It Twas the Saturday before Christmas – Part 2

Click here for Part 1

For the second course Mick did Tandoori Chicken Skewers and paired this with a 2008 Frank Konstantin Gewürztraminer. The bottle was picked up direct from the winery on a recent trip they made to the Finger Lakes region in NY State.

"Spicy but good!"

The nose surprised me as it was very mild for a Gewürztraminer, with aromas of pear and rose. Tasting the wine you found an oily sweet wine that was slightly cloying. The pear aroma carried through to the flavour profile as well. The wine could best be described as ‘simple’ as there wasn’t much to it. The wine also tended to be over sweet with the food but was easy enough to drink so not a terrible pairing by any means.

"Something new and different"

I found this tacked on to the bottom of my notes –

“I like it – it’s yummy” – Amy

Thanks Forest for that insight and now to the group ratings –

Mick - 87, Mark - 84, Kathy – 85, Amy - 89, Overall – 86.25.

I remember Mick mentioning the price on the bottle and being shocked at the price as it was around $20-25 US which with duty and taxes puts this wine in a $40 CDN price… ouch. For that kind of money I’d advise people to look elsewhere.

The food was excellent as always and our next get together will be New Year’s Eve.

Cheers,

Mark

It Twas the Saturday before Christmas – Part 1

Mick and Amy had us over for dinner last Saturday. The starter courses were Smoked Salmon with cream cheese and assorted goodies, followed by a new recipe for Potato Skins that Mick wanted to try.

"Very good for a first attempt!"

Both courses were paired with a 2004 Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay. I’d had this bottle on the rack for awhile and was worried about it getting long in the tooth. (Note - There was a 2006 KJ Grand Reserve Chardonnay as well but we have already review it so I left it out of this review.)

"Smoked Salmon and Chardonnay, best wine pairing ever!"

Opening the bottle and pouring it out, you are rewarded with a pleasant mixture of kiwi, vanilla and a touch of caramel. Tasting the 2004 Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve you immediate notice that this is a big creamy Chardonnay that while being big is also nicely balanced. Flavours of butter, lime and vanilla run throughout the wine. The wine wraps itself up nicely with a smooth lingering finish that just has you aching for more.

"It certainly was Grand!"

The KJ was stunning with the Salmon but only decent with the Potato Skins. It was good on its own but pairing it with the Smoked Salmon took this wine to a whole new level.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 90, Mark - 89, Kathy – 88, Amy - 89, Overall – 89.

I couldn’t find an LCBO listing on the Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve but it usually ranges in price from about $33 to $39 a bottle depending on US dollar exchange rates and LCBO markup.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Mick’s busy in the kitchen – Part 3

Click here for Part 1

For dessert Amy picked up a Lemon based cake and this was paired with a 2006 Late Harvest Riesling from Henry of Pelham.

"Thank goodness this was a lemon based dessert!"

I was pretty excited about trying this wine as the 2005 Henry of Pelham Botrytis Affected Riesling was awesome and the 2006 Henry of Pelham Late Harvest Vidal was one of the best Late Harvest wines I have tried. So the 2006 Late Harvest Riesling by Henry of Pelham had some great siblings to live up to.

"Not what I've come to expect from Henry of Pelham!"

I was shocked at how pale this wine was for a Late Harvest wine as they usually are closer to amber in colour whereas this was so pale I’d of guessed it was a Sauvignon Blanc. The nose was extremely disappointing too as most Late Harvest wines the nose is so powerful you can almost smell them across a room. The nose on this wine was extremely faint, so faint that you could barely catch the barest hint of floral it contained. Tasting the wine was also disappointing as it was very sweet without the usual high acid to cut through the sweetness. The main flavour was tropical fruit/pineapple. It wasn’t bad with the Lemon cake though as the lemony tartness of the cake help offset some of the over ripe sweetness of the wine.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 86 Mark - 83 Kathy – 87 Amy - 86 Overall – 85.

I think my companion were a touch generous with their ratings and that is probably because it did work so well with the dessert. If we had some apple based rather than lemon based for dessert like we usually do with Late Harvest wines, I think their ratings would have been much lower.

There was no LCBO information on this wine, if I remember correctly this was a bottle Mick and Amy picked up directly from Henry of Pelham. I’d probably guess the price point to be in the $19 to $23 range.

I’d like to thank Mick for all the wonderful food as it was all very good. December is shaping up to be a stupid busy month for the 4 of us so not sure when the next Blog entry will be coming.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Mick’s busy in the kitchen – Part 2

For the main course Mick did Diablo Burger with bacon and 3yr. old white cheddar and paired it with a 2008 Seghesio Zinfandel.

"Diablo Burger with Zippy!"

The nose on the Zinfandel consisted of blackberry, fudge and heat/alcohol. Tasting the wine you got dark cherry, clove and licorice as the dominate flavours. The structure of the wine seemed a little off as the tannin was low to non-existent, good acidity, high alcohol and lingering finish. Seghesio usually makes an outstanding Zinfandel but this one comes up a little short of their usual effort. It was a pretty good pairing with the burger though.

"Not Seghesio's best effort to date"

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

There was no LCBO information on this wine so I'm assuming that Mick picked it up in the US.

The burgers were really good but super spicy – they aren’t called Diablo burger for nothing!

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Mick’s busy in the kitchen – Part 1

Mick and Amy had us over for dinner this past Saturday for our usual Saturday night get together. Mick had a new recipe on tap as well as an old favourite.

For the first course, Mick dove into his cooking Bible, the Weber Cookbook, and found a recipe for Grilled Crab Cakes with a Mango Salsa.

"Crab and Mango?"

Mick picked a 2005 “Les Vénérables” Chablis to pair with the crab cakes.

The nose on the Chablis was a pleasing mix of lilac and orange zest. Tasting the wine you were rewarded with grapefruit, wet stone and a hint of soapiness. The balance on the wine was decent though a touch acidic. It was a good pairing with the food but could be awkward at times if you had a lot of mango and not much red onion or crab cake in your previous mouthful.

