Reviews of wine related trips and accessories.
Borra Vineyards does not bottle Barbera as a varietal wine every year, but clearly the variety is special to Steve Borra. It was the first wine Borra bottled when he established his winery in 1975. Back then Borra was the first boutique winery established in Lodi.
Aaldering Vineyards and Wines is an Estate winery located in Devon Valley, a ward within the Stellenbosch district is South Africa. It’s history is relatively recent compared to some wine farms in South Africa, having been established in 2004 with the purchase of 24 hectares. Aaldering’s first vintage was 2007, which they released in 2010.
The birch tree in our backyard has turned bright yellow, and its leaves are dropping rapidly, creating a brilliant carpet. The weather is cooling and my taste is turning once again to red wine. I do love fall.
Just ahead of the change of seasons, we recently received two red wines as tasting samples from our twitter friend Mark Aselstine (@wineclubguy). Yes, as you might guess from Mark’s twitter handle he has established a wine club, along with brother-in-law Matt Krause. It’s cleverly called Uncorked Ventures. But it’s more than just a wine club.
‘IL’ Ugo is a sparkling cocktail produced by Mionetto that is inspired by a favorite northern Italian cocktail called the Hugo. The flavors are unlike anything we have tasted and we found it interesting and delicious.
The Peter Mondavi family and Charles Krug Winery have much to celebrate in 2014. The winery has completed an ambitious renovation of both their vineyards and winery as well as the Redwood Cellar tasting room originally built in 1872. Owner Peter Mondavi Sr. will celebrate his 100th birthday this year and the Charles Krug Winery spring release wines from the 2011 vintage represent both the 150th Anniversary harvest and the inaugural release of the Family Reserve Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon.
As the folks at Borra Vineyards put it, “Yeah. We make nice Zin. But there’s more to Lodi than Zinfandel.” It’s a good thing to remember, actually, to always keep an open mind with regard to wine and wine regions and what they have to offer.
Earth Day and Organic Prosecco, what a brilliant pairing! What’s even more brilliant is how flavorful and fresh this wine tastes. Bubbles are among my very favorite wines, so to be able to enjoy a bubbly made with organic grapes on Earth Day literally made my day.
Elizabeth Chambers Cellar was established in 2013, but the winemaking team have 20 years’ experience making wine in Oregon. Winemaker Michael Stevenson and Liz strive to produce Pinot Noir in an elegant and balanced style.
Ferrari is a well-recognized name around the world. The fast, red, sexy car might be your first association. But consider this. Ferrari is also about sparkling wine made in the north of Italy, in the Trentino region, and Ferrari Rosé NV is perfect for Valentine’s Day.
This is the second post reviewing a group of South African wines we received as tasting samples from Cape Classics, an importer of South African (and French) wines in to the US, with distribution in 49 states. We dedicated the prior post to the white wines in the selection.
We enjoy wine, food and travel. Pull That Cork is a chronicle of our wine adventures, the food and wine pairings we create and our travels which are increasingly organized around wine.