Wine Tasting Week of 2.18

Name: Shotfire

Variety: Barossa Quartage

Region: Agaston

Country: Australia

Year:2010

Price:$15

Wine Critic/Review:  A delicate floral and herbal-like bouquet, and good length of minty, fruit flavours balanced with some tight tannins. (Cracka Wines) 

Wine Review II: Thorn-Clarke Shotfire Quartage has an incredible inky, opaque purple colour in the glass with aromas of ripe plum and sweet oak. The palate is rich and juicy with black fruit, fine tannins and an attractive rounded mouth feel. Simply perfect with a thick-cut steak! (Dan Murphy's)

Personal Review: Has some strong but short tannins right out of the bottle- they don't linger all too often at first sip. Some nice fruit flavors and very very mellow hints of mint. Smell of sage and other green herbal spices.

Name: Black Opal

Variety: Shiraz

Region: South Eastern Australia

Country:Australia

Year:2011

Price:$5

Wine Critic/Review: "a rich, drinkable red that is ”full of berry, pepper, and spice aromas” (so says the winery’s website, and I agree) that also gives you some spice and pepper on your taste buds, along with very ripe dark fruit flavors.  Tannins are there, sort of.  I don’t really agree with the website’s claim that this is an “elegant” or a “full bodied” wine, but hey, their marketing people have to earn a living just like anybody else.  I’d say this is a medium-bodied red that doesn’t really taste like cabernet or shiraz, but rather just tastes pleasant.  It isn’t silky or complex, but it doesn’t reek of cheapness either.  If you’re on a tight budget, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised." (Wine Guider)

Personal Review: This wine has a very rich plum flavor, light-medium body, and a light velvety finish. This is pretty generous provided the fact that its only a $5 bottle of wine. Like the review said, for a $5 bottle of wine, it definitely doesn't reek of cheapness. Because this wine is so easy on the palette it stands alone as a very easy social drinking wine. No food taken but no food needed.

Name: Primo Amore

Variety: Moscato

Region: Puglia

Country: Italy

Year:Unknown

Price:

Wine Critic/Review: Straw-yellow with golden reflections and a delicate mousse.  Fruity and very inviting, with intense scents of peaches and exotic fruit.  Fresh and pleasantly sweet with a taste that reveals its varietal characteristic. Excellent as dessert wine it matches perfectly with jam tarts fruit salads and pastry. Also delicious with ice cream, or just on its own as an accompaniment to conversation among friends. (Jericho Wines)

Personal Review: This moscato is just as fruit forward as expected and had some pleasant notes of melon and citrus. This would probably pair well with salad, a flatbread, a chicken or fish dish, as well as dessert.

Name:Talamonti

Variety:Trebi

Region: Abruzzo (specifically Trebbiano d'Abruzzo)

Country: Italy

Year: 2010

Price: $10

Wine Critic/Review:  Pale straw with light green hues. Intense bouquet of ripe apples and peaches. Refreshing ripe apple and peach notes end with a gentle acidity. A rich, full, round, and persistent wine. (Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg, VA)

Personal Review: Bold granny smith apple scent and pleasant light, pale yellow color. Great wine for summer days.Apricot, melon, and hint of lemon but without all the pucker.

Name:Serenity

Variety: 56% Pinot Grigio, 31% Sauvignon Blanc, 13% Gewurztraminer

Region: North coast of California

Country: USA

Year: 2011

Price: $14

Wine Critic/Review:The 2011 vintage was marked by a cool wet spring, a long growing season, and a very small crop. The 2011 Serenity is a distinctive proprietary blend that displays fruit forward aromas of citrus, honeysuckle, and nectarine with expressive minerality. The flavors are rich and deep showing white peach, passion fruit, and honeydew melon with a hint of lime. The wine is well-balanced, leaving a long, clean, and well-textured finish, like summer in a glass. (Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg, VA)

Personal Review: Lime scents, grassy and herbaceous, green pepper, lemon, and other earthy tones. Stronger acidity than expected and not as sweet as explained in the review. Very complex white but not as dry as I would have hoped with these earthier flavors.