"No questioning that this is a French wine!"

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

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

La Chablisienne Vieilles Vignes Chablis

Vintages 942243
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 24.95
Wine, White Wine,
12.6% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: La Chablisienne C/O Bcb Export
Release Date: Dec 5, 2009

Description - Vieilles Vignes, or Old Vines, yield less fruit, but these precious grapes are endowed with a greater concentration of flavours. This intense, consistently excellent Chardonnay presents aromas of sweet apple, chalk and citrus. This is classic Chablis: dry and steely, with a long, crisp finish. It would pair equally well with oysters on the half shell, or pasta with olive oil and crumbled goat cheese.

The crab cakes were quite good but a touch dry at times. The mango salsa with the red onion and cilantro was very good as well. The combination of mango and crab wasn’t perfect though and we discussed options for both. The mango salsa would be an awesome pairing with grilled Salmon and the ladies and I thought that Mick’s Chipotle mayo with the crab cakes would be killer. Mick agreed to try these suggestions in the future and I’m already looking forward to it.

Click here for Part 2

Wine Club Bonus Tasting – Pinot Noir

With the rest of the leftover money we had from our monthly Wine Club meetings we got to do two ‘bonus’ tastings. Last month we looked at dessert wines for the first bonus tasting –

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2009/10/wine-club-bonus-tasting-late-harvest.html

This month we looked at Pinot Noir. I like using Pinot Noir in a bonus tasting vs. in a regular tasting where every member takes home a bottle due to Pinot Noir being such a inconsistent grape. This way if the Pinot isn’t very good, we just lose the cost of the bottle and when you are splitting the cost 11 ways, it is a cheap way to try it.

Here is the LCBO Information (with pictures) on all 3 Pinot Noirs that we tried –

DOMAINE TAUPENOT-MERME GEVREY-CHAMBERTIN 2005

VINTAGES 87023
750 mL bottle
$49.95
Wine, Red Wine,
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Domaine Taupenot-Merme
Release Date: Aug 28, 2009

Description - Gevrey-Chambertin produces some of the most exciting wines in the Côte de Nuits region of the Côte d'Or. It is said that Emperor Napoleon preferred the wines of this region above all others. In a vintage such as 2005, you don't have to be an emperor to appreciate or afford these wines. At every level, from quality village wines such as this to single-vineyard expressions like Domaine de la Vougeraie's Les Evocelles and La Justice (in this release, +088732 and +088740, respectively), spectacular wines were created.

ANDREW RICH CUVÉE B PINOT NOIR 2006

VINTAGES 127043
750 mL bottle
$33.95
Wine, Red Wine,
14.1% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Oregon, United States
By: Andrew Rich Wines
Release Date: Jul 4, 2009

Tasting Note - This wine's fresh woodland berry scent melds with spice mix, sassafras and pink pepper. Its youth doesn't get in the way of its fineness, with ripe fruit pulled into line by fine acidity and the clean grip of fruit tannin. For roast chicken. Score - 92. (Wine & Spirits, Feb. 2009)

WILD ROCK CUPIDS ARROW PINOT NOIR 2007

VINTAGES 61242
750 mL bottle
$24.95
Wine, Red Wine,
14.1% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: New Zealand, New Zealand
By: Kobrand Corporation
Release Date: Aug 1, 2009

Tasting Note - From Craggy Range, the 2007 vintage was harvested at 24 brix [approximately, the percentage of residual sugar in the grapes at harvest] and matured for six months in French oak (15% new). Full of drink-young charm, it's ruby-hued, with strong cherry, plum, spice and herb flavours, a gentle seasoning of oak and ripe, smooth tannins. Score - 3 1/2 Stars (out of 5). (Michael Cooper, Buyer's Guide to New Zealand Wines, 2009)

Here are my tasting notes for each of the wines –

ANDREW RICH CUVÉE B PINOT NOIR 2006

Nose – Fresh Strawberry, White Pepper
Taste – Fresh fruit mix but with a sharp finish

WILD ROCK CUPIDS ARROW PINOT NOIR 2007
Nose – Strawberry Jam and Raspberry
Taste – Very fruit forward, strawberry flavour thoughout with a lovely smooth finish

DOMAINE TAUPENOT-MERME GEVREY-CHAMBERTIN 2005

Nose – Green pepper, Leather, Smoke
Taste – Sour Cherry and pepper.

Trying the wines before the food, the Wild Rock Pinot Noir was easily the crowd favourite; with its fruit forward flavour and smooth lingering finish it was a very approachable wine. We tried the wines again with Lamb Stew and French Bread and this time it was a tie between the Wild Rock and the Domaine Taupenot-Merme Gevrey-Chambertin. I personally found the Wild Rock with the food became a bit jammy whereas the fruit and complexity of the Domaine Taupenot-Merme Gevrey-Chambertin was a nicer pairing.

It was a fun tasting and it is always interesting when the lowest price point wine (the Wild Rock) is the one that everyone is talking about.

We aren’t meeting in December as that is always a busy month but will be starting the new session in January.

Cheers!

Mark

Com-B-Q – Part 4

Click here for Part 1

4th Course – Mick and Amy – Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Mayo with a 2006 Sterling Vineyard “Napa Valley” Chardonnay.

"Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Mayo"

Mick did for the final course sweet potato fries with Chipotle mayo. The sweet potato fries are OK but what really makes this dish stand out if the Chipotle mayo. The Chipotle mayo is so good that if Mick did this recipe years earlier, this Blog might have been called Chipotle mayo instead of Zippy Sauce.

"Standard California Chardonnay"

The Sterling Chardonnay had a big nose of vanilla and lime and those same flavours carried through to the taste. The wine was a bit oaky and was sharp at times with the food pairing. I think the sweetness of the mayo at times was messing with the wine. The best way to describe this wine is infinitely forgettable as it wasn’t particularly good or bad and really didn’t stand out from a lot of other California Chardonnays.

