Tasting - Journey & Discovery Pinot Grigio

This is my mom, babushka, and I 
with our wine.

 Name: Journey & Discovery Pinot Grigio

Variety: Pinot Grigio

Region: Rubicone

Country: Italy

Year: 2021

Price: $3.99 for a half bottle

Online Review: This wine is dry, light, and refreshing- everything you want in a Pinot Grigio. But simplicity doesn't mean it can't taste great. Elegant aromas of apple, lemon, and peach are followed by a touch of minerality that showcases the complex terroir of Rubicone, Italy.

My Review: I also tasted this wine with my mom and Babushka. My mom hated this wine- she said it was worse than the first one. It still tasted like vinegar for her and even a little soapy. Somehow with these flavors, she rated it at a high of 5/10. My babushka didn't love this one but she disliked it more than the red blend we tasted prior. She said it smelled better than it tasted because it left an aftertaste of vinegar in her mouth. She noted that even though the first sip tasted like vinegar, after each sip it got a little bit better. My babushka rated this wine a 5/10 as well. In my opinion, this wine was not terrible. I wasn't getting the dryness the online review noted. However, I could definitely taste the lemon because it was pretty sour. I wasn't able to taste any of the other fruity flavors because the sour lemon flavor was pretty overpowering. I would rate this wine a 6.5/10. We did not have any food paired with this wine. Also, I added ice to my wine because I forgot to cool it in the fridge before tasting it. My babushak didn't want ice in hers.

This is me with the bottle before
tasting.

Textbook:

*Unfortunately, my Wine Folley subscription ended and since we only have two weeks left in class I can't buy it again. However, I do have the Zraly textbook which I will be using to include references.*

As noted in the textbook, Pinot Grigio wines from Italy are some of the most popular white wines available. They are considered everyday wines because they are easy to drink and inexpensive (Zraly, 226). I would agree that the wine we tasted was easy to drink but my mom and babushka disagree with this statement. Pinot Grigio has been one of the fastest-selling Italian wines over the last 20 years. In the last 10 years, planting has increased by 50% for these grapes. This is partly because of the wine's light, unoaked simplicity (Zraly 94). I would agree that the wine we tried was light, so I can see why it is liked by many.

Since this white wine has not been aged in an oak barrel, it is able to keep its fruity flavors that would usually get lost in barrels. 

Tasting - Journey & Discovery Red Blend

This is me with the wine bottle

Name: Journey & Discovery Red Blend

Variety: Red Blend (Touriga Nacional, Castelao, and Aragones)

Region: Portugal (does not specify where exactly)

Country: Portugal

Year: N/A (wasn't on the bottle and I couldn't find it online)

Price: $3.99 for a half bottle

Online Review: This wine features three grapes with big personalities. Touriga Nacional is known for its dark berry flavors, while Aragones- also known as Tempranillo in Spain- lends a strong backbone of structure to the blend. Castalao, named after the parakeet, gives the wine a deep color and loud, fruity flavors. These three grapes are blended to create a bouquet bursting with blackberry, blueberry, plum, cocoa, and a touch of nutmeg.

This is my babushka and I with our
wine. P.S. I did have wine in my glass
but I drank most of it by the time we
took this picture.

My Review: This wine was decent, it didn't have a strong alcohol flavor which I enjoyed. It was more acidic than sweet and was not dry in my opinion. Some flavors I could taste were fruity flavors such as orange or berries. I would rate this wine a 7/10, it wasn't the worst red wine I've had but definitely not the best. My mom and babushka (which means grandma in Russian) joined me for this wine tasting. We did not pair it with any food. My mom was not a fan of this wine at all, she said it was very sour and dry. She even also said it tasted like straight vinegar and it is "the kind of wine I drink after two glasses of a very good wine". My mom rated it a 5/10. My babushka enjoyed this wine a little more. She said she could also taste a fruity or berry flavor, specifically the black currant berries she would eat in Russia. She mentioned that she's not a wine drinker so she can taste when it's high in tannins because she doesn't like dry wines. She said the aftertaste was nice and made her want to keep on drinking it. My babushka rated it an 8/10.

