250 posts later…

This post marks the 250th article on the Zippy Sauce blog. Last week I was playing around with Blogspot’s new templates and gave the site a new look.

I removed the Robert Parker Wine of the Day gadget as most of the wines listed on it aren’t available at the LCBO and it added a cluttered look to the blog that I wasn’t keen on.

I added a new Comments gadget that lists the last three comments posted (bottom right hand side). I noticed that a couple of my posts had spam comments which I have deleted. This gadget will hopefully keep me on top of any spam. It will also be nice to display any new comments posted from my 4 or 5 loyal readers of this blog as well.

A Google search gadget has also been added (top right hand side). Mick complains to me all the time for not putting years down when I listed a wine in the Zippy Sauce wine list. Now he can search by wine + year and find what he is looking for. It is also useful to find meals that we have had as there wasn’t an easy way to do this until now.

Hopefully you all enjoy the new look and the new gadgets… one day, I'll take care of the spelling mistakes and grammar too, but don’t hold your breathe!

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Inexpensive Wines – Part 2

Click here for Part 1

The 2008 Baron Philippe de Rothschild Cabernet Sauvignon was the other wine on tap for the evening.

"Fresh corn... I love this time of year!"

The nose on it was very mild but there was some lead pencil, green pepper and eucalyptus aromas happening. The wine had a sour cherry and mint flavour to it. Structure to the wine was a little off as the tannins were harsh and the acidity was low. This wine was a good pairing with the Carpaccio as the rare meat neutralized the tannin nicely and brought more fruit to the forefront. It wasn’t that good with the main course as the sweetness of the corn was just killing this wine.

"Pardon? $15 French Cab?"

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 83, Mark – 85, Kathy – 83, Amy – 84, Overall – 83.75.

I couldn’t find a LCBO listing for this wine which probably means it has sold out completely. I do know that it was listed at $15 a bottle.

For a $15 Cabernet Sauvignon this wasn’t a bad wine. Personally I’d be tempted to spend a couple of bucks more and get something from California or Chile in the $18 range as you will get a much better wine.

We finished the evening with a store bought chocolate cake which I didn’t try as I was too full at that point. The ladies mentioned that both wines were pretty good with the rich chocolate cake.

It was fun to try a couple of new wines and while they didn’t light me up like a Christmas tree they weren’t half bad.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Inexpensive Wines – Part 1

Last week my wife, Kathy, received two different red wines from friends who appreciate finding good deals on wine. The first was a 2009 McGuigan Black Label Shiraz (LCBO $9.95) and the second was a 2008 Baron Philippe de Rothschild Cabernet Sauvignon (LBCO $15). She asked me to do a dish or two to pair with the wines so we could try them.

"Beef Carpaccio"

I did a Beef Carpaccio as the starter and Beef, Baby Potatoes, Tomato, Arugula mixed with fresh Corn as the main course.

"Scenic view"

We’ll take a look at the Shiraz to start.

The nose on the Shiraz was a mix of Crème Brûlée, dirt, vanilla and pepper. Tasting the wine you get an almost syrupy taste with lots of fruit but very little acidity or tannin. The structure on this wine is completely out of whack due to the afore mentioned lack of acidity and tannin. It was very awkward with the Carpaccio but an OK pairing with the main course.

"$10?"

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 84, Mark – 80, Kathy – 86, Amy – 85, Overall – 83.75.

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

MCGUIGAN BLACK LABEL SHIRAZ

LCBO 325787
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 9.95
Wine, Red Wine
12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: South Australia, Australia
By: Australian Vintage Ltd.

Tasting Note - Black cherry red colour; jammy berry fruit aroma, touch of mint; ripe sweet berry fruit hints of spice; light to medium bodied; dry with soft finish

Serving Suggestion -Grilled meats; roasts; stews

I wasn’t a huge fan of this wine but Mick and Amy had this wine earlier in the week and said it was a nice pairing with pizza. For the $10 price it was drinkable and if you were looking for a cheap middle of the week wine this might be what you are looking for.

Click here for Part 2

June Wine Club – Zinfandel

I picked up two Zinfandels for Wine Club at the Premier Group in NY State on my vacation. I bought a case of 2008 Sobon Hillside Zinfandel and a single bottle of 2007 Four Vines Zinfandel. The Sobon was to be the ‘take home’ bottle for Wine Club and the Four Vines was just for the tasting as a comparison bottle.