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

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

Sterling Vineyards Chardonnay 2006

Vintages 330233

750 mL bottle

Price: $ 24.95

Wine, White Wine,

13.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : D

Made in: California/Californie, United States

Release Date: Sep 12, 2009

Tasting Note - Scoring highly on the Wow! meter, it also displays some elegant nuances. Brioche, vanilla and smoky on the nose, the fruit gets into high gear by attacking the palate in velvety textured waves with tropical fruit, peach, citrus and green apple to the fore. Incredible balance and a lengthy finish portend a healthy four to five year drinking window. Pair with lobster bisque. This is a Winecurrent.com exceptional value pick. Score - 4 1/2 Stars (out of 5). (Vic Harradine, www.winecurrent.com, May 2, 2009)

The tasting notes made me laugh, especially the “Scoring highly on the Wow! meter” comment. I should send the reviewer a bottle of KJ Chardonnay or Louis Jadot “Bourgogne” - if the Sterling Chardonnay hit the Wow! meter, he will damn near piss himself with excitement over those two wines, particularly when he finds out they are $5-6 bucks cheaper a bottle!

I’d like to thank everyone who spent part of their Saturday making up the dishes for Saturday’s menu. These Com-B-Q’s are always a ton of fun and I’m already looking forward to the next one.

Cheers!

Mark

Com-B-Q – Part 3

3rd Course – Alex and Zdenka – Roasted Red Peppers and Bocchini on Focaccia Bread with a 2007 MacMurray Ranch Pinot Noir.

Alex did up a batch of Focaccia bread topped with roasted red peppers, Bocchini, basil, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. These were all toasted in the oven and created a great course that was flavourful and comforting at the same time.

"Roasted Red Peppers and Bocchini on Focaccia Bread"

The nose on the Pinot was huge strawberry and vanilla that had your mouth watering to try it. Unfortunately the taste experience on this wine wasn’t as good as the nose. It was very tannic and hot with flavours of cherry and raspberry running throughout. It also was a touch sharp on the finish. It wasn’t a bad wine but I think the nose of it just had you expecting so much more from it. It was an OK pairing with the food but I think if you found a less tannic Pinot that was a touch more fruit forward this pairing would be perfect.

"Great Nose"

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick – 85, Mark - 85, Kathy – 87, Amy - 85, Overall – 85.5.

Here is the LCBO information on this wine -

MacMurray Ranch Pinot Noir 2007

Vintages 48207
750 mL bottle

Price: $ 19.95

Wine, Red Wine,

13.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : D

Made in: California/Californie, United States

By: E. & J. Gallo Winery

Release Date: Nov 7, 2009

Tasting Note - Slightly more structured, darker-colored, richer, and muscular is the 2007 Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. It reveals floral notes along with sweet, autumnal vegetation, black cherry, and spice characteristics in its well-made, medium-bodied style. Score - 88. (Robert Parker Jr., www.erobertparker.com, Dec. 2008).

Click here for Part 4

Com-B-Q – Part 2

2nd Course – Mark and Kathy – Almond-Crusted Goat Cheese Salad with Raspberry Dressing with 2006 Mark Molitor Spätlese Riesling.

I did the salad part of the evening and picked an old favourite of mine as my choice - Almond-crusted goat cheese salad with raspberry dressing. This is a great fall/winter recipe as the warm goat cheese wheels on top of the salad make it a very comforting dish

"Almond-Crusted Goat Cheese Salad with Raspberry Dressing"

Here is the link to the recipe –

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Almond-Crusted-Goat-Cheese-Salad-with-Raspberry-Dressing-105335

I make it pretty much as per recipe, except I double the amount of raspberries, as I find I like the flavour the extra fruit adds to the dressing.

"A Solid Riesling"

The aromatic nose of the Mark Molitor contained peach, ripe apple and pineapple aromas. Tasting the wine you quickly noticed the increased sweetness of the Spätlese vs. the earlier Kabinett but the green apple flavour and fresh acidity really helped in balancing the wine out. There was a touch of frizzante in the mouth which also helped take away from the sweetness. It was a good pairing with the salad as that extra sweetness helped the wine in not getting lost against the sweetness of the dressing.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 90, Mark - 89, Kathy – 89, Amy - 87, Overall – 88.75.

Here is the LCBO Information for the wine –

Markus Molitor Riesling Spätlese 2006

Vintages 101949
750 mL bottle

Price: $ 33.00

Wine, White Wine,

11.0% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : MS

Made in: Moselle/Saar/Ruwer, Germany

By: Markus Molitor Vineyards

Release Date: Aug 29, 2009

Description - TASTING NOTE: Aromas of violet, apricot and smoke segue into tropical fruit and ripe apple flavors. This is rich and open-textured, yet well-balanced and even crisp on the finish. Drink now through 2020. Score - 91. (Bruce Sanderson, www.winespectator.com, April 30, 2008)

I liked the wine but the $33 price point on this would have me looking at other Spätlese Rieslings instead.

Click here for Part 3

Com-B-Q – Part 1

We hadn’t done a Com-B-Q in awhile so last Saturday night we got together with 3 other couples for dinner. A Com-B-Q is a where each couple brings an appetizer sized course and a wine to pair with it.

1st Course - Steve and Melanie – Jalapeno Soup with 2007 Lingenfelder Kabinett Riesling

"The production line"

Melanie did up a pot of Jalapeno soup for her course. The soup strangely enough wasn’t as spicy as it sounded but did have a very nice flavour to it. It kind of reminded me of a chowder in its consistency.

"Jalapeno Soup"

The wine choice was amusing as they brought two bottles to go with soup but both were room temperature. I thought the label looked familiar and sure enough I had a bottle of it in the wine fridge already chilled so we use that one instead and put one of the remaining bottle in the freezer until we were ready for refills.

