It has been a LONG time since my last blog and a lot of wine has been tasted over the last 5 plus months. A significant amount of wine was tasted in ITALY, where all of us on that trip agree, we NEVER had a bad glass of wine!
Today I will catch up on the European wines letters U through Z. Our creativity was challenged in finding wines using some of those letters…and as you will see, we stretched the rules a tad. We also got a little carried away trying to describe the wine using the Letter of the night. See how many of those words you can spot!
I did hear from one reader recently. She told me that she and her friends are now making comments along the lines of “This is a Karen wine…dry.” and “Becky would like this one. It has her velvet.” We hope that you have fun with your wine tasting. We know that WE do!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
‘U’ Night – Becky & Mike’s turn
- Heredad Ugarte Crianza 2008, Spain $12.99
Karen: “Smells good!”
Bob: “Has a mild smell. Are we on U’s? How did you find them? It goes up your nose.”
Jess: “Uh, oh”
Becky: “This is a drinking wine.”
Jess: “Not much to say about this one. Unremarkable.”
Bob: “But understandable.”
Karen: “Is it more flowery than fruity?”
Becky: “It does have a flowery essence.”
Mike: “Good with chocolate.”
Bob 6, Karen 6.5, Mike 6, Becky 6, Jess 6 - Llicorella Priorat Cellers Unió Selección Especial 2002, Spain? $39.99
Becky: “This has a different smell.”
Bob: “Deep. A lot of tannins.”
Karen: “Oh my.”
Jess: “Kind of sour.”
Karen: “Sour?”
Mike: “There’s a big of sour.”
Karen: “It’s spicy, though. Too many flavors going on.”
Becky: “I’m kind of liking this wine. It’s really different.”
Karen: “The taste keeps changing.”
Becky: “Really good after salami.”
Karen: “It has a nice deep color.”
Bob: “I’m unspoken.”
Mike: “Terrible after chocolate. UGH.”
Bob 5.5, Karen 6, Mike 5, Becky 7, Jess 4.5 - Cincuenta Ugarte Rioja, Spain $10.99
Bob: “I think it’s going downhill from the first one.”
Karen: “So, Mike, what’s the word?”
Mike (blank look)Becky: “I think it’s UMMM.”
Mike: “First word is Utterly.”
Karen: “Underdeveloped.”
Bob: “Underpenny. 99. Was under a dollar.”
Mike: “Under performer.”
Jess: “Utterly better than the last one.”
Karen: “I like this one better. It’s dry. It doesn’t have as much smell.”
Mike: “Utterly useless like Mike.”
Karen: “What is that smell? It’s not bad. I just don’t know what it is. Not chocolate. Don’t write that!”
Bob: “Now that we’re done we’re going to play some eUchre.”
Bob 5, Karen 6, Mike 5, Becky 6, Jess 6.5
Friday, April 6, 2012
‘V’ Night – Karen & Bob’s turn
Menu: Crackers, Cheese, Fondue (YUM!), Sausage, Ham
- Pierre Amadieu Vacqueyras La Grangelière 2008, France $17.99
Mike: “Lighter color. Oak-y smell.”
Bob: “Wow! That’s good!”
Karen: “Yeah, I like this.”
Stephen, with his fondue fork, successfully skewered cheese, sausage & cracker to much applause.
Kara: “Great drinkability.”
Bob: “Lite, but good flavor.”
Stephen: “It’s good.”
Becky: “Tastes best after ham.”
Karen: “Not enough body for a high score. Gives me a warm feeling…like whisky.”
Becky: “It gives me that metal taste.”
Kara: “Yeah. Iron. Like blood.”
Bob 7.5, Karen 7, Mike 6.5, Becky 6, Jess 7.5, Kara 6.5, Lauren 6, Stephen 6.5 - Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2007, France $49.99
Karen: “Smells good. REALLY good. It had better taste as good as it smells.”
Jess: “Will you cry if it doesn’t?”
Karen: “Yes.”
Bob: “Mulberries.”
Karen: “You don’t even know what a mulberry is!”
Bob: “The finish is…EWW. Need cheese!”
Lauren: “Drinkable.”
Stephen: “Bad after taste.”
Jess: “I like this one.”
Karen: “A lot better after the veggie crackers.”
Bob 5.5, Karen 6, Mike 7, Becky 7, Jess 6.5, Karan 4, Lauren 6.5, Stephen 5 - Le Nain Violet Grenache 2008 Domaine de la Pertuisane, France $24.99
Stephen: “Nice color.”
Karen: “Smells really good. I don’t want to taste it.”
Bob: “Karen sighed. Did you write that down?”
Bob: “Smells strong. A weight lifter with sweat.”
Mike: “Sour.”
Bob: “It has vintage character.”
