Breaking Out The Burgundy

$21-$30, 4 Corks, Prices, Ratings 3 Responses »
May 182010

While it’s hard to believe, I passed the 6-month mark at my “new” job.  It’s been an eventful 6 months— record breaking snow shutting down the office for a week, 6 major projects (and 2 more waiting in the wings), the creation of “Allison’s Law” about all the things that will wrong during a one of my major projects, a Spanish wine tasting with my new coworkers, numerous fun happy hours, and just a general feeling of constantly being busy.  I feel like I’ve been in my position just long enough to be comfortable, but not quite long enough to avoid the occasional newbie hiccups.  In celebration of my transformation from being a true newbie to a more seasoned member of the staff, last Wednesday I brought out the Burgundy glasses that my former coworkers gave me at my going away party and popped the cork on a Burgundy that I bought 6 months ago to break in the new glasses.

2006 Domaine Besson Les Grands Pretans Givry 1er Cru

The 2006 Domaine Besson Les Grands Pretans Givry 1er Cru (snooth) was a dark ruby with a garnet rim.  On the nose, there were cherries, cranberries, and raspberries with the slightest hint of cooking spice.  In the mouth, there were tart raspberries, sour cherries, and a hint of nutmeg and roasted meat.  The wine had low tannins and high acidity with a medium body.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely!  If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. At $28, this wine had very reserved aromas that, once decanted, came through as a brilliant mix of red fruits.  The wine was quite enjoyable on its own, particularly as I drank it while watching Hubby make dinner, but it also paired nicely with the chicken that he made.  All in all, if you’re looking for a solid Burgundy, this is one that you definitely don’t have to be afraid of opening.

Overall: 4 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 8:00 pm Tagged with: , , , ,

"Flesh and Fire" Paired With A Pinot

$41-$50, 4 Corks, Prices, Ratings 1 Response »
Mar 192010

*** I received this wine as a sample***

Over the weekends, I tend to drink wine at restaurants more often than I drink wine in the condo.  However, between the rainy weather and Hubby recovering from living the rockstar-lifestyle of happy hours that go late into the night and an overnight trip to Atlantic City, neither of us was interested in venturing too far on Sunday.  Instead, it was the perfect opportunity for me to make progress on my latest book, Flesh and Fire: Book One of The Vineart War by Laura Anne Gilman—a fantasy novel about magic and wine—and enjoy my last bottle of Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir.

2006 Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir

The 2006 Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir (vineyard, snooth) was a light-to-medium ruby, but with a brightness to it that was stunning.  On the nose, there were big, ripe berry flavors, although they were a surprising mix of red and black fruits—strawberry, raspberry, and blackberry—followed by a touch of vanilla, cloves, and moss.  In the mouth, there were cherries, cocoa, earth, and a touch of black pepper and cinnamon.  The wine had a bright acidity and medium tannins.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely!  If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. Of the several sample bottles of Pinot Noir that Willamette Valley Vineyards sent me, the 2006 Estate Vineyard was my favorite.  Not that I wouldn’t drink the other Pinots, as I definitely would, but this wine maintained the classic, wonderful characteristics of a Pinot Noir, while also offering a touch of uniqueness that made it stand out among the rest.  The wine was warm and ripe, without being overbearing or jammy.  It was food friendly, although I preferred to drink it on its own while reading my book, this way I could really sink into the flavors of both.

Overall: 4 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 8:00 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

"Flesh and Fire" Paired With A Pinot

4 Corks, Prices, Ratings No Responses »
Mar 192010

*** I received this wine as a sample***

Over the weekends, I tend to drink wine at restaurants more often than I drink wine in the condo.  However, between the rainy weather and Hubby recovering from living the rockstar-lifestyle of happy hours that go late into the night and an overnight trip to Atlantic City, neither of us was interested in venturing too far on Sunday.  Instead, it was the perfect opportunity for me to make progress on my latest book, Flesh and Fire: Book One of The Vineart War by Laura Anne Gilman—a fantasy novel about magic and wine—and enjoy my last bottle of Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir.

