An Evening on the Mediterranean Coast

Last week the Stay at Home Winos had the pleasure of doing what we love--sharing our love of wine by teaching a wine class.  Ellen and Tim Moore, owners of Fezziwig's Tea & Gourmet Market in Lebanon, Illinois invited us to teach "An Evening on the Mediterranean Coast" Wine Education Event.  The wines served were from various countries along the Mediterranean Sea which included France, Spain, Italy and topped off with a surprise tasting from Greece.

Photo by Jackie Wind Clinton

 

The evening began by greeting our students with Sangria made with  Rosatella Rosé using the Gourmet duVillage Wine Country Sangria mix and complemented with guacamole dip from Fischer & Wieser guacamole starter.

The table is set!
 Photo by Jackie Wind Clinton

Once everyone was seated in the Culinary Experience Room, class began with a welcome and introduction. We began with a 2012 Sauvion Vouvray Chenin Blanc from France's Loire Valley.  Walking everyone through the steps of tasting, we began with looking at the color--was it clear?  Light? Yellow or gold or did it have a green tint?  Everyone had enjoyed coming up with fun descriptions of the wines.  Next, we moved on to the "nose" of the wine, teaching them how to swirl their glasses to release the aromas and to let them really sink their nose into the glass to savor all the wine's flavor.  Was it fruity, citric, floral, grassy?  All kinds of ideas popped in their heads and it was fun hearing the results! Swirl again and take another sniff.  Did you pick up something different?  Swirling takes practice but you get the hang of it fast.

Of course what we have all been waiting for, now to taste!  Was the taste similar to the nose?  Was is citric, acidic, floral, buttery?  Did it linger on the palette?  We walked them through many possibilities and let them come up with flavors they tasted.  There are no wrong answers because everyone has their own unique "bank" of flavors. And this wine was a hit!








Once we completed the first wine, we continued on with the same format of color, aroma, and taste venturing next to Italy. The 2012 Chloe Pinot Grigio named after the ancient word meaning "blooming" has it's grapes sourced from Italy but produced in Northern California.

Off to Spain!  Our final white wine of the evening was Campo Lindo Blanco from Bodegas Ramon Roqueta Winery located in the Catalunya DOC made with the Macabeo and Chardonnay grapes.







Back in France, we changed over to a Rosé

of mainly Grenache, with Cinsault and Syrah and is located on old fluvioglacial terraces on the right bank of the Rhône Valley.

Our first red of the evening was a 2012 Bon Marche Red Blend.  This wine, although made in the French style, is actually from Bueller Vineyards located east of St Helena, California in Napa Valley.  This blend consists of Zinfandel, Syrah, Merlot and Malbec and was aged in French and American oak barrels.  Very much a favorite of the evening.







And finally back to Spain to enjoy one of Orin Swift's Location wines "E".  Again, a delicious blend of
Grenache/Garnacha, Tempranillo, Monastrell, and Carignan/Cariñena. It is super concentrated fruit from old vines with low yields that are accented with a judicious oak program for a balanced and distinctive wine.

Along with the wines, some nibbles paired with them were the Fischer & Wieser Peach Salsa and a simple humus with Fezziwig's own Lemon Infused EVOO served with tortilla and pita chips.

Rounding out the evening was a tasting of two Greek wines.  Fezziwig's doesn't usually carry Greek wines so one of their distributors brought these in especially for the evening.  The white wine was a 2012 Moschofilero Boutari from the Mantinia grape which was citric and similar to Sauvignon Blanc. The red wine was Kretikos Boutari  which was a blend of two grapes: 60% Kotsifali and 40% Mandilaria.  This one was earthy and had soft tannins.  They were both a treat to enjoy!

With all the laughter and fun conversation, we feel the night was a huge success!  Many students walked away with new knowledge of wine tasting and are ready to sign up for the next class.

Cheers!
Lisa

P.S. Thank you Jackie Clinton for providing photos from the evening. Check out this talented lady's blog at www.wind-inspired.com .

The Finger Lakes, New York

     

Lake Seneca, New York

     Recently my husband and I helped our son and daughter-in-law with their move to Boston. It was a bitter sweet event. We are very proud of Ben's new opportunity, but we will miss them-especially our grandson. My husband realized I might need some cheering up, so he planned a visit to New York's Finger Lakes region for some wine tasting as we made our way back to St. Louis. It was the perfect way to cheer me up!

     Our home base was the Harbor Hotel in Watkins Glen. A beautiful hotel at the tip of Lake Seneca. A quaint, small town, Watkins Glen has restaurants and shops all an easy walk from our hotel as well as a nice restaurant and bar on the property with a large patio for outdoor dining. The Tasting Room and Wine Merchant by Atwater also recently opened in town. They offer tastings of select wines from a variety of wine regions in New York and some wonderful cheeses from the Empire state as well. It was the perfect spot to have a glass of wine and cheese plate before dinner on the day of our arrival. I enjoyed a glass of the Atwater Chardonnay! The wine was bright and crisp and paired well with our cheeses.

     Over our two day stay we visited wineries on both sides of Lake Seneca. Views were beautiful, everyone was friendly and the weather perfect! Here are a few of our favorites.

Herman J. Wiemer Vineyard
From the outside the tasting room looks like a large barn. Inside it is a modern and elegant spot to sample their wonderful wines. Herman Wiemer (www.wiemer.com) is considered a pioneer in the wine industry here. The tasting room and staff, as well as his wines, are elegant and classy. Our favorite was the 2013 Dry Riesling that recently received 91 points from Wine and Spirits and 90 points from Wine Enthusiast. I also loved their Rosé that we brought home and have enjoyed by the pool. They also have vines to purchase from their nursery. This is a must if you are visiting the Finger Lakes!

View from Silver Thread Vineyard

Love the label from Silver Thread

Silver Thread Vineyard
This beauty is on the east side of the lake, down a dusty road with gorgeous views of the lake (www.silverthreadwine.com). They are primarily known for Riesling, a grape well suited for this terroir, but also produce Gewurztraminer, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and Chardonnay. We loved the 2012 Dry Riesling. Brought a few of these home and will be sharing with Lisa and Mary Jo soon!

Barnstormer Winery
This tasting room is in....... a barn! The barn itself is over 100 years old. Inside the tasting room is large and bright. The staff here was excellent. My favorite wine from Barnstormer (www.barnstormer.com) was their unoaked Chardonnay. A bit leaner than a California Chardonnay, it was bright and crisp. Also loved the Rosé that they offered. They also have a large deck to enjoy a glass a wine and cheese plate that we took advantage of.

Shalestone Vineyards 
I am a sucker for a wine dog, so when I saw this sign outside the Shalestone (www.shalestonevineyards.com) tasting room I knew I was in the right place. This unique winery only offers red wines! The Finger Lakes region is not known for having much luck with dry red wines, but Shalestone had some wonderful offerings. Our favorite was Harmony, a blend of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. Just to show you what a small world it is, our hostess in the tasting room, Martha, was from our hometown in Northern Illinois!

Watkins Glen State Park

     If you get a chance to travel to upstate New York, find time to visit the Finger Lakes. The scenery is breathtaking and the wines are delightful. And don't forget to take a walk through Watkins Glen State Park to see enjoy the waterfalls!

Cheers,
Beth