Marchesato degli Aleramici Rosso di Montalcino `07 (Not TJ's) $12.99 ***

Friday night is Pizza Night.  Not just any pizza, but pizza from Gennaro's in Glen Head. And what goes with authentic Italian Pizza? D.O.C. Italian wine.  If the guy behind the counter (Mr. Gennaro) is going to speak his native Italian AND make our pizza, why not honor that with this Rosso di Montalcino Sangiovese?

First Pour:  Bright fresh cherry taste, but dry.  This is why I prefer Montepulciano over Sangiovese wines, Sangiovese wine has a dryness that is a finish that I enjoy best with food.  There are no worries of me overdriking a Sangiovese (or so I have experienced so far).  A slice of Gennaro's Grandma's Pizza, some hot pepper flakes and a glass of this wine is a good, satisfying meal.

After the Vinturi:  It makes the wine even dryer. It still held the beautiful fresh cherry scent, the fruitiness was there, but the the finish was startling more intensely dry. I wouldn't bother with aerating this wine.  It is a good bottle for a casual meal, or as a nice dry red to have with heavy snacks/cheese. This is a wine that will hold up to a strong dish. 

Now I am already thinking about what wine to try with next Friday's Pizza Night!

Raphael Rose of Merlot `08 (not TJ's) $12.99 ***

This is my favorite Raphael wine so far.  Dry, a bit effervescent and crisp.  I bought it after a tasting at Bacchus.  This rose was good at around 60 degrees.  Crisp, kinda grapefuity.  I liked it with my standby pesto flat bread pizza -  flatbread and pesto stored in freezer - all you have to buy is fresh mozzarella & grape tomatoes (I usually have Parmesan & onions on hand in the fridge).  This Rose cut the fat of the mozzarella and the olive oil in the pesto, added a citrusy punch and is a dry wine (like a super light, refreshing Merlot!).

This is a good summer wine to chill - it was a perfect day to use the vacu vin rapid ice wine chiller (they really do work). I think that it would be a good picnic wine too. It cuts through fattiness, and just lifts up what you are eating to a new level.

Good job Raphael.  I am happy that I liked this, after not really liking your Cabernet Franc.  I'm glad that I found a Long Island Wine of yours that I can recommend. I like that we have a burgeoning vineyard economy here in NY.

About Raphael Winery: (from their website)
The winemaking philosophy is based on an understanding of the cycle of nature, the climate and soil, the ripeness of the grapes and the success of time-honored techniques. Utilizing gravity flow and a natural winemaking philosophy, Raphael wines are produced sustainably, utilizing spontaneous fermentation with little fining and filtration resulting in wines that purely express our local terroir. Our goal is to produce ripe, fruit-driven wines that exhibit a marriage of depth, finesse, elegance, and balance – the flavors of the North Fork – provided first by the terroir and secondly, by the dedicated, impassioned attention of our own hands.
The winery was designed by John Petrocelli who was inspired by the Italian monasteries of his ancestral home. Our production facility blends classic Mediterranean architecture with modern winemaking equipment. By building the winery 12 feet underground we are not only able to make our wines using a gentle gravity-flow method, but were able to construct a very energy efficient building using the earth’s natural 55F temperature to cool the winery in the summer and warm it in the winter.

Gaetano D'aquino Chianti (DOCG) `08 $4.99**

This wine smells musty & old, and that is off putting, but it tastes ok.  It even tastes better if you run it through the Vinturi. It was fruity, but for $4.99, I'd buy the Villa Cerrina.  There is much better wine out there.

Menu:
Mushroom & black olive thin crust pizza.

Jason's Wine Blog reviewed the `03  with more detail, and similar results.

Villa Cerrina Montepulciano DOC `08 $4.99 ****

It is Tuesday night, I just wanted plonk to go with dinner.  I grabbed a bottle off the top of the rack, checked the label and said why not?  WOW!  It was such a WOW, that after I opened it, I thought I screwed up and had to re-read the label (in my rack I have a very expensive Vino Noble Montepulciano I though I opened the wrong bottle by mistake). This is now my new favorite TJ's all around wine.

First sip, kinda fruity, long finish not many tannins. People may say that there is a leathery taste - hmmm, well for me that would be a really soft taste, nice smell - not fruity, deep. It smells and tastes like a wine that has been aged properly in barrels, and cared for.

Like I said, I ran to the rack to check my bottles - I couldn't believe it for the price.  After the vinturi - nah - it makes the wine too open and it enhances the tannins.  I like it straight from the bottle (well, via the glass).  For $4.99 grab a couple of these, keep 'em on the rack and when you are cooking pizza and antipasti for a quick dinner, or pasta, or pretty much anything casual, this is a great wine to pop open.

Menu:
antipasti (Grape tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, Ligurian sausage, buffalo mozzarella and balsamic vinegar)
Lavash pesto pizza

I am still looking for an apartment, so you'll be seeing a lot of food that seems familiar (I'm eating through the pantry and the wine rack).  If I don't find a new apt by 4/1, I'll be sofa surfing.  When I am settled in a new place, I promise that my menus will be back to the usual standard)

Clos del Pinell Negre `08 DO (not TJ's) $7.99 ***

It is a cooking and studying Saturday.  (I went back to school... YIKES)

This Clos del Pinell Negre is a wine that I tasted at the New World vs. Old World Event at Bacchus.  I liked it then, so I bought it. Good news, I like it now too!