2006 Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir

The 2006 Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir (vineyard, snooth) was a light-to-medium ruby, but with a brightness to it that was stunning.  On the nose, there were big, ripe berry flavors, although they were a surprising mix of red and black fruits—strawberry, raspberry, and blackberry—followed by a touch of vanilla, cloves, and moss.  In the mouth, there were cherries, cocoa, earth, and a touch of black pepper and cinnamon.  The wine had a bright acidity and medium tannins.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely!  If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. Of the several sample bottles of Pinot Noir that Willamette Valley Vineyards sent me, the 2006 Estate Vineyard was my favorite.  Not that I wouldn’t drink the other Pinots, as I definitely would, but this wine maintained the classic, wonderful characteristics of a Pinot Noir, while also offering a touch of uniqueness that made it stand out among the rest.  The wine was warm and ripe, without being overbearing or jammy.  It was food friendly, although I preferred to drink it on its own while reading my book, this way I could really sink into the flavors of both.

Overall: 4 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 8:00 pm Tagged with: , , , , ,

A Pinot Noir That Hits The Spot

$41-$50, 4 Corks, Prices, Ratings 3 Responses »
Mar 152010

***I received this wine as a sample***

For as wonderful of a day as last Tuesday was, last Wednesday was equally as difficult—not bad, just difficult.  My latest major project was due Thursday, and everything that could possibly go wrong at the last minute did.  Unfortunately, some of the things that went wrong were repeat problems from my previous project, but there was nothing I could have done to avoid them.  The problems were piling up in such a way that one of my colleagues sent around an “Allison’s Law” email and #3 on the list was that something out of the ordinary would happen to complicate my projects.  It would have been very funny if it hadn’t been about me. By the time I left the office late Wednesday night, I was frustrated and a little concerned about how the final product.  Regardless, I was definitely ready for dinner and a nice glass of wine.

The 2007 Willamette Valley Vineyards Elton Vineyard Pinot Noir (vineyard, snooth) was a very clear, pale ruby with the slightest hint of garnet on the rim.  On the nose, there were berries—cherry, raspberry, strawberry—cocoa dust, rose petals, thyme, and a touch of earth.  In the mouth, there were red and black cherries, tea leaves, violets, and roses, along with a touch of smoke, ginger, and the red coating of a candy apple.  The wine had nice tannins and a medium body.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely!  If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. At $45, this wine is a little on the pricey side for opening after work, but I promise that it’s well worth it.  Plus, the 2007 Pinot Noir has some nice aging potential, so if you prefer to cellar the wine for a couple of years, it should age nicely.  I drank the Pinot Noir with pistachios, which was a beautiful combination, as well as with dinner—a chicken tortilla casserole from Cooking for Two: 2009,The Year’s Best Recipes Cut Down to Size.  The pairing with the casserole was very nice.  After dinner, I sank into a second glass of wine as I checked my work Blackberry and watched a little trashy tv before calling it a night.  The 2007 Willamette Valley Vineyards Elton Vineyard Pinot Noir was exactly what I needed after a frustrating day at work.

Overall: 3.5 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 8:00 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Long Days & Good Pinot

$11-$20, 3 Corks, Prices, Ratings No Responses »
Feb 222010

***I received this wine as a sample***

Last Wednesday and Thursday were incredibly busy, as they were full of back-to-back, marathon meetings.  It should have been a quiet week for me at work, but, while many of my coworkers came to work at 10am and left by 5pm, I arrived at 8:30am to make sure that I had time to check email and do some work at my desk before starting 10-12 hours worth of meetings.  Thankfully, there was dinner at the last meeting of the night, although only non-alcoholic beverages were served.  After a day of serious discussions and negotiations with the same 25 people, I think many of us could have benefited from a break and a glass of wine.  All in all, while most of the meetings were interesting and useful, I spent the latter part of both days looking forward to going home, having a nice glass of wine, catching up with Hubby, and watching Lindsey Vonn and Apollo Ono in the Olympics.

My wine of choice was the 2008 Willamette Valley Vineyards Whole Cluster Fermentation Pinot Noir.  This is a bottle that the vineyard expects to be “the best vintage of the decade,” so you can imagine the anticipation when opening the wine.   As I’ve mentioned in previous reviews of Willamette Valley Vineyards wine, the vineyard not only focuses on producing quality wine, but also on producing wine in an environmentally friendly way.  If you are interested in reading more about their efforts, visit the sustainability page on their website.

As for the 2008 Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, it  had a light-to-medium ruby color.  On the nose, there were ripe strawberries and raspberries, followed by pomegranate, wood, and a touch of cocoa dust.  In the mouth, the wine tasted of the candy coating on a candy apple, followed by cherries, strawberries, and pomegranates. There was also a hint of bitter herbs—parsley and thyme.  The wine had a strong acidity, low tannins, and a light-to-medium body.