Lauren: “Dry, but fruity.”
Bob: “It’s almost Voodoo. It’s very dry. It’s almost velvety.”
Becky: “That’s MY word – You can’t steal it!”
Bob: “Violet. Volumptious (yes, a new word).”
Jess: “The viscosity is visceral.”
Stephen: “It’s Veto-able. If someone opens this wine I will veto it.”
Karen: “It’s my fave of the night. Very dry.”
Mike: “It’s so dry Lauren needs chopsticks.”
Stephen: “Vengeful. The dryness is villainous.”
Karen: “Oh man. This is so good!!”
Bob 5, Karen 8, Mike 7, Becky 7, Jess 6.5, Kara 7, Lauren 5, Stephen 5
NOTE: This wine was recommended by Tony at Super Cellar - Campo Viejo Rioja Reserva 2006, Spain $13.99
Lauren: “I don’t like this one. Very dry and bland.”
Karen: “Licorice. Anybody think licorice? I haven’t tasted it yet. I’m saying licorice. Anise.”
Bob: “It smells like fish.”
Becky: “It doesn’t smell like fish. Black licorice.”
Karen: “Dry and very little taste.”
Becky: “Iron. Vampire wine.”
Kara: “I would have to agree with bland.”
Jess: “Unremarkable.”
Stephen: “It was OK.”
Bob: “I think I’m going through puberty again. I have a pimple on my nose.”
Bob 6, Karen 6, Mike 7.5, Becky 6, Jess 5, Kara 4, Lauren 4, Stephen 6.5 - Catapereiro Vinho Tinto Vinho REgional Tejo 2008, Portugal $11.99
Karen: “Smells good.”
Mike: “Fruity.”
Bob: “It looks like Becky is having a relationship with the wine.”
Becky: “I had to close my eyes to smell it.”
Bob: “This is kind of mild.”
Mike: “It’s a fruitier taste”
Lauren: “I like it!”
Stephen: “Very ordinary.”
Kara: “Too fruity for me.”
Lauren: “I like it a lot.”
Jess: “Smell attacks your nose.”
Bob 7, Karen 7, Mike 7, Becky 6, Jess 5.5, Kara 5, Lauren 6.5, Stephen 5.5
Thursday, April 19, 2012
‘W’ Night – Mike & Becky are Up to Bat
- 2006 Chateau Malmaison Baronne Nadine de Rothschild Moulis-en-Medoc, France $22.99
Karen: “Smells like Thursday.”
Jess: “Smells like the day after Wednesday.”
Bob: “Well ‘Wounded’.”
Mike: “Full bodied. Nice smell.”
Karen: “This is really dry. I’m surprised you like it so much.”
Jess: “It won’t wet your whistle.”
Bob: “I think it’s wonderful.”
Mike: “I don’t think it’s dry.”
Becky: “Earthy.”
Mike: “It’s a wonderful wine.”
Bob: “It Weally is.”
Becky: “An interesting taste. Not ‘won’ dimensional.”
Bob 7, Karen 6.5, Mike 7.5, Becky 7, Jess 6.5 - Volver 2009 “Wine Advocate 90 Points” Bodegas Volver, Spain $16.99
Karen: “This one smells better.”
Bob: “It does smell good. Really good.”
Karen: “Yum. A lot more flavor.”
Jess: “I like it.”
Bob: “Spicy.”
Karen: “Smoother. A lot of flavor in the mouth.”
Becky: “I’m guessing it’s from Spain.”
Mike: “Black Currant.”
Bob 7, Karen 8, Mike 6, Becky 7.5, Jess 7.5 - Wrongo Dongo Monastrell, Spain…. A Gift from Mike’s friend
Karen: “This smell is in between the 1st and 2nd. It’s drier.”
Bob: “I think it’s pretty good.”
Jess: “Dry”
Mike: “Nice smelling body.”
Bob: Spit dry. Sandy. Desert.”
Becky: “Fresh smell – like after a rain.”
Bob 6, Karen 7.5, Mike 6, Becky 7, Jess 7
Thursday, April 26, 2012
‘X’ Night – Bob & Karen X marks the spot
- Grand Vin de Bordeaux Chateau Lamoth de Haux 2007, France $18.99
Bob: “Smells good. Fruity. Smells better than it tastes.”
Mike: “A bland, plain taste.”
Becky: “But drinkable.”
Bob: “Doesn’t make me x-uberant.”
Karen: “I don’t think it’s bad.”
Bob: “Do you think it’s x-cellent?”
Karen: “No. I taste pepper.”
Becky: “Pleasant. Really good with swiss.”
