaceous notes on the finish. Mick liked the wine as it was versatile with all the different flavours of the dishes and not once did he find an awkward pairing and I can’t argue that as I found the same thing. It was a nicely balanced, easy to drink wine.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 88, Mark - 89, Kathy – 88, Amy – 89, Overall – 88.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CIGLIANO CHIANTI CLASSICO 2007

VINTAGES 189803
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Tuscany, Italy
By: Villa Del Cigliano
Release Date: Jan 8, 2011

Tasting Note - The Chianti Classico '07 is very natural in its expression and precision of flavour. It's classy, land-focused and shows the winery is on its way. Score - 2 Glasses (out of 3). (Gambero Rosso Italian Wines, 2010).

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Saturday Night – It’s my Birthday (woot woot) – Part 2

2011-07-11T13:09:00.007-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course Mick did curried Mussels served with freshly sliced Baguette. He paired this course with 2008 Bernkasteler Badstube Kabinett Riesling.

The nose on the Riesling was aromatic mix of honey, peaches and lychee. Tasting the wine peach is the dominate flavour with a bit of apple and caramel in the background. This seemed like an extremely sweet/cloying Kabinett but I believe this was due to the acidity which was sorely lacking. It is a shame that it didn’t have the crisp acidity I was looking for as the flavours and nose were very good and if this wine did have the acidity it would be amazing. It did, however, pair nicely with the Mussels.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 87, Mark - 85, Kathy – 85, Amy – 88, Overall – 86.25.

The Mussels were up to Mick’s usual excellent standards and once we were done there wasn’t a Mussel to be found anywhere.

For Dessert, Amy picked up a Chocolate cake with a Happy Birthday greeting on it which made a nice ending to the evening… though at my old age I probably should have finished the night with a nice glass of prune juice :)

Thanks to Mick and Amy for a wonderful night and like a fine wine, friendships get better with age too!

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – It’s my Birthday (woot woot) – Part 1

2011-07-10T13:02:00.017-04:00

The past Friday was my *cough* 40th *cough* Birthday which means I’m just as old as Mick now… sigh. Mick, being a fine old fellow, offered to make me a three course Birthday meal and I could pick 2 of the 3 dishes with the non-optional one being Spicy Shrimp with mint sauce. This was more than fine with me as I will never turn down Spicy Shrimp. I picked Clams Casino and Curried Mussels as my two choices.

The Spicy Shrimp were the first course and Mick paired this with a 2008 Beringer “Napa Valley” Sauvignon Blanc.

The nose on the wine was an interesting mix of pineapple, lime and honeydew melon. Tasting the wine you’ll notice a green apple and pear flavour running the length of the wine. The oak was also noticeable but not overly so. The structure to the wine was off as the wine was lacking acidity levels you’d expect from a Sauvignon Blanc. In spite of the lacking acidity it was still a nice wine to drink and went well with the shrimp.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 87, Mark - 86, Kathy – 85, Amy – 88, Overall – 86.5

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

BERINGER SAUVIGNON BLANC 2009

VINTAGES 394353
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 22.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Beringer Vineyards
Release Date: Jul 23, 2011

Tasting Note - Mango, mineral, candied citrus peel and floral are the prime aromas on display here. Dry, fruity and refreshing with a touch of well-handled oak. Medium bodied, medium finish. Enjoy tonight with grilled butter-brushed prawns, or for backyard sipping with soft cheeses. (VINTAGES panel, June 2011)

*Please note the LCBO is listing the 2009 and not the 2008 reviewed here.

The second course was Clams Casino and I bought a Louis Roederer Champagne to go with this course as I really enjoyed it the last time we got together and wanted it again - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/06/saturday-night-sparkling-night-with-in.html

The first time Mick did the Clams Casino they were really good but as he grilled them on the BBQ the stuffing on top was soft. In the past when I have had them at other places, they are oven broiled so the tops go crispy. We chatted about this and he said he like to do them again and try broiling them so that was the plan for tonight’s version. They turned out beautifully as they had a nice crispy tops and were really flavourful. The Champagne was good with them but we actually enjoy the Champagne more just on its own.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – a Sparkling Night with the In-laws – Part 3

2011-06-26T14:22:00.016-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the second course Mick did up his blackened scallops with avocado corn salsa. Most of us still had one of the two sparkling wines leftover but I decide to add a third sparkling wine – Tott’s Brut from California.

The nose on the Tott’s was a mix of licorice, peach and lychee aromas. Tasting the wine, gooseberry and lime were the two main flavours to it. The structure to the wine was ok but it was a touch too sweet. It was easy drinking and was good with the scallops but not enough to make me go out and buy more of it.

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

"Drip pan on fire... things not going according to plan"

There was no LCBO information on this wine and like the Astoria had been on the rack for a while so I didn’t know the price. This may have been a gift which would be why I can’t remember the price. After looking it up on the web, it looks like this would be in the $11 to 15 CDN price point if it was carried by the LCBO.

For the main course I did my corn, steak and potato dish that I did earlier this month as it was something Mick, Amy, Kathy and I enjoyed and thought it would be a good main course for the evening.

"Steak, Corn and Potato dish"

I did have a small fire issue with this dish as the steaks need to hit the grill for about 6-8 minutes to paint some grill lines on them and then I slice them up add them to the dish. I tossed the steaks on the grill on high heat and meant to come back out and check on them after about 3 minutes. I got comfortable and was enjoying my wine and then suddenly remembered the steaks probably about 6-8 minutes after I put them on. As the NY Strips have a good amount of fat/marbling to them and they had been marinating in olive oil all afternoon, by the time I popped back out, there was thick black smoke pouring out of the BBQ. I lifted the lid and was greeted by very high flames. I killed the gas to the grill and quickly removed the steaks. The drip pan to the BBQ was completely engulfed in flames. It probably took about ten minutes for the fire to die out but everything worked out ok in the end. The steaks were actually cooked to about rare which was fine.