Is this worth a glass after work? Sure…you won’t be drinking anything out of the ordinary, but you’ll definitely have a decent, reliable glass of wine. At $19 this was an enjoyable wine, although it was missing the something special that I expected after falling in-love with other Willamette Valley Vineyards wines.  That said, the Whole Cluster Pinot Noir is a wine that is ready to drink now and pairs well with food, so you shouldn’t shy away from it if your looking for a Pinot Noir under $20.

Overall: 3 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 10:40 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Long Days & Good Pinot

3 Corks, Prices, Ratings No Responses »
Feb 222010

***I received this wine as a sample***

Last Wednesday and Thursday were incredibly busy, as they were full of back-to-back, marathon meetings.  It should have been a quiet week for me at work, but, while many of my coworkers came to work at 10am and left by 5pm, I arrived at 8:30am to make sure that I had time to check email and do some work at my desk before starting 10-12 hours worth of meetings.  Thankfully, there was dinner at the last meeting of the night, although only non-alcoholic beverages were served.  After a day of serious discussions and negotiations with the same 25 people, I think many of us could have benefited from a break and a glass of wine.  All in all, while most of the meetings were interesting and useful, I spent the latter part of both days looking forward to going home, having a nice glass of wine, catching up with Hubby, and watching Lindsey Vonn and Apollo Ono in the Olympics.

My wine of choice was the 2008 Willamette Valley Vineyards Whole Cluster Fermentation Pinot Noir.  This is a bottle that the vineyard expects to be “the best vintage of the decade,” so you can imagine the anticipation when opening the wine.   As I’ve mentioned in previous reviews of Willamette Valley Vineyards wine, the vineyard not only focuses on producing quality wine, but also on producing wine in an environmentally friendly way.  If you are interested in reading more about their efforts, visit the sustainability page on their website.

As for the 2008 Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, it  had a light-to-medium ruby color.  On the nose, there were ripe strawberries and raspberries, followed by pomegranate, wood, and a touch of cocoa dust.  In the mouth, the wine tasted of the candy coating on a candy apple, followed by cherries, strawberries, and pomegranates. There was also a hint of bitter herbs—parsley and thyme.  The wine had a strong acidity, low tannins, and a light-to-medium body.

Is this worth a glass after work? Sure…you won’t be drinking anything out of the ordinary, but you’ll definitely have a decent, reliable glass of wine. At $19 this was an enjoyable wine, although it was missing the something special that I expected after falling in-love with other Willamette Valley Vineyards wines.  That said, the Whole Cluster Pinot Noir is a wine that is ready to drink now and pairs well with food, so you shouldn’t shy away from it if your looking for a Pinot Noir under $20.

Overall: 3 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 10:40 pm Tagged with: , , , , ,

Another Night of Fabulous Pinot Noir

$21-$30, 3.5 Corks, Prices, Ratings 2 Responses »
Oct 222009

***I received this wine as a sample.***

For as crazy of a day as I had on Tuesday, Wednesday was fairly calm and quiet work day. With the exception of a few meetings, my schedule was fire drill free, so I was finally able to catch-up on some emails and research. It was one of those days where I didn’t have a big project to show for my hard work, but I still left the office feeling satisfied that I’d accomplished a number of items on my to-do list. The only downside to the day was that I came home to a sick Hubby. Since he wasn’t feeling well, dinner was pretty light and quick, but that just gave me more time to settle into the evening with a nice glass of the 2007 Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir.

Looking at the several bottles of the Willamette Valley Vineyards’ wine in my wine rack, it was immediately evident that the winery is very concerned about sustainability. On the front label of the 2007 Pinot Noir, there is a big icon that says “Stewardship of the Land,” and on the back label, among other things, is an icon to indicate that the vineyard as Salmon Safe. Therefore, I was not surprised to discover on the vineyard’s website that they offer a 10 cent refund for every bottle that is returned to the tasting room and a $1 refund for every bottle that is returned through the mail. They also recycle all corks and were the first winery in the world to be certified by the Rainforest Alliance for their use of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standard corks. The winery has a great one-page outlining all of their sustainability efforts, if you want more information.

