Alexana Pinot Gris`11 $26.00 Live Blog white #WBC12

ETOH 12.1% Dundee AVA. Nice, light slightly effervescent thanks to the minerality.  This is a good, light wine for a special summer meal.  It is a mouthful of flavor, and it would pair well with Asian foods.

Duckpond Pinot Gris `11 $12.00 Live Blog White and Rose #WBC

@duckpondcellars  Bright fresh and slightly tart.  This is a local, family owned and operated winery.  Brittany poured for us, and gave a great presentation of the wine and the vineyard. It is 99 degrees n Portland, and this wine cuts the heat.

King Estate Domaine Pinot Gris Estate `09 $25.00 Organic #wbc11 liveblog

Sasha Kadey, Director of Marketing poured for us.  King Estate Winery, Oregon.  World's largest contiguous Fruits and Vegetables.  Also a big farm producer Lavender etc, has a restaurant. No oak.

Creamy, slightly sweet, bright, yummie.  Would go really well with salmon, and I would be daring and try it with pork.  It is a big hit at the blogging table!

Notes on the repost:  How drunk was I when I wrote this? It was very, very good, and my post does not do it justice.  Sorry Sasha.

Banfi San Angelo Pinot Grigio `09 $18.49 (not TJ's) ***

S. and JPH were at a tasting dinner hosted by Neil Trimble at the Banfi Estate in Old Brookville. This was from all accounts an amazing evening.  Over breakfast, I was regaled with the history of Banfi as we went over the menu and the wines served course by course. (living vicariously has it's perks.  I didn't have a hangover!)

That afternoon, JPH and I went to buy some of the wines they had tasted the night before and over the next few months, we'll be having the bottles one by one.

In these series of posts I'll also talk about Banfi, or as I call it: The House that Riuniti built; a story about wine that could only happen in America. (Even though the wine is mostly Italian) Banfi, is American-owned and was founded in New York in 1919.  They still produce one of America's most popular wines, Riuniti.  Yes, Banfi, who hosted the above mentioned tasting dinner at their Gold Coast Estate was built on "Riuniti on ice...That's Nice."  I'll be reviewing that classic $5.99 wine in the near future.  But for now, it'll be the more expensive cousins, like this San Angelo Pinot Grigio.  The whole story just appeals to my thrifty New England Yankee soul: First generation immigrant builds dynasty by selling a bit of their Europe with a twist - the flair of Madison Avenue, creating an icon of the melting pot that is my America.

On the evening of the tasting, San Angelo Pinot Grigio `09 was paired with their second course: Seared Diver Scallop with Eggplant Relish and Orange Citronette. Sounds yummie, a bit swish (Eggplant Relish??) but still you can't beat most Pinot Grigio with seafood.  (This blog does not condone either seafood or wine abuse)

We had it with Baked Salmon with Carrots and Onions in a butter/white wine sauce, with a side of leftover scalloped potatoes.  It is a bright, grapefruity, crisp wine that really highlighted the tastes of the fish and cut the creaminess of the potatoes and the butter.  All of the flavors worked quite well together.

My tasting notes were "Grapefruit" it was a predominant flavor.  But when I read the wine sheet from Banfi, they say things like Bananna and Peach...  are my taste buds so off? I am still a bit stymied that I could be so contrary.  So I searched other reviews.  The Wine Curmudgeon says pear in his review of this wine as well.

I still think that this is a perfectly good wine.  A bit on the pricey side for me to rave about it.  (remember, I started this wine drinking $3.99 bottles of Trader Joe's plonk).  But as a light, bright, flavorful chilled wine, this is very good.

Simply because they are the "Vintner's Next Door" 

(seriously, we buy our dog food less than a mile 

from their North American headquarters) 

I'll leave you with a picture of Long Island's beautiful North Shore in Winter:

 

Banfi Tasting second course:  Banfi San Angelo Pinot Grigio `09 $18.49 (not TJ's) ***

Banfi Tasting third course:  Banfi Centine Rosso `07 $10.89 (not TJ's)

Banfi Tasting fourth course: Banfi BelnerO `05 $35.99 (Not TJ's) ****

St. Michael-Eppan Pinot Grigio `09 $17.00 (not TJ's) ***

Blizzard, NY.  Leftovers from Christmas Eve. New iPad. Bottle of Pinot Grigio in the beer drawer of the fridge. (I just realized that this wine was a Christmas Present from my Boss.  Well done Boss!)  Welcome to my Boxing Day lunch.

