The Uneducated Palate

Pinot Noir Tasting

2010-10-29T13:17:00.000-07:00

We did another blind tasting with some friends over cheese and crackers.

This time: Pinot Noir

#1-- La Crema 2008 -- Lots of berry flavors. Young. Will be nice in a couple more years. We've never met a La Crema we didn't like. Never. Ever. This one is promising and looks to be up to their usual excellent standards.

#2 -- Coppola 2008 -- Young. No nose. But lots of full berry flavors. This was the favorite and the first emptied.

#3 --Isley Valley 2008 -- Blah. No one thought much of it.

Random Notes

2010-10-22T12:55:00.000-07:00

I have not been faithful about posting as often as I should to get these thoughts down while they're still fresh.
So I'm left with some random notes I made.
Here are a few:
Redwood Canyon Chardonnay - I am a Chardonnay lover, so you have to keep that in mind. This had a strong citrus finish and I prefer citrus in my Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc. I like my Chardonnays buttery and oaky.
I looked for a link and it appears Redwood Canyon is the unacknowledged half-sibling from Frei Brothers. I'd skip this one and the only other mention I found online agreed with me. Strongly.

Page Hill Cabernet Sauvignon - This must also be some big winery's illegitamate offspring because I can't find any information. I do tend to buy cheap wines and that's probably why. I felt this one was a bit thin on the palate, but it had rich berry flavors. It really came alive when it was paired with red meat. Wine Snob Hubby loved it and he wants to buy more, but since we don't remember where we got it and can't find any info online, I guess we're out of luck.

Villa Sonia Pinot Grigio - I found it crisp and refreshing but again, I can't find where to buy it or where it came from. I buy most of my cheap wine at Trader Joes, so that's a likely place to look for it again.

Sauvignon Blanc Tasting

2010-10-15T12:30:00.000-07:00

While having appetizers with friends recently, Wine Snob Friend Tom pulled out three Sauvignon Blancs and we did a tasting. All three were New Zealand wines. The tasting was blind.

The comments are from all of us.

#1 -- Pidgin Bay, 2009. I liked this one a lot. It had a sparkly beginning on the tongue, almost like a sparkling wine or Champagne. Strong citrus notes on the finish. (This is what I wrote down but I can't find a link or any winery in NZ named Pidgin Bay, so either I wrote it down wrong or I'm keeping the buying info to myself).

#2 --King Shag. No one cared much for this one. It had little flavor, little interest, and was met with shrugs.

#3 -- Kim Crawford, Marlborough New Zealand. Very nice. Almost the opposite of the Pidgin Bay. With the Crawford, the citrus flavors were up front and the sparkling texture was saved for the finish.

WSFT (Wine Snob Friend Tom) commented about a really nice New Zealand wine he'd been told about. Cloudy Bay. He did not offer us any. He did not offer to find it for us. He merely teased with it. I'll keep a look out for it and try to get a bottle to taste.

Salmon and Pinot Noir

2010-08-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

Okay, I can't talk about the salmon because it's part of a supersecret throwdown.

But.

I was in Total Wine a few weeks ago, browsing the Pinot Noirs for something to go with salmon. I was really hoping a bottle would jump off the shelf into my basket and announce, "Ta Da! I'm the one you're looking for!"

Alas.

Finally, an employee happened narby and asked if he could help. I told him what I wanted and he grabbed a bottle.

"Here. I was coming to get one to take home. We're having salmon tonight and the price just dropped $4 on this."

He handed me Maple Ridge Pinot Noir.

That was good enough for me.

We had it a few days ago.

I tasted berries.

I thought it went wonderfully with the salmon. I tried a swallow after salad and side dishes and it was a bit dry and harsh on the sides of my tongue. But with the salmon, it simply melted.

Very nice.

Edging Out the Favorite?

2010-08-18T15:00:00.000-07:00

I ventured in Total Wine by myself last week. I knew I wanted a couple bottles of my current fave, the Pacific Rim Dry Riesling. But I got sidetracked and decided to try a new one.