"The Dessert part of the evening"

We had a couple of bottles of the 2003 Joseph Phelps “Innisfree” Merlot with the dish. I have reviewed this wine before so I won’t be reviewing it again but will add that it was a terrific pairing with the dish.

For dessert we continued with the Merlot and had a selection of cheeses and dark chocolate.

Other than the fire, it was a great evening and it was fun having Kathy’s parents attend our usual Saturday dinner. I’d like to thank Mick for making the scallops as they were a great addition to the evening.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – a Sparkling Night with the In-laws – Part 2

2011-06-26T14:19:00.009-04:00

The Astoria Prosecco was the other sparkling wine we had with the first course and it had a tough act to follow going against the Louis Roederer Champagne.

The nose on the Prosecco caught me off guard as cherry was the aroma we all first noticed which I didn’t expect on white wine, there was also violets and vanilla in the background as well. I actually liked the nose on the Prosecco more than the nose on the Champagne. The main flavours to the Prosecco were white grape juice and lemon. The structure on this wine wasn’t quite as nice as the Champagne as the acidity was lacking compare to it. It was good with both the crab dip and the shrimp cocktail but the Champagne was a much stronger pairing. While this wasn’t as good as the Champagne, it was a very nice wine.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 89, Mark - 88, Kathy – 87, Amy – 88, Overall – 88

Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

ASTORIA PROSECCO LA ROBINIA

LCBO 593855
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 12.95
Wine, Sparkling Wine, White
11.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Region Not Specified, Italy
By: Astoria Vini

Tasting Note - Pale straw, light mousse; candied lemon, pear and apple aromas; dry, elegant with simple fruit flavours.

Serving Suggestion - As an apperitif, with light soups, appetizers, the perfect toasting bubbly at parties.

I honestly didn’t know the price on the wine until I looked it up just now as the bottle I used had been on the wine rack for a while. I assumed this was in the $17-20 price point. At $13 this sparkling wine is a great deal. It wasn’t as good as $68 Champagne but on the other hand it was nice and easy drinking and went nicely with the food so I will be picking up a couple more bottles of this one too.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – a Sparkling Night with the In-laws – Part 1

2011-06-26T14:13:00.004-04:00

This past Saturday we had Kathy’s parents join us for our usual Saturday night dinner with Mick and Amy. For the first course I did crab dip and shrimp cocktail and paired it with two different sparkling wines; a Louis Roederer Champagne and an Astoria Prosecco.

I will review the Champagne first and then do the Prosecco in the second part of this blog.

"Action shot of the Champagne being poured"

The nose on the Champagne was an interesting mix of mushroom, nut, yeast and orange. Tasting the wine, lime was the dominate flavour but there was a smoky creamy flavour to it as well. The structure on the wine was very good with lively acidity that gave the wine a beautiful crispness. It paired very well with both the crab dip and the shrimp cocktail. Mick made the comment that this was the best Champagne or sparkling wine he had in a long time. I can’tdisagree with him as I very much enjoyed this wine.

"So Good"

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 91, Mark - 92, Kathy – 92, Amy – 90, Overall – 91.25

Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

LOUIS ROEDERER PREMIER BRUT CHAMPAGNE

VINTAGES 268771
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 67.95
Wine, Champagne
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Champagne, France
By: Champagne Louis Roederer
Release Date: N/A

I will be picking up another bottle or two of this to save for a special occasion, though with how much I liked this wine a ‘special occasion’ may turn out to be a day that ends in ‘Y’.

Click here for Part 2

June Wine Club – Rioja

2011-06-17T11:40:00.013-04:00

This month’s Wine Club meeting we took a look at two Riojas. I really the value of Rioja as I find you get a very big wine for a very reasonable price. The take home bottle, 2004 Lar de Paula Reserva, was rated a 90 by erobertparker.com so I was looking forward to trying it. The Muga Reserva was picked up as a comparison bottle.

"This is why Amy takes the pictures for this blog and not me"

Here the LCBO Information on the wines –

LAR DE PAULA RESERVA 2004

VINTAGES 208207
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 21.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Region Not Specified, Spain
By: Heredad De Baroja
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - The purple-colored 2004 Lar de Paula Reserva is 100% Tempranillo with a classic bouquet of cedar, mineral, earth notes, black cherry, and blackberry. Medium-bodied, it is dense and layered on the palate. Black fruit and spice notes are buttressed by moderate ripe tannin leading to a pure, fruit-filled finish. Give it 3-4 years to fully blossom and drink it from 2012 to 2024. Score - 90. (Jay Miller, erobertparker.com, June 2009)

MUGA RESERVA (V)

VINTAGES 177345
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 23.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Rioja, Spain
By: Bodegas Muga S.A.
Release Date: N/A

I was amazed at the strength of the nose on both wines as just pouring them out the room was filled with their aromas. The nose on the Lar de Paula had big aromas of blueberry, blackberry and spice. The nose on the Muga was a nice mix of leather, sour cherry and some mushroom lurking in the background. Tasting the Lar de Paula you’ll find a raspberry flavour dominating this wine. The structure on the Lar de Paula was good with lively acidity, tons of tannin. I actually think this wine could use a couple of years down to soften the tannin. The Muga’s main flavour was sour cherry. The Muga was a much softer styled wine as the tannin level was much lower than the Lar de Paula and the acidity was a touch more muted as well. I slightly preferred the Muga over the Lar de Paula without food.

Monica, (one of our Wine Club members) was nice enough to do up a big pot of chili to go with the wines. The chili was very good and the Lar de Paula quickly became the crowd favourite as the chili neutralized the high tannin and the wine became very polished and smooth. The Muga with the food couldn’t stand up to the bold flavours of the chili and seemed lost at times.

