Wine Club 63: We're Back, Bitches!

Date: May 17th, 2014
Host: Andrea
Served: Stuffed flank steak, proscuitto breadsticks, caesar salad, potato medley, hummingbird cupcakes

Arquero Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (Spain) 13% alcohol, $6.50 at Piggly Wiggly

Andrea says (16.5): A very pretty ruby-berry color. The first thing that I could smell was alcohol. But eventually I could smell berries, raisins, currant, and spices. The taste was nice, strawberry, raspberry and raisin. A good wine, I'd drink it again, but nothing to write home about.

Christine says (14): Smelled of sweet spices, cherries, plums, and a little bit like toasted marshmallows. Some herby taste, cherries, thinner body, medium finish. 

Kim says: Well, on orders from my neurosurgeon, I was to abstain from alcohol for six months to allow a reasonable amount of time for my brain to heal from my stroke. But I could still eat Andrea's delicious food! This was an amazing meal, and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Christine says: Lookit these little cuties! We were dying of cuteness overload looking at them. Too bad they grow up.

Wine Club 50: We Are Golden

Date: July 20th, 2013
Host: Andrea at the lake house
Served: Buffalo turkey burgers, salad, brownies

Toad Hollow Unoaked Chardonnay 2011 (Mendocino County, CA, USA) 13.9% alcohol, $10 at Otto's

Andrea says (16): I really liked the image on this wine bottle. It reminded me of the illustrations from "The Wind and the Willows" book that I had when I was a kid. The wine was a pale lime color and very clear. The smell was of tart, green apple, with musty, mineral scents. The taste was tart, high in acid, but I liked it.

Christine says (16): Very light pale lemon color with green hints. Good, strong and distinct bouquet: I smelled grassiness, peaches and minerals. Tasted like peaches and minerals, with some creaminess from the lees (or so I'd guess). Medium body and finish. Kinda lacking mid-palate, and it stung the tip of my tongue. Still, I liked the wine and would definitely buy it.

Kim says (14): Not the rich, warm color of a Chardonnay- more like a cool, pale Sauvignon Blanc. But like Christine said... this one is unoaked. Almost a greenish cast and smelled vaguely of honey. Slightly on the thin side for body and I docked it half a point for high acid.

Apothic Red Winemaker's Blend 2011 (CA, USA) Zinfandel + Merlot + Syrah + Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% alcohol, $9 at Otto's

Andrea says (20): I LOVED this wine! I'm usually not the one to give a wine a shockingly different score from Kim and Christine, but I could find no faults! Nice ruby, fushia color. The smell was fantastic! I could smell chocolate, vanilla, raspberry, cherry, brown sugar and pomegranite. It was like drinking berry pie! Raspberry, strawberry and chocolate flavors. Very jammy. Reminded me a lot of the Honey Badger. Delicious.

Christine says (12): Burgundy color, but translucent. Smelled like vanilla and cream soda.  Kim picked up on brown sugar in the bouquet, which I think was spot-on. Taste was thin, with a light body. Short finish. Just OK to me.

Kim says (13): Aroma of chalk and vinegar at first but after swirling, brown sugar. Taste? Meh. Thin body, slightly off on balance, finish was all tannins. I felt ambivalent about this wine and scored it average overall.

Andrea says:  Tons of fun. A great weekend away with friends! A super way to celebrate our 50th Wine Club!

Christine says: Awesome lake house. Beautiful surroundings. Fabulous cocktails. Peace and quiet! Incredible dinner. Fun games. Tasty breakfast. Hot sauna. Delightful getaway!

 Kim says: First order of business upon arrival? Gin and tonics, of course!

Andrea gets settled in and fires up the grill... amazing turkey burgers with bleu cheese, shredded carrots and buffalo sauce on biscuits. Yum!

Wine Club 47: Goodbye, Old Apartment

Date: June 12th, 2013
Host: Andrea
Served: eggrolls, crab rangoon, orange chicken, cupcakes
Bonus bottle (from the host's personal inventory): 2008 Erbalucede di Caluso

Domaine de la Janasse Viognier 2010 (Principauté d'Orange, France) 14% alcohol,  $15 at Waterford

Andrea says (17.5): Temperature really made a difference with this wine. At first we drank it very chilled. I could smell green apple and minerals. I could hardly place any flavors at that temperature but it was definitely smooth, tart, good body and nice tannins. After the wine warmed up to room temperature I could smell honey, pear, and slate. Went well with the orange chicken and egg rolls. 