I chose Chateau Ste. Michelle's Dry Riesling.

I brought it home and Wine Snob Hubby said he'd just read an article about how well dry Riesling goes with blue cheese. We had a tub of crumbles, so we popped the cork and cracked the tub and sat at the table.

At the first sip, I thought, This is going to be good. I tasted citrus with a bare hint of honey on the finish.

The cheese softened the citrus and made the wine spread across my tongue more softly.

As we sipped and chatted and tasted, WSH commented that we've had a few wines from Ste. Michelle before and they haven't disappointed. I took that to mean he approved also and we should look for the appellation a little more often in our shopping excursions.

I concur on that conclusion.

Summer Wines, Part 2

2010-07-20T10:12:00.000-07:00

In my quest to find a good summer red to recommend, I've talked with many wine snob friends and there is no consensus, so I think the answer is there isn't one.

Most everyone ended up recommending either a light blend or a blush.

Birdstone Winery had an outstanding Grenache a few years ago, but even though I regularly ask for it and they keep saying it's coming back, sadly, it has yet to make an appearance.

The Menage a Trois wines are exellent blends and the blush is light but fruity, perfect for a summer salad.

The first wine I ever really enjoyed was Beringer's White Zinfandel. The strawberry and other fruit flavors combined with the light crispness on the tongue made it the perfect "gateway" wine into learning how to discern flavors. While I've since expanded my palate somewhat, there are days, particularly in July and August when the only that really appeals to me is a Beringer's White Zin. It's reliable and consistent. I know what I'm getting when we uncork the bottle.

I hope you enjoy!

Summer Reds

2010-07-11T21:15:00.000-07:00

Since I'm not a big red wine drinker, I've been taking a survey of friends and dining companions for suggestions for a light "summer" red wine.

We had some salmon a few nights ago and friends brought the wine. One was a Waltzing Bear Wines, Gary's Vineyard Pinot Noir. It had some yummy berry flavors with a light and dry finish.

The wine went nicely with the salmon and it was generally agreed that the wine met the requirements for a summer quaff.

Enjoy!

A Surprise Pairing

2010-07-07T10:56:00.000-07:00

Last night we made a friend's chicken ciabatta sandwich with super secret sauce. I played with some ingredients and I think I've replicated the sauce pretty well.

TB's Super Secret Chicken Ciabattas (I don't know whether to give our friend public recognition for the recipe or keep the recipe creator secret since they may not want their super secret and yummy concoction on the world wide web.)

Ciabatta rolls, split, brushed with olive oil and lightly sprinkled with sea salt and grilled until toasted.
Chicken breast, grilled then topped with smoked gouda slices. Let the cheese droop and melt a little.
Red bell peppers, roasted til the skin is black, then peeled, seeded, and halved.
Super secret sauce - mix a chipotle marinade or dressing with either ranch dressing or sour cream until you have a pink and creamy sauce.

Spread the sauce on the ciabatta. Layer the chicken, peppers, and bread.

We hadn't thought about a pairing and just poured a red that was already open.

Guenoc 2007 Victorian Claret went amazingly well with the sandwich. The wine had incredible legs in the glass and a rich ruby color. The flavors of berries complemented the smokiness of the chicken and cheese.

This pairing is a complete serendipity and one of the best.

Summer Wines

2010-06-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty much a white wine drinker. I think I've established that already. And I prefer Chardonnays.

I've heard people talk about a "summer wine," and frankly, dismissed it. I figured I like what I like and I know what I like and what I like is Chardonnays.

The weather warmed up (finally - I think this was the longest winter on record in the Central Valley), and one day Wine Snob Hubby and I finished the day with a glass of wine on the back patio. I think the mercury had reached into the 90s for the first time.

I sipped my Chardonnay, eager for its refreshment. And ... nothing. It sat on my palate and refused to do anything for me.

The next night, just for a change, WSH pulled out a Pinot Grigio. "Let's try this, it's a little lighter."

Ahhh. It was light and crisp and a perfect complement to the warm day.

Unfortunately, I forgot to check the label so I don't know what it was.