"New wine for the Top Ten Whites"

The nose on this wine was very inviting with lime, wet stone, lychee and a hint of petrol. Tasting the wine brought a smile to my face as it was nicely balanced with crisp acidity that quickly cut through the off dry sweetness of this Kabinett styled Riesling. There was a kiwi flavour that dominated the wine and the finish lingered in a good way. It was a stunning match with the soup and both bottles were quickly emptied.

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 88, Mark - 90, Kathy – 90, Amy - 89, Overall – 89.25.

The Overall 89.25 rating sneaks this wine into the Top Ten Whites group here on Zippy Sauce which this wine deserves.

Here is the LCBO information for this wine –

Lingenfelder Riesling Kabinett 2007

Vintages 87593
750 mL bottle

Price: $ 18.95

Wine, White Wine,

10.0% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : MD

Made in: Palatinate (Falz), Germany

By: Lingenfelder Estate

Release Date: Oct 24, 2009

Tasting Note - This '07 Kabinett displays lovely aromas of pear, pink grapefruit, citrus pulp, melon and mineral notes. Medium dry with a medium-plus body, this developing Riesling has good flavour intensity and well-balanced acidity. The mineral-packed finish is quite lengthy. Perfect with sushi or spicy Asian noodles. (VINTAGES panel, Sept. 2008).

I had forgotten how much I’d paid for this wine and when I looked it up was surprised by its $19 price point as I would have guessed this wine was in the $25-30 range by taste. The LCBO has good stock on this wine and if you like Riesling, I’d strongly recommend you pick up a couple of bottles.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night – Trick or Treat - Part 3

Click here for Part 1

For dessert Mick picked up a favourite dessert of ours which is a chocolate cake that we call Cab. cake as it pairs very well with Cabernet Sauvignon. Mick opened a bottle of 2001 Caravina Cabernet Sauvignon.

"Cab Cake"

The nose on this wine was so faint it was barely noticeable but you could make out some coffee and cocoa. Thankfully the wine itself was much bigger than nose and was a full bodied Cab. with high tannin. Big flavours of cassis and black pepper were there throughout. It worked very nicely with the Cab. cake.

"No Nose"

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

The LCBO had no listing for the wine. Either they have stopped carrying it or this was a bottle Mick picked up in the US. I did a quick Internet search and found a listing for the 2001 Caravina at $65 US. If that price point is accurate, there are much better Cabernets out there for less money. Mick, if you have any information on this wine, please comment.

It was fun to try some new wines but tonight I will say that the food far outshined the wines as all of it was excellent. Thanks Mick.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Trick or Treat - Part 2

For the main course, Mick did NY Strips with Zippy sauce and a side of grilled sweet potatoes with chipotle mayo. To pair with this Mick pick a 2003 Ridgeline “Alexander Valley” Cabernet Sauvignon.

"Zippy"

Nose was a pleasing mixture of green pepper, pine, smoke, leather, black pepper and strawberry. The was nicely balanced but it was lacking in fruit, acid and had super soft tannin. The wine could best be described as Cab. light. It was good but missing the fullness you’d expect from a California Cabernet. It was a decent pairing with the meal.

"Cab Light"

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

"Great Steaks"

Here is LCBO information on the wine –

Ridgeline Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Vintages 54072
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 34.15
Wine, Red Wine,
14.7% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California/Californie, United States
By: Ridgeline Vineyards
Release Date: May 23, 2009

Description - Ridgeline Vineyards is a new boutique project by the famous Spanish wine company Codorníu. Ridgeline's winemaker Dave Dobson also crafts the wine for Codorníu's other Californian outfit, Artesa Winery. This perfectly poised and supple Cab is brimming with black cherries, redcurrants, and sweet oak aromas and flavours. This mouth-filling and tasty wine is beautifully balanced by fine tannins. It will drink well over the next 5-7 years.

* Note – the wine the LCBO listed here is a 2004 and not the 2003 we reviewed. I’m not even sure if this is the right wine but it was the only listing for Ridgeline that the LCBO had. Mick - if you remember where you got it and how much you paid, please add it to the comments.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Trick or Treat - Part 1

Mick and Amy had Kathy and I over for our usual Saturday get together. The dinner start time was pushed back as it was Halloween. So once we finished handing out treats to the kids we got have some treats of our own.

The first course was blacken scallops on tortillas with guacamole and corn relish. These little morsels of happiness are a definite favourite. Mick picked a 2008 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc to pair with them.

"Betcha can't eat just one!"

There was no mistaking this wine for anything but Sauvignon Blanc by its aromatic nose of cut grass, gooseberry and cat’s pee with some grapefruit and nectarine lingering in the background. The main flavour to this wine was yellow grapefruit. It became sharp when paired with the food, I suspect the sweetness of the corn was throwing this wine for a loop. The one things that was neat about the food and wine pairing, is even though it was sharp to start, its finish developed a beautiful and lingering walnut flavour.

"As good as earlier versions?"

Here is the group rating for the wine – Mick - 90, Mark - 86, Kathy – 86, Amy - 86, Overall – 87.

Here is LCBO information on the wine -

Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc (V)
Vintages 35386
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, White Wine,
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: New Zealand, New Zealand
By: Constellation Wines Nz
Release Date: Oct 10, 2009

DescriptionVintage after vintage, the world-renowned Kim Crawford displays his winemaking prowess with Sauvignon Blanc. The 2007 and 2008 vintages each received 91 points from Wine Spectator! This lively wine exhibits aromas such as gooseberry, passion fruit, grass, nettle, mineral, and citrus. Tantalizing with steamed mussels, or monkfish with tomato and fresh herbs.

Click here for Part 2

Dreams

Last night I had an extremely erotic dream. The dream started off with me in the kitchen making out with two of the most beautiful women I have ever seen (other than my lovely wife of course!). After a bit, clothing was rapidly being discarded and the party was moving upstairs to the bedroom. I remember grabbing an opener and a bottle of Pinot Noir as I left the kitchen and following the two partially clad vixens upstairs.

The next two hours (yes hours, not minutes!) were filled with so much lust, depravity and debauchery that Caligula would have been proud. The dream was so incredibly real and vivid it was amazing.

