EAST COAST PALATE

You can see the deep color extracted from this Sicilian grape.  The Nero d'Avola varietal thrives in the hot, dry climate of the end of Italy's boot.  Its flavors attain an intense level of concentration, yet this wine has some fresh, floral element that makes it seem lighter on the palate.
The berry aromas are strong, complimenty by some musty and floral notes.  In the mouth this wine doesn't feel huge, with tannins tearing apart the cheeks and gums, but it definitely has substance.  There is a hint of spiciness, too, which evoked a peppery strawberry image for me. 
I like this wine enough to give it a solid B, but priced in the upper teens it may be too much buck and not enough bang (I got it up at the Wine Source in Baltimore for $15).
If you haven't tasted a wine made from this native southern Italian grape, it is worth the trip to your local wine shop.

Every Saturday there are tastings at Chevy Chase Wine & Spirits from two to five.  This is the the easiest way to learn about new wines and put your palate to practice...
From right to left (light to bigger) in the picture here are four wines that offer different styles, smells, and flavors:


2008 Ferrari Carano Fumé Blanc:  This is 100% Sauvignon Blanc, full of zestiness, with key flavors like lemon and grapefruit.  About 1/3 of the wine was put into barrels to age, to soften some of the acidic sharpness, then blended back with the rest that stayed in stainless tanks.  The end result is a fresh Sauvignon Blanc that still has good acidity, yet comes at the palate in a more mellow way.  This normally costs $17, but was on sale for just under $13.

2006 Merryvale Starmont Chardonnay:   Chardonnay is a grape that can be vinified in a number of ways, a fact which splits Chardonnay drinkers into two schools: those that dig oak, and those that don't.
This bottle delivers a blend of half barrel-fermented and half stainless-steel-ferments grapes, resulting in a wine that still has nice body and a beautiful golden color, but is smells more of fresh fruit than it does of butter and barrels.  There are some lovely citrus, pear, apple, and even pineapple aromas here.  For someone like me (I tend to steer clear of California Chardonnay) this is a nice medium between the two ends of the Chardonnay spectrum. 

2007 Erath Pinot Noir:  For those that haven't tried Oregon Pinot Noir, you are missing out.  This wine shows just a glimpse of the whole world of Pinot that is growing continually in Oregon's Willamette Valley. 
This wine is light in body, and color.  It has earthy, leathery smells that meld well with a soft cherry aroma.  The wine is silky smooth in your mouth and, though its finish isn't big, it leaves a spicy aftertaste.  For pairing wine with Thai food or salmon, this would be perfect.

2007 Planeta Segreta:  A Sicilian blend consisting of mainly Nero d'Avola, this wine has body, lush fruit aromas, crisp acidity, and great overall balance.  There is Syrah, Merlot, and a touch of Cab. Franc in the blend.  The pruney, blackberry aromas are strong on the nose, with undertones of cranberry and rocks.  The minerality makes a huge play once the wine coats your mouth; it has substance, an almost chalky viscosity that makes you take this wine seriously.  This bottle could compliment so many types of food, from cheese to chicken, pizza to prime rib. 

Question for today:  Do you go out to shop where you know you can taste wines?  If not, you're neglecting your palate-maintenance.  If so, where do you go, and why?

This Sangiovese brings an array of aromas: wood, dark fruit, and earthy mushrooms to name a few.  It has a fresh pop to it, as well, given the bright acidity.  That acidic tartness is typical of Sangiovese, which is the grape used to make Chianti.  This wine comes from a region outside of the Chianti appelation so it is just called Sangiovese.  The Chieti is a hilly, arid part of the country situated in the Abruzzo.  
This wine isn't as oaky as Chianti typically is, and I enjoy that.  Also the alcohol content is only 12%, so there isn't that nostril-stinging sensation as you smell the wine.  Its fruity and funky bouquet is balanced by that crisp acidity, and there's a pleasant finish.  Overall this bottle gets a high B (87 points).  As you can see, it's an $8 bottle, with a screwtop and all; but ultimately it's what's inside that counts.

If this wine drinks like a bold, jammy Zinfandel, that's because it practically is one.  There's genetic evidence now that show's the link between the "Californian" varietal and its cousin from the coasts of Puglia, Italy.
This wine has a dark reddish brown color.  It eminates scents of leather, raisins, dates and a bit of maple syrup.  All of these aromas carry over into the wine's taste.  The mouthfeel, which is thick and jammy, comes on strong at the beginning.  But the oakiness in this wine covers up some of the fruit flavors and then gets bigger toward the back end of the wine, leaving a very woody finish on the palate. 
The aromas really pulled me in, but then the wine's overall effect on me was not thrilling.  This is a good bottle to open up with burgers, pasta marinara, some venison stew, or maybe even a not-too-spicy chili.  It was on sale for $10, down from $13, but it isn't very balanced and gets a low B from me.
For all the people I meet while pouring tastes at various locations... I want to hear from you.  Comment back and let me know how your wines went over during the holidays.  The month of December is a festive one, and the wine will flow.  Cheers to all from East Coast Palate.

I know there are some great Italian Dolcettos out there for a good price.  This wine, to me, just isn't one of them.  The smell of this wine didn't woo me, but it was wierd enough to intrigue my senses.  I smelled, somehow, musty basement and wool sweater over the slighty cherry-currant-rose petal aromas that struggled to waft their way out of the glass.  Moreover though, I got some modeling glue/nailpolish remover (The ethyl acetate strikes again) smells that really make this wine just seem flawed.  The wine tastes tart and leathery, with a cranberry finish.  The way the wine feels in my mouth was actually a lot more pleasant than the flavors in this wine (or lack thereof).  It might just be the bottle that was off, but I won't ever buy this Dolcetto again.  The first impression really ruined it for me.  This effort gets a C.  It would've been better with food, but on its own this wine just didn't do it for me.  
What was the last time you had a let-down experience after getting your expectations up about a wine?  Or maybe the last time you opened a bottle you thought would be kind of a "meh" wine, and then it rocked your world?  Share the stories... 

