Charles de Fere Cuvee Jean Louis Blanc de Blancs NV

Tags

Blanc de Blancs, Brut, cuvee, France, french, non vintage, sparkling, sparkling wine

Winery: Charles de Fere
Varietal: Blanc de Blancs Brut
Composition:

Date Purchased: 11/20/2016
Location Purchased: World Market
Cost: $8.79
Date Consumed: 11/26/2016

Review/Notes: This one got popped after unpacking the car from a long trip. Never tasted sweeter. The cork had a great sort of yeasty, bready smell to it. I’m really enjoying the balance of this one, nice and crisp with a hint of fruit to it. It’s got good acidity and not too much sweetness. I’m really glad we have another bottle of this one out there…

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Chateau Bellevue Bordeaux 2014

Tags

bordeaux, France, french, red wine, red wine review

Winery: Chateau Bellevue
Varietal: Bordeaux
Composition: 65% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc

Date Purchased: 11/19/16
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $9.99
Date Consumed: 11/24/2016

Review/Notes: It was a busy day of drinking. Thanksgiving. Enough said. This one came out after the cranberry mimosas (also known as poinsettias, though this is a pointless and needlessly seasonal name in my opinion). The bottles had been living in the booze travel crate on the floor of our cabin in North Carolina and this one was nicely chilled when we popped the cork. Not the most appropriate temperature methinks. Happily it was tabled in favor of some Chardonnay during the meal. After the meal and some forced family picture taking I was ready for some more wine and since this bottle was already opened I felt compelled to finish it off. It was better after warming up a little bit and also after drinking a lot of other things but I suppose that when you are paying $9.99 for a Bordeaux you are going to get $9.99 worth of Bordeaux. There are probably better bargains out there from different regions.

This one is a little thin and slightly acidic. Probably doesn’t pair wonderfully with turkey or pie or casserole… It smells ok though. On the plus side we do have another bottle of it so that might be fun…

Ferrari-Carano Chardonnay 2014

Tags

california, Chardonnay, Ferrari Carano, Sonoma, thanksgiving, white, white wine, wine review

Winery: Ferrari-Carano
Varietal: Chardonnay
Composition: 100% Chardonnay

Date Purchased: 11/19/16
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $19.97
Date Consumed: 11/24/2016

Review/Notes: This was our special Thanksgiving meal wine despite the fact that none of us really drink Chardonnay. We are mainly red drinkers and some giant fans of Pinot Grigio. I think we enjoyed this one more than the Pinot lovers.

It was very nice and oaky and a bit complex. It had some good depth to it, much more substantial than a $6.99 Pinot Grigio. It wasn’t too buttery or creamy and this was a good thing. I kept filling my glass back up, enjoying the variety. The day started with cranberry mimosas, which are apparently called Poinsettias but I refuse to refer to them as such. We then transitioned briefly to a Bordeaux, which you will see the review for next. There was only one short glass of that before we plunged headlong into Chardonnay Country.

I was maybe a little too excited about all of the wine that we brought on our Thanksgiving excursion but I was also anticipating drinking a lot of it….ahhhh yes. Thanksgiving, what can you say?

In short, the Ferrari-Carano was delicious, just as good as I remember it. This wine was a favorite of my father, which might be part of the reason why I think so fondly of it, but it is also a really nice wine, crisp and clean. I’m sad that we powered through two bottles of it.

L’Oca Ciuca Rosso 2014

Tags

italian, Italy, red, red blend, red wine, red wine review, rosso, wine reviews

Winery: L’Oca Ciuca
Varietal: Red Blend
Composition: 40% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot, 30% Syrah

Date Purchased: 10/2/2016
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $9.99
Date Consumed: 11/14/2016

Review/Notes: We opened this one to go with some leftover pot roast and noodles. The drunken goose was a good pick. It’s long enough on the palate and nicely balanced between sweetness and acidity. It’s got a nice bit of fruit and spiciness. It’s not like mind-blowingingly awesome but it’s a really nice wine, very drinkable. Would definitely get this one again. 

Insurrection Red Blend 2015

Tags

Australia, Australian red, red, red blend, red wine blend, red wine review, review, wine

Winery: Insurrection Wines
Varietal: Red Blend
Composition: Shiraz & Cabernet Sauvignon

Date Purchased: 11/5/2016
Location Purchased: Publix
Cost: $13.99 but bought as BOGO so $7.00/bottle
Date Consumed: 11/13/2016

Review/Notes: This one got opened up after dinner. We had beer with the pot roast and noodles but wanted something different for kitchen clean up and beyond. We contemplated going sparkling but decided on red instead. The Insurrection is nice, full on the palate and fruity, a bit sweet without being too syrupy, almost tart. I’m not upset that we have another bottle of this in the rack. 