When I awoke this morning, my first thought was, “Pinot?!?! What the hell was I thinking?” First off, my better half would have killed me if I spilled red wine on the carpet or the sheets (never mind the two strange naked women in the bedroom) and second, Champagne, Cava or another sparkling white wine would have been much more appropriate than Pinot Noir in that situation…

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Marka Stewart - Part 2

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I had a huge beef craving and picked up four filets from our local butcher. I was surprised at the beef tenderloin selection as there were only two sizes – tiny and massive. Well, I did say that I had a huge beef craving so I ended up picking 4 of the biggest damn beef tenderloins I’d ever seen.

"Still drooling over how good this was!"

To give you an idea of the size of them, for normal sized beef tenderloin, I grill them for 10 minutes over very high heat and tent them for 4 minutes for perfect medium-rare. These ones I grilled for 21 minutes and tented them for 6 minutes to get that dead on medium-rare. The filets were topped with lobster meat, grilled shrimp, sugar snap peas and Béarnaise sauce. I also did some baby potatoes on the side.

"A new entry for the Top Ten Reds!"

Wine wise, I was in the mood for a premium Cabernet Sauvignon that I hadn’t tried before and selected a 1999 Beringer Private Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. I picked this wine up in NY state on special for $79.00 US (regular price was $99 US or about $125-150 CDN after duty and taxes).

"Oooo, I love Turtles!"

With this wine you needed less then 1 second of nosing it to tell it was a California Cab. The nose was a delightful combination of leather, smoke, cassis, blueberry and loam. The wine was a medium bodied, exceptionally balanced with very fine tannin. Black current and mild cherry were the two main flavours to the wine. This was not an overly complex wine but as Mick described it “It is what it is, but it’s really good at what it is…” which sums up this wine perfectly. It was stunning pairing with the meal.

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

The 91.25 rating puts this wine firmly in the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Reds list.

Small side note - If I struck out with the carrot soup, I hit it out of the park with the main course as there were clean plates all round and the beef was just too good for words.

We finished off the evening with a Turtle ice cream cake but didn’t pair this with wine. It looks like next Saturday where Mick and Amy are busy so there maybe another lull in the blog for a week or so.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Marka Stewart - Part 1

It was a cool New England day (in Southern Ontario), the sun was shining yet a crisp and cool north wind was blowing. The leaves on the trees were changing to vibrate yellows, oranges and reds. The table was immaculately set for four and I was attending to last minute details of dinner and I could almost hear Martha Steward in the background as I was chopping the chives to garnish the carrot soup saying “It’s a good thing”.

"At least it looks good!"

Mick and Amy were over for our should be usual but due to scheduling conflicts is now unusual Saturday dinner. It has been awhile since the four of us have gotten together and it was good to be back in saddle/kitchen again.

I picked a couple of old favourites for the courses but paired them with wines I hadn’t tried before.

The first course was carrot soup with fire roasted chilies which is a huge favourite of both Amy and my wife. Carrot soup means one thing – Zinfandel. I grabbed a bottle of Scott Harvey Zinfandel off the rack to accompany the soup.

"Nice nose... sorry about the rest of the wine"

I’d picked this up about a month ago. It was $23 and it was a California Zinfandel from a winery that I’d never heard of before.

The nose on the wine was very aromatic, my nose was a good foot and half away from the bottle and I could pick up raspberry, pepper and coffee from it. Unfortunately the taste was no where near as nice as the nose as it had a thin mouth feel with a sharp finish with predominate flavours of sour cherry and pepper. The wine was an OK match with the soup at best.

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

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

Scott Harvey Mountain Selection Zinfandel 2006

Vintages 118752
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 22.95
Wine, Red Wine,
14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: California/Californie, United States
By: Creative Wine Concepts
Release Date: Jun 20, 2009

Tasting Note - Deep ruby color. Salty roasted nuts, pepper, and blackberry aromas follow through on a supple entry to a dryish medium body with tangy fruity, vanilla bean notes and fine powdery fruit tannins. A nicely structured, claret styled zin for the table. Score - 90. (Tasting panel, www.tastings.com, Feb. 2, 2009)

The other disappointment for the night was the soup. This is going to sound odd describing a carrot soup but the carrot flavour was too strong. Usually this soup with the green chilies and onions in it has got a wide range of flavour but for some reason all this soup had was a super strong carrot flavour. I went over every ingredient in my head and the only thing that made sense is the carrot looked a little past their prime.

Thankfully the next course was better.

Click here for Part 2

Wine Club Bonus Tasting – Late Harvest Wines

We finished our 4th session of Wine Club last month but had a $300 surplus so we are using that money to do a couple of bonus tastings. The format of Wine Club is as follows, each member agrees to sign on for a 6 month session at $25 at month. We meet once month and I buy a case of wine and usually one comparison bottle for the monthly meeting. There 11 of us so everyone gets a take home bottle from the case and we split the 12th bottle and try it and the comparison bottle at the monthly tasting. The wines usually range in price from $13-25 a bottle.

The bonus tastings are a slightly different format as there is no take home bottle. The advantage to this is we can look at some higher price point wines. Next month we are trying 3 bottles of Pinot Noir and have $200 to spend on them.

This month we did a bonus tasting on Late Harvest Wines. I not a huge fan of Canadian wines but one of the items Canada and the Niagara region do very well is dessert or ice wines. Generally I find Ice Wines too sweet and syrupy for my taste but really enjoy their less sweet and much less expensive cousins – Late Harvest wines. Usually I go with a Late Harvest Vidal or Riesling as my grape of choice for these wines but Adam picked up a Late Harvest Cabernet Franc/Cabernet Sauvignon blend and a Late Harvest Pinot Gris for the tasting. Erik’s wife works at Fielding and he was nice enough to bring in some Late Harvest Gewürztraminer for us to try as well.

Here is a detailed listing of all the wines we tried –

Angels Gate Winery – 2007 Snow Angel Late Harvest Cabernet (51% Cab.Franc/49% Cab. Sauvignon), 750 mL bottle, $23.95.