Bob 6.5, Karen 6.5, Mike 6, Becky 6.5 (the smell for Bob was an 8) - Chateau Saint Martin 2008 de la Garrigue Bronzinelle Coteaux du Lanyuede $19.99
Mike: “Sour. Tangy.”
Bob: “A lot of flavor. Not necessarily good flavor. Stinks like hell.”
Mike: “Sour Patch Kids, but not as sweet.”
Becky: “Cloudy.”
Mike: “It’s a seafood wine.”
Bob: “Tamed down by the tang of the sauce (shrimp cocktail sauce).”
Mike: “I guess I know which wine I’m buying. You guys will have to suffer.”
Bob 5, Karen 5, Mike 7, Becky 5.5 - Les Baux de Provence mas de gourgonnier 2009 $17.99
A Short Fat BottleBob: “Don’t laugh.” (wrinkled nose when tasted) “We did not do well this week.”
Karen: “I like this one better than the last one. Less flavors.”
Bob: “One flavor, and it’s bad.”
Karen: “This one IS better than the last one.”
Mike: “No.”
Bob: “Not good. Dry though. A dry, crap wine. But it’s bad. You’d think a short, fat wine would be good.”
Karen: “I think that’s why I like it. It’s ‘alcohol-y’. Not a lot of flavor, but very dry. A nice color.”
Mike: “A very nice color.”
Bob 6, Karen 6.5, Mike 6, Becky 5
Thursday, May 3, 2012
‘Y’ Night – Mike & Becky were responsible for these wines!
- Yarden Mount Hermon Galilee 2010 Golan Heights Winery $14.99
Rabi Avraham Oyerbach – Kosher wine “This wine is not ‘mevushal’”
Bob: “This wine won’t make you yawn yet, but it will make one yell Yahoo!”
Jess: “Yippee! Smells Yummy.”
Bob: “Kind of strong – what did you think?”
Jess: “A fruity after taste.”
Bob: “Goes very well with the cheese.”
Mike: “It does get better with the cheese.”
Bob: “….is yelling for more wine. Yikes.”
Becky: “Fruity.”
Karen: “And a little peppery.”
Kara: “I’m thinking blackberry.”
Becky: “Something black – maybe black cherry.”
Kara: “Yes!”
Bob 6.5, Karen 6.5, Mike 6.5, Becky 6.5, Jess 6.5, Kara 5.5 - Chateau D’Arvigny Haut-Medoc 2008 $15.99
Karen: “That doesn’t smell very nice.”
Becky: “The first smell was yucky – the second smell was better.”
Bob: “It’s fizzy.”
Karen: “Caramel.”
Becky: “A harsh after taste.”
Bob: “Eww.”
Mike: “Yowza!”
Bob: “Yucky.”
Karen: “I don’t like it.”
Bob 4.5, Karen 4, Mike 4, Becky 4, Jess 4.5, Kara 5 - Senorio de Convey Cellers Unio 2008, Spain $14.99
Becky: “A darker color. Kind of a chocolate smell.”
Karen nodded her head
Kara: “Then we need to eat strawberries.”
Becky: “Tobacco smell.”
Mike: “A three. It’s bland.”
Becky: “You can’t rate it already! Wine foul!”
Bob: “A premature rating.”
Bob 4.5, Karen 4, Mike 3, Becky 4, Jess 4.5, Kara 4
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
‘Z’ Night – The last of the European Red Alphabet selections! With Bob and Karen
- Izadi Reserva Rioja 2003 Spain (a duplicate!) $19.95
Karen: “It smells good.”
Mike: It DOES smell good.”
Becky: “Is it Zesty?”
Karen/Bob: “It IS Zesty!”
Bob: “It has a little zip.”
Karen: “A little peppery.”
Mike: “It has a bite at the end, but I don’t know what it is.”
Bob: “It’s kind of blah. I’m not feeling it. No fireworks.”
Becky: “It is MUCH better after spicy food. I didn’t like it with the cheese.”
Bob 6.5, Karen 7, Mike 7, Becky 6 - Chateau du Souzy Beaujolais-Villages 2009, France $11.99
Karen: “I don’t like the smell of this one. It’s fruitier.”
Karen made a weird face
Becky: “Definitely fruitier.”
Mike: “Black currant. Dark.”
Bob: “Not bad. Not good. A musty smell.”
Bob 5, Karen 4, Mike 5, Becky 4.5 - Vina Zaco Rioja Tempranillo 2008, Spain
Karen: “I’m not wild about this one either.”
Bob: “Io capiszco vino”
That’s Bob practicing his Italian for our trip to Italy
Mike: “Fair. A berry.”
Karen: “More cherry than berry.”
Bob: “Kind of ……. no pizzazz …. doesn’t capiszco”
Karen: “More fruity.”
Bob 5, Karen 4, Mike 4, Becky 4
