D&D Wine Review

A friend brought over a bottle of Riesling during a recent get together, and one night when I was in the mood for white wine, we opened it up.  Normally Rieslings are very sweet, almost dessert-like, so that was what I expected.  I have to say I was pleasantly surprised to find that while the wine was sweet - it wasn’t over the top but instead was refreshing and I really enjoyed the light fruitiness of the wine.  Another great summer white wine to enjoy while sitting on the deck.  The reviews suggest it would be a great accompaniment to spicy food, and I think that would be a good pairing.

Wine: Clos du Bois

Year: 2006

Varietal: Riesling

Price Range: $10 - $15

Rating:

It was the weekend of Spanish wines for us, because Saturday night we enjoyed this Mauro wine, also recommended by Murphy’s.  We were eating it along with some great crusty french bread and a tangy cheese recommended by the cheese guy at Whole Foods, as one that would stand up to a strong wine.  It definitely fit the bill - this wine was rich in everything - taste, color, smell.  I picked up the scent of tobacco and maybe black cherry, and could taste that in the wine.  My first thought when I took a sniff, was that the wine would be almost too strong - it seemed almost harsh in its strong sent.  But then we tasted it - and it was very good.  While it had lots of depth, it was also very balanced and smooth to drink.  This is a wine for drinkers who like a really bold red, not something simple, but it was suprisingly pleasant.  It did carry a hefty price tag with it, at just under $50/bottle, but we enjoyed the bottle from beginning to end.

If you are looking for a bold, Spanish red - I’d probably say go for the more affordable  Cova Dels Vins Terros I also reviewd - however, this was also a great wine.

Wine: Maura Vendimia Seleccionada

Producer: Bodegas Mauro

Varietal: Tempranillo

Region: Spain - Castilla y Leon

Price: ~$50

Rating:

I bought a half-case of this Spanish red based on a recommendation from one of my favorite wine stores & restaurants, Murphy’s.   They know my preferences - I generally prefer bold reds (Zins are my favorite), and I have really enjoyed many of their recommendations of Spanish wines in the past.  This wine was definitely worth the purchase, especially at the reasonable price of $28/bottle.  I’ve seen it listed as a $32 bottle, but you can often find it on sale or get case discounts.

This wine is definitely bold - yet its very smooth.  I found it had flavors of fruit - to my tastes I would say it has berries - and it was very rich.  It had a very dark, blackberry color to it as well.  We were drinking it with a spicy salmon dish, and it held up well together with the pairing.  I also think it’d go great with a beef.

If you see this wine around, I’d definitely recommend picking some up.  Its gotten a 92 rating from The Wine Advocate, and I’ve seen that its recommended drink date actually is 2009 - 2019.  So a great wine to have around and save in your cellar.

Wine: Cova Del Vins Terros

Vintage: 2004

Region: Spain

Grapes: 50% Garnacha from 96-year-old vines, 25% Carinena from 75-year-old vines, and 25% Syrah from 20-year-old vines

Aged: 14 months in barrel

Rating:

We had a wonderful 5 course Northern Italian wine dinner at the Williamsburg Winery in Virginia. The Williamsburg Winery produces the most wine in the state of Vinginia, annually producing 60,000 cases. Our dinner consisted of 9 different pours; with each course we recieved one from the Williamsburg Winery (WW) and a similarly matched wine from Italy. We started the evening with a single white wine, the 2006 WW Seyvel Blanc to pair with a light crab dish. This wine was light and slightly fruity, a very nice way to begin our dinner. We continued with WW Burgesses Measure Merlot, which was our favorite wine of the evening. This delcious wine was fruity yet smooth with an earthy undertone. We picked up at bottle for $16.00. The Italian match was Lilliano 1998 Chiante Classico. This wine had soft tannins with a lovely smooth finish. I thought it was delcious, however, some had difficulty enjoying the tabacco aroma that accompanies Sangiovesse grapes. Our next course included a 2003 Avignonesi Rosso, a general Italian table wine, that was fruity and very pleasing on the palate; and a WW 2004 Barrel Aged Claret, which was more smooth and stuble than the Italian counterpart. Moving on, we enjoyed a 1991 Vadipiatta Vino Nobile that was more complex than the first Italian wines. This wine retails for $32 per bottle. It was still smooth, yet dry with a bit of spice and coffee. The WW companion was the 2005 Trianon Cabernet Franc. Again, we enjoyed this tasty wine, however, it would not reach it’s peak until 12 years of aging. Finally, we moved into the dessert course which paired with a Bruno Franco Birbet that was perfect with the poached pears served as our final course. It was fruity and floral, without overpowering, this was one of our favorite dessert wines. The WW companion was their Raspberry red wine, which was concentrated with fruits and sugar. It would work well for pouring over strawberries and cake, but not for drinking. Overall, we had a great wine experience. We learned about each wine we were drinking and had the opportunity to compare Italian and local Vinginia wines.