Creekside Estate Winery – 2007 Select Late Harvest Pinot Gris, 375mL bottle, $23.95

Fielding Estate Winery – 2006 Gewürztraminer Late Harvest, 375mL, $28.95

Tracey brought in apple crisp to go with the wines.

The Angels Gate Snow Angel had the mildest nose of the three with aromas of strawberry and canned fruit. The strawberry nose carried through to the taste as well. This wine was at a bit of a disadvantage to the other two as it wasn’t as sweet and therefore didn’t pair as nicely as the other two did. On the upside, this wine was half or less than half the price of the other two wines and for that price point this wine was really good value for money.

The Creekside Pinot Gris has an moderately aromatic nose with a pleasing combination of nectarine and white pepper. Where this wine shined was the taste and the pairing with the apple crisp. The lively acidity balanced the sweetness of the wine just beautifully with a lovely flavour of apricot throughout. It was a perfect pairing with the apple crisp.

The Fielding Gewürztraminer had an absolutely incredible nose, big, powerful notes of apricot, lychee, clove, honey and some subtle floral notes in the background. The taste and structure of the wine wasn’t as nice as the Pinot Gris and I found that grapefruit seemed to be the dominate flavour to the wine. The grapefruit and apple combination of the wine and the apple crisp was ok but not amazing.

I’d like to thank Adam, Erik, and Tracey for their help in making this a great tasting and I’m already looking forward to next month’s tasting.

Cheers!

Mark

Zippy Sauce is now up to 6 readers!

I noticed that my latest blog entry had a comment on it…

http://zippysauce.blogspot.com/2009/09/saturday-night-down-under-part-2.html

I’ll be honest and thought it was a glitch as I usually don’t get much feedback on the blog but to my surprise it was a honest to goodness user comment –

dotfret said...

I love your honest approach to wine, and the way it complements food. There's a few things I have issues with in your writing - yeh, it's all geographical, and you can't help it.
So - a lot of dishes are better served with cider, especially spicy dishes. This side of the pond, you can serve a Vin d'Alsace as an alternative, but your wallet would heave at the extra expense over there (LOL it's bad enough here).
Concha y Toro are selling good Chilean alternatives to those Alsacienne wines - take a look.
But also look at good cider. Would I lie?

Thank you Internets, that bring my official readership up to 6 now :)

I hadn’t realized that my writing was as geographical as it was. The article that dotfret commented on contains references to both Tim Hortons (Donut/Coffee shop that is a Cdn. staple) and the LCBO (evil Ontario government liquor/wine monopoly), short of ending each sentence with an “Eh?” and making a hockey reference I guess it doesn’t get much more Canadian than that, eh?

We do get Strong Bow cider at the LCBO and I have enjoyed it with a spicy dish or two but just haven’t blogged about it as Zippy Sauce is a Food and Wine blog; I do however 100% agree with you that Cider and spicy food is an excellent pairing.

I did a search on the LCBO and the only Concha y Toro they had as a match is

Concha y Toro Winemaker's Lot No.11 Riesling 2007

Vintages 93922
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 14.95
Wine, White Wine,
14.4% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Chile, Chile
By: Concha Toro S.A.
Release Date: Jul 4, 2009

Tasting Note - An excellent value, this refreshing, single-vineyard Riesling is from Chile's cool Bio Bio Valley. Pretty peach and citrus fruit aromas and flavours are backed by vibrant acidity, making this a delightful wine to sip on the cottage deck all summer long or serve it alongside your catch of the day, pan fried with lemon and herbs. (VINTAGES panel, May 2008)

I will pick up a bottle and give it a try. Thanks for the tip dotfret… I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a Chilean Riesling.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Down Under – Part 2

Click here for Part 1

The main course was sliced NY strips with baby potatoes, corn, tomatoes and arugula paired with a 2003 Yalumba “Barossa” Shiraz/Viognier.

"Seriously dark cork"

I was stunned at how dark the cork was upon opening the black, as it was such a deep purple hue that it was almost black.

"Great dish but never looks great in pictures"

The nose on the wine was described by Mick as “Tim Hortons splattered with blackberries” (No one will ever mistake Mick for being Robert Parker). As funny as that description is, it was also accurate as coffee and blackberry were the two dominate aromas with eucalyptus and black pepper in the background.

"Tim Hortons splattered in blackberries... sigh"

Tasting the wine you got a medium bodied red that was very direct and not too complicated. The acidity of this wine was a touch off and got much more noticeable with the food. I suspect that the sweetness of the fresh corn was causing this sharpness to occur.

"Mmmm...cake!"

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick - 87, Mark - 85, Kathy – 91, Amy - 87, Overall – 87.5

Here is the LCBO information -

06 YALUMBA BAROSSA SHIRAZ/VIOGNIER

Vintages 524926
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95

Wine, Red Wine,

14.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : 1

Made in: South Australia, Australia

By: Negociants International

Release Date: N/A

*Note this LCBO listing is for the 2006 version and not the 2003 version reviewed.

A quick side note about the main course, I really like this dish as the only spice in it is salt and pepper but all the different ingredients really make a great flavour combination.

For dessert we had a Truffle Royale cake but we didn’t pair this with wine.

It was nice getting back to a normal Saturday night, unfortunately next week we all have plans so the Blog might be quiet for a bit.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday night – Down Under – Part 1

We got together with our long lost friends, Mick and Amy, for dinner this Saturday (OK, it hasn’t been that long since our last Saturday night dinner, but it seems like it!).

I went with a couple of old favourites for the food selections – Caesar salad to start and sliced NY strips with baby potatoes, corn, tomatoes and arugula as the main course.

"Home-made Croutons!"

For the wine, I went with a region I usually don’t venture into too often – Australia and picked two Australian wines to pair with the food.

To go with the Caesar salad, I opened a bottle of 2005 Evans and Tate “Margaret River” Chardonnay.