I won't make that mistake twice.

And now I have a summer wine to enjoy.

Zin or Cab?

2010-04-19T15:10:00.000-07:00

We had some amazing BBQ over the weekend.

It came from Robin's Wood Fire BBQ & Grill in Pasadena, California. We used to eat there when it was a nice casual place for lunch or dinner. We didn't know they changed the menu to all BBQ.

We ordered the garbage can lid dinner with chicken, hot links (careful, the heat sneaks up when your back is turned), beef ribs, tri tip, and short ribs. We added a rack of baby backs too, since there were five us eating out of the trough. Er, I mean from the lid.

Anyway, Wine Snob Hubby and his friend considered carefully what to offer us neophytes.

The choices: Brazin, an old vine Zinfandel from Brazin Cellars out of Manteca, CA.
Beaucanon Cabernet

The Brazin was known and loved and chosen because of that. The Cab was chosen because WSH and friend took a field trip to the Tustin outpost of the mother ship, also known as Total Wine. WSH asked for suggestions and an employee suggested the Beaucanon.

I just looked at the Beaucanon website and I'm sorry I can't tell if it was a Cab Franc or what vintage. I'll have to check with WSH and get back to you on that.

Anyway, I tasted both with the baked beans and meat. The Brazin was good, but fell a bit flat. The Beaucanon definitely stood up to the BBQ sauce and meats. I tasted blackberries and it finished well along the sides of my tongue.

Which goes to show that sometimes a tried and true favorite should be given a night off so a new friend can have the opportunity to shine.

Whining about Wine

2010-03-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

Time has flown and I can't believe I didn't write any more about the weekend.

The next day, we started at 10:00 am at Adelaida Cellars. Their grounds are lovely, as is the tasting room. Since we were a large group of 10 (and a loud group), we were taken into the back, into the racking room (I think that's the word for it... or cellar, or where the barrels were stacked).

Anyway, most of the Paso Robles wineries we visited only offered one, or at the most two, white wines, so I tried to pay particular attention to those.

I failed miserably. I didn't want to take obvious notes but I should have.

At Adelaida, I know I tasted the Vigonier. I tasted pineapple and maybe some citrus.

I didn't care for the reds and after the second one, I went to stretch out my back by leaning against a door jamb.

Next: Justin.

Tasting with a small t

2010-02-18T15:19:00.000-08:00

We spent last weekend in Paso Robles touring their "Far Out Wineries" and tasting. There were 17 wineries on the Passport weekend. We hit 13 of them over three days. All proceeds of Passport sales and 5% of the weekend's wine sales are donated to the local Wellness Community.

I think I'll take a week or so and talk about a few of them each day.

We started at Villacana Winery. They offered cheese samples with the wines to Passport holders. Our friends had been tasting all day but a family commitment kept us from joining until around 4 pm. So Villacana was our first winery and their ... 8th, maybe? Or 9th. Needless to say, the levels of fun and levity were a bit different.

Anyway, on the way over Wine Snob Hubby had me read out loud the pages from Karen MacNeil's Wine Bible about tasting. I listened while I read and felt ready to tackle tasting and comparisions. MacNeil talked about how to gauge mouth feel, texture, and taste.

I sipped the first wine, a Vigonier, and everything went out of my head. I remembered to take short, quick sniffs, instead of one long inhale. I ran through a mental list of comparisions and came up blank. I couldn't tell you if it tasted like pineapple, wet cat, or citrus.

We moved on to the reds. They all ran together in my mind after one sip.

The grounds are lovely and the proprietors, Alex and Monica Villacana are gracious and generous hosts.

We Interrupt This Blog...

2010-01-29T11:17:00.000-08:00

For a movie review.

We watched Bottle Shock last night. It's a 2008 movie about a blind wine tasting competition in France in 1976 when two California wineries blew everyone away and won the thing in both the red and white categories.

The movie focuses on Chateau Montelena and it's quest to produce excellent wine, Chardonnay in particular. I'm always interested in how movies based on real events can build tension and uncertainty in the audience when the outcome is already known. (Apollo 13 did this brilliantly, by the way.)