Christine says (15.5): Light pale lemon color. Subtle smell of minerals, slight honey and slight oak. Surprisingly full-bodied. Tasted minerals, toast and oddly enough, peanut butter. Longer finsh that tasted like popcorn. I think it would be good w/ peanut butter/Thai foods. And I liked it with the chocolate peanut butter cupcake.

Kim says (15): Alright... I am going to list off what I smelled and it probably sounds bad but it wasn't! I did not dislike the aroma of this wine that smelled of wet slate, sweet (but not floral or fruity sweet), undertone of B.O. funk and very faint blue-green bread mold. Maybe like Christine and Andrea, I just needed to give this wine a chance to warm up and relax a bit. But the predominant aroma was wet slate and I thought it would have gone extremely well with Andrea's orange chicken. It ended up being a fair match but not great.

Tisdale Cabernet Sauvignon NV (CA, USA) 12% alcohol, $4 at Otto's

Andrea says (14): Surprisingly clear for a Cab. Sauv. but a nice ruby color. The smell was fruity, smokey, alcohol, and bacon? The taste was very berry! Strawberry and jam flavors. Really didn't have any characteristics of a Cabernet Sauvignon, but I liked it. I enjoyed this one with the cupcakes. 

Christine says (8.5): Pale raspberry color, almost translucent. Black and red fruit, and violets in the nose. Smelled and tasted soft and fruity. Thin body. Streak of acid. It was just okay, not like a Cabernet Sauvignon. Though I preferred it with the yummy, slightly sweet orange chicken.

Kim says (15): I know, I know... pairing a big bad cab with chicken? Gasp! Oh, the horror! But seriously, nothing on the wine store shelves was calling to me until this one caught my eye. We'd had a Tisdale before and I thought I remembered liking it (although after 122 bottles of wine to date, they do blur a little bit... hence, this diary) and I figured sweet, salty, acidic oranges might just be able to hold their own with a cab... chicken or not! Well, this one hails from California (and I think CA does the big, bold, sassy reds particularly well) but was quite a shocker. Didn't look like a cab (fairly thin and translucent), didn't smell like a cab (vinegar and canned cranberries), didn't taste like a cab (very fruit forward) but I think the sharp departure made it unique- more drinkable, versatile. Plus... a big win with the chicken!
 

Andrea hosts her final wine club in the old apartment.

Chocolate Peanut Butter

Orange Cream

Champagne Pear

Cupcake trio... yum!





Wine Club 1: Happy 1-Year Anniversary

Date: February 29th, 2012

Host: Kim

Served: Zucchini Lasagna, Garlic Cobblestone

Three strangers met at a Cheese and Spice Pairing. Our very first Wine Club four days later (on Leap Day) and the eventual launch of this blog was born!

The morning after.



Leese-Fitch Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (CA, USA), 13.5% alcohol, $10

Kim says: Happy Anniversary to us! Happy Anniversary to... okay sorry you get the idea. But we are very pleased to post our very first Wine Club on our 1-year anniversary date! Anyway, the first version of our score sheet was very narrow and only allowed for 20 points across four categories. For those of you that know us, you know that simply wouldn't do (I mean, where are we supposed to fit the smiley faces, unicorns, broken hearts and rainbows)! Anyway, I thought this wine had missed opportunities in Sight and Flavor but perfect score for Aroma and Appeal (for a grand total of 18). Not what you'd expect of a Big Bad Cab but that might actually make this particular wine more versatile.

Christine says: Ruby red appearance; raspberry jam aroma. Tasted a little thin; young; some jam flavors; not too tannic. Simple and fun. I rated this a 13 out of 20, based on a different judging form. On the forms we use now, it would be higher: probably 15ish.

Andrea says: A dark fushia color that smelled sweet like raspberry. I didn't write much on the flavor, only that it tasted "fruity." I enjoyed this wine and scored it an 18.

Chateau St. Michelle Indian Wells Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 (Columbia Valley, WA, USA), 14.5% alcohol, $15

Kim says: Even though I gave this wine the same score as the Leese-Fitch, I didn't enjoy it as much. It took a hit for aroma and had high tannis but overall, had good flavor.

Christine says: More tannic. Some barnyard smells, but not objectionable. Soft, round mouthfeel. More complex than the Leese-Fitch, yet I still only scored it a 9 (which translates to about 11 on today's form). Either way, it was a don't buy. I think this wine lost with all of us: we preferred the Leese-Fitch.

Andrea says: This cabernet had a brownish-ruby color. Smelled musty and earthy. I also noted the "barnyard" smell. Mostly I tasted the burn of alcohol and high tannins. I was not very critical in the beginning and I gave this wine a 14. Today I probably would have scored it even lower. I agree with Christine, the Leese-Fitch was much better.