"A decent $20 wine"

The nose on the wine was a very aromatic combination of vanilla, pineapple and butter. I loved the nose on this wine and Mick’s comment was if he didn’t already know that it was Australian, he’d have guessed by the nose that it was Californian. Tasting the wine was disappointing compare to the nose. It had a very narrow mouth feel and the acidity made the wine seem a bit sharp. You got an initial hint of vanilla to start and then the wine was dominated by a lime flavour. It was an OK pairing with Caesar, but it was much better on its own. To be fair the Caesar salad did have a lot of lemon in it and I find there are some Chardonnay’s that match up beautifully with lemon and other do not; this one didn’t like lemon. This wine would make a lovely pairing with a salmon dish in a butter sauce as the fat from both the salmon and the butter would neutralize the acidity.

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

Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

EVANS & TATE CHARDONNAY 2006

Vintages 677765
750 mL bottle

Price: $ 19.95

Wine, White Wine,

13.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : D

Made in: West Australia, Australia

By: Evans & Tate

Release Date: May 23, 2009

Tasting Note - Well-made; nectarine and melon fruit complexed by carefully controlled barrel fermentation and other winemaker inputs; good mouthfeel and weight. Screwcap. Drink [until] 2011. Score - 92. (James Halliday, www.winecompanion.com.au, March 2007)

*Note – this wine is the 2006 and not the 2005 reviewed in this Blog.

I thought this wine was pricier than its $20 price point as it was purchased over a year ago and swore it was in the $35 range. At a $35 price point I wouldn’t be picking up another bottle but at a $20 price point it is a solid wine for that money.

Click here for Part 2

Wine Club – September – Vranac

Wine Club met this past Thursday to try two wines made from the Vranac grape. Vranac is a grape that is native to the Baltic region. Both of the wines we tried were from Montenegro and were from the Plantaze winery. The Pro Corde Reserve made from just Vranac whereas the Perla Nera was made from a blend of Vranac and Syrah.

Here is the LCBO Information on both -

PLANTAZE PRO CORDE RESERVE VRANAC 2006

Stock Number – 972976
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 15.95
Wine, Red Wine,
12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: Montenegro, Montenegro
By: Dd Plantaze
Release Date: May 23, 2009

Tasting Note - Vranac is a specialty in Montenegro. DNA analysis has uncovered that it is a close cousin to Primitivo/Zinfandel. It shares with that variety the deep colour and rich fruit flavours. It responds extremely well to oak ageing, creating wines of even more intensity and dimension. Cellar this one 1-3 years or enjoy it with game bird, slow-cooked roasts or barbecued meats.

PLANTAZE PERLA NERA 2005

Price: $ 11.95
Wine, Red Wine,
12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Made in: Montenegro, Montenegro
By: Dd Plantaze
Release Date: May 23, 2009

Tasting notes – Montenegro is a little bit off the beaten track for some wine lovers, but, with a viticultural history that dates back to the second century B.C., it is a country well worth discovering. This medium full-bodied gem is a blend of Negroamaro (best known in the wines of southern Italy), the local variety Vranac, and the international superstar Syrah. Deep, dark and delicious, this round and approachable wine displays rich black fruit and exotic spicy notes.

Pouring out both wines I was amazed how dark these wines were, the Pro Corde Reserve was a deep purple-red that was almost opaque; the Perla Nera’s colour was the same but the colour depth was less.

Nosing both wines, the Pro Corde Reserve’s was slightly more aromatic of the two. The Pro Corde Reserve has aromas of dark berry and tar. The Perla Nera had an earthy and white pepper aroma to it.

Tasting the Pro Corde Reserve I was surprise to find it more of a meduim bodied wine; by the colour and aromas I was expecting it to be much more full bodied. The dark berry nose carried over to the flavour profile as well. The structure of the wine with its subtle tannin gave the wine a very narrow mouth-feel.

The Perla Nera was disappointing on the tasting. There was a metalic quality to the wine which overpowered anything else the wine had to offer.

Harold was nice enough to bring in a selection of cheese and crackers and Dorie did a soy sauce, garlic, olive oil and rosemary goat cheese dish as well. The Pro Corde Reserve went nicely with all of the cheeses. The Perla Nera was OK with everything but the metalic taste was still present.

All of Wine Club was overjoyed that the take home bottle was the Pro Corde Reserve and not the Perla Nera.

I liked the Pro Corde Reserve but at its $16 price point there are other wines that are better value for money.

Cheers!

Mark

Sunday Night – A little of this and a little of that

You may have noticed that the Blog has be a tad quite recently, this is due to Mick, Amy, Kathy and my Saturday schedules being busier than usual. No Saturday night dinners means no Blog articles. This past Saturday Mick and Amy had plans so we didn’t get together. Sunday afternoon I got a call from Mick asking what we were doing for dinner and the four of us decided to get together for an impromptu dinner.

"New recipe"

Saturday night I tried a new recipe for a chorizo sausage and shrimp soup. There was a quite a bit leftover so that was my course for the Sunday dinner. Mick did up some chicken enchiladas as his course.

One of the reasons I did the soup up in the first place was the suggested wine pairing was Rioja. I’ve been on a Rioja kick recently and find when I try a new style of wine I like to try as many of them as possible.

"Good but very filling"

I had a bottle of 2004 Baron de Ley Rioja that I’d never tried before and picked it as the pairing for the night.

"More Rioja"

The nose was quite aromatic with notes of cocoa, leather, earth, clove and some very faint strawberry in the background. The structure of the wine was OK but the acidity was a touch high which made the wine seem tart. The main flavour of the Baron de Ley was sour cherry with vegetal undertones. It was a decent pairing with the soup and an OK pairing with the enchiladas.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick - 87, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy - 86, Overall – 87.25

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

BARÓN DE LEY RESERVA 2004

Vintages 958868
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 21.95
Wine, Red Wine,
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Rioja, Spain
By: Baron De Ley
Release Date: May 23, 2009

Tasting Note - A classy, traditionally made Rioja -- 100% Tempranillo, 20 months in American oak, plus 24 months in bottle before release. It shows pretty aromas of blackberry, fig, raisin, and cedar. In the mouth, it's dry, medium-bodied with well-typed fruit flavours balanced by silky tannins, and completing the picture is a pleasing medium-long finish. Delicious with chorizo sausage, lamb skewers, or a selection of hard cheeses. (VINTAGES panel, Sept. 2008)

Cheers!