A wine that for $10 will amp up your antipasto or spaghetti...but it would also be great with a burger or a pork chop.  This light wine is a blend of mostly the Corvina and Rondinella varietals, and it has the color of a cherry jolly rancher that's been toasted.  It is translucent, a vibrant red that is still somehow slightly burnt looking.  It has fresh cherry and berry aromas, with just a hint of autumn leaves or leather giving it a very pleasent scent.  Once past the lips it begins with all fruit...light bodied and clean, then an acidic rush comes on and all of the sudden you're puckering up.  Strangely, the anstringent, drying out sensation only happened on my inner cheeks, while my tongue retained the berry flavor and the acid bite.  I'll give this wine 87 points.  It is a wine worth sharing and I'll definitely be trying it again soon.

Before I began my journey into a bottle of Jameson last night, I did some drinking that involved a certain amount of reflection and sensory conciousness. 

As I began preparing dinner I uncorked a beautifully ornate bottle of Italian Pinot Noir made by Candoni Wines.  A 2007, this young wine exudes a berry freshness.  I normally prefer a little more meat and earth aroma from Pinot, but the crisp Goji berry, raisiny smells pulled me in all the same.  This wine has low alcohol and high acid.  It brings a tart berry flavor at the front end, then pulls a La Bruja move and, poof, it's gone.  After a pause the tart finish comes on strong and leaves a pleasant long-lasting semi-pucker that reminds me of Sour Skittles.  This get a B letter grade even though the structure and balance were a little off.  The wine won me over with its eternal finish.

Then I had to open a Chardonnay for the chicken I was making, so I got a $7 bottle of Barefoot Chardonnay.  It's a little buttery, but has a good amount of acid to keep it in balace.  For the money, it's a decent bottle; a B wine.

With dinner, my aunt and uncle blind tasted me on a Merlot that was so light and acidic that I was guessing it was Italian.  Not the case.  The 2006 (I was able to guess the vintage), Estancia Merlot from the Central Coast of CA is not the cocoa nib and prune kind of Merlot that I love.  But it is a solid 86 point, B wine for me.  Light berry aromas, some stoney minerality, and a solid overall balance... for $12 it's definitely a bottle I'd bring to a dinner party or wine tasting.

A couple curveballs in this round of tasting, which I love because it reflects the variability and versatility of vitis vinifera.  An then, the pitch came in tight and hit me(Why does Jameson have to be so smooth?!).  I'm walking it off today.  Tomorrow there will be wine to drink.

 The Brigaldara Valpolicella, a corvina blend definitely worth the $13 price.

With a couple of friends and my sister, I opened one of the bottles that I keep in a brown bag so I never know what I'm picking out.  The four of us popped the cork out of a 2007 Valpolicella made by Brigaldara.  Seeing how lightly colored it was and getting some slate and strawberry smells on the nose, my guess was that it was maybe a Pinot noir.  I was way off, but happy as we unveiled the wine and saw what it was: a bottle that cost me $13 and drinks so smooth with a crisp, acidic finish.  It was a beautiful wine that set the tone for an evening of darts, bonfire singing, and a few drunk dials after a lot of Yuengling.  I plan on buying some more Valpolicellas in the near future, it really is a wine that I haven't taken the time to explore yet.

So yesterday Jared and I made plans to go out, try a taste of Baltimore.  We started out sipping on a great Barolo at his house, then made our way to the Wine Market.  The best aspect of dining here is that you can buy a bottle from the store in the front of the establishment, then take it back and enjoy it with dinner for only a $9 corkage fee.  So he and a friend and I picked out a bottle... each of us picked one.
The food overall was good, the standout selections the duck paté and the decadent beef strogannoff.  The only disappointing dish was the special, tenderloin medallions that were cooked perfectly, but were caked with so much black peppercorn that the meat's flavor took a sad back seat to the pepper.  The decor is an open, industrial feel that aplifies conversation, but we still felt comfortable by all means.  And we had plenty of vino...

The first one (At Jared's): A 2004 Barolo from Brezza called Canubi from Giacomo e figli.  This wine brings a ton of acidic pucker, some slatey minerality, a hint of cedar and spice, with an inviting ripe boquet of raisins, dates, figs, and prunes. 89+ from me

At the Wine Market:  Gmork, A 2008 Gruner Veltliner by Anton Bauer.  solid acid, aromas of green apple skin, starfruit, waxpaper (that petrol nose that often comes with whites from that part of the world).  This paired very well with the cheeses, especially the aged Irish cheddar, and with the paté.  A solid wine to start with, 84 points

Mas de la Rouvière 2003 from Bandol.  Right off the bat the smell of this mostly Mourvèdre wine had me intrigued; stinky earthy raspberries and strawberries, a green or vegetal aroma lingering somewhere beneath the dank earth and ripe fruit.  Big tannins surprised me, but the wine's taste and body sort of seemed a let down after the crazy aromas that had pulled me in first.  A B wine (86 or so).

The gem of the night was the 2005 Ferrer Bobet from the Priorat region of Spain, a 53% Carignane, 35% Grenache, 7% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon blend.  This fruity candy smelling wine has great balance and a sweaty minerality that create a complexity of flavors.  A truly balanced, tasty wine.  90 points