In Bottle Shock, the writers did it by making Jim Barrett, the owner and wine maker, on the verge of bankruptcy and giving him and his son an uneasy relationship.

I have no idea how much of that is based on fact and how much is added for tension. There's a female intern who is attracted to both Bo Barrett and his friend, a winery employee.

The Napa Valley of 1976 is shown to be very rural and nearly poverty stricken. The trucks and cars are 1960s vintages and on their last legs. I got my driver's license in 1975 and I remember the trucks and cars I and my friends drove. We weren't from wealthy families and our cars were in much better shape than those in the movie.

Bottle Shock is a great story dressed up to impress. It did make me want to taste some Chateau Montelena Chardonnay. The current release is their 2007 vintage at $50 a bottle. They charge $20 for a tasting.

Maybe it's time for another Total Wine field trip...

Pasta and Peju

2010-01-23T12:15:00.000-08:00

On our first visit to Napa, which incredibly was only three months ago, we were steered by friends to Peju Winery. They are now very good friends.

Peju turned out to be a highlight. It didn't start well, but the Peju staff jumped in and made it a wonderfully memorable visit. And the wines were pretty good, too. Actually, the wines are excellent. Every one was flavorful and brought different elements of the grape to the glass. Our favorites were the Provence and the Fifty/Fifty. The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon H.B. Vineyard was delicious, even to this non-red wine lover.

For Christmas, our very good friends gave us a bottle of Peju's Rose' of Syrah. They are now very, very good friends.

Yesterday was the day to uncork and pair it. We looked online and consulted both The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil and her Wine, Food, and Friends. Because rose' wines are so varied, we couldn't find a universal recommendation. But all the experts seemed to agree on a few common elements: garlic, Mediterranean, and seafood.

Well, that's a no-brainer. We had shrimp and feta and pasta so Greek Shrimp Pasta* was the obvious winner.

We sipped the wine as the pasta cooked and it was very good, but it really exploded with the garlic and shrimp and feta flavors.

I tasted cherries and a hint of licorice. Wine snob hubby smelled cranberries, cherries and a hint of pomegranate. We agree that the Greek Shrimp Pasta really showcased the wine to its fullest.

Our friends are now very, very, very good friends.

-------------

*Greek Shrimp Pasta
1 pound raw shelled and deveined shrimp, fresh or frozen thawed
4 cloves garlic, pressed
2tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 ounces crumbled feta cheese
6 green onions, finely chopped
4 teaspoons fresh oregano leaves, minced
5 fresh tomatoes, cored, seeded, and coarsely chopped (I try to use plum tomatoes, but I've used larger varieties and smaller. Even halved grape tomatoes)
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 pound linguine, freshly cooked and drained

In a large bowl, combine feta, green onions, oregano, tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Let the mixture stand at room temperature for an hour. (I've cheated when pressed for time and I still think it's marvelous. You do need at least 15 minutes though.

In a skillet, add the butter and olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add the garlic and stir until it starts to brown, then add the shrimp. Stir until the shrimp turn pink. Remove from heat.

Add the cooked pasta to the shrimp and garlic. Toss. Top with the feta and tomatoes and enjoy!

Ice Wine

2010-01-22T09:59:00.000-08:00

In Karen MacNeil's Wine, Food, and Friends I read about ice wine or Eiswein. It's a dessert wine made from grapes that are frozen on the vine and then pressed. The water stays behind as ice and only juice is extracted.

This description fascinated me and I imagined ... I don't know, icy wine crystals I guess and I wanted to see how this translated into wine.

So, on our field trip to Total Wine , we found the ice wines. They are from Germany or Canada. They ranged in price from $15 - $75. I was prepared to go up to around $30, but in this case I went with the cheaper edition for the shallow reason that I liked it's packaging and label better than the higher priced wine. Oh, and it's a half bottle size and it's poured in 2 ounce servings.

