Tasting - Black Ridge White Zinfandel

Name: Black Ridge White Zinfandel
Variety: Zinfandel
Region: Central Valley, California
Country: United States
Year: NV
Price: $3.95

Winery Review: "This fruit forward White Zinfandel displays fresh aromas and crisp flavors of strawberry, raspberry, and cherry. It is incredibly food friendly and will pair well with burgers, sandwiches, fruit salad, and more." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: As you may expect with an American Zin this puppy was bursting with spicy, fruity flavors from the get-go! Great West Coast fruit flavors coming on the nose, cherry, plum, and even some ripe apples. You get the great jammy components of a red Zin without the powerful tannic punch to the face. More tame than its siblings, it delivers great balance with a slight body due to its semi-sweet nature. Great after taste and an overall chill wine to drink.


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Chandon Sweet Cuvée

Name: Chandon Sweet Cuvée
Variety: Blended Sparkling Rose, infused with Pinot Noir
Region: Napa Valley
Country: United States
Year: NV
Price: $9.95

Winery Review: "This wine is an innovative sparkling wine style revealing vibrant stone fruit and floral aromas with rich, luscious mouthfeel. This wine enlivens the senses and sparks spontaneous moments, complementing your passion for a good life." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: This Californian spritzer has a very unique color for a rose; tangerine orange. A bit odd from what I'm used to but it delivered none the less with zesty dark berry flavors and a little hidden spice. The bubbles were very subtle, not overpowering the pallet but making their presence known while providing a crisp, fresh finish. My only complain is that it seemed a little flabby. But how can a sparkling wine seem flabby? Great question, but once the bubbles quickly disappear a lack of acidity reared its ugly head. Such soft fruit flavors and an enjoyable effervescent start tarnished by a dull, flat finish. Not too bad overall but nothing to write home about.


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Wilson Daniels Sauvignon Blanc

Name: Wilson Daniels Sauvignon Blanc
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Region: Central Coast, California
Country: United States
Year: 2010
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: "Orange blossom and citrus permeate the aromas. Alluring flavors of orange and grapefruit dominate the palate. Bright acidity balances the plush mouthfeel, resulting in a clean finish." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: A great straw yellow color with a potent lemony/fruity bouquet. I got a little bitter pear on the mid-pallet with some light acidity after kick. Very light bodied and refreshing with its summer-esque qualities and strong backbone. Low complexity, approachable Sav Blanc that flourishes on the florals and elegant simplicity. 


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Caprice de Bastor- Lamontagne

Name: Caprice de Bastor- Lamontagne
Variety: 60% Semillon, 36% Sauvignon Blanc, 4% Muscadelle
Region: Sauternes
Country: France
Year: 2004
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: "Very clean, with lemon, mineral and honey aromas that follow through to a medium body. Shows vanilla, apple and melon flavors, with a medium finish. Lightly sweet." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: On the nose I got a weird combination of yellow mustard and rubbing alcohol so I can't say I was particularly pumped to try this wannabe dessert wine. Very hollow and hot with weedy, dandelion flavors. Way way way way way too over the top sweet, the wine was chewy just because of its ridiculous sugar content, seemed more like corn syrup than anything else. Definitely picked ip on the honey flavors and it left a honey-esque  feeling in my mouth too, that coated kind of "dog with peanut butter on the roof of its mouth" kind of thing. Light and crisp, prefect combination for for a white wine but out of balance with the sugar overload.


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Torre Castillo Alegre

Name: Torre Castillo Alegre
Variety: 100% Monastrell
Region: Jumilla
Country: Spain
Year: 2010
Price: $9.95

Winery Review: "4 months in new American oak barrels Bright ruby-red. Dried cherry, pipe tobacco and rose aromas, with a hint of woodsmoke. Sweet and fleshy on the palate, with blackberry and cherry flavors complimented by licorice and a suggestion of dried herbs. The cherry and smoke notes repeat on the finish." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: And the Spanish wines continue to impress. A nice vibrant red color with a strong dark berry nose and a hint of some autumn leaf smell (via barrel aging) showing itself. Semi-sweet and earthy with a medium body and very smooth, delicate finish. Really showing some of that Iberian Peninsula terroir in an elegant compilation of Monastrell and it's best friend American oak. 


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Wilson Daniels Merlot

Name: Wilson Daniels Merlot
Variety: Merlot
Region: Central Coast, California
Country: United States
Year: 2010
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: "Made predominantly from Paso Robles grapes, the wine is fullbodied and silky yet robust, with aromas of black cherry and plum and a palate of blackberry, raspberry and blueberry jam laced with vanilla and toast." Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: Wham bam thank you ma'am, if you got the jelly, this wine will bring the jam! POW! Plenty of jammy, fruity action all up in your mouth. Dark berries create an immense flavor profile that is both complex and desirable. Long finish with plenty of penetrating peppery spice action on the mid pallet. I could smell the oak and taste the oak bringing some toasty goodness to round out this medium bodied, well balanced tannic wine. Classic California Merlot that I wouldn't mind laying around the house.


I sampled the wine without food.

Tasting - Bricco Dei Tati Rosè

Name: Bricco Dei Tati Rosè
Variety: 100% Barbera
Region: Piedmont
Country: Italy
Year: 2012
Price: $6.95

Winery Review: "Fresh with aromas of strawberries, cherries, and rose petals, this an ideal wine with shellfish, salads, chicken, and appetizers" Vintage Cellar wine notes

My Review: If I didn't know any better I could have sworn I was walking through a blossoming spring strawberry patch, not smelling wine in the VC. Explosion of lovely strawberry and plum components on the nose, very floral, light, and delicate. A little bit hotter than I would have liked but the sweet berry flavors blended together very well. However this was a pretty bland wine, low complexity, low tannins, low excitement. Maybe a touch too much sugar for my pallet, left that sugar coated feeling on my teeth. Overall I enjoyed this rose but it left me looking for just a little more pep and zing that I wasn't finding under a heavy strawberry blanket. Definitely a solid spring/summer picnic or cookout type of wine.


I sampled the wine without food.