I was going to start my great Malbec tasting week today... but, I cannot in good conscience let lobster go to waste (I am from Maine after all....).  So lunch and dinner are seafood and the blizzard drink of the day is this bottle of Pinot Grigio.

JPH makes an awesome Fish Pie, and this Pinot Grigio was a bright and fruity enough to pair with the shredded potato topped seafood goodness.(It also had the good fortune to be a cheap alternative to the only other bottle of white wine in the fridge - yes, I still choose my wine by color and then sticker price)

The Alto Adige region of Italy produced this fruity (pear/crisp apple) and dry (not sweet at all) Pinot Grigio.  Alto Adige is in the northeast mountainous part of Italy, on the top left of the boot cuff, and was once a part of Austria.  This wine really does share some characteristics with Austrian wine. From the winery of  St. Michael, it may be DOC Italian but they identify their region as South Tyrol, and that is pretty close to Sound of Music territory to me (that is when I go running - I don't like my hills alive) I feel like when I drink it, I am tasting Austrian roots. This Pinot Grigio is clean, subdued and was a nice contrast to the richness of the seafood and potato yet it has substance and no real taste of  ETOH (13.5% BTW) .

It is funny to me that if this wine is chilled (just from the fridge) it is crisp, snappy and bright.  I went to check on the laundry, got sidetracked by my new and shiny Christmas present; when I got back to the kitchen, the wine had warmed, was fuller and the fruit taste was more subtle.  Temperature really does affect wine. You could serve it at any temperature as far as I am concerned, you can't go wrong but I prefer it well chilled.  It was great with the seafood but I can also imagine it as a light, bright Summer wine as well.

Speaking of Summer, well, today is opposite day.
Here is the patio at 3:30 in the afternoon on 12/26/2010.

Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio $22.00 (Not TJ's) ***

I was charged with doing the dinner shopping.  Veal, sausage, pancetta, sage, fingerling potatoes, spinach and dry white wine. (There may have also been some Christmas shopping involved as well... 'tis the season and all that.)

Well, meat was simple.  Karl Ehmer Quality Meats had everything protein that we would need and great service to boot. Then for the wine.  I like being a neophyte.  At Greenvale Grapes I asked "What do you have in a dry white - for both cooking and drinking?"  My accomplice and I were walked to the Pinot Grigio wall and were given the rundown on the featured bottles. For me, it was a toss up.  There was a $14.00 bottle that was a contender and this $22.00 bottle that the manager had listed as his favorite.  I left it to my accomplice to choose. She went for this Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio.  The manager was horrified that I would think to cook with it.  We had a discussion, and I assured him that it was well worth cooking with good wine. I live by the Julia Child ethos which includes this gem:

"I enjoy cooking with wine, sometimes I even put it in the food I'm cooking."

And that is just what I did.  As JPH was preparing Skewered Veal Cubes and Pork Sausage Pan-Roasted with Sage and White Wine from Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cookery (a well used cookbook in this household); I grabbed the wine from the fridge and poured a glass.  After all, it was my job to roast the potatoes, then cook the spinach with rendered pancetta & garlic - I should start reviewing the wine in my head as soon as I pulled the pan from the drawer, right?!?

I have written about grassy wines in earlier posts.  The main note of this wine on first sip is its subtle elegance. It did not have any overwhelming flavor to me.  If I were to use the grassy taste, this wine is a finely manicured golf course.  Just enough freshness to be palate cleansing, and a fine mineral depth that gave it a foundation, but no extremes.  It is a very easy drinking wine. JPH took his required 1/2 cup for the final simmer of the skewers, and when the spinach was almost done, I splashed some into the pan. (S. & I still had plenty to have with dinner).

With food, this is a sublime wine.  It went very well with the subtle flavors of the sage and veal.  The sausage added a peppery highlight, and this wine was an excellent foil for the pepper.  I do think that this is more of a seafood wine, but it still works.

I don't have much experience with Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris. My first review of a Pinot Grigio was singelhandedly the worst wine I had tasted in the early days of this blog Bandit Pinot Grigio. Pinot Grigio/Gris is yet another mutation of the Pinot Noir grape, and well, I am partial to genetic mutations, since I am one myself (Polycystic Kidney Disease).  I am looking forward to trying more of this dry white wine in the future.