Textbook:

*Unfortunately, my Wine Folley subscription ended and since we only have two weeks left in class I can't buy it again. However, I do have the Zraly textbook which I will be using to include references.*

This is my mom and I during the tasting

The textbook mentioned that over the last ten years, Portugal has shifted to concentrate on dry reds and whites (Zraly, 300). On the contrary, the wine we tried was not very dry. Because of American law, at least 75% of the grapes that were used must be from the variety that's on the label (Zraly, 63). Since three different grapes are used to make this wine, it has to legally be labeled as a "red blend".

My family and I with our wine.

Our setup with our glasses of wine.

Tasting - Wycliff Brut American Champagne

This is me with the bottle and the 
pineapple mimosa I made.

 Wine: Wycliff Brut American Champagne

Variety: Colombard

Region: California

Country: America

Year: Did not say on the bottle

Price: $5.99

Online Review: This Wycliff Brut American Champagne is a light-bodied, bright sparkling wine from California. Some of the aromas in this wine are tree fruit and wet stone. These aromas open notes of ripe apple and pear. There is a hinted layer of citrus and honey. This blend of California grapes has a touch of sweetness and a crisp, clean finish.

My Review: This Champagne was very good. I tried it by itself first before adding pineapple juice to make a mimosa. I could really taste the layers of citrus and pear that the online review described this Champagne to have. This was my first time trying Champagne and I really enjoyed it. It wasn't as smooth as I thought it would be and it was slightly tannic, but it was still pretty good. By itself, I would rate it a 7/10. With pineapple juice, I would rate it an 8.7/10. I loved sipping on a bubbly pineapple drink. My friends and I ate at a brunch restaurant in Nashville called Milk & Honey. I did not eat anything with this wine (I drank it before our food came out).

This is me with the bottle

Wine Folly: As mentioned in the textbook, Champagne is paired best with anything salty or fried (Wine Folly 140). I previously stated that I drank this Champagne separately and mixed it with pineapple juice to make a mimosa before we ate our food at this brunch restaurant. I was sharing this mimosa flight with two other friends, by the way. Some Champagnes have notes of yellow apple, lemon curd, and honeysuckle (Wine Folly 141). This brand of wine that I had had these exact flavors packed inside.

This is just the bottle and my mimosa.

Wine and Cheese

Wine and Cheese pairing

Aged White Cheddar and Malbec:

Wine: Wellsley Farms Malbec

Variety: Malbec

Region: Mendoza

Country: Argentina

Year: 2021

Price: $14.97

Cheese: Kerrygold Aged White Cheddar

Kerrygold White
Cheddar Cheese

After sniffing the wine, I got a pepper and smoky scent. Once I took a sip, these aromas held strong and the wine tasted like pepper to me. This aligns with the description on the back of the bottle because they describe their wine to be a "powerful yet balanced red with hints of smoke, spice, and vanilla". The aged white cheddar was rich in flavor and creamy. The Wine Folly textbook suggests that you pair fruity, umami cheeses (like cheddar) with full-bodied reds like this Malbec (page 69). When paired together, the cheese feels creamier since the Malbec is tannic, and it almost feels like eating butter. I felt that the wine started to taste more sour when I ate more cheese. Because of that, I found myself craving the cheese after each sip because the wine was smoky and dry. The wine masked the saltiness of the cheese, while the cheese enhanced the smoky and peppery flavors of the wine. I think the wine overpowered the cheese a bit with its flavor. I would rate the wine a 5/10, it was too smoky and had too many spices for me. I would rate the pairing a 7/10, I loved the cheese and I liked that it made the wine less tannic, but the wine wasn't that good.

Here's me tasting both together

Dinner Blog 1

1st Wine Pairing: Cabernet Sauvignon and Mushroom Risotto

Bri and I with our (mostly eaten)
dinner and wine!

Wine: Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon

Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon

Region: California

Country: United States

Year: 2021

Price: $13.99

Food: Mushroom Risotto

This is me while trying this pairing. 
The risotto was gone soon after
this picture was taken.

