friday night fixin' s

Saturday morning, enjoying my coffee, listening to CBC, contemplating doing some laundry, procrastinating by posting to blog.

After a mini-long week we decided to stay in last night and relax. Which wine to drink? Popped by one of Wpg.'s private wine merchants and picked up a bottle of Casa Silva's Dona Dominga Single Vineyard La Hijuela Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon 2005. Long name for what I would describe as a great wine with an outstanding price. We also grabbed some avocados, fresh local tomatoes, a purple onion and made some chunky guacamole to snack on while we made dinner.

When poured, the wine glowed with brilliance in the glass. The aroma also jumped out - fresh pear, peach and a hint of honey. All of these flavours followed through on the first taste, the wine was crisp with a delicate acidity. I thought detected a bit of citrus towards the back. The finish was clean. I also enjoyed the feel of this wine - it had a creamy texture without the creamy flavours.

I checked out the website this morning and was impressed by what the winery stated. The website was easy to navigate and had a soothing background music (which I turned off as I was listening to CBC). What did I discover? Well, the tasting note for the 2005 is not up yet so I peeked at the 2004: 50/50 split between Sauvignon Blanc & Semillon; 100% hand harvested; hand sorting of grapes; stainless steel fermentation. There is nothing wrong with machine harvesting, though there is some debate on if it damages the grapes or not (future blog topic?). I also learned a lot about the winery and their commitment to their vineyards and their appellation. One of my favourite parts was the location map, it shows vineyard location within the region.

Casa Silva appears to be a winery with a commitment to making good quality, easy drinking wines. I love the fact that this wine was hand harvested, single vineyard, single appellation and affordable, you can taste the difference care makes, even in wines under $20. It was priced below many of the label-driven-wines I try to avoid (see price of wine post in September 2005). I also discovered Casa Silva makes some interesting wines including Chile's only 100% Sauvignon Gris from vines planted pre-WWI, has a Viognier and a Carmenere. I also liked that it was next to a number of reds on the shelf, I will definitely be checking these out in the near future.

So to sum it up...
Casa Silva's Dona Dominga
Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc & Semillon
Vintage: 2005
Appellation: Single Vineyard - La Hijuela, Colchagua Valley, Chile
Closure: Trad. Cork
Format: Standard bottle
Price: $11 plus taxes
Had With: Homemade Southern Fried Chicken and whipped potatoes; chunky guacamole & tortilla chips; sipped after while reading on the chesterfield.
Recommend: Buy a case, you won't regret it. And don't be one of those ninnys I always end up behind in line and ask for a discount; if you are entitled to one the customer service person will let you know.

The last word...
Day 2 of the Cono Sur Merlot (magnum). Stood tall, the flavours were still there, though the finish softened a smidge, though not a problem. I stand by the assessment of this being a good wine to have on hand. I also think this would be an excellent house wine (hint-hint, nudge-nudge restaurant readers).

not the day i planned

My plan yesterday was to arrive home and cook a fabulous meal and enjoy a lovely bottle of wine, life is not always what you plan. I arrived home an hour and a half late and tired, dinner turned from sublime to simple, as did the wine.

The dinner turned into grilled ribeye with simple seasoning (S&P) accompanied by mashed parmesan potatoes and a creamy carrot, lettuce and pomegranate salad. Dessert was sliced fruit, cheese and a movie in the DVD. The wine went from a new acquisition on the wine rack to a magnum of Merlot we picked up to try as a vin de maison - Cono Sur's Origen Merlot 2004 (Central Valley, Chile).

Ever wondered where Central Valley is? Central Valley is the big growing region in Chile, it encompasses all the smaller areas (Aconcagua, Maipo, Rapel, Curico, Maule, Casablanca Valleys, to name a few). More on Chile's appellations and their laws in another blog.

The Merlot was simple and predictable. Soft plums, hints of blueberry, sharp spice though not pepper, more clove and nutty-walnut. The finish had an interesting touch and it took a while for us to name it - dried dill. There was something else there, I think a little of Cab. Sauv. may have been there to add depth in colour and aroma. All round a pleasant, easy drink, definitely a crowd pleaser, a house wine. We have over half the bottle left, I will post how it changed after being open for a day.

So to sum it up:
Cono Sur 'Origen' Merlot
Grape(s): bottle says Merlot however, I could not find this exact wine on the website to verify.
Vintage: 2004
Appellation: Central Valley, Chile
Closure: Trad. Cork
Format: Magnum a.k.a. the 1.5L
Price: $16 plus tax
Had with: Ribeye steak, a traditional meat & potaoes meal. Could also be good with fajita or stew. Was very good to sip on its own.
Recommend: Yes. This is an excellent wine to have sitting on the counter for lazy days, to drink or to cook with and to serve when friends and family show up.

the 5R's of wine

You are probaly wondering what the 5R's of wine are.

Simply put my 5R's are:
(d)rinking
(a)rithmetic
(r)eading
(w)riting
(t)ravel.
Over the next few months; in between my wine review posts I plan on fleshing out the 5R's and their importance to growth in personal wine appreciation. Don't worry - I have not missed Food & Wine, it factors into every one of my 5R's.

For dinner tonight we are having organic ribeye steaks with a crumbly blue cheese sauce (yum). We are debating between 2 wines on the rack - a Costieres de Nimes & an Aussie Shiraz, though I may grab a Pinot Noir on the way home. I'll let you know how the debate ends and how the wine paired with the meal.