The 2008 Sobon Hillside Zinfandel was on special for $12.99 US a bottle (about $21 or so CDN after duty, taxes and exchange) and the 2007 Four Vines was $11.99 US a bottle.

As I poured out both wines it was like a fruit explosion; fresh strawberry aroma for the Sobon and blueberry for the Four Vines. As the wine sat for a few minutes, the strawberry aroma for the Sobon shifted and raspberry was more noticeable. Both wines also had an eucalyptus aroma to them as well.

I tasted the Four Vines first and found it very fruit forward and easy drinking but noticed that the tannin and the acidity seemed very low. The Sobon wasn’t as fruit forward but the acidity and tannin in this one was much more apparent. Tasting both wines before having any food, the crowd favourite was the Four Vines by a wide margin.

Kim, one of our Wine Club members, brought in homemade gnocchi with spicy meat sauce and some baguettes to also go with the meat sauce. Both the gnocchi and meat sauce were fabulous.

Trying the wines again with the food, things got very interesting. The earlier fruit forward/easy drinking of the Four Vines, didn’t do so well against the food; it seemed to get lost against the richness of the sauce. The Sobon Hillside on the other hand, got much better as the tannins softened with the food and the wine became much more approachable. The Sobon really seemed to pop/come alive with the food.

If I wanted a Zinfandel to sit around and drink on a nice sunny afternoon, I go with the Four Vines. If it was an afternoon BBQ with some wings and ribs slathered in BBQ sauce, I certainly be picking the Sobon.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – COM-B-Q Light

We usually do a COM-B-Q with four couples and this one we did with three couples, hence the "light". Mick and Amy were one of the two visiting couples and Chris and his fiancé Jan were the other couple. I was excited about the dinner as this gave us a chance to meet Jan before the wedding, we had tried earlier in the year to do this but unfortunately Jan was ill so it ended up being just Chris attending that dinner.

"Amy's plate"

"Some Tomato with that Feta"

"Way too long since we last had this wine!"

The menu for the evening was as follows –

Mark and Kathy – Hummus with Pita + Tomato and Feta Salad paired with a 2007 d’Arenberg Viognier.

Mick and Amy – Grilled Prosciutto wrapped Shrimp paired with a 2006 Hogue Riesling

Chris and Jan – Grilled Beef and Vegetable Skewers paired with a 2005 Durbanville Hills Shiraz

Dessert – Raspberry Mango Cheesecake paired with a 2005 Perrin & Fils Muscat Beaumes de Venise

"Spicy but very good"

Some quick notes about the wines -

The d’Arenberg Viognier was the deciding factor in the food choice as I found a couple bottles on the rack a few weeks ago and hadn’t had this in awhile and decided to base my food pairing on the wine vs. the other way round. This wine is really fun to have with hummus as the wine on its own is very dry and somewhat sharp but pair it with hummus and it becomes a very fruit forward and soft wine.

"Nice pairing with the shrimp"

The Hogue Riesling caught me a touch off guard as it was on the drier side; I have gotten too used to Kabinett Riesling and their off dry style. Once I adjusted my preconceived notions I found that I enjoyed this wine with the shrimp.

"Chris proudly displaying his meat"

The Durbanville Hills Shiraz was nice; good fruit with a nice hit of pepper made this a very good pairing with the grilled beef skewers.

"Plated Grilled Beef Skewers"

The Muscat Beames de Venise was interesting, much higher in alcohol that I expected in the dessert wine (15%) but it had this honey lemon flavour going for it that I enjoyed.

"Very easy drinking"

"Raspberry Mango Cheesecake"

"Different but good"

The food and wines were all very good (though I ate and drank way too much!). I enjoyed chatting with Jan on a wide range of topics and getting to know her a little better. I always enjoy the leisurely format of these Com-B-Qs, an evening with good people and good food always equals a very good time.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – SEA all that FOOD – Part 3

Click here for Part 1

For the main course, Mick did grilled Ahi Tuna with a spice rub and mango sauce with green beans and couscous.

Mick paired a 2004 Beringer’s Napa Valley Merlot with this course.