As for the wine itself, the 2007 Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir was light, bright ruby with a rim that was turning garnet. On the nose, there were big, juicy red fruit aromas—strawberry, raspberry, cherries—followed by a touch of leather, white pepper, green tea, and vanilla. In the mouth, there were cherries, cherries, and more cherries. The cherry flavors tasted a little candied, and they were followed by a touch of raspberry, powdered cocoa, white pepper, violets, vanilla, and ferns. The wine had low-to-medium tannins with medium acidity.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely! If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. At $25, this wine has a nice complexity that is fun for the more experienced wine drinker to puzzle through, while also being easy enough to drink that its flavors aren’t lost on the novice drinker. In addition to all of that, it’s a particularly good choice for the environmentally conscious. One thing to keep in mind when buying a bottle is that while the wine was very good, it tasted a little young. Therefore, you shouldn’t feel rushed to drink this wine right away, as it definitely has some nice aging potential. That said, if you want to drink the Pinot Noir now, it is a wine that is enjoyable both on its own and with food. I ended up pairing the wine with pistachios and the most recent episodes of Castle and So You Think You Can Dance. The saltiness from the pistachios enhanced the earthiness of the wine for a wonderful, rustic taste, while the TV shows enhanced the relaxation factor of drinking a nice glass of wine after a satisfying day of work.

Overall: 3 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 3:20 pm Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

A Fool For Michel-Schlumberger Pinot

$31-$40, 4 Corks, Prices, Ratings 2 Responses »
Oct 212009

Yesterday was one of those work days where I thought that things would be fairly quiet. I had a handful of meetings on my calendar, but otherwise, my plan was to catch-up on some of the work that was piling up because of the ongoing sickness circulating in my office. By 10am, though, it was clear that not only wasn’t it going to be a quiet day for me, but also it wasn’t going to be a day for me to catch-up on work and emails. Between unexpected meetings, a few problems that popped up out of nowhere, and a few people being slow to finish their part in a project, I ended up have to stay at the office late and was answering my blackberry long after I was home. However, answering the blackberry didn’t stop me from wanting to indulge in a glass of wine, and since I’m feeling 90% better, the bottle I opened was the first bottle in several weeks that I opened with the intent of writing a review—the 2006 Michel-Schlumberger ‘Le Fou’ Pinot Noir.

I purchased this wine while I was out in California for the wine bloggers conference (WBC09). While I haven’t had a chance to write about my walking tour of the vineyards yet, they were wonderful. After exploring the vineyards, I had a chance to taste a number of the wines being made at Michel-Schlumberger and because I enjoyed what I tasted, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to purchase a few bottles. With the feeling of adventure, 2 or 4 bottles I purchased were actually ones that I didn’t taste while I was there. Since the Pinot Noir was one of the untasted wines, it was a bottle that I was looking forward to opening and, therefore, was saving it for a night where I could indulge in little bit of “me” time.

The 2006 Michel-Schlumberger ‘Le Fou’ Pinot Noir (winery, snooth) had a beautiful, medium ruby color. On the nose, there were animal notes mixed in with bright raspberry, cherry, and pomegranate aromas. In the mouth, the raspberry, cherry, and pomegranate flavors mixed nicely with warm spices—mostly cinnamon and nutmeg. The wine had low tannins, medium-to-high acidity, and light-to-medium body.

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely! If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. At $32, this wine is the perfect bottle to make you feel like you’ve indulged a little without breaking the bank. The Pinot Noir is a nice, food-friendly wine that easily transitions to drinking alone. For dinner, I paired the wine with a grilled basil-garlic chicken, which actually brought out a slight vegetal and mineral aspect in the wine, which was quite unexpected, but very pleasant. As an evening snack, I paired the wine with homemade zucchini bread, and the spices in the bread accentuated the spices in the wine to create a nice fall weather combination.


Overall: 4 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 4:17 pm Tagged with: , , , ,

Sonoma Grand Tasting at WBC09

$11-$20, $21-$30, $31-$40, $51 and higher, 2.5 Corks, 3 Corks, 3.5 Corks, 4 Corks, 4.5 Corks, Prices, Ratings 2 Responses »
Aug 072009
I admit it, by the time the Sonoma Grand Tasting started, I was a bit overwhelmed. This was my first Wine Bloggers’ Conference, and up until this point, I’d never tasted more than 15-20 wines in one sitting. At the WBC, though, by 5pm there had already been wine tasting in the welcome room, wine tasting at lunch, and wine tasting at the speed tasting, so the Sonoma Grand Tasting was taking me further outside of my tasting comfort zone than I’d even been before. So, I was nervous, but I was also up for the challenge.

The Sonoma Grad Tasting was a roped-off patio area near the pool at the Flamingo Resort. As you can see from the pictures, there were a lot of bloggers in a very small space, but it served as a way for us to get to know each other very quickly. People were standing around talking, eating delicious cheese and spreads with crackers, and of course, tasting 2, 3, or 4 wines from every vineyard at the tasting.

