Wine School - Syrah/Shiraz Blind Tasting, September 12, 2013

 Theme:  Syrah/Shiraz-Can you tell the difference?

          With the summer coming to an end, I was ready to get back to reds so I wanted to try something we haven't done in a while.  I chose a wine that was the same grape but three different parts of the world-California, Australia, and France.  I wanted to see how  the difference in terroir would effect the wines.  Blind tasting was just going to let our senses take charge. Here we go!

The Wines

Qupé 2010 Central Coast Syrah

• Color:  Beautiful ruby colored, the lightest in color of the three wines.
• Nose:  Delicate nose with white pepper, subtle red fruit, earthiness with floral notes as the wine opened up.
• Mouth:  Medium bodied wine with light tannins, a long finish with pepper and mineral notes.
• Price:  $19.99
• Conclusion:  An enjoyable wine, definitely lighter in body than some California fruit bomb Syrah's out there. We all agreed this was our second favorite of the evening. It paired well with the majority of the evening's dishes.

 

Elderton 2008 Barossa Shiraz

• Color:  Dark inky purple wine with a hint of brown around the edges - the darkest of the three wines of the evening.
• Nose:  Very rich, dark luscious, red fruit that made our mouth water. Hint of chocolate as the wine opened up.
• Mouth:  A full bodied wine with tart fruit, and bigger tannins than the first wine as we expected by the appearance. A lovely long finish. Definitely a wine that will stand up to meat.
• Price: $21.99
• Conclusion:  Hands down this was the favorite wine of the evening. We all agreed we loved this wine alone as well as it pairing best with all of the food. We loved the luscious, dark fruit this wine displayed.

Chateau de Lancyre 2009 Coste d'Aleyrac Coteaux d Languedoc

• Color:  Dark purple
• Nose:  This wine had more musty, earthiness on the nose. Each wine's varied terroir has really come through on the noses of these wines.
• Mouth:  Medium body with big mineral and dark licorice on the finish.
• Price: $19.99
• Conclusion:  We enjoyed the mouth feel of this wine but felt it definitely benefited from being paired with food. At times we felt the minerality was too strong for our liking.

The Pairings

Cheeses

• Drunken Goat (Spanish):  Wow! This cheese was fantastic and definitely the best wine and cheese pairing of the evening. It was to die for with the Elderton Shiraz. Thank you Wine and Cheese Shop for recommending this pairing.
• Old Brugge (Belgium):  This cheese was delicious. It had a great nuttiness. We enjoyed it very much with the Elderton (not as much as Drunken Goat though) and with Qupé. Those overpowering mineral notes came through too much when paired with the French wine. 
• Five Year Gouda:  We enjoyed this cheese, but was our least favorite of the evening with these wines. Again it was the best with the Australian Shiraz, the fruit of this wine standing up to this strong cheese. It definitely was a no with the Qupé, but was a bit better when paired with the French Syrah.

Entrée

• BBQ Ribs:  Excellent choice for our entrée! We thought it paired best with the French wine, but Qupé was a close second. This was one of the only choices for the evening that we didn't enjoy as much with Elderton Shiraz.
• Mashed Potatoes:  Who would of thought mashed potatoes would be such a great side paired with these wines. We enjoyed with all three wines, it especially gave the French wine more complexity.

Chocolates

• Lindt Touch of Sea Salt Dark Chocolate:  Our favorite chocolate pairing of the evening-went will with all three wines.
• Ghirardelli Intense Dark Cabernet Matinee:  This chocolate did not work with any of the wines.
• Ghirardelli Twilight Delight 72% Cacao:  This intense, dark chocolate did not work well with the French wine, brought out the fruitiness in the Cali Syrah, and didn't work at all with the Aussie wine.

Conclusion

Beth:   What a successful wine class, cheers to Lisa! It is always a challenge to taste wines blindly. I find myself second guessing my answers like I'm back in school taking a test! This blind tasting really highlighted how terroir can affect the wine. The Australian, with warm sunshine, was big and powerful while the French and American wines had more of a savory aspect with spice and mineral notes coming through. I must agree with Mary Jo that my favorite of the evening was the Barossa Shiraz. It was luscious! And the Drunken Goat with the Barossa was out of this world.
Lisa:  Blind tasting is always fun- it's like a box of chocolates- you never know what you're gonna get!  Starting with the nose, each of the wines was sssooo different. From peppery to earthy to musty, the terrior made the difference.  Yes, the hands down favorite was the Barossa and we guessed that one right! As for the cheeses, the Drunken goat was the fav.  I was so looking forward to the aged gouda but was surprised it didn't pair very well.  The entree of ribs and mashed potatoes was best with the French wine.  We realized it wasn't a stand alone wine and the food sure brought out the best of it. Again, one chocolate stood out above the rest and it was the Touch of Sea Salt by Lindt.  All in all it was a fun night!
Mary Jo:  I love blind tastings!  It is truly a class where you have to really concentrate on what you have learned, to try to identify different characteristics that make up each wine.  It is also a time when you realize you might not know as much as you think you do!  These three wines were distinctly different.  My favorite of the three was the Barossa Shiraz.  I must stay, the Barossa paired with the Drunken Goat cheese was probably the best wine and cheese pairing I have enjoyed to date.  I was overwhelmed with how rich the wine tasted with this cheese.  It brought out a caramel/toasted flavor in the wine that was simply delicious.  It paired well with almost everything.  We have found that some of the cheeses, by virtue of their aftertaste, can sometimes make pairing difficult.  We definitely noticed this with the 5 year gouda.  The cheese is delicious, but the aftertaste does not go well with the wines.  The French wine paired very well with the ribs, and, overall, I felt this wine wasn't one that should be enjoyed without food.  The Qupe paired well with most of the foods and was the lightest bodied of the three.  It had a nice, lingering peppery finish, and was more earthy than fruity.  A wonderful class, with some great wines!  Of course, the company always makes it a perfect night!  Thanks, Lisa!!