The first pairing we had was mushroom risotto with a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. Before tasting anything, I smelled the wine to see what scents I picked up. This particular wine smelled very fruity, specifically, cherries and raspberries. I also smelled a hint of sugar in this wine. My sense of smell was pretty on-point, as the bottle describes the wine to be Bourbon Whiskey barrel aged with deep flavors of black cherry and blackberry. The Bourbon Whiskey barrel delivers hints of vanilla, brown sugar, and toasted oak to the blend. As far as taste, this wine was tannic and tasted strong alcohol-wise. Again, this makes sense since it was barrel-aged in Bourbon Whiskey. This wine was good and I could taste the fruity accents, however, I didn't like how tannic it was. Paired with this wine was a mushroom risotto (we just bought a package from the store to make it easier). All we had to do was boil the risotto for about 15 minutes and stir it often. Once it was done cooking, I added some butter and a little bit of parmesan to mine which was recommended on the package. I think this pairing complemented each other very well. Wine Folly mentions that mushrooms are a great pairing for medium-bodied red wines (page 73). The creamy risotto made the wine less tannic. The wine brought out the mushroom flavor and saltiness in the risotto and the risotto brought out the smoky/bourbon flavor in the wine. I don't think they overpowered each other, however, since the risotto brought out the bourbon flavor for me, the wine tasted stronger in terms of its alcohol content. Also, since the risotto was pretty heavy, I think it made the wine feel lighter even though it had a fuller body. As I stated already, I really enjoyed this pairing, they balanced each other out perfectly. I would rate this wine a 7.5/10, I liked the wine but it was too tannic for me and had a strong alcohol taste that I didn't love. For the pairing, I would rate it a 10/10, I loved the way they complimented each other and balanced out the flavors. This was my favorite pairing of the night and I am definitely going to have this pairing again.

Tasting - Sauvignon Blanc

Wine: William Hill Sauvignon Blanc

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: California

Country: United States

Year: 2022

Price: $11.99

Online Review: This crisp, fruit-forward wine with refreshing tropical notes. Lively aromas of honeysuckle and lemongrass with a crip-clean finish. The palate echoes the nose with zesty fruit characteristics followed by a lovely touch of minerality. This Sauvignon Blanc is completely unoaked, which finishes bright with natural acidity and refreshes the palate.

My Review: I'm a bigger fan of white wines over reds, however, this one was a little too tart for me. I prefer my wines to be sweet, but this was a little sour. Even though I didn't love the sour lemon taste, I still enjoyed drinking this wine. I could smell and taste hints of lemon and also melon. I did appreciate that it wasn't high in tannins. I didn't eat any food with this wine. Overall, I would rate it an 8/10.

Wine Folly: As stated in the Wine Folly textbook, Sauvignon Blanc should be served cold and you don't need to decant it before drinking (page 181). Before drinking, I did not chill it, so I drank it at room temp. but that didn't bother me for this wine. The textbook also points out that Sauvignon Blanc is very high on the acidity level and low in tannins, both of which I recognized during this tasting. It is common for Californian Sauvignon Blancs to have lemongrass, peach, matcha, and buttered bread flavors incorporated in the wine (page 183). The wine I tried did have aromas of lemongrass but not any of the other flavors I just stated.

Tasting - Yellow Tail Chardonnay

Wine: Yellow Tail Chardonnay

Variety: Chardonnay

Region: South Eastern, Australia

Country: Australia

Year: 2023 

Price: $13.99

Online Review: Yellow Tail Chardonnay is a dry wine that boasts a full body and bright acidity, making it an excellent pairing for a wide range of dishes. With its distinct notes of fresh peach, melon flavors, and a hint of vanilla, this wine offers a complex yet approachable flavor profile that is sure to delight the palate.

My Review: I wasn't a huge fan of this wine, it was a little too acidic for me. Before tasting, it smelled like lemon to me. I didn't get the hints of vanilla or peach. I would've enjoyed the fruity notes, but I just couldn't taste it. I enjoyed that it was a full body and the fact that it wasn't that tannic. I did not have anything to eat with this wine. I would rate it a 7/10.

Wine Folly: The textbook recommends that you drink Chardonnay at 45-55 degrees Fahrenheit, but since I didn't chill it in the freezer, I put a couple of ice cubes in it to make it cold (page 110). I didn't decant it before drinking, the textbook says you don't need to. Also, Wine Folly recommends that you spend less than $40 on Chardonnay, which I did. However, I think next time I will spend a little more on a better wine. Chardonnay from California is often made riper, with tropical fruit and apple flavors (page 113). Although the bottle stated there are hints of melon and peach, it tasted more like lemon to me.