Both wine were enjoyed by everyone and even though the Lar de Paula was the favourite, I don’t think anyone would have been too disappointed to take home a bottle of the Muga either.

It was a fun session and I’d like to thank Monica for the chili as it really did pair well with the wines.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Just grin and Beer it – Part 2

2011-06-12T14:19:00.006-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the second course Mick did honey and chipotle bacon wrapped scallops grilled on the barbeque. We paired this with a 2010 Chateau d’Aqueria Tavel Rosé. I bought this wine as a pairing as this was the comparison bottle for Wine Club when we looked at Rosés. As we really enjoy the Wine Club take home bottle at last Saturday’s dinner and at Wine Club the Tavel was the favourite hands down over that bottle, I wanted Mick, Amy and Kathy to try it as well.

The nose on the Tavel was faint with sour cherry and a slight soapy aroma in the background. Tasting the wine, sour cherry and lime were the dominate flavours. The structure on the wine was good though it did have a bit of a sharp finish to it. With the food the sharp finish was more muted but I did find it got a bit funky with the food at times. I would guess the sweetness of the honey would be what caused the funkiness with the dry Rosé.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 86, Mark - 86, Kathy – 86, Amy – 83, Overall – 85.25.

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine -

CHÂTEAU D'AQUÉRIA TAVEL ROSÉ 2010

VINTAGES 319368
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Rosé Wine
12.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Rhône, France
By: Jean Olivier, Prod.
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - Tavel, an AC located across the Rhône River from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, uniquely makes rosé wines its exclusive focus. This version offers up fresh strawberry, sweet cherry, rosehips, and spring flowers in abundance. Dry, light bodied, fresh and tangy on the palate with waves of vivacious acidity. The lingering finish sports a strawberry-rhubarb character embroidered by herbal and floral notes. Enjoy with salmon-and-cream-cheese appetizers, or turkey breast with paprika. (VINTAGES panel, March 2011)

For the final course Mick did pulled pork quesadillas and paired them with a 2006 Seghesio Zinfandel. We have reviewed the 2006 Seghesio before so I won’t be reviewing it again today. I will add that both the wine and the quesadillas were excellent.

For dessert Amy picked up a Milky Way cake that was very good.

Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and to Mick for making three new exciting dishes for us to try.

Cheers! (or maybe for this article “Beers!” would be a better ending)

Mark

Saturday night – Just grin and Beer it – Part 1

2011-06-12T14:11:00.016-04:00

Mick and Amy were hosting this past Saturday night’s dinner. When we arrived, Mick announced that all three recipes used beer in their recipes and was using that as his theme for the evening. I’m not a huge beer fan but have no issues with it being used in recipes so I was curious to see what Mick had created.

His first course was mussels in a light cream sauce with freshly sliced baguette. Mick picked a 2009 Fog Head Reserve Chardonnay from California as the pairing for this dish.

The nose on the wine had aromas of pink grapefruit, lilac and vanilla. Tasting the wine was interesting as it had a funky combination of butterscotch and grapefruit as it flavours. The structure to the wine was decent and it was a very smooth and easy drinking Chardonnay. The flavours to the wine got much better with the food as the butterscotch faded away into the background and the crispness of the grapefruit really came out in the wine.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 86, Mark - 84, Kathy – 83, Amy – 85, Overall – 84.5.

Here is the LCBO information for the wine –

FOG HEAD HIGHLANDS RESERVE CHARDONNAY 2009

VINTAGES 158568
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, White Wine
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California, USA
By: Delicato Vineyards
Release Date: Mar 5, 2011

Description - Tasty, toasty Chardonnay with loads of tropical fruit and citrus aromas. Dry and zippy with lots of fruit on the palate. A nicely balanced, mouth-filling wine ideal for pan-seared scallops or smoked chicken.

For a $17 it wasn’t bad though I’d probably lean towards spending $2 more and get a KJ Chardonnay or a Louis Jadot Chardonnay instead.

Mick Mussels were really good, though soaking up the sauce with the bread might have been even better than the Mussels.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday – Summer is here! Part 2

2011-06-05T15:21:00.002-04:00

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I did a Corn, Tomato and Steak dish which for me is the dish that signifies that summer is really here. This dish has steak, fresh corn shaved from the cob, pan fired baby potatoes, cherry tomatoes, arugula, celery, shallots, olive oil, butter and salt and pepper. As there is not much seasoning (other than salt and pepper) for this dish, it the natural flavours of this dish that make it so good. It is also important to find fresh ingredients as there is no sauce or seasoning to hide behind either.

I paired this with a Merlot and as we hadn’t done Merlot for a bit, I want something a little special and picked a 2001 Merryvale Napa Valley Reserve Merlot

The nose on the Merryvale was amazing with rich notes of plum, cigar box, eucalyptus, and leather. Tasting the wine Black Licorice, Blueberry and Cassis were the dominate flavours. I was concerned after trying the wine that the Black Licorice flavour wouldn’t work with the dish and it was a touch tannic as well. Trying the wine the food, raspberry notes became the main flavour to the wine and the tannin soften big time and this wine became a truly excellent pairing with the food.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 90, Mark - 91, Kathy – 90, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.25.

"Check out the colouring on the cork from the Merryvale Merlot"

There was no listing for the Merryvale Merlot on the LCBO’s website which is not surprising as I bought this in the US a number of years ago. I believe the price point on it was $39 US so around $55-60 CDN a bottle. The 90.25 rating means this wine comes up just short by a quarter of a point on making the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Red list but I will say I haven’t enjoy a bottle of wine as much as this one in a long time.