 

Wine School, February 19, 2013-Wine Pairing

Note:

We decided to mix things up a bit for this wine school. Two of our three husbands were out of town on business this week, so we decided to make a meal of it! Each wino was in charge of picking a dish and a wine to pair with it. Lisa also provided cheeses and chocolate to try with all. The wine and food was definitely varied, but we had great fun with this concept and the food was delicious!

Wines

Crios Torrontes 2012 - Mary Jo's Pairing

Color:  Light straw
Nose:  Perfumy, aromatic wine with hints of peach
Mouth:  Wonderful peach up front with a crisp acidic finish
Price:  $14.99
Conclusion:  Wonderful wine perfect to enjoy on a warm summer evening with friends or with a light salad with friends for lunch. We all loved it!

Pairings

Camembert with Gourmet Wafers - Deepened the flavors of the wine and added to its complexity-a winner!!
English Cheddar Cheese - This cheese was a bit too sharp for the delicacy of the wine. We all thought Manchego would work well with this wine.
Rembrandt Extra Aged Gouda - Nice pairing with this cheese, but we all liked the Camembert even better with the Torrontes.
Thai Chicken Spinach Salad - Definitely this salad and wine complimented each other-a perfect balance.
Lindt-Touch of Sea Salt Dark Chocolate - We weren't expecting to like this match, but it was surprisingly good.
Lindt-70% Cocoa Smooth Dark -This one was not so great :(

Trimbach Reserve Pinot Gris 2007 Lisa's Pairing

Color:  Golden
Nose:  Fresh and refined
Mouth:  Nice minerality with a wonderful minerality that will pair well with food. Nice finish with a hint of cool, mint down the back of the throat.
Price:  $25.99 Randall's Wine and Spirits
Conclusion:  A wonderful, well balanced, medium bodied wine. We all adored this wine.

Pairings

Camembert with Gourmet Wafers - Love the wine, but not with this cheese.
English Cheddar Cheese - The sharpness of this cheddar was able to keep up with the fuller bodied Pinot Gris from France.
Rembrandt Extra Aged Gouda - This was a nice pairing, but we preferred it with the Torrontes.
Salmon - A great pairing! The wine has a much "richer" feel on the mouth.
Lindt-Touch of Sea Salt Dark Chocolate - No, the wine and chocolate fought against each other.
Lindt-70% Cocoa Smooth Dark

Silvano Bolmida Dolcetto d'Alba Manescott 2008 - Beth's Pairing

Color:  Deep, dark red
Nose:  Earthy, peppery, with decaying leaves
Mouth:  More tannins than we expected for a Dolcetto, with red fruit and typical acidity of an Italian wine
Price:  $17.99 Plaza Wine and Liquour/O'Fallon
Conclusion:  Not our favorite wine from Italy.





Rigatoni with Tomato, Pancetta, and Chevre

Pairings

Camembert with Gourmet Wafers - As expected, this cheese was too rich and creamy for this wine.
English Cheddar Cheese - Not a match.
Rembrandt Extra Aged Gouda - It was an ok match, we thought the wine would go better with a variety of Italian meats for appetizers.
Rigatoni with Tomato, Pancetta, and Chévre - This was a good match with the wine. As usual an Italian dish and Italian wine bring out the best in each other.
Lindt-Touch of Sea Salt Dark Chocolate - This match was ok, but we were expecting something better.
Lindt-70% Cocoa Smooth Dark - Yum!  Great match with this wine.

Final Thoughts

Beth - What a lovely evening we had with great friends, food, and wine. The Thai salad and salmon was delicious. They paired wonderfully with the wines selected by Mary Jo and Lisa. I enjoyed the Rigatoni too. It was a nice match with the Dolcetto, but I think a Chianit Classico would have been even better. The Torrontes was also great with the pasta. I don't think I can pick a favorite wine this time, I loved the Torrrontes and the Pinot Gris. They both had me looking forward to summer!

