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Wine (alt.food.wine) Devoted to the discussion of wine and wine-related topics. A place to read and comment about wines, wine and food matching, storage systems, wine paraphernalia, etc. In general, any topic related to wine is valid fodder for the group. |
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TN: wines mostly in CA
Monday we were at Betsy's parents' home. Betsy and I made dinner- I
made a Roman chicken and peppers recipe from a Biba Caggiano recipe, Betsy did chard and a barley/mushroom side. Recipe needed a cup of white wine, we used the 2008 Clos du Bois Chardonnay (North Coast). Low acid, movie theater "butter", canned pears, not my style. C+ Tuesday we spent a little time in Yosemite before going to hotel in Mariposa; we went to dinner at the Butterfly Cafe. I had a spinach salad and mushroom stuffed chicken; Betsy had proscuitto/melon and a Caesar salad with shrimp. Only local (Sierra Foothills?)wines, we had a glass of: Butterfly Cellars Merlot (vintage uncertain) I worried about green in a mountain Merlot, but this seemed reasonably ripe, fruit forward, midbodied with a bit of vanilla. Good in a middle of the road sort of way. B- Butterfly Sauvignon Blanc Lots of grass, herbaceous, soft, I'm surprised it doesn't have more acidity as it hails from a fairly cool area. C+ Wednesday we hiked up to Vernal Falls, when we got back we went to check into Yosemite Lodge, as they had overbooked we accepted a room at the Yosemite View in El Portal. But we headed back into park for dinner, stopping first at the Ahwanee for a drink. List was mostly priced at retail for a glass, so $19 for the Cain Cuvee seemed like a deal. Great scenery, ok to good wine. Red plums, fleshy, a bit of spice. B- Dinner was at the Mountain Room, part of Yosemite Lodge looking up at the lower Falls. I had Caesar salad and flatiron steak w/chimichurri, Betsy also had the steak. We got a bottle of the 2005 Gundlach Bundschu Mountain Cuvee (Sonoma). Lighter styled, red plums and black cherries, just a hint of cedar. Good acids, food friendly, nice if not especially long . B Thursday we walked among the sequoias at Mariposa Grove and then drove to Southern CA. We got to Laguna Beach, took a long walk on beach, ate fish tacos, and then had a short visit with Betsy's grandmother. Afterwards, I opened a bottle of the 2006 Banfi Chianti Classico (I had actually bought Wed to drink on patio overlooking the Merced River, but we hadn't, and I sure didn't want to lug this back to NY). Modest acids, black cherry, fruit is a bit dilute, finish is short, disappointing for vintage. 2/3s left for maid. C+ So early exit from Orange County, a wait in the Twin Cites, and then we got to LGA. Betsy felt like cooking, threw together a pasta carbonara and some broccoli rabe, and I opened the 2007 Vissoux/ Chermette "Cuvee Traditionelle" Beaujolais VV. Ahh, finally my kind of wine. Good acidity, sweet sappy cherry fruit, a little hint of herbs and gunsmoke. Tasty, tasty, tasty. B++ Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent*wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't*drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no*promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.** |
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