Chateau Bois Redon Bordeaux 2014

Tags

bordeaux, France, red, red wine, red wine review, review, wine, wine review, wine reviews

Winery: Chateau Bois Redon
Varietal: Bordeaux
Composition: 75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon

Date Purchased: 10/2/2016
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $10.99
Date Consumed: 11/10/2016

Review/Notes: Ahhhh Friday! This one got opened up to go with a sort of French-inspired dinner of steak frites and julienned carrots with a sherry cream sauce. The good news is that it is better than the last wine we had! You can smell the fruit when you get your nose down in there but it doesn’t come across quite so well on the palate. It’s a bit acidic and almost busy when I taste it. Doesn’t seem to have a lot of depth. I was kinda hoping for more…we shall see how I feel at the end of the bottle. 

As the bottle winds down I’m not opposed to this one, it’s almost a little spicy. Maybe not robust enough for steak frites though. 

Mark West Pinor Noir 2014

Tags

california, Mark West, pinot noir, red, red wine, red wine review, review, wine, wine reviews

Winery: Mark West
Varietal: Pinot Noir
Composition:

Date Purchased: 10/9/2016
Location Purchased: CVS
Cost: $9.99
Date Consumed: 11/9/2016

Review/Notes: I was excited about this one when we opened it and it was nice enough but didn’t really blow my doors off. It was a bit bitter at first and slightly acidic, very thin on the palate. 

Now I’m listening to Billy Joel and being nostalgic for New York City. We used to go to the Astro Diner on 6th Avenue before going to shows at Carnegie Hall…but I digress.

Sadly this wine isn’t doing a whole lot to keep my attention. I don’t think it is exceptionally fruity or noteworthy, not that those two go hand in hand. Maybe this was an off bottle or a bad year or just one more reason not to buy wine at a CVS? 

Radius Red Blend 2015

Tags

budget, red, red blend, red wine, red wine blend, red wine review, review, Washington, wine, wine reviews

Winery: Radius
Varietal: Red Blend
Composition:

Date Purchased: 10/2/2016
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $8.99
Date Consumed: 11/6/2016

Review/Notes: This one is a little intense out of the bottle, pretty fruity and bold. It’s not too acidic or anything. Maybe a little sweeter than we would typically care for. I’m enjoying it. The red blends have really been a new thing for us lately and I’m generally enjoying them. We bought one that was sort of not great but they have otherwise been a good value. 

DeLoach Vineyards Zinfandel 2014

Tags

budget, california, red, red wine, review, wine, wine review, wine reviews, zinfandel

Winery: DeLoach Vineyards
Varietal: Zinfandel

Date Purchased: 10/2/2016
Location Purchased: Total Wine
Cost: $10.79
Date Consumed: 11/5/2016

Review/Notes: We uncorked this one while preparing onion soup after a long day outside watching airplanes dancing across the sky…AIRSHOW! If there’s one thing I like more than a delicious zinfandel it’s an AIRSHOW! I have a lot of respect for the skill and experience of the aerobatic pilots flying little propeller-driven aircraft that they throw around the sky in what appears to be an effort to vomit repeatedly while staying aloft but I also think that they are flying lawnmowers with wings. I got a little distressingly excited when the P-8 and the P-3 flew over, basically two military versions of civilian airliners…but they are big and powerful and kinda noisy and they get me in the pit of my stomach. Then there were the Blue Angels, those guys are good…flying that close together in gusting 25mph winds, that’s skill and teamwork and communication and preparation all rolled into one, plus it is loud and awesome and LOUD!

But I digress. Home now, making french onion soup and drinking a zin is also nice and exciting but in a completely different way. This particular wine is not really jumping out at me but that isn’t a horrible thing. It seems tight enough, not too acidic or fruity, well balanced. I feel like we have had DeLoach Zin before but I am not inclined to look through my reviews to see what I might have written about it in the past. I would like this one more if it had a bit more character, maybe a hint more fruitiness or something but I would still get it again though there are better Zin values than this one.

P-3 and P-8 patrolling the skies over Jacksonville Beach

The Blue Angels are still buzzing around in my head from earlier today.