"Spicy Tuna"

The merlot had a big easy to find nose with a aromas of pine, tar and plum. The Merlot had a cassis/dark berry flavour working for it. The balance was decent but the tannin had a roughness to it that made the wine seem more tannic than it actually was. It was an OK pairing with the Tuna but the rub was very spicy and the Merlot seemed to amplify the burn of the dish instead of quenching it.

"If someone orders Merlot...."

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 86, Mark – 86, Kathy – 86, Amy – 86, Overall – 86.
　
There is no LCBO information on the Beringer’s Napa Valley Merlot but if memory serves this bottle is the in the $30 to $33 range.
　
I noticed I haven’t commented much on the food itself; the shrimp and the crab cakes were very good and Mick lightly grilled Ahi Tuna to perfection but the spice rub needed to be toned down quite a bit.
　
I like to thank Mick for all his hard work in trying out the three new dishes and to thank both Mick and Amy for hosting. I ate way too much but it was hard not too with how good everything was.
　
Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – SEA all that FOOD – Part 2

For the second course, Mick did grilled crab cakes with chipotle mayo. Mmmm… chipotle mayo, I have written before that if I had this a few years ago the Blog would have been called Chipotle Mayo as the sauce is that good.

"Chipotle mayo... and oh yeah, crab cakes"

Mick picked a 2008 Bouchard Pére & Fils Mâcon-Lugny Saint-Pierre (white Burgundy/Chardonnay) to pair with the crab cakes.

"The name that is a mouthful all on its own"

The moderate nose was much easier to detect than our first wine with aromas of vanilla, lime and lemon. Tasting the wine you were rewarded with a smoky lime flavour that ran the length of the wine. Mick felt the wine’s was perfectly balanced but I found it a bit acidic and at times there was an oiliness to it that I didn’t like. This is not a wine I would sit around and drink on its own but it was very good with the crab cakes or as Amy put it "a good food wine".
　
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 –
　
BOUCHARD P&FMACON LUGNY
　
LCBO 51573
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 14.95
Wine, White Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Bouchard Pere & Fils
　
Tasting Note - Medium straw colour; intense fruit, spice, apple & biscuit aromas; generous fruit flavours, with a good long finish.
　
Serving Suggestion - Serve lightly chilled with seabass, sole, or other fish.
　
For a $15 white Burgundy, this wine was a good value and worked well with the food so if I came across it in the LCBO, I probably would pick up another bottle.
　
Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – SEA all that FOOD – Part 1

Mick and Amy were hosting this past Saturday night’s dinner and Mick tried out three new seafood recipes with three new wines.

The first course was grilled shrimp with a spicy cilantro dip. Mick went with a 2007 Domdechant Werner Kabinett Riesling as the pairing with this course.

"Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro dip"

The nose on the wine was very faint, with just the barest trace of pear and lime on the nose. Tasting the wine, I was a little surprised as it seemed very sweet, more like a Spätlese than a Kabinett. The acidity was lacking on the wine and that probably accounts for the perceived extra sweetness. There was a nice green apple flavour to the wine but this wine was very one dimensional. On the upside it made a decent pairing for the shrimp so it did what it was supposed to do.

"Dip close-up"

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 86, Mark – 85, Kathy – 85, Amy – 86, Overall – 85.5.

"Not a bad Kabinett"

Here is the LCBO information for this wine –
　
DOMDECHANT WERNER RIESLING KABINETT 2007
　
VINTAGES 722413
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 19.95
Wine, White Wine
9.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : M
Made in: Rhine Rhinegau, Germany
By: Domdechant Werner'Sches Weingut
Release Date: Feb 20, 2010
　
Tasting Note - The Hochheimer Hölle Kabinett is refined and elegant with yellow plum fruit and some chewiness to its relaxed, caressing body. Score - 90. (Claude Kolm, The Fine Wine Review, # 122, 2008)

For the $20 price point there are much better examples of Kabinett Rieslings out there. We were discussing this wine during the first course and I mentioned that if I came across this wine a couple of years ago I probably would have rated much higher as it was very easy drinking and made a nice pairing with the food. Mick agreed and said if you came across someone who wasn’t a big wine drinker and served this they would really enjoy it. The problem is, after trying so many magical Kabinetts, the bar is much higher now for new ones that we try.
　
Click here for Part 2