'tis the season for decorations to start coming out!!!  Christmas in this house comes with a warning label:

Sineann Pinot Gris `01 (not TJ's) $22.99 ****

I've been drinking some really good wine lately.  Since only 1000 cases were produced of this wine, I am sure that there isn't much out there.  But if  you should stumble across a bottle, buy it and ENJOY IT!

This is a from a small Oregon producer, Sineann.  JPH dusted off a bottle for tonight's dinner and I had a glass as he was cooking.  It went GREAT with the bag of Deep River Snacks Rosemary and Olive Oil chips that were handed to me (these chips may be a new addiction). The saltiness and the savory taste of rosemary was lifted by the crisp pear taste and semi sweet finish of this wine. I was hooked.

So, I grabbed my glass and a handful of chips, sat and patted the dog and watched Aladdin as dinner was cooking. The second glass was even better than the first.  It felt heavy in my mouth, but it was a light wine, and the fruitiness was crisp, not cloying - but there was a hint of sweetness - more like a tease. It was like a lovely, light Gewurztraminer - I think that the aging of this wine simply mellowed it and added depth.  During dinner, I read the label, and I don't know if it was the power of suggestion, or maybe just educating my palate but when I read pineapple, and then tasted it again, wouldn't you know, I tasted pineapple.  When I told S, she tasted hers again, and she got pineapple too.   Now I want to try more of the Sineann wines.

This was also the perfect wine for a heavy dinner. The fruit taste and the crispness perfectly balanced the intense cheddar of the rarebit, and the wine was a terrific follow up to a bite of homemade confit mmmm comfort food!

Menu for a cold, wet Friday night:
Welsh Rarebit
Confit Duck
Confit Pork
Frisee Salad
Brandywine Tomatoes

Novella Synergy Blanc `08 $6.99 ****

I liked it, I really liked it.  I was cooking an impromptu Saturday dinner and I needed a white for cooking and a white to serve with shrimp kabobs from the grill.  This Paso Robles wine was a win/win.  Not too sweet, not too dry, no oak, and a great peach finish - really good for summer.  Very easy to drink (which may be why Sunday morning was so painful when the cat started meowing to be let in at 5:40am)

I made a silly menu mistake for 80 degree NY weather and I made mushroom and pea risotto.  Umm, salad, that was the word that should have come to mind when I was shopping - oops.  Oh well.  The wine was good for making risotto. It also worked well with the spicy Guacamole I made for an appetizer.  I did not mean to make spicy guacamole, but the deceptive peppers that were in the freezer were HOT.  I should have know that, as the owners of the refrigerator like spicy southwestern food  BUT I wasn't expecting to be blasted off the scoville scale. (I am squatting housesitting between apartments). This wine works very well with spicy food.  It also held up to the saltiness of the tortilla chips.

My suggestion: cook with it, pour yourself a glass, then chill it to be served with dinner and when that bottle is polished off, move on to a nice prosecco to go with the chocolate and Grand Marnier crepes for dessert.... But that's just me.

Jason over at Jason's Wine Blog reviewed this wine and posted the blend.  55.6% Sauvignon Blanc, 40.8% Chardonnay, 3.3% Muscat Canelli and 0.3% Pinot Grigio" - Thanks Jason, and as usual, great review. I am in 100% agreement with you.

Menu:

Guacamole with Tortilla chips
Cajun Shrimp Skewers
Sirloin Tip Skewers
Mushroom Risotto
Organic Ciabatta
Chocolate Grand Mariner Crepes

Bandit Pinot Grigio 2006 $7.89 * (not TJ's)

It has been a bad week. A friend died. I never made it to Trader Joe's. On an impulse, I stopped at Crossroads Liquor Store on the way home. In memory of Susie, I bought a bottle of Silver Patron and while at the register I grabbed a 1L box of wine, Bandit Pinot Grigio.

I opened the wine today (Saturday) and poured myself a glass to have with lunch (chorizo, pepper & onion omelet) One sip - yeech. So, being the cheapskate that I am, I poured it into a water glass, added cranberry juice and orange juice and called it "white trash sangria".

Later this afternoon, I was making roasted Butternut Squash Risotto with Bacon & Sage. I poured a healthy amount of this pinot into the risotto. I don't know what I'll do with the balance of the 1 litre box, but I can assure you that I won't be drinking it.