This is a good, fresh inexpensive wine.  I love the smell when I first opened the bottle and poured it (and the cork is really pretty!). For me, the scent is like fresh blackberries.  Really, I just smelled and smelled and smelled before I drank it (maybe because it is 17 degrees here in a brutal NYC January).  It is fruity when you first sip it.  With a dry finish - and a little burn.  Nice.  It was slightly rough on my tongue, so I'll maybe say that it adds a bit of texture (subtle tannins).

So I found out in my wine class that Spain has a DO/DOA certification.  This wine is certified Terra Alta (South West of Barcelona) in the region of Tarragona (which makes me want to cook something with Tarragon!!) but I digress....

After the Vinturi, I don't like it so much.  The beautiful berry smell is diffused, the taste is muted.  My advice, don't decant it, pour it straight from the bottle and enjoy.

Today, I am making pine nut pesto, so lunch will be Whole Wheat Lavash Pizza with Ligurian Salami, Grape Tomatoes, Shallots, Pesto and Buffalo Mozzarella.  I haven't even tried the pizza yet, but I did taste the Salami with the wine, and WOW!  Fatty, peppery Salami with this wine was GREAT.

I'll use this wine on Sunday (or later tonight) when I make Chickpea, Chorizo Chili.

Aquila D'Oro Chianti `08 (DOCG) $4.99 **

Hmmmm. I seem to be on a Chianti roll of late.  Thursday night supper.  Pesto, Tomato & Buffalo Mozzarella flatbread pizza and this $4.99 bottle of Chinti.

Well the DOCG label says that it is from Tuscany, an `08 dry red wine.

Pre-Vinturi:  First sip.  It is dry, with some tannins, acidic, has a kind of afterburn as it goes down my throat. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a reminder that this may be a food wine.  Tastes of tart Raspberries.

After Vinturi:  Woodier, dryer - less of the raspberry taste.  Don't decant it.  It is better right from the bottle.  It still has the afterburn though.  I won't buy it again.

When I first poured this bottle, it was slightly chilled, and pretty palatable.  But as it warmed to the tropical temperature that my landlord keeps my apartment at, the wine was undrinkable.  I poured the balance into my new oak vinegar barrel.

El Quintanal Ribera del Duero `06 $13.99 **

Today is a beautiful, sunny, 60 degree November Sunday.  I've got a hangar steak cooking on the stovetop, I've cleaned the apartment top to bottom, and I just popped the cork on the El Quintanel.

Shudder... this wine is rough. Pour it, and give it some time to breathe.  Then the sudden taste of acetone won't be so shocking.  So, the steak is sizzling away, I am sitting at the computer and my second and third sips are better.  It is very fruity.  Cherry.  Bright. Some tannin aftertaste.  Definitely NOT a sipping wine.

While the steak rests, I am going to throw together a lavash pizza with pesto, tomato and buffalo mozzarella with a small salad, and that will be Sunday lunch.

After a run through the Vinturi - nope, not my kind of wine.  The Vinturi mellowed it - more like muddled it.  This is a bright wine, with a lot of sharpness, that is okay for a rich fatty dinner.  Meh - not worth the price.  I am much happier with the cheaper and tastier Albero wines.

Estola Reserva La Mancha 2004 $5.99 **

First pour, not bad. Fruity - yet kind of dry, no tannins. With this wine, it tastes a bit rough, not bad, just the opposite of smooth. It is still easy to drink.

It is a Tuesday night, and after a long day at work, it is a quick simple supper. One late night, when we all ended up at my apartment after celebrating a bit too much, I got the idea to make Lavash Pizza. (Truth was, all I had was Lavash bread, bacon and cheddar cheese in the fridge - so I called it pizza) Either way, after a stint in a 400 degree oven, it was amazing.

So, armed with that working out so well, here is tonight's dinner menu:

• Mixed Greens with Boccatini, Olive oil and grape tomatoes
• Lavash Pizza: half salami, onion and mushroom; half fresh basil, garlic and Boccatini, all sprinkled with Parmesan.

This wine was perfect for a quick dinner.

After a run through the Vinturi:
Again, another wine that is better without the vinturi. When it ahas been aerated, the imperfections stand out. The vinturi makes it almost bitter.

We'll be drinking this bottle without using the vinturi. I think that this wine needs to be finished in one meal. For $5.99 why not?

Novella Chardonnay Paso Robles $5.99 **

Whew - can you hear that sigh of relief? I now know that I am not a chardonnay drinker. I didn't like this one. I had it well chilled with dinner(pizza). It is crisp, but has a sharp after taste. I don't like it, and on that note I am so happy, because after enjoying the Purple Moon so much, I was worried. Novella tastes like a cheap white house wine that you would get an an average red sauce Italian restaurant. I'll say two star - better than three buck chuck...

How to make it palatable.. I put some in the blender with ice and TJ'S frozen strawberries and a spoonful of sugar.