Lisa -  This class was fun because we made it different!  With each of us bringing a wide range of pairings, we were able to really compare and see the vast differences in what worked and what didn't. For the most part, the cheeses were not the best and the chocolates were sometimes a hit and sometimes a miss.  As for the main dish pairings, they were ALL perfect pairings.  As for my favorite wine of the night, I think I leaned toward the Crios Torrontes, but the Pinot Gris was a close second. I agree with Beth, with this gloomy winter that just won't go away, I'm SO in the mood for crisp white wines.  Come on spring!

Mary Jo - This class was a departure from what we normally do and it was a really great time!  It gave us all a chance to focus on one part of the meal and pair a wine with it, and also see if our wine paired well with the other two dishes.  The Crios Torrontes was my favorite of the three wines.  It went very well with the Thai chicken salad and the Camembert.  I felt the English cheddar was too harsh for this wine.  Finally, the sea salt was my favorite chocolate with the Crios.  The Trimbach Pinot Gris and the Crios were both great with the pasta.  The Trimbach was also nice with the salad, but I was not a fan of this wine with the cheeses.  The Trimbach definitely increased the richness of the salmon from Sam's and enhanced the fruit of the salmon that was seasoned.  Finally, the Dolcetto was only okay with the gouda, but I was not a fan of this wine with the other two cheeses.  This wine was an excellent pairing with the pasta!  This was a really fun class and, since we all loved the Crios so much, we headed to Wine Merchant and split a case!

 

Wine School, Zinfandel vs. Primitivo, January 17, 2013

Wine School, January 17, 2013

Primitivo, Zinfandel, Old Vine Zinfandel

Wines

 

Layer Cake Primitivo 2010

Color:  Opaque, ruby red

Nose:  Must, oaky, woodsy with white pepper. Mary Jo picked up a garden mixture aroma with a hint of mint too.

Mouth:  Fruit up front with minerality and a lovely mid palate. The finish drops off.
Price:  $15.99

Conclusion: A nice, easy drinking everyday wine. 

Klinker Brick Old Vine Zinfandel 2010

Color:  Dark, deep ruby

Nose:  Deep blueberry and blackberry notes with some mustiness, and a hint of smokiness.

Mouth:  Nice finish with notes of pepper, a balanced jammy fruit. Definitely a longer finish than the Layer Cake.
Price:  $19.99

Conclusion:  This wine was definitely the favorite of the bunch. We all loved the finish and it seemed to pair best with most of the food. We especially enjoyed it with the White Pizza and dark chocolate.

Rosenblum Cellars Appellation Series Zinfandel 2005

Color:  Brick red

Nose:  Fresh pumpkin, dark fruit, with underlying earthiness

Mouth:  Some tartness on the finish with big tannins, acidic with a bit of spiciness on the finish.
Price:  $17.99

Conclusion:  This wine seemed to be a bit chewy for all of us and the tannins seemed a bit out of balance. It may be that wine had already met its prime.

Pairings

Cheese

• Gouda
• English Cheddar

California Pizza Kitchen White Pizza
Mexican Layer Dip
Chocolate

• 72% Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate
• Lindt Chili Chocolate

Final Thoughts:

Beth -  I love Zinfandels so this was a great class and perfect for a cold, winter night! Klinker Brick was by far my favorites of the wines we sampled tonight. I loved its finish and it went well with most of the pairings. It was fantastic with the layered Mexican dip and the dark chocolate. The Layer Cake was a bit disappointing in its finish, but the finish did improve with the food.  The Rosenblum was interesting with lots of tannins. I could see pairing it with a grilled steak. It was also wonderful with the Lindt Chili Chocolate. My biggest disappointment was the cheese just didn't stand up to these wines.

Lisa - It's been a while since I've had a Zinfandel so I was ready for the class!  Starting with the Layer Cake which I have had a few times in the past was very good but I think older vintages were a little better than the 2010.  The Klinkerbrick was definitely my favorite! I've had it a few times and with its high alcohol content (15.8% yikes!) you could get too much of a good thing, so be careful.  Finishing with the  Rosenblum, the tannins were a little on the high side for me. As for the food pairings, Klinkerbrick was by far the best and the chocolates were my favorite!

Mary Jo-I was so excited to do this class.  I have been so into spicy wines lately!  I have to agree with Beth with my favorite wine being the Klinker Brick.  I have to admit, I have had this wine several times and love it every time.  I did this class because DNA testing in the late 90's revealed that the zinfandel grape was identical to the Primitivo grape of Italy.  I thought we would pair that with a zinfandel and an "old vine" zinfandel.  I can't say that the three were strikingly similar - as I thought they would be.  The finish on the Layer Cake Primitivo was abrupt, but the food pairings did help.  The cheeses, while recommended, did not pair well, but the chili chocolate was a delicious pairing.  Klinker Brick takes the prize for the evening!