What (wine) do you have on tap?

Posted on August 10, 2014 by melsmosaic

There is a great pizza place in DC that has expanded and now has several locations — Matchbox. I’ve been to the one in Merrifield/Mosaic District recently.

Before enjoying their delicious pizza, I had to try their wine on tap. It’s not available at a lot of restaurant so I couldn’t turn it down. I scanned the menu and it was a tough decision. Hot as heck outside, freezing cold AC inside.

I opted for the Gotham Project Zin. Nice nose all around. Fruity, very fun for a wine on tap.

My friend arrived later and we were ordering some nice pizza and we opted for a white to accompany a prosciutto and fig pizza. We opted for a white on tap. We went with the Tangent Sauvignon Blanc. Very fruity and fresh, perfect for the meal.

Such a fun new way to enjoy wine. Can’t say that it was than much different than a normal glass, but simple changes and simple pleasures!

Some nights…

Posted on July 16, 2014 by melsmosaic

Some nights call for a good wine to numb a long day. I always try to keep my (wine) glass at least half full, but had to shake my head when I was having problems getting it open to even fill it to that point! Really? I am just glad this made me laugh. While opting for a white on this beautiful evening, I (attempted) to open a bottle of Cakebread Chardonnay and the cork split. AHH! Give me my wine! No, it didn’t take long to fix the error, but still. At least good things come to those who wait. Now I am enjoying some yeasty, citrus-y, toasty, oaked California Chard (with a few cork sprinkles). I am not normally a big fan of oaked Chard, but there are some that hold a place in my heart.

SA Winery Visit #2 — Franschhoek Cellar

Posted on April 23, 2014 by melsmosaic

To get to our 2nd winery, we only had to ride about 5K from the first. Not too shabby. Still very scenic!

This next winery we visited was Franschhoek Cellar.

For the tasting, we got to pick six to sample from the entire menu (versus being given specific wines). That was great because between the entire three of us on the tour, we were able to taste almost everything! And off we went.

Statue de Femme Sauvignon Blanc — In the top 10 last year. Light and crisp. Another typical SA bargain at R50.

La Cotte Mill Chenin Blanc — Tropical, pineapple taste. R40! Really, $4 for a bottle. Love this place. Note on the dates on the back labels, they write day/month, versus how we do month/day.

Club Hose Rose – a blend of Pinotage, Shiraz and Cab. The best way I can describe it would be powdery rose petals. GREAT!!!! R40.

The Old Museum Merlot — Very berry-y. NICE, for a Merlot. There seemed to be quite a difference in SA Merlots. I don’t normally like them but down there they are quite unique! R50.

Stone Bridge Pinotage — Nice, light and smoky, oh yes. R50.

The Churchyard Cabernet Sauvignon – Thick, chocolate, tobacco are the best notes to describe this one. R50.

Last but not least was a limited release. The Franschhoek Vineyards Shiraz, cellar door exclusive, no info about it anywhere except on the tasting sheet. “The Shiraz grapes for this wine are from one of the highest most rugged vineyard sites in Franschhoek with singular personality and expression that compelled our winemaker Richard Duckitt to go to great lengths to preserve the tremendous concentration and purity of fruit in this exemplary Franschhoek wine.” — ‘sweet’, thick and smooth. R100.

Mid-way through this tasting after everything was poured, lunch was served and we were able to take our glasses outside to enjoy some great food and drink in the amazing weather.

SA Winery Visit #1 — Moreson

Posted on April 21, 2014 by melsmosaic

While in South Africa, one of the days was dedicated to a cycling winery tour. Sunny, 70s, paved and dirt roads, many grapes, heaven on earth!

Our first winery of the day was Moreson. To get there, we had about a 12K ride from our starting point. Wine was in order! It was a beautiful outdoor setting with fountains, ponds, little rivers and just a great atmosphere.

To start the tasting, we enjoyed some bubbly, their One Chardonnay Pinot Noir, which I would describe as a perfect balance between Champagne and Prosecco. Amazing! And of course you can only buy it in South Africa (for a rough R126 — about $12!)

We were given a second round of bubbly, this time Solitaire Blanc de Blancs. I would describe this as green apples, sharp and crisp, NICE! Another steal at R110.

We then progressed from bubbles to the regular stuff. Our first one was a white, the Dr. Reason Why Unwooded Chardonnay. Love the name! Though unoaked, there was a bit of light cream taste. R89.

Round 4 of the tasting brought about another Chard, this time the Mercator Premium Chardonnay. The nose had notes of lemon, lime and toast. The taste — NICE! It had a light toast taste but not like a ‘true’ chard (to me — saying this as not a big chard fan). R168.

Last but not least is what I love about South Africa the most — Pinotage. The sinful, powerful, delicious, perfect cross of Pinot Noir and Hermitage. Have your ever wondered how it came about? Here’s the quick history lesson on Pinotage. Thanks Wikipedia! This brought out all the characteristics of the varietal I expected — smoky and smooth…ahh, what a pour! R168.

This was a great start to the winery tour. Once done, we hopped back on our bikes to the next one…about 5K away.