Jackson-Triggs Vidal Icewine was the lowest priced and since we had no idea what to expect (and it had nice 'rich' looking packaging) we decided to start at the bottom of the price tier and will work our way up.

We opened the Vidal and had our 2 oz. pour a couple of nights ago, then again last night.

It's a rich amber color, it pours thick, almost like cough syrup. I sniffed and got a deep floral scent. Wine Snob Hubby wasn't sure what he smelled until I said flowers. He sniffed again and said, "Yes, roses."

It is a very gentle flavor, not harsh at all. We had it alone, without food, and I'd like to try it with something to see how it holds up. I tasted apples and a hint of the florals. It's a very concentrated taste.

We'll try it again with a food, then move our way up the price scale to compare.

On the Cheap

2010-01-22T09:39:00.000-08:00

Fresh and Easy recently came to town. I stopped by to check out their prepared foods and left with a basket of groceries. I wandered the wine aisle, looking for their version of a Two-buck Chuck. Sure enough, they had several wines for $1.99.

I chose the Big Kahuna Chardonnay.

I fixed crab cakes with the leftover crab from the Geurwertz tasting and oven roasted some veggies (zucchini, carrots, Brussels sprouts, peppers, broccoli).

The wine wasn't bad on first sip. But by the end of dinner it had lost all power to stand up to the food and take its place as part of the meal. A bite of vegetables would bring it back to half-mast, but it never fully recovered.

But it was two bucks. For the price, it wasn't horrible.

It felt very dry on the tongue and sharp to acidic on the finish.

Gewurztraminer and Crab

2010-01-18T10:33:00.000-08:00

Saturday Wine Snob Hubby wanted to compare the two Gerwuertz... Guerwert... you know what I mean. Anyway, he bought two different bottles at our recent field trip to Total Wine and
he wanted to taste them side by side.

RNDaughter was home for the weekend and she wanted crab. Usually we have one night a year with newspapers on the table, crackers (the metal kind, not the edible ones), wine, and a salad.

WSH checked his Wine Bible and MacNeil's Wine, Food, and Friends and decided it could work with the right accompanying sauces.

So we called some friends, threw the papers on the table, and chilled the wines.

The menu:

Crab (one non-shellfish eater had a chicken breast)
Assorted dipping sauces (Thai peanut, cocktail, spicy ginger, garlic and chile) and drawn butter
Ceasar salad
sourdough bread
And dark chocolate truffles for dessert.

First up:

Adler Fels Gewurtz from the Russian River Valley.

Heard around the table:

"With the spicy sauces, it really opens up the flavor of the wine."
"It's not sugary sweet, it's flowery sweet."
"The spicy ginger sauce brought out the dry elements."
"It pours pretty."

My uneducated thought: I liked it a lot. It stood up to both the crab and the vinegary salad dressing. A bite of bread refreshed the palate.

Next was the French edition, Vin d'Alsace Gewurtz (as the name implies, from Alsace):

Heard around the table:

"Makes the cocktail sauce super hot."
"Has a chardonnay finish."
"Would be great with a spicy sushi."

I liked the Adler Fels wine better. Not that there was anything wrong with the Alsace, at least nothing I can articulate. The Adler Fels just seemed a better fit. It's very possible the Alsace would have been wonderful with Thai food or a jerk chicken with fruit salsa. We made it work with what we wanted and it's probably our fault that it didn't shine.

Beouf Bourguignon

2010-01-02T14:17:00.000-08:00

December 30 Wine Snob Hubby decided to try a new Beouf Bourguignon recipe. He made one a couple of months ago and it was too hearty, if that's possible. He used a 'quick' recipe and the wine flavor simply overpowered everything else.

So this time he went for a more 'traditional' preparation, including flaming brandy before the simmer. He added some left over Fresno State red and a Cabernet.

We ate it on egg noodles and he paired it with a Tejon Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon. I'm not a red drinker. I just don't care for the sharp flavors but this red worked so well with the beef that it was totally good.

I tasted berries.