For dessert I picked up a La Rocca Key lime crunch cake and it was a fine ending to our ‘summer’ themed meal.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday – Summer is here! Part 1

2011-06-05T15:16:00.003-04:00

Ah the sounds of Jackhammers tearing up our roads and corn on the cob back at the supermarket; that can only mean that summer is back! It was our turn to host the usual Saturday dinner with Mick and Amy and with the nice weather, I wanted to do a summer menu.

The starter for the night was Kettle chip Salmon bites and I paired this with a 2010 Bardolino Chiaretto Rosé from Zenato. The recipe was from a colour brochure that the LCBO put out spotlighting Rosé wine.

The nose on the Zenato Rosé was easy to find with aromas of lime and strawberry. Tasting the wine on its own, I found it to have a yeasty lemon flavor to it. The structure on the wine was decent but it was a touch on the acidic side but the crisp bite to the wine did make it very refreshing. It made a very good pairing with the Salmon bites and I was actually a bit shocked at how quickly the four of us killed the whole bottle.

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

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

ZENATO BARDOLINO CHIARETTO 2010

VINTAGES 45203
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 11.95
Wine, Rosé Wine
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Veneto, Italy
By: Azienda Vinicola Zenato
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - This delightful candy-apple-coloured wine is made from the same grape varieties as Valpolicella - Corvina, Molinara, and Rondinella. Lively aromas of cherry, strawberry and blood orange greet the nose, along with a nice minerality and a lifted floral note. Dry, medium bodied with plenty of zippy acidity, it offers tart and tangy fruit to start, but sweeter notes emerge mid-palate and throughout the medium-long, crisp finish. Enjoy with crab cakes, or Portobello mushroom sandwiches with provolone cheese. (VINTAGES panel, March 2011)

The Kettle chip Salmon bites were really good, though a touch too lemony at times; it had both lemon juice and lemon zest in it. If I did this recipe again, I would cut the lemon zest by half to bring out more of the other flavours like capers, shallots and garlic.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Mick’s Treasures from the Sea

2011-05-29T14:03:00.031-04:00

Mick broke out an all seafood menu for our latest Saturday night dinner.

The first course was baked Crab Dip with a 2009 Tokara Sauvignon Blanc. We have reviewed this wine before - http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/01/saturday-night-old-favourites-part-1.html so I won’t be reviewing it in full again for this post.

I will say that it was a very good pairing with the Crab Dip; it was actually better with the food than it was on its own. The Crab Dip was very good too but Mick did go a bit heavy on the cayenne pepper so it was zippier than I thought it should have been.

The second course had both a new wine and new dish for us to try – Clams Casino and 2008 Chateau de Ligny Chablis.

The nose on the wine had faint aromas of peach and pineapple and a musty basement smell which I find common in a lot of French wines. Tasting the wine, you’ll find flavours or honeydew melon and lime. The structure on the wine was decent but the acidity on the wine was too soft. It was an easy drinking wine but at times it got lost against the rich flavours of the clams.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 87, Mark - 86, Kathy – 85, Amy – 85, Overall – 85.75.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CHÂTEAU DE LIGNY CHABLIS 2008

VINTAGES 200105
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Jean Claude Fromont
Release Date: Jan 8, 2011

Description - International Trophy winner at the 2010 Decanter World Wine Awards.
Tasting Note - Pretty pale straw-yellow colour leads to an attractive nose featuring apple, mineral/wet stones, lees and a hint of pear. Dry, simultaneously fresh and ripe with zippy acidity adding vibrancy. Medium bodied with a fairly lengthy finish. Match it to grilled tuna or swordfish. (VINTAGES panel, Nov. 2010).

Mick did up the Clams Casino on the BBQ and topped them with bacon and cheese. The flavours to the Clams Casino were excellent. My only issue with them was, when I have had them in the past they are usually oven broiled which makes a nice crust on the top which I really like. I discussed this with Mick and said he too would be interested in using the oven next time he makes these to see what kind of difference it makes to the flavour of the dish.

The next course was Mick’s Blacken Scallops with Corn and Avocado salsa and he paired this with a Bottega Brut Prosecco.

I screwed up as we didn’t review this wine; we’ve had it before so I assumed we reviewed but after checking on the Blog, we didn’t fully review it the last time. It was very good on its own but got a little funky with the food at times. This is weird as when we paired this with the Santa Margherita Prosecco di Valdobbiadene (http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2011/01/saturday-night-taking-pro-out-of.html) the last time it was a very good pairing and yet the Bottega Prosecco didn’t work as well as a pairing.

"The top of the Bottega bottle - Either drink or leave... can't argue with that!"

The scallops on the other hand were awesome as always.

Amy picked up a Milky Way cake for dessert which finished the evening off beautifully. I’d like to thank Mick for all his hard work in making three very tasty dishes this evening and to both Mick and Amy for hosting.

Thanks,

Mark

May Wine Club – Rosé

2011-05-28T15:41:00.001-04:00

This month’s Wine Club meeting kicked off the latest six month session of Wine Club. I was pleased that everyone re-upped from the last session, so hopefully that means everyone is enjoying it as much as I am. When I started this Wine Club a few years back, I was committed to trying as many different regions, grapes and styles of wines as I could. That commitment to diversity has paid large dividends as I have found many a grape/region that were wonderful that I wouldn’t have on my own. The wines that we were tasting today was a Rosé from Italy as the take home bottle and a Rosé from French as a comparison bottle.