Non-Domestic Flights/Airline = Free (Amazing) Wine

Posted on April 16, 2014 by melsmosaic

I have been MIA from blogging for a bit because I spent the last two weeks in South Africa (with a couple days at the end in Zimbabwe at Victoria Falls). Amazing! From scenery to culture…to food and wine (and some beer). I was already expecting an amazing trip but it got even better on the first flight (of 8 over the course of the vacation) with the wine. As many of us are used to paying for anything other than maybe water on flights (apparently some airlines charge for soda now), it was nice to have the hope of freedom when preparing for a long flight. So as the flight attendant came around and asked what I’d like, there were various selections, all from South Africa (darn!) and I opted for one of the reds, a Merlot. I don’t normally lean towards that grape, but why not, it’s free! So, out came the bottle. Oh, and before she moved on, she threw another one out there. Most people were handed several bottles of wine on round 1. Go South African Airways. The Merlot was from Stormhoek. WOW, that did not taste like a Merlot. Unreal. I wish I had scribbled some notes down but it just had some unique characteristics. Their website doesn’t have a ton of info on where we could attempt to find this stuff here. Darn!

All alcoholic beverages had messages on the container, which of course are for safety reasons (took pics of most of them). But this one is the best, and for good reason. It was on this bottle of Merlot.

Yes! Because it tastes SO GOOD!

Another wine sampled just labeled what the trip and the country brought/bring — JOY. It was a Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. Amazing, amazing. 14.5% alcohol — few SA wines go low on alcohol content. The winery works with a social upliftment project in a local town to improve the lives of residents (see label below). Can’t find any information on the web about the vintner. If you happen to come across something, please let me know!

As the flights progressed, you find out you also get free wine on domestic flights…ahh. So nice. So, while going from safari to Cape Town, it was mid-day and I opted for a white and received a Chenin Blanc, Flutterby. Nice and crisp, fruity.

Other mid-day flights brought the perfect time to sample some Chardonnay, Liberty Chardonnay to be precise. It was a traditional Chard, oaked, buttery. Tough to track down the exact site for this one, too.

These guys also make a fun sparkling wine. It has a screw top, which makes it easy to open on the plane!

On my last flight, back to the US, I had an amazing blend from Spier 1692. It was Classic Red with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Amazing all around.

Great way to taste a wide variety of local wine while not on the ground. Love what South Africa has to offer!

The Tasting Room

Posted on April 1, 2014 by melsmosaic

DC, March, temps in the 30s, rain and snow. Ugh. Call for wine. I introduced a friend to a local wine shop — The Tasting Room Wine Bar & Shop, owned by Boxwood Estate Winery.

It’s one of those great wine bars where you buy a card, put money on it and then you can sample 1, 3 or 5 oz. pours of wine. So many ways to explore the vino! Let the sipping begin.

I always try to go with something new so my first taste was the Monga Zin Old Vine Zinfandel by Carol Shelton from California Very nice! A bit fruity, very aromatic with spices and smooth. Would recommend it.

Next I opted for a taste of Vinaceous’ 2011 Snake Charmer Shiraz. Nice. Definitely a traditional Shiraz from Australia, can’t go wrong.

Oddly, I wrapped up the day with a quick sip of white (vs. starting with that). Went with 2011 Malma Sauvignon Blanc from Argentina. Light body, not much taste/flavor to it. Not worth writing home about it. But, I’ll blog about it, right?

So many wines to pick from there, will be interested to see what I opt for next sampling time around.

From Demo to Homemade…delicious find

Posted on March 10, 2014 by melsmosaic

I was at Whole Foods last week and they of course had all sorts of food demos/samples out in the store. One was this delicious salad that they were charging a good amount for and extra to add salmon or chicken to. I looked at the ingredients and mentioned how I’d love to just make it at home. The girl doing the demo said quietly ‘just google it under Martha Stewart…’ Score! So, last night I served some wonderful Toasted-Quinoa Saute with Lemony Cabbage and Dill with Pan Seared Chicken. There aren’t too many ingredients in the recipe:

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup red quinoa, rinsed well
S&P
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1/2 head Savoy cabbage (about 1 pound), cored and thinly sliced lengthwise, divided
1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 ounces pitted large green olives, such as Castelvetrano or Cerignola, halved (about 3/4 cup) — picked up basic green at Trader Joe’s
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill

Step 1

Bring water to a boil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Stir in quinoa and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 15 minutes. Uncover, raise heat to high, and cook until water evaporates and quinoa is dry and tender, about 5 minutes (stir frequently to prevent scorching). *I just cooked it like regular quinoa.

Step 2

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the cabbage and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and golden brown in places, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining cabbage.

Step 3

Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet. Return sauteed cabbage to skillet, add quinoa, and raise heat to high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until quinoa is toasted and crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat. Add chickpeas, olives, and lemon zest and juice, and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in dill, and serve with yogurt.

The salad was amazing! And, it’s dairy-free and gluten free! We enjoyed it with two whites (one was opened earlier in the night). Chalk Hill 2011 Sauvignon Blanc and Chateau St. Jean 2010 Chardonnay.

