Tasting- Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante

Tasting- Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante

Name: Barefoot Bubbly
Variety: 100% Moscato
Country: United States
Region: California
Year: 2014
Price: $10.99

Winery Review:

Sweet as a peach! Apricot and peachy flavors mix it up with a crisp acidity that hangs around with a really nice finish named tangerine

My Review:
As a preface, I have absolutely no idea what Spumante is but my guess is that it has something to do with the carbonation. Anyway, despite the big bubbles on this one, I did manage to get some of the flavors with this one. This one was acidic and usually I don't really like that in my wines (if Gnarly Head was any indication) but instead of tasting like a sour apple, some really nice citrus-y flavors complemented it very well. I got orange peel and some tangerine. Got hints of the peach but the apricot is still MIA. I really did like this wine, reminded me of alcoholic orange soda. 

I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting- Barefoot Bubbly Pink Moscato

Tasting- Barefoot Bubbly Pink Moscato

Name: Barefoot
Variety: 100% Moscato
Country: United States
Region: California
Year: 2014
Price: $8.99

Winery Review:

Deliciously sweet and bubbly with flavors of red tree fruit and fresh berries. A creamy finish collides perfectly with candied cherries and sweet citrus flavors making it the sweetest Bubbly we’ve got.

My Review:
The bubbles were toned down here some so I was able to get some of the flavors with this one. I got hints of something like raspberry and vanilla of all things. Crisp and sweet while still be smooth, I really liked this wine.

I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting- LaMarca Prosecco Glera

Tasting- LaMarca Prosecco Glera

Name: LaMarca Prosecco
Variety: 100% Glera
Country: Italy
Region: Veneto
Year: 2014
Price: $14.99

Winery Review:

This sparkling wine is a pale, golden straw in color. Bubbles are full textured and persistent. On the nose the wine brings fresh citrus with hints of honey and white flowers. The flavor is fresh and clean, with ripe citrus, lemon, green apple, and touches of grapefruit, minerality, and some toast. The finish is light, refreshing, and crisp.

My Review:
So the local Kroger was having tastings on sparkling wines this weekend and I couldn't help but try a few to see what the deal was with this wine which I really have no experience with. Anyway, I really got apple and bubble here. I really missed out on a lot of other flavors I think but the bubbles were really difficult to get past. I mean, they weren't bad or anything, I felt they really made the apple flavors open up but I completely missed any hints of citrus, lemon or grapefruit and no way was I ever going to be able to guess that there would be hints of toast.

I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting- Chalkboard Malbec

Tasting- Chalkboard Malbec
Name: Chalkboard
Variety: 100% malbec
Country: Argentina
Year: 2013
Price: $9.99

Winery Review:

This sinfully rich malbec has concentrated plum and black current flavors topped with spicy cinnamon and nutmeg notes. The perfect match for a classic rib eye steak with chimichurri.

My Review:
Well, I really liked the moscato I had last week so I decided to give chalkboard another go with their malbec this week and once again, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I got strong hints of blackberry and the plum. I wasn't really able to pick out the nutmeg but what I did pick out was a vanilla-y kind of after taste from what I can only guess is the hallmark of being stored in oak. All-in-all, I found this wine to be absolutely fantastic.

I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting- Gnarly Head Pinot Grigio

Tasting- Gnarly Head Pinot Grigio

Name: Gnarly Head
Variety: 100% Pinot Grigio
Country: United States
Region: California
Year: 2013
Price: $9.99

Winery Review:

Gnarly Head Pinot Grigio is crafted for the adventurous—boldly fruit-driven, with bright flavors and zesty acidity. Our winemakers carefully select grapes from California’s finest growing regions, choosing only the best fruit. Gnarly Pinot Grigio proves that white wine can be bold and racy. It’s a refreshing, mouthwatering wine with bright acidity and mineral notes, the perfect sipper for every occasion.

My Review:
Admittedly, my introduction to Gnarly Head was a bit botched. First, there were issues opening the thing (which is an issue I haven't had yet) but then on an initial taste I was not a fan at all. I found the acidity to be too overwhelming, disguising other flavors and just being flat-out repulsive. However, after a quick chill, the wine turned into another creature entirely and I got hints of apricot, apple, and even some pear. However, I still found the wine a bit dry but chilling it did cause the wine to improve significantly.

I did not have this wine with food.

Fun bonus
So here's a picture of the state in which the cork was in when I finally was able to extract it:



Yeah, traditional methods just didn't work. Eventually, after I had used the usual screw one too man times, enough cork had been eviscerated to make it impossible for the screw to find any purchase. So I did the reasonable thing and decided to attack the sides of the cork with a knife to pry it loose enough for extraction. It worked and amazingly enough got absolutely no cork in the wine.