Here is the LCBO information on the wines –

ZENATO BARDOLINO CHIARETTO 2010

VINTAGES 45203
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 11.95
Wine, Rosé Wine
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Veneto, Italy
By: Azienda Vinicola Zenato
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - This delightful candy-apple-coloured wine is made from the same grape varieties as Valpolicella - Corvina, Molinara, and Rondinella. Lively aromas of cherry, strawberry and blood orange greet the nose, along with a nice minerality and a lifted floral note. Dry, medium bodied with plenty of zippy acidity, it offers tart and tangy fruit to start, but sweeter notes emerge mid-palate and throughout the medium-long, crisp finish. Enjoy with crab cakes, or portobello mushroom sandwiches with provolone cheese. (VINTAGES panel, March 2011)

CHÂTEAU D'AQUÉRIA TAVEL ROSÉ 2010

VINTAGES 319368
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Rosé Wine
12.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Rhône, France
By: Jean Olivier, Prod.
Release Date: May 14, 2011

Tasting Note - Tavel, an AC located across the Rhône River from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, uniquely makes rosé wines its exclusive focus. This version offers up fresh strawberry, sweet cherry, rosehips, and spring flowers in abundance. Dry, light bodied, fresh and tangy on the palate with waves of vivacious acidity. The lingering finish sports a strawberry-rhubarb character embroidered by herbal and floral notes. Enjoy with salmon-and-cream-cheese appetizers, or turkey breast with paprika. (VINTAGES panel, March 2011)

I have been reluctant to try Rosé in the past as whenever I see it I think of White Zinfandel (or fun wine as I joking call it) from California.

I brought in a selection of Cheese and Crackers and some roasted Red Pepper dip to accompany the two wines.

Nosing the two wines, I was surprise to find the Zenato (the less expensive to the two) had the better nose. The nose on the Zenato had powerful aromas of grapefruit and strawberry whereas the Tavel had strawberry and gooseberry aromas though they were much softer on the nose and harder to find. Tasting the wines, the Zenato had flavours of lime and strawberry but the alcohol of the wine made it seem a touch hot. The Tavel on the tasting really shined with it apricot and herb flavours and its structure was much more balanced than the ‘hot’ Zenato. The fact that Tavel balanced the 14% alcohol better than the Zenato did with 12% alcohol probably accounts for why it is $7 more. I liked the Zenato quite a bit with the herbed Goat’s cheese, but it got a touch funky when paired with the aged cheddar. The Tavel worked very nicely with all the cheeses and both wines were good with the roasted red pepper dip.

I liked both of the wines, though I will give a definite edge to the French Rosé and could see myself happily killing a bottle or two on a warm summer’s day on the patio. On the other hand I wasn’t blown away by either and don’t see myself rushing out to buy tons more.

It was fun trying something completely new and I’m already looking forward to next month where we will be taking a look at two Spanish Riojas.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Wolfredo

2011-05-15T14:56:00.004-04:00

After quite a break due to our schedules Mick, Amy, Kathy and I got together for a Saturday night dinner. It was my turn to host as Mick and Amy hosted the last dinner.

I had a ton of grated parmesan leftover from my TL lunch and needed to use it up. With this in mind I decided to do a Wolfgang Puck chicken fettuccine alfredo recipe or as the ladies affectionately call it ‘Wolfredo’.

I dread doing this recipe as it is very time consuming and the way Mr. Puck lays out his ingredient list is a pain in the ass. Most recipes will total up the same ingredient and list exactly what you need in total. Whereas Wolfgang will list the same ingredient (in this case fresh thyme) in four different places in the ingredient list which makes it very easy to miss one and leave yourself short.

I wanted to do an appetizer but my lovely wife vetoed that idea hard and insisted that as the Alfredo is so heavy it is more than enough food. So I went with her advice; I’m glad I did as it was very filling and there is no way I could have gotten through both an appetizer and the Alfredo.

I paired the Wolfredo with a 2006 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay. This wine is 2nd on the Top Ten Zippy Sauce White Wines. I figured that if I’m going to effort of making this dish, I pairing it with a killer wine. It was an awesome pairing with meal and it was also my last bottle of it. The wine was so good that we killed it before we were even half way through the dinner. At this point Mick and I decided that we needed another bottle of something.

A quick peak through the wine cabinet and I grabbed out at bottle of Chateau St. Michelle 2007 Chardonnay. It continues the theme of French sounding California wines I started with the Chateau Montelena. I was worried how this wine would stand up against the first one as it is around a $20 price point whereas the Montelena is $45 a bottle.

The nose on the Chateau St. Michelle was big with plenty of different aromas going on; sage, yeast, pear, pine and butterscotch were some of the aromas we found. Flavour wise it had a pleasing butterscotch and lime flavour happening with it. It was nicely balanced but there was a bit of a sharpness on the finish. The sharpness on the finish may have been more noticeable as we had just had the Montelena which was incredibly silky and smooth. It was a strong pairing with the ‘Wolfredo’ but not quite as good as the Montelena. Considering it was less than half the price of the first wine, I was very pleased with how good this wine was for its price point.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 87, Overall – 88

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CHATEAU STE. MICHELLE CHARDONNAY 2008

VINTAGES 232439
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 17.95
Wine, White Wine
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Washington State, USA
By: Chat Ste Michelle
Release Date: Dec 11, 2010

Tasting Note - Bright and jazzy, with pretty pineapple, grapefruit, elderflower and spice flavors that linger on the finish without excess weight. This just floats on for a while. Drink now through 2012. Best Value. Score - 90. (Harvey Steiman, winespectator.com, Feb. 28, 2010)

* Note – the wine listed is the 2008 and not the 2007 reviewed by us.

I really liked the 2007 Chateau St. Michelle and when I saw the LCBO write up for the 2008 was planning on picking up some of the 2008 up but unfortunately there is no stock left. I will have to make a note to look in December for the 2009.

For dessert, I picked up a Chocolate Carmel Ice Cream cake for dessert which was well received.

Thanks to everyone for a fun night and I’m already looking forward to next Saturday.

Cheers!

Mark

Wine Club – April Bonus Tasting.