Christmas and Beyond

2009-12-28T15:50:00.000-08:00

Our traditional Christmas Eve supper is basically snacks. Cheese and salami and crackers. Maybe a dip, maybe hummus and pita bread. Lil' Smokies. Frozen canapes (no, we don't eat them frozen, we bake them first). This year, we had them with a bottle of cheap champagne. Cook's, I think. Maybe Korbel. No, Cooks. The champagne was a little drier than I remembered but it went nicely with the cheeses. We had a smoked cheddar, a pesto jack, and a sharp cheddar. The wine and the pesto jack were excellent. And the smoked cheddar was amazing. It actually tasted creamier as the evening went on.

Christmas dinner was a whole pig. It roasted in the Caja China for several hours and then was carved and served with sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, Caesar salad, corn, rolls, olives, cranberries, etc. I had water. There just seemed no where to go with all the choices.

Saturday, Dec. 26, we made our way north to visit family. While there, the mother ship called Wine Snob Hubby and we all answered the call with a stop at Total Wine in Roseville, CA.
We knew risotto and veal was the evening menu, so WSH whipped out his copy of Karen MacNeil's Wine, Food & Friends to get her recommendations for risotto.

Her first suggestion was Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino. It was available but at $50 a bottle, a bit out of our price range. Her back up was Rosso di Montalcino at $15. We got it.

The white MacNeil suggested wasn't at the store (Domaine Weinbach Cuvee' Ste. Catherine Pinot Gris) so we went with an employee suggestion of an Alsace Pinot Gris from Albrecht.

I'd read about eiswein (or ice wine) and I wanted to try some so we found an employee who was very helpful and knowledgeable and he pointed us in the right direction. They were from Germany and Canada and ranged from $12 - $75. I figured since this was a new experience, I'd start cheap and work my way up. We bought the $12 bottle and I'll let you know when we open it.

WSH found 3 other wines he purchased. Then we moved to the tasting area. Total Wine was offering flights of champagne. For a whole dime each, we tasted 5 different wines, ranging from $6 - $50. One of the lower priced and the highest priced were the best. (When will I remember to write these names down??)

For dinner, the risotto was cooked in a red sauce but the veal was light and thin, so we opened the Albrecht Pinot Gris. We tasted first and I tasted pears. We had a crab cake appetizer and the wine complemented the smoothness and richness of the crab and its crust. Then we segued into the veal and risotto and the wine contrasted with the risotto in a very different way. I lost the pear tones, but the wine still, in my uneducated opinion, held up very well.

Cheese and Crackers

2009-12-20T14:19:00.000-08:00

We had dinner last night with our daughter and her fiance', but we started with a trio of cheese and crackers. Cream cheese with garlic and chives. A red-wine soaked goat cheese. And a garlic jack. Also water crackers and jalapeno stuffed olives.

We had the ever-present Pacific Rim dry Riesling and a Kenwood Merlot.

Wine snob hubby gave me a taste of the merlot with a cracker spread with cream cheese. I tasted the wine first and had no strong feelings and no strong sense of what it tasted like. I try not to read labels until I've at least tasted it so I don't taste with any preconceptions of what flavors I should be finding.

Anyway, nothing from the merlot at first sip. Ate the cracker and cheese. Tasted the merlot again. At first, not much. But on the finish, I tasted... berries! Then we checked the label and I was right! I rarely, if ever, can find the hints and flavors so I'm stoked. I tasted berries! And the other flavors (I don't know what they were, but I know they were there) were intensified after the cheese.

We repeated the process with the dry riesling. The results were disappointing. I enjoy the dry riesling with most foods, but the cheese just left the palate flat. The wine couldn't wake up the taste buds again.

WSH read me a quote from Karen MacNeil. She said caterers know the secret of serving cheese with low price wines. The cheese makes the wine seem better than it is.

I don't know what the Kenwood merlot runs, but the cheese certainly woke up my uneducated palate.

A Surprising Pairing

2009-12-16T14:43:00.000-08:00

Several months ago, I had Pacific Rim Dry Riesling for the first time. One sip and I loved it. I try to keep a couple of bottles on hand for when I don't know what I want.