And for dessert we had some of the wonderful Ciao Bella Blackberry Cabernet Sorbet. That stuff is deadly!

Saturday Wine Tasting

Posted on March 4, 2014 by melsmosaic

I checked out a great wine tasting on Saturday and some of the wines made it home — can never go wrong with that. It was at Wine Cellars of Annapolis and the theme/title was Value Imports from Vintus Wines. We suffered through 3 whites and 3 reds from a total of 4 countries.

2012 Talmard Macon-Chardonnay, Burgundy, France

Per the cheat sheet: Gerald and Philbert Talmard are a father son team carrying on a four century family tradition of grape growing in the French village of Chardonnay, believed to have given the grape its name. The vines are planted in calcareous soil, which provides the wine with a particular mineral characteristic along with fruity aromas. This wine is luscious, showing scents and flavor of butterscotch, honey and lemon with a distinct mineral taste on the finish. $14.99

My notes: Dry Chard (score!), with some butter at the end. Unique in the sense that you wonder how it’s a Chard then voila! There it is right at the finish.

2010 Domaine Des Baumard Savennieres, Loire Valley, France (if you want to check out their true site, here it is, in French obviously — www.baumard.fr)

Per the cheat sheet: “This is perfectly balanced dry Chenin. It had just the amount of richness, aided by a touch of vanilla. The green and white fruit are blended with deceptively soft acidity to give a wine that feels full and ripe in the mouth. Good to drink now, but also worth aging 3-4 years and more.” 93 points Wine Enthusiast $26.99

My notes: Too sweet for me.

2013 Dog Point Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, New Zealand

Per the cheat sheet: “This is powerful and rich with a reserve and tension. Full and layered with beautiful dried fruits and a bright acidity. Dried apricots and lemons. Lots going on. Loving it. Turns to aniseed and dried lemons.” – James Suckling $22.99

My notes: AMAZING smell — grapefruit, mango. But, the taste doesn’t match the nose.

2011 Tommasi Valpolicella “Rafael”, Veneto, Italy

60% Corvina Veronese, 25% Rondinella, 15% Molinara

Per the cheat sheet: This classic Valpolicella is full of dried-cherry flavor with a hint of smoke and grilled meat on the nose. Offering loads of bold fresh cherries on the palate and a core of mouth-watering acidity in the background behind all the bright cherry fruit. Tart dried cherries and a whiff of smoke linger in a long finish. $16.99

My notes: Cherry, smooth, light but still has body, cranberry. Big stars on my piece of paper. Left with a few bottles — and enjoyed it 1while watching the Red Carpet and Oscars on Sunday.

2010 Heartland Shiraz, Langhorne Creek, Limestone Coast, Australia

Made by star winemaker Ben Glaetzer, this deliciously dark and rich Shiraz has hints of chocolate, pepper and tobacco leaf on the nose. Plums, blackcurrant and spice flavors abound on the palate and are perfectly balanced by fine supple tannins. $19.99

My notes: Coffee, smoke, amazing, light acid taste, will get some soon.

2009 Chatean Lyonnat Lussac Saint-Emilion, Bordeaux, France

Per the cheat sheet: “Firm, richly dark wine from the Saint-Emilion satellite village of Lassac, with chocolate and coffee flavor, layers of wood and spice. It is packed with ripe plum and black cherry fruits, weighty and already concentrated.” 90 Points Wine Enthusiast $24.99

My notes: Light wine, taste of ‘wet rocks’ — we know exactly what those taste like, right? So funny who we know the taste of random things.

Overall, some great new finds!

Loster Tail!

Posted on February 11, 2014 by melsmosaic

The other day I was flipping through the grocery store ad and they had lobster tail in there. For some reason that just jumped out at me. Hadn’t had lobster for awhile and it sounded so good. Did some quick thinking and determined some good food to match with it and had a delicious basic dinner of lobster tail, asparagus and home fries.

Just picked up some red and sweet potatoes and tossed them with rosemary, S&P and garlic powder. Baked them at 425 for about 40 minutes.

For the asparagus, decided to just blanch it. So put it in boiling water for 2-3 minutes then rinsed with cold water (you can be really good and dunk it in ice water, but this can be just as effective for a quick method). For the lobster tail, I boiled them for about 5 minutes and it was perfect.

Come the end, paired this with a nice French white wine — Sancerre. Absolutely delicious dinner. Might just have to make it again.

Dip & Sip

Posted on February 7, 2014 by melsmosaic

I have a passion for baking and whipped up some Cappuccino Chocolate Chip biscotti last week. My friend and I finished dinner and we needed dessert so I went and found the remaining pieces of the goodies I’d baked. As we were sitting there enjoying our red wine, as well, I said…try dipping it in there. She looked at me for a second, went ahead with the suggestion and never turned back.

Many people equate biscotti with coffee, but find the right wine and the right flavor of treat to dunk and you have an amazing match! At this point in the night we were on my local ‘Two (or three) Buck Chuck’ since I can’t get Trader Joe’s wine because I live in MD. I get Pepperwood Grove (Pinot Noir for this circumstance) for $4.44 down the street at Rodman’s. Love it!