The Grand Tasting was definitely a success for me. I tasted Murphy-Goode wines for the first time and was pleased with what I tasted, as I had never even heard of the winery before the contest for the Really Goode Job. I worked my way through some well-know, affordable everyday wines that I often look at in the wine store, but haven’t had a chance to purchase, as well as tasted some lesser-known, more-unusual wines that were pleasant surprises. While all of the wines were good, none of them knocked me off my feet. Admittedly, I was nervous that I was the only one who felt that way, but after talking with other bloggers throughout the weekend, it seemed that my opinion was shared by others.

My notes from this event aren’t very detailed, but here are some pictures and my overall ratings:

Murphy-Goode Winery (website)
2008 “The Fume” Sauvignon Blanc—$12.50 3 Corks
Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon—$20 3 Corks
2006 “Liar’s Dice” Zinfandel—$21 3.5 Corks



Chateau St. Jean (website)
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon—$30 3.5 Corks
2007 Chardonnay—$25 4 Corks



Souverain (website)
2007 Chardonnay—$13 3 Corks
2007 Merlot—$15 3 Corks



Frick Winery (website)
2006 Cinsault—$26 4.5 Corks
2007 Grenache Blanc—$27 4 Corks





Alexander Valley Vineyards (website)
2004 Syrah—$35 4.5 Corks
2007 Sin Zin—$17 3 Corks
2008 Dry Rose of Sangiovese—$12 3.5 Corks

Dutton Goldfield Vineyards (website)
2006 Sanchietti Vineyard Pinot Noir—$58 3 Corks
2006 Freestone Hill Vineyrd Pinot Noir—$58 3 Corks
2007 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir—$38 3 Corks
2007 Dutton Ranch Chardonnay—$35 2.5 Corks

Posted by Alleigh at 2:15 pm Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Speedy Wine Tasting at the WBC09: 3 and 2.5 Cork Wines

$10 and lower, $11-$20, $31-$40, $51 and higher, 2.5 Corks, 3 Corks, Prices, Ratings No Responses »
Aug 072009

In Speedy Wine Tasting at the WBC09 post, I described how wine bloggers at this year’s North American conference had a chance to do a speed tasting of 11 different wines, each within a 5 minute timeframe. I’ve already made two posts outline my tasting notes—one of the 5 and 4.5 Cork wines and another for the 4 and 3.5 Cork wines. This is the last of my notes from the event.

Thanks again to all the wineries who made the event fun and successful!


3 Corks

2007 Lion’s Pride Pinot Noir (website)
$35
The exciting background on this wine is that the Russian River Valley Winegrowers (RRVW) work with students at El Molino High School to cultivate the vineyard where grapes for this wine are grown.

According to the wine rep, El Molino is the only school in the country that has a vineyard and provides hands-on viticulture instruction. Once the grapes are ripe, the RRVWs make the grapes into a good wine.

The wine itself was a light ruby with very berry flavors—strawberry and cherry—and a bit of residual sugar. It admittedly isn’t a great wine, but it’s solidly a good one and certainly helps a good cause, as all of the proceeds from the wine sales go back into El Molino High School’s viticulture program.



2007 Tandem Chardonnay (vineyard)
$54
According to the wine rep, the grapes for this wine were grown in Mendocino County, and the wine was aged in French oak. The wine had nice floral, lemon, and grapefruit characteristics. Overall, I would like to spend a little more time getting to know this one, although, I admit that my first impression left me feeling that while it was a good wine, the price point was a little high.


2.5 Corks


Pinot Evil Pinot Noir NV (website)
$19.99
This is actually a French wine that is imported by a CA company, Underdog Wine Merchants. Pinot Evil is a box wine that the representative said leaves 55% less of a carbon footprint than the average wine. The box holds 24 glasses or about 4 bottles, which would work out to be about $5 per bottle.

Outside of the clever packaging, this Pinot Noir left something to be desired. There were some red fruits—raspberry and cherries—both on the nose and in the mouth, but there was something funky that I couldn’t quite identify (maybe ferns or something foresty?) It was light in tannins, acid, and body. For the price, the wine might be worth it, but it won’t offer anything special.






2007 Line 39 Petite Sirah (website)
$10
This wine was very purple, with big, dark legs. It smelled almost creamy, and there were definite dark fruit aromas on the nose. In the mouth, there were buttery black cherries and vanilla, although there was a slightly funny aftertaste. Overall, I thought the wine was ok.

Posted by Alleigh at 12:50 pm Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , ,
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