Tasting- Be. Bright Pinot Grigio

Tasting- Be. Bright Pinot Grigio

Name: Be. Bright
Variety: 100% Pinot Grigio
Country: United States
Region: California (specifics are iffy)
Year: 2013
Price: $8.99

Winery Review:

 This is an effortless Pinot Grigio with sun-ripened citrus and stone fruit flavors and a crisp, fresh finish. An instant taste of optimism, perfect for setting a carefree mood. Serve chilled.

My Review:
Simple and elegant. I got a very strong hint of apple from this one. Not much else but I'm sure overtime I'll be able to pick these subtleties up as I knew there was something else there, I just couldn't really pin it down. Very easy on the palette, I greatly enjoyed this wine and wouldn't mind something more than just a sample.

I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting- Root:1 Carmenere

Tasting- Root:1 Carmenere

Name: Root:1
Variety: 100% Carmenere
Country: Chile
Year: 2012
Price: $8.99

Winery Review:

 Root: 1 Carmenere is a deep red color with gentle tannins and rich flavors of plum, blackberry and spice.

My Review:
This wine, true to the review, was really easy on the tannins and while I wasn't able to get a whole lot on the palette at first. The finish was spicy with, despite what the review claims, liquorice. I definitely did get other hints of blackberry on a second taste but never really got the plum. I had this wine with some grilled chicken and while it may be blasphemy (I wouldn't know yet), I thought the two worked together quite well.

Tasting- Bricco Dei Tati Barbera

Tasting- Bricco Dei Tati Barbera

Name: Bricco Dei Tati
Variety: 100% Barbera
Country: Italy
Year: 2013
Price: $8.99

Winery Review:
This is a young, fresh, lively Barbera with a persistent and attractive bouquet of black cherries and a bit of spice on the palate. It has few tannins which is typical of the Barbera varietal, and a medium finish. Delightfully approachable, it is great with medium to strong cheeses, barbecue and game.

My Review:
Perhaps the fault is mine as some mistakes were made opening the bottle allowing for the introduction of tiny bits of cork into the wine. Bottle opening silliness aside, this wine was extremely bitter and did go quite well with some beef I had that week. I got hints of some earthy, musty flavors and hints of cherries.

Tasting- Chalkboard Moscato

Tasting- ChalkBoard Moscato

Name: ChalkBoard
Variety: 100% Moscato
Country: Italy
Year: 2013
Price: $9.99

Winery Review:
Our Italian Moscato is bright and crisp, with delicately sweet hints of peach and orange. This wine is lovely on its own but also pairs well with gorgonzola and figs.

My Review:
Full disclosure which I've already addressed at this point but again: I really don't know a whole lot about wine. But regardless, I found this wine to be absolutely amazing. Definitely got that peaches flavor when tasting. Smooth and sweet, this is was one wine that was easy on the palette yet flavorful. I couldn't recommend this wine more.

I did not consume food with this wine.

Tasting- Protocolo Tinto Temprenillo

Tasting- Protocolo Tinto Temprenillo

Name: Protocolo Tinto Temprenillo
Variety: 100% Temprenillo
Country: Spain
Year: 2012
Price: $8.99

Winery Review:
The 2012 displays medium to high and light iridescence addresses in the ruby red edges in the glass. Aromas of mature red fruits, good arrears of Intensity, notes of coffee, vanilla and toasted. A good sign structure, emphasizing the tannin-alcohol balance acidity, fresh ripe fruit popping them in perfect conjunction with character.

My Review:
Not really dry and not really sweet. The hints of coffee are there as well as cherries. I tried this one with some chocolate and it was absolutely fantastic, I didn't get to try this one on its own so it is difficult to say if it would be the same experience. But regardless, this was a fairly smooth wine that I thought was really good with a heavy, rich, chocolaty dessert.

Introduction

Welcome one and all to my (hopefully) weekly wine blog!

To begin, a brief introduction: my name is Alex and my experience with wine has, thus far, been pretty scarce.

Really, I was one of those people who, when asked if they wanted to at least try the wine at the dinner table would frown in disgust and almost assuredly would try to (very disgustingly) spit whatever I had in my mouth back into the cup. Yes, wine and I didn't have a good first impression of one another but as things changed (I got older) so too did my tastes. Now (hopefully) I can begin to learn how to appreciate wine for what it is.

Since the beginning of this class, I have bought three bottles of wine. All of which have been OK but unfortunately, I have difficulty establishing any real differences between tastes. So, goals for this semester include learning how to taste wine (sort of covered by now) but most of all, how to actually taste the flavors that are hiding away. Seriously, as of now, it may as well be all one and the same so being able to actually get a varied palate going.

So without further ado, let's begin this thing with, once again, (hopefully) weekly updates.