2011-04-22T14:54:00.002-04:00

We finished up our normal Wine Club last month, so this month would be a bonus tasting with the money left over. Most bonus tastings I have anywhere between $150 and $300 to work with so we usually get something much higher end than our usual $20-25 a bottle price point. The time I only had $43 left to do the tasting. I decided a blind red wine tasting would be fun but I really want to add the 2005 Altair as one of the reds. Unfortunately at $65 a bottle the Altair was a touch out of my price range. I discussed this with Wine Club members and everyone decide to pitch in $5 to help make this happen.

So my three reds for the blind tasting were a 2005 Altair, 2008 Chateau St. Jean Merlot and 2004 Robert Mondavi ‘Carneros’ Pinot Noir.

I was pleased that Wine Club members took no time in figuring out which of the 3 red wines in front of them was the Altair. It’s rich and full bodied Cab blend was very distinctive from the other two wines. I was also very happy that everyone loved the Altair and thought it was worth the extra $5 they put in to try it.

Everyone correctly guessed that the second wine was a Merlot and a couple even guessed that it was from California which I thought was impressive. The last wine was a mixed bag as about half guessed Pinot Noir and the other half guess Chianti. Chianti wasn’t a bad guess about the Pinot Noir as we tried Chianti in a recent Wine Club meeting and both of them had that thin colouring that Pinot Noir has and there were some flavour characteristics they both had in common.

It was a fun session and I was pleased Wine Club did so well in picking out which wines were which. Next month we will start a new six month session of Wine Club which will be the 43rd time we have gotten together to try wines. It is fun looking back at all the different regions and grapes we have tried so far during these meetings and look forward to seeing where the next 6 meetings will lead.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Prosciutto wrapped shrimp and other stuff

2011-04-17T14:31:00.005-04:00

Mick and Amy were hosting this past Saturday night’s dinner. Mick was making Prosciutto wrapped shrimp as the appetizer and Diablo Sliders as the main course. I’ll be honest here and say once Mick said "Prosciutto wrapped shrimp", I stopped listening to the rest of the menu and sat in my chair saying "Prosciutto wrapped shrimp… Mmmm" and drooling a lot.

Mick picked a 2006 Dr. Pauly Bergweiler Bernkasteler Badstube Kabinett Riesling to pair with the shrimp.

Nosing the wine you get a mild nose of peach, lime, lilac with a touch of faint petrol in the background. Tasting the wine apple, apricot, lime flavours are very noticeable. Structure wise the wine was not very acidic (a little soft), slightly cloying, not very crisp. It was very easy drinking and paired beautifully with the curried notes of the shrimp.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 88, Mark - 86, Kathy – 87, Amy – 89, Overall – 87.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

DR. PAULY-BERGWEILER RIESLING KABINETT 2008

VINTAGES 189175
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 16.95
Wine, White Wine
8.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : MD
Made in: Mosel, Germany
By: Dr. Pauly-Bergmeiler
Release Date: Oct 30, 2010

Tasting Note - Light and harmonious, displaying peach, apple, floral and grapefruit aromas and flavors, all matched to a juicy, supple texture. Leaves a ripe apple and slate aftertaste. Drink now through 2025. Score - 90. (Bruce Sanderson, winespectator.com, Dec. 15, 2009)

*Note the wine listed is the 2008 and not the 2006 reviewed here.

For the main course Mick did Diablo Sliders and did a new Spanish Salad recipe that was quite nice. The capers and the tomatoes in the salad with the light dressing make a great side to sliders. Mick paired this course with a 2007 Seghesio Zinfandel. We have reviewed this wine before so we decided not to review it again; I will however say that is was great with the Diablo sliders.

For dessert Amy picked up a Banana cake with cream cheese icing which was very good.

Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and especially to Mick for cooking up all the food. It might be a little quiet on the blog for a bit as Mick and Amy are away for the next two Saturdays.

Cheers!

Mark

Best of ComBQ

2011-04-10T16:15:00.029-04:00

At our last ComBQ, it was suggested that we do a “Best of ComBQ” as there have been some really great dishes that people wanted to have again. Steve and Melanie were nice enough to set up an online poll so everyone could vote on their favourites. After the votes were in the menu for the evening looked like this –

Roasted Tomato Soup with Parmesan Crisps by Melanie

Almond crusted Goat Cheese salad with a Raspberry/Poppy seed dressing by Mark

Chicken Quesadillas by Mick

Cuban Pulled Pork Sandwiches by Alex

The first course was Melanie’s awesome Roasted Tomato Soup with Parmesan Crisps. Melanie (and Steve) paired this with a 2009 Beringer’s Sauvignon Blanc. When I first heard the pairing I was a little doubtful about it but was surprised how good a pairing this was. I would have leaned towards a Merlot as a pairing here but the crispness of the Sauvignon Blanc made a great contrasting pairing to the richness of the soup.

The second course was mine and I did Almond crusted Goat Cheese salad with a Raspberry/Poppy seed dressing. I picked a 2007 Selbach-Oster Spätlese Riesling as my pairing. It caught a few people off guard on how sweet this wine was especially after just having a dry Sauvignon Blanc. The sweetness was needed however as anything less sweet wouldn’t have held up to the sweetness of the Raspberry dressing. It was a very good pairing with the salad and the eight of us killed two bottles of it with very little difficulty.

The third course was Mick’s famous Chicken Quesadillas. He (and Amy) picked a 2007 Gnarly Head Old Vines Zinfandel as the pairing to go with this course. Both the Chicken Quesadillas and the wine pairing were up to Mick’s usual standard of excellence.

