Sauvignon Blanc Seaview Vineyard

Name: Sauvignon Blanc Seaview Vineyard

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Country: New Zealand

Year: 2008
Price: $7.95 on Sale

Winery review:  This aromatic wine shows lifted flavours of blackcurrant with underlying notes of wet stone and thyme. The palate is elegant yet full with sufficient weight and texture, balanced by a flinty minerality. This wine is a fantastic match with foods such as cheese salad, poultry dishes and a wide range of seafood dishes including freshly shucked natural oysters, prawns, green lip mussels and creamy scallops.

My review: I’ve loved every single Sauvignon Blanc I’ve had from New Zealand…until this one. The wine tasting guy said the same thing—this one just tastes off. I should have liked this wine. I picked up on the notes of thyme, which is a spice I’m totally into. I just couldn’t get my head around this wine and didn’t really enjoy it. It was vaguely fruity but the spice notes and the little bit of stone (I can finally pick out some mineral things!!) just didn’t mesh well. I wouldn’t drink this again.

I tasted this on its own with no food.

Angove Viognier

Name: Angove Viognier
Country: Austrailia

Year: 2009
Price: $5.95

Winery review:  Bright light straw in colour with some green hues, this wine has a lush ripe tropical fruit aroma. This is a fuller bodied white which fills the mouth with heady flavours of apricot, peach and citrus.  Angove Nine Vines Viognier is perfect for today's relaxed life-style and is the ideal accompaniment to grilled prawns with chilli and garlic or roast pork.

My review: This was a nice wine. On the nose, I got a really fruit-forward, new world bouquet of citrus, apricot, and ripe peaches. I don’t like the winery review on this one at all because it doesn’t tell me a whole lot. What is “today’s relaxed life-style”? I could definitely write better reviews than that (and do!).

I’d love to have this wine paired with a fruit and cheese platter or something equally light. This was a tasty one.

I tasted this on its own with no food.

Librandi Ciro Rosso Classico

Name: Librandi Ciro Rosso Classico
Country: Italy

Price: $3.95/Closeout

Winery review:  Don’t let the pale garnet color fool you:  this is a substantial wine.  Aromas of red fruits and spice complement undertones of cranberries, wild berries, and plums.  On the palate, ripe tannins and good body make for an incredibly rich, yet easygoing red wine.  Pair this wine with sausage, spicy curry sauces, hot soppressata, and tandoori chicken.

My review: BAM! This wine was a punch in the face. It had a reserved nose; I wasn’t expecting much flavor out of this wine until it hit me. It was complex, fruity, spicy, and delicious. The only off-putting thing with this wine was how tannic it was but that’s just something I don’t enjoy. This was a really solid wine and I would’ve bought it for $4 if I had thought to look at the price at the time.

I tasted this on its own with no food.

Ironstone Old Vine Zinfandel

Name: Ironstone Old Vine Zinfandel

Variety: Zinfandel
Region: Lodi
Country: California

Year: 2011
Price: $7.95 (closeout)

Winery review:  Grown in vineyards that are over 45 years old, this medium-bodied Zin has exceptional varietal character with lovely aromas of dark fruit and blackberry. Subtle pepper spice mingles with richly concentrated fruit flavors of blackberry, ripe plums and fresh red raspberries. Barrel aging created its smooth, silky finish and unprecedented depth.  A wonderful wine pairing for variety of dishes. Any type of meat - whether its pork, beef or game - is ideal with this wine. Cioppino is another amazing complement or try it with tomato-based pastas, hearty stews or a plate of strong, aged cheeses.

My review: Another delicious wine, Vintage Cellar really came through this week. This was another complex, fruit-forward wine that I thought was delicious. I’m surprised how much I like fruit-forward wines because I usually associated fruit with cheap, crap wines before this class. Now I really see a lot of variation and often enjoy fruity wines. The nose was fruity and was the wine with notes of berries and plum. It was more tannic than I was expecting, which I found quite interesting. Solid wine.

I tasted this on its own with no food.

Rosemount Estate Moscato

Name: Rosemount Estate Moscato

Variety: Moscato
Country: Austrailia

Year: 2012
Price: $3.95

Winery review: Clear, medium-lemon yellow in appearance; lovely citrus and honeysuckle aromas with lemon, honeysuckle, apple and ripe yellow plum flavours.  Serve chilled with angel food cake or fresh fruit and mild cheeses.

My review: Solid, solid, solid Moscato. I almost always hate Moscato but this one had something to it. It was herbal, spring-time, apple. There was a lot going on with this for such a sweet wine. I would definitely get this again.

I went back on Friday when I was helping pick up a couple kegs for an event and asked if they had any of this left—it was sold out by Thursday evening. I’m not surprised.

I tasted this on its own with no food.