Mark

August Wine Club - Albariño

Wine Club met last Thurday and we took a look at two Albarinos from Spain. If you are unfamiliar with Albariños here is a quick explantion -

Albariño (grape)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Albariño or Alvarinho (Portuguese) is a variety of white wine grape grown in Galicia (northwest Spain) and Monção (northwest Portugal), where it is used to make varietal white wines.

Albariño is actually the Galician name for the grape, with Albarín Blanco an occasional synonym. In Portugal it is known as Alvarinho, and sometimes as Cainho Branco.

It was presumably brought to Iberia by Cluny monks in the twelfth century. Its name "Alba-Riño" means "the white from Rhine" and it has locally been thought to be a Riesling clone originating from the Alsace region of France, although earliest known records of Riesling as a grape variety date from the 15th, rather than the 12th, century. It is also theorized that the grape is a close relative of the French grape Petit Manseng.


It should not be confused with the Alvarinho Liláz grape of Madeira.

Wine characteristics

The grape is noted for its distinctive aroma, very similar to that of Viognier, Gewurztraminer, and Petit Manseng, suggesting apricot and peach. The wine produced is unusually light, and generally high in acidity with alcohol levels of 11.5-12.5%. Its thick skins and large number of pips can cause residual bitterness.

"The take home bottle"

Here is the LCBO information on both of the wines -

LÍCIA ALBARIÑO 2007
Stock Number – 114397
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, White Wine,
12.1% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Spain, Spain
By: Winebow Inc.
Release Date: May 2, 2009

Tasting Note - Spain's Riaxas Baixas region is known for its Albariño. This charming dry white wine comes in a pretty yellow dress just perfect for a twirl. A sip exudes aromas of fresh green apples with intriguing minerality. The lemony acidity strikes a melodious chord when paired with grilled octopus sprinkled with fresh-squeezed lemon juice, or seared tuna topped with piquillo peppers (small, slightly hot variety from Spain) and drizzled with balsamic. (Maureen C. Petrosky, www.fineliving.com, Undated)

"The comparison bottle"

2005 ALBARINO RIAS BAIXAS (FILLABOA)

Stock Number - 40204
Price: $ 28.75
Wine, White Wine,
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Made in: Spain, Spain
By: Bodegas Fillaboa
Release Date: N/A

Tasting notes – None

"Lemon Chicken"

I poured the Fillaboa Albariño first and was a little nervous at first as the colour was very dark for a white wine (almost amber). Nosing it, I got peach, apple and some lemon but nothing to indicate it was off. I poured the Lícia and it was a much lighter colour (more a pale straw hue). The nose on the Lícia was very close to the Fillaboa but there was more apple than peach and the lemon note was very faint on the Lícia. In tasting both wines we found both very similar; highly acidic with lemon being the predominant flavour. The main difference between the two was the softer acidity of the Fillaboa.

"Notice on the colour of the Fillaboa on the right"

I’ll be honest here and say that on their own, I wasn’t a huge fan of either wine as the acidity for both was over the top. As food pairings, Erik prepared cheese & crackers and a pot of lemon chicken. The wines were much better with the cheese then on their own; they were really good with the Gouda and decent with the Blue Cheese. The best match though was the lemon chicken as it did a very good job of neutralizing the acid of the wine and made both wines much more fruit forward and accessible.

"Another angle with the Fillaboa still on the right"

The preference between the Fillaboa and Lícia was split about 50/50 between Wine Club members. But when I asked if they’d be willing to pay $9 more for the Fillaboa, no one thought it was worth the extra money.

With lemon being a dominate flavour of both of the Albariños, I can easily see why in the LCBO Lícia tasting note they are recommending a couple of seafood dishes. Lemon and seafood is always a nice combination.

It was fun to try a new grape and I’d like to thank Erik for bringing in the food as it was delicious.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Blackout Dinner – Part 3

Click here for Part 1

For dessert, Amy was following my wife’s creed when it comes to dessert – if one is good, then two is better. Amy had picked up an orange Creamsicle cake and a chocolate base cream cake as well. These were paired with a Henry of Pelham 2006 Late Harvest Vidal.

"I'll have both"

The nose on the Late Harvest was lychee, peach, nectarine and honey. Tasting the wine you got orange and apple as the main flavours. The acidity on this wine was the perfect level to cut through the sweetness. It was a very good pairing with both desserts though slightly better with the orange one. This was one of the better years for the Henry of Pelham Late Harvest Vidal and all of us made a note to get more of it.

"Almost as good as the 1995 vintage"

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick - 91, Mark - 91, Kathy – 90, Amy - 91, Overall – 90.75

Here is the LCBO information on the wine -

HENRY OF PELHAM L H VIDAL VQA

LCBO 395228
375 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, Dessert Wine,
10.8% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 16
This is a VQA wine
Made in: Ontario, Canada
By: Henry Of Pelham Family Est. Winery

Tasting Note - Bright yellow gold colour; aromas of honey, ripe peach, fig and apricot; sweet with ripe fruit flavour; well-balanced by crisp lemon acidity; rich and luscious without being too cloying.

Serving Suggestion - Serve chilled, a good introduction to dessert wines; fruit flan.

Note – This is probably the 2007 as the alcohol is listed at 10.8% and the 2006 is 9.5%

This evening was very good as the caliber of wine this evening were absolutely first rate. Thanks to Mick for his elite BBQ skills and Amy for the photos for the evening. I’m already looking forward to next year’s “Blackout Dinner”.

Cheers!

Mark