The last course ended up actually being the only new dish for the night as Alex couldn’t find the original recipe he did Cuban grilled pork tenderloin sandwiches instead. He picked a 2008 Kim Crawford Pinot Noir as his pairing with the dish. This whole course was the biggest surprise of the evening for both the wine and the food. First off his original recipe was very good but the new recipe he found was even better; I can’t believe how damn good these sandwiches were. Secondly, Pinot Noir wouldn’t have been my first (Red Zin), second (Sangiovese) or even third (Rioja) choice of grape to pair with this recipe but it truly was a stellar pairing and I’d be shocked if any of the pairings I was thinking of would have been better.

For dessert we picked up a selection of baked goodies, chocolate and chocolate based cookies. For anyone having the baked goods I had a bottle of2006 Henry of Pelham Late Harvest to go with them and a 2005 Altair to pair with the chocolate. Both wines were very good.

I would like to thank Melanie, Steve, Alex, Zdenka, Mick and Amy for coming and for all the wonderful food and wine. I really enjoyed our Best of ComBQ but considering how great every ComBQ is with this group, I think every ComBQ is the ‘Best of ComBQ’ and am already looking for the next one.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – No New Year’s Eve…

2011-04-03T13:43:00.022-04:00

After back to back Birthday dinners it was nice to get back to a normal Saturday night with Mick and Amy. Mick had on his chef’s hat and apron for the night and had one favourite dish on tap and two new ones for us to try.

"Prosciutto wrapped Shimp, yummy!"

The first course was Prosciutto wrapped curried shrimp, which I love so much that I’m hoping that Mick will one day do an all you can eat "Prosciutto wrapped curried shrimp" night. Mick paired these delightful morsels with a 2008 Hoffmann-Simon Kabinett Riesling.

"Great wine, but a touch too sweet"

Nosing the wine caused me to peak at the bottle as it initially reminded me of a Sauvignon Blanc with its cut grass, floral and peach aromas. There was also some vanilla and nutmeg aromas in the background. Tasting the wine was my next surprise as it was quite sweet; more what I’d expect from a Spätlese Riesling than a Kabinett Riesling. The main flavour to the wine was Golden Apple. This wine was a very good pairing with the shrimp. I liked this wine but the sweetness at times was a bit too much; if this wine upped the alcohol up from 9%to 10% by converting the residual sugar I would bet this would be in my top 5 Kabinett Rieslings of all time.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 88, Mark - 88, Kathy – 86, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.25.

Here is the LCBO Information for the wine -
HOFFMANN-SIMON RIESLING KABINETT 2008

VINTAGES 192575
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 16.95
Wine, White Wine
8.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : MD
Made in: Mosel, Germany
By: Weingut Hoffman-Simon
Release Date: Nov 27, 2010

Tasting Note - Pungent, with a savory edge to the apple, grapefruit and mineral flavors. It's all undercut by a racy, high-voltage structure that keeps this light wine in a high-energy state. Fine length. Best from 2012 through 2021. Score - 91. (Bruce Sanderson, www.winespectator.com, March 31, 2010)

"Baba Ganoush with Pita"

For the next course Mick did Baba Ganoush with Pita and paired this with a 2010 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc. We have reviewed the Kim Crawford a number of times so we didn’t bother doing it again. Kim Crawford has made a very good to excellent Sauvignon Blanc year after year and it is probably the wine I use the most as my benchmark for Sauvignon Blanc.

"Excellent year after year"

The Baba Ganoush was good but the eggplant gave it a sweetness that threw the wine pairing for this course. I would probably lean towards an off-dry Pinot Gris or Riesling if I was going to pick a wine for it in the future.

"Curried lamb ribs"

The main course was grilled curried lamb ribs with a 2004 Robert Mondavi "Carneros" Pinot Noir. This was another wine that we reviewed before so we didn’t bother reviewing it again. Lamb ribs were something I have never had before so I was intrigued to see what they would be like. The flavour to the meat with the curried outside was very good; the downside was the meat wasn’t plentiful and hard to find as the lamb ribs were very fatty. Mick is looking at doing this recipe again but doing it as a grilled rack of lamb which I’m very much looking forward to. The Pinot with its strawberry and cherry notes made a very nice contrasting pairing to the ribs.

"A decent Pinot by Mondavi"

For dessert Amy picked up this huge chocolate cake thing from Costco which was pretty good though I don’t think that the four of us made much of a dent in it.

"Is that a giant cake in your pocket or are you just glad to see me?"

Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting this week and to Mick for all the great food.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Return of the Birthday

2011-03-27T11:26:00.025-04:00

Last Saturday we went out to the 1010 to celebrate Kathy’s 39^th Birthday, this Saturday we stayed home and had a party. Mick and Amy were there and we added Chris and Jan to the evening’s festivities. We each did a course, Mick did the starter, I did the main course and Chris and Jan took care of dessert.

"Some Miss Vickies chips to get the party started"

"Spicy Shrimp with Mint Sauce - Note if this picture looks just like the last time we had Spicy Shrimp that is just an amazing coincidence and has nothing to do with Amy forgetting to take a picture of this evening's Spicy Shirmp... see Amy I got it covered and no one is the wiser :)"

Mick did Spicy Shrimp with Mint dipping sauce and paired this with a 2009 Ferrari Carano Fumé Blanc.