Last weekend, Wine Snob Hubby prepared bacon-wrapped fillets. He had his with a Tobin James Merlot.

Going against all that wine snobs around the world hold dear, I had my dry Riesling. And loved it.

The meat was tender and flavorful, almost delicate, in spite of being beef. The light fruit essence made the beef even more melt-in-my-mouth delicious.

Which brings up a discussion WSH and I had last week.

He's reading The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil. In it, MacNeil says that it's a fallacy that if a wine tastes good to you, then it's good. She argues that there are objective parameters and conditions a wine must meet to be considered good.

I understand what she's saying. I think. And I look forward to learning those parameters and how to apply them to what I like.

I know I like the dry Riesling with bacon-wrapped fillets.

Thanksgiving and Beyond

2009-12-03T21:27:00.001-08:00

We opened 3 reds and 3 whites for Thanksgiving dinner. I made sure to write them all down. I could tell you what they were. But not how they tasted or paired with the dinner. So why bother?

I was so busy putting the food out, keeping up on the dishes, hiding the pumpkin fluff, that I don't remember what went with what.

So. Skip ahead to last night.

Wine Snob Hubby and I went to dinner and a movie. Okay, technically, if we lived in Florida it would be the Early Bird Dinner special since we arrived at the restaurant at 4:00 PM, but the movie started at 4:45. And us 50 year olds can't eat after 7:00 and get any sleep so it meant "dinner" first.

Anyway, we went to a local Asian fusion kind of place, Dai Bai Dang. We had pork pot stickers (gyozas to my Taiwanese friends), then chicken chow mein (pretty good) and the crispy chicken (very spicy - too spicy the next day).

I asked for a glass of the house chardonnay and was offered either a Kendall-Jackson or a Snapdragon.

I know I've had the Kendall-Jackson. Many people love it, but it's never done much for me so I opted for the Snapdragon.

It was wonderful. Airy. Not quite ethereal but almost. It complemented the gyozas perfectly.

Highly recommended and I don't know what I'm talking about.

Tuesday Night

2009-11-25T12:23:00.000-08:00

Wine Snob Hubby worked yesterday and since he works 12 hour days, he eats all his meals at work, leaving me to fend for myself. I hadn't eaten dinner when he got home so he threw a couple of potatoes in the microwave and we each had one. We paired it with water.

Later in the evening, we pulled out the almond champagne we purchased last week at Morgan Hill Cellars/Pedrizetti. When we tasted it at the winery, I smelled the almond but didn't taste it. I liked the champagne overall, I thought it was crisp and very flavorful. Of something, just not almond.

Last night, it was still light, crisp and pleasant, but had no almond bouquet at all. Kind of disappointing. We didn't have anything to eat with it, but that shouldn't matter, because we didn't at the winery either. WSH didn't finish his, he was that unimpressed.

A Typical Monday

2009-11-23T20:09:00.000-08:00

I spent a good part of the day waiting in a hospital cafeteria for my grand-daughter to have surgery on a fingernail. Yes, on a fingernail.

Then I went to physical therapy for my back problem.

Then I came home, curled up in the recliner and whimpered. A lot.

WSH fixed pasta with a cream sauce, garlic, and artichoke hearts. I had the last glass of the $2 Chuck, he had red.

I thought my wine went nicely with the artichokes, not so much with the cream sauce. I wish I knew why...

Lesson 1: Sauvignon Blanc

2009-11-22T22:01:00.000-08:00

The wine: 2008 Robert Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc

The lesson: acid

The pairing: smoked salmon with creme fraiche, capers and dill (sort of)

Wine Snob Hubby printed off a ream of pages from the Culinary Institute of America's online wine classes and gave us a lesson in SauvBlanc.

We sipped the wine. It was tart and I definitely tasted the acidity. Then we took a (teeny) sip of rice wine vinegar, then another sip of wine. The wine was flat. It had totally lost the bite and the character.

We alternated bites of smoked salmon, the creme, some bitter lettuce and capers and dill. This is where it gets interesting.

