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 15: Barista Pinotage Coffee-Inspired Wine

Date: June 19th, 2012
Host: Christine
Served: BBQ ribs, pasta salad, some pita chip what-nots, strawberry brownies


Elena Walch Merlot; Barista Pinotage

Barista Pinotage 2010 (South Africa), 13.5% alcohol, $15 on sale at Waterford Wine

Christine says (18): A coffee-inspired wine? Sign us up! We loved this wine when we tasted it at Waterford, and I built a meal to go around it. The Pinotage is aged in nearly blackened and burnt oak barrels to give it coffee-like characteristics. It had a ruby-violet color and amazing bouquet of peppercorns, chocolate, strawberries, and coffee (though not as much coffee as I'd remembered in store). The wine was delicious, complex, rich and fruity, spiced, and a bit brambly. It went well with both the spice-rubbed ribs and the brownies. I would love to try it with steak au poivre.

Kim says (17): I had never heard of Pinotage before and assumed this was a blend but that is incorrect. As Christine referenced, Pinotage is made from a grape that is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault (known at the time as Hermitage)... what I might loosely call a hybrid grape but is not strictly accurate. This wine had a distinct bouquet of roasted peppers, rosemary and wet coffee grounds (but not in a bad way). I very much enjoyed this... it had the potential to be overbearing and brash but wasn't. Just right! And Christine did an amazing job creating a meal around this wine... an excellent combination!

Andrea says (17.5): I am not a coffee drinker but I did enjoy this wine. It was a violet-ruby color. I could smell vanilla, pepper, chocolate, coffee, and strawberry. It has a very smokey, oak-y flavor. almost burnt taste. Went very well with the ribs!

Elena Walch Merlot 2006 (Alto Adige, Italy), 13.5% alcohol, $6 on sale at Waterford Wine

Christine says (11): Claret, blood-red color, though pretty translucent. Bouquet of wet leaves, must, blueberries, raspberries and Brie. Though the wine would be good with a variety of food, I thought it was flabby (yes, flabby!) and one-dimensional. I wouldn't mind trying it with Brie.

Kim says (10): Well, I thought this Merlot had a distinct bouquet and unfortunately, it wound up tasting exactly what it smelled like- must, mold and brie rind; pleasant blueberries and strawberries but then twisted into something flat. Think old, abandoned Christmas decorations- stale orange slices and dried up pine needles.

Andrea says (14.5): I did not enjoy the smell of this wine, but there is no arguing that it had a distinct bouquet. I definitely agree with Kim and Christine, I smelled Brie, along with mold, must, and feet. But I also smelled berries. Taste was a little boring.

I mixed up strawberries, sugar and a little cinnamon to go over the homemade brownies and call out more flavors of the Barista Pinotage. Kim took a beautiful photo!

  

Toasted pita wedges with kalamata olives and goat cheese.

BBQ Ribs
3# pork baby back ribs
1/4 c. minced onion
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. each onion powder, garlic powder and cinnamon
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 c. water
1 c. BBQ sauce



Cut ribs into serving-size pieces. Combine the minced onion and spices; rub over ribs on both sides. Stack in a slow cooker, layering with sliced onion. Add water to slow cooker. Cook on high for 4 hours if you can. (If cooked on low for 8, they will be more fall-off-the-bone as shown.)

Remove ribs; discard cooking liquid. Dip ribs in sauce; return to slow cooker and cook on low for 1 hour.