"Silky Smooth Fume"

The nose on the wine was a pleasant mix of vanilla, cut grass, peach and orange. Tasting the wine you’ll notice a softer styled Fumé Blanc with vanilla and peach flavours. The balance on the wine was very nice as it had good balance of acidity and fruit. It paired very nicely with the Spicy Shrimp and helped relieve that spicy burn. Mick and I really like this wine but Kathy wasn’t a big a fan. Kathy enjoys the Mondavi Fumé which tends to be made in a more in your face type of style with big acid and alcohol and expects that from a Fumé. I will agree that the Mondavi Fumé is a better pairing with Spicy Shrimp but it was hard not to love the silky smooth styling of the Ferrari Carano Fumé.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 89, Mark - 89, Kathy – 84, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.25.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

FERRARI-CARANO FUMÉ BLANC 2009

VINTAGES 354993
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, White Wine
13.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California, USA
By: Ferrari Carano Winery
Release Date: Feb 19, 2011

Tasting Note - This pale yellow colored Sauvignon Blanc opens with a mild passion fruit bouquet with a touch of lime. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied and balanced. The flavor profile is a mineral infused mild lime with a touch of green pear. The finish is dry and quite refreshing. This wine would be very good with bacon wrapped scallops. Score - 88. (Ken Hoggins, www.kenswineguide.com, June 11, 2010)

"Pinenutty goodness all ready for cooking"

"The finished product"

For the main course I did Pine nut Salmon with a lemon, butter and basil sauce with a side of mash potatoes with caramelized onions and a side of sugar snap peas. I paired this with a 2007 Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay which we have reviewed before so I declined reviewing it again.

I will say that the KJ was a very good pairing with Salmon.

"A very good Chardonnay"

"A tray of soon to be disappearing cake pops... it's like magic!"

For dessert Chris and Jan brought Cake Pops which are cake batter and cream cheese mixed to together and baked, then an icing or glaze for the outside and on a lollipop stick for easy eating. Kathy and Amy really liked these tasty wonders. Chris and Jan also brought a 2008 Cabernet Franc Ice wine and a 2007 Riesling Ice wine both from Henry of Pelham.

"Stunning Icewines"

I didn’t review either of these wine as I don’t like to review wines that guests bring to dinner (Mick and Amy are the exception as they are also rating the wines). My fear is that if I don’t like a wine, I would feel very bad ripping it in front of my guests. I will say with the two wines Chris and Jan brought I wish I lifted that policy as both were excellent. I’ve had a couple of Cabernet Franc Ice wines in the past and wasn’t a big fan but the 2008 Cabernet Franc Ice wine from Henry of Pelham amazing and went exceptionally well with any of the chocolate based Cake Pops. The Riesling was very good, which isn’t a surprise, as any late harvest or Ice wine Riesling I’ve had from Henry of Pelham has been excellent.

It was a fun evening and I’d like to thank Mick for his course and especially thank Chris and Jan for the dessert and going way overboard with two excellent dessert wines. The only problem I have now is both Birthday nights for Kathy’s 39th were amazing that I’m have no idea how to top this for next year for the big 4-0…

Cheers!

Mark

Kathy's 39th at the 1010 Bistro

2011-03-20T13:35:00.018-04:00

Last night we got together with Mick, Amy, Pat, Jack, and Sheian at the always amazing 1010 Bistro in Westdale to celebrate Kathy's 29th Birthday. Amy took a bunch of pictures so this article is just a picture tribute to the evening.

"Birthday Girl!"

"Flowers from the 1010 owners David and Daniela"

I'd like to thank David and Daniela for a wonderful evening. I'd also like to thank Mick, Amy, Pat, Jack and Sheian as you guys made it a blast.

Cheers!

Mark

March Wine Club – Chianti

2011-03-18T23:17:00.011-04:00

This month for Wine Club we looked at two Chiantis which hail from the Tuscan region of Italy. I really do not know much about Italian wine so this month was a treat for me to learn a little more about this ancient bastion of wine making. I didn’t know that Chianti is mainly made from the Sangiovese grape and was traditionally made in rounded bottles with a straw weave covering. The two Chiantis we looked at were a 2007 Cigliano Chianti Classico (which was the take home bottle for Wine Club members) and a 2007 Rocca Delle Macìe Chianti Classico as the comparison bottle.

"Greetings Clarice"

Here is the LCBO Information on the wines -

CIGLIANO CHIANTI CLASSICO 2007

VINTAGES 189803
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Tuscany, Italy
By: Villa Del Cigliano
Release Date: Jan 8, 2011

Tasting Note - The Chianti Classico '07 is very natural in its expression and precision of flavour. It's classy, land-focused and shows the winery is on its way. Score - 2 Glasses (out of 3). (Gambero Rosso Italian Wines, 2010)

ROCCA DELLE MACÌE CHIANTI CLASSICO (V)

VINTAGES 741769
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Tuscany, Italy
By: Rocca Delle Macie S.P.A.
Release Date: May 15, 2010

Description - Italo Zingarelli, the late film producer and founder of Rocca delle Macìe, passed on his love for winemaking to members of his family. They are masters of Chianti. This delicious, medium-bodied, and well-structured wine exhibits complex aromas of plum, sweet tobacco, mushroom and a touch of oak. Uncompromising quality and value. Pairs beautifully with antipasti, bistecca or veal scallopini.

What was interesting about the two wines was the number of things they had in common – both are Chianti, both are $19, both have 13% alcohol and both were from 2007. Pouring out the wines another commonality showed up as they were identical in colour (a soft red-brown) and in colour depth both were thin like you usually see with a Pinot Noir.

Nosing the wines I found green pepper aromas in both. The Cigliano also had aromas of licorice, chocolate and some dark berry. The Rocca on the other hand had aromas of leather and cherry. Tasting the wine I found the structure similar for both; good lively acidity with weak/soft tannin. The Cigliano had a raspberry and menthol flavour to it whereas the Rocca had a solid cherry like flavour to it. Neither of these wines really lit me up on their own but with the food they were both very good.

Speaking of food, Kim (of our Wine Club members) was nice enough to provide homemade cheese ravioli to go with the wine. These were awesome and as I mentioned above work very well with the wines.

It was fun to try a couple of new wines and I could see myself picking up another bottle or two of Chianti depending on what food I was making.

Next month we are doing a blind tasting of 3 red wines which should be fun.

Cheers!

Mark