WSH said eating a caper then sipping the wine was the same as the wine after the rice wine vinegar. Not for me. The caper cut the acidity somewhat for me, but not nearly to the extent the vinegar did.

So... who's palate is better? We don't have a clue. His is very sensitive, obviously.

The wine itself was nice, not as light as expected, so it stood up well to the smoke in the salmon.

I tasted pear and that's about it. The label said citrus and pear. I didn't get the citrus. But (and this is weird, I know) towards the end of my 2nd glass, I took a hearty sip and tasted pear followed by...(drum roll, please)...cactus.

I know, weird. I've had cactus once, in a salad, diced. I didn't know I remembered what it tasted like. Or maybe the wine tasted like I think cactus smells.

But there was cactus in that there glass. That's all this uneducated palate knows.

Late Night Risotto

2009-11-22T14:38:00.000-08:00

So, we got home from the "Family Dinner that's really Dessert" last night. We had pie, cookies, cinnamon rolls, turnovers, and Brown Bobbies. I had 2 Brown Bobbies, 1 roll, 1 cookie. Not bad for hours of sitting around staring at the food. I also discovered that I can't take certain people for more than an hour if I'm sober. I raised my voice in irritation more times last night than in the last month. I have to think it's because I didn't have enough wine.

Anyway, we arrived home and unloaded, did a few chores. I read a chapter in my current book and discovered I was hungry.

Wine Snob Hubby fixed me a snack, the last of the leftover risotto, a bread stick, and a glass of the $2Chuck.

WSH recently discovered the joy that is risotto and has been experimenting with different combos in the rice. The last one was pretty simple: mushrooms and onion.

I had the last of it at 10:00 pm last night. It was beautiful. The wine with it... not as good as it was with the salad yesterday afternoon. Last night, the wine left a sharp tang on the back of my tongue. Not as enjoyable, in my uneducated opinion.

Tonight: WSH is currently smoking a salmon fillet and we're going to have it with some capers and a Sauvignon Blanc. The education continues.

First Pairing

2009-11-21T14:58:00.000-08:00

It's a fall Saturday. We're going to my mother-in-law's home for dessert at 4:30 this afternoon.

I don't know why. Well, I sort of know why. Family is gathering from around the state and the country and she wants to have everyone together. Not all of will be at her home for Thanksgiving and she doesn't want to do two huge meals in a week. So we're all coming for dessert. I made cinnamon rolls because I have to take some to church tomorrow and it's just as easy to do two dozen as it is one.

Anyway, it's a typical fall Saturday. Rolls rising, laundry churning, lawn mower roaring. Because of the aforementioned 4:30 pm dessert, we had a late lunch.

Left over tri-tip on a green salad with sugar peas, red bell pepper, a plum tomato, and seeded cucumbers. With a thin ranch/gorgonzola dressing (the dressing was bottled and labeled gorgonzola but it tasted like ranch to me). Wine Snob husband thinned it with a little 2% milk to extend it over two salads.

We ate at 2:30. We had a glass of Charles Shaw Chardonnay with it. Two-buck Chuck. Beringer's White zin is now too sweet for me and this Chardonnay is just fine.

I thought it went very well with the salad. I could taste something along the sides of tongue. I'm not sure what.

The wine was light and crisp and the little bit of beef on the salad didn't overpower the wine. The dressing might have been too much for other whites but since it was thinned down, I thought it was fine.

But what do I know? I have the uneducated palate.

The Uneducated Palate

2009-11-21T14:09:00.000-08:00

For years I've said I don't have a palate.

People can rhapsodize about the fruity flavors of wine, or the tar or oaky hints, and I nod but I'm faking it. I can't taste those things. Sometimes I can smell a hint of a strawberry or the oak. I had some almond champagne recently and I totally smelled almonds in it, but I really didn't get it in the taste.

I used to drink only Beringer's White Zinfandel. Or wine coolers. Then I found I didn't hate white wines.

This blog will be my journey to educate my palate.

My husband is taking wine classes and he's going to teach me a thing or two. Or three.