Tonights dinner was a Chicken Parmesan, or as we say it in our house, Chicken Parma"John". I don't know why we do that. Do I need to bother you with a recipe for this? I mean, it's Chicken Parmesan. We did recently switch over to using fresh mozz rather than shredded. It makes a world of difference, and we've always used freshly grated parmesan, rather than out of the shaker. Spaghetti on the side. And, some day old rolls (leftover from Thanksgiving).
Tonight, I'm pairing with the 2007 Chelsea Cellars Merlot. We enjoyed this wine for the first time on Father's Day in 2009 when we visited Alba Vineyards in Milford, NJ for their Father's Day Festival. This past summer we had gone to the NJ Food & Wine Festival at a different vineyard (that escapes me right now) and picked up a bottle there. However, the grapes in this wine are not grown in New Jersey. Though it's 'produced and bottled by Chelsea Cellars, Finesville, NJ, the grapes are actually grown on the West Coast and sold at Alba, under the Chelsea label.
I had opened this bottle up on Wednesday (2 days ago) and found it very fruity at the time, but didn't take notes on my tasting, unfortunately so I can't go into detail about that. But, for tonight, it's not bad. I did enjoy the pairing with the chicken parm. As I breath it in, I still get that cherry, red berry fruit. I'm tasting a vibrant, berry flavor with a little bit of smokiness. It gets fruitier and smoother as it sits - which is rarely too long next to me :)
As you read by blog, I do hope you enjoy! Please click Follow if you like it.
In Vino Veritas.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Tough Dame Cabernet, Too Much for Any Man...
OK. I admit it. I bought this for the name and the label. This is something I rarely do. But, I'll get to the wine later. Let's start with dinner.
Tonight's dinner was a slow cooker pot roast. Very quickly on my lunch hour today, I cut up some onion, dropped in the meat, and dumped in a random bottle of wine (really random, the label was actually missing, so I couldn't even tell you what it was, other than it was a red wine). Ground in some salt, pepper, and threw in Herbes de Provence. Set for 7 hours. Done. Alongside, we had plain green beans (yuck), and some Alexia (brand, frozen seasoned) Olive Oil & Rosemary potatoes. I gotta hand it to those Alexia people. They're pretty good. Though, to be fair, mine are better :) Maybe one day, I'll share my recipe!
Onto the 2009 Red Brick Cellars Tough Dame Cabernet, California. Let me describe the label. Black, white, red. Woman in a low cut dress and black gloves passed the elbow holding a smoking gun. Across the bottom of the label is the same woman (this is an assumption) lying down with a man who is kissing her, and she's about to stab him in the back. I mean, why wouldn't you want to buy this? I ordered it through http://www.winetasting.com/, which is the new name for the Geerlings & Wade company, who used to be the parent company for The Traveling Vineyard, who I used to conduct in-home wine tastings for. You follow?
Now, it is a cabernet, so right off the bat, you should let it breath. It is definitely smoother now than when I first sipped it with dinner. Right now, on the nose I get such a great cherry smell. When I taste it, dark red berries and some oak. Now, Danny just asked me to split a chocolate bar with him and it's actually going quite nicely. Not perfect, but nicely.
All in all, there are certainly better Cabernets out there, but maybe not with better labels.
In Vino Veritas!
Tonight's dinner was a slow cooker pot roast. Very quickly on my lunch hour today, I cut up some onion, dropped in the meat, and dumped in a random bottle of wine (really random, the label was actually missing, so I couldn't even tell you what it was, other than it was a red wine). Ground in some salt, pepper, and threw in Herbes de Provence. Set for 7 hours. Done. Alongside, we had plain green beans (yuck), and some Alexia (brand, frozen seasoned) Olive Oil & Rosemary potatoes. I gotta hand it to those Alexia people. They're pretty good. Though, to be fair, mine are better :) Maybe one day, I'll share my recipe!
Onto the 2009 Red Brick Cellars Tough Dame Cabernet, California. Let me describe the label. Black, white, red. Woman in a low cut dress and black gloves passed the elbow holding a smoking gun. Across the bottom of the label is the same woman (this is an assumption) lying down with a man who is kissing her, and she's about to stab him in the back. I mean, why wouldn't you want to buy this? I ordered it through http://www.winetasting.com/, which is the new name for the Geerlings & Wade company, who used to be the parent company for The Traveling Vineyard, who I used to conduct in-home wine tastings for. You follow?
Now, it is a cabernet, so right off the bat, you should let it breath. It is definitely smoother now than when I first sipped it with dinner. Right now, on the nose I get such a great cherry smell. When I taste it, dark red berries and some oak. Now, Danny just asked me to split a chocolate bar with him and it's actually going quite nicely. Not perfect, but nicely.
All in all, there are certainly better Cabernets out there, but maybe not with better labels.
In Vino Veritas!
Jonathan Edwards Winery
So this past weekend, we took a trip to North Stonington, CT to visit what has become a favorite spot, Jonathan Edwards Winery. This is actually our third time there this year! We went in celebration of our 15 year wedding anniversary with some very good friends to share. I packed up some fantastic cheeses that I picked up from Tallmadge Cheese Market in Montclair, NJ. We had some bread, crackers, and even chocolate. We were all set!
So, the tasting consisted of 8 wines, 3 whites and 5 reds. Since there's so many, I'll try to make each one quick. So, let's get started...
2009 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc. This is just light and crisp and complemented the day itself as we sat out on the deck in the warm sunshine. Very nice citrus notes that were not at all overpowering.
2009 Estate Connecticut Chardonnay. I enjoy this one ~ mainly because, while I don't normally go for a Chardonnay, this one doesn't see quite as much oak as you would typically find. It's partially oak / then into Stainless Steel. Makes a big difference in the end results.
2008 Napa Valley Chardonnay. So, contrary to my above comment, I still liked this one. It definitely sees more oak, and you get that in the more buttery flavor. I'd pick the Estate over this one, but I wouldn't spit it out either (and, yes, I've spit out wine).
Onto the reds...
2008 Estate Connecticut Cabernet Franc. Cabernet Franc is usually used as a blending grape, but we're finding a lot more simply being bottled as is and I, for one, am glad. It quite light, like a Pinot Noir, but the flavor is more earthy than a Pinot. I'd pair this with Thanksgiving dinner in a heartbeat.
2008 Napa Valley Merlot. I've said it before, I am not drinking any F(*&ing Merlot. OK, so I am. Don't pass this up. Really nice berry & fruit flavors, light oak. Pair with something savory.
2007 Napa Valley Zinfindel. I have two favorites. This is one of them. Not too heavy on the spices, but you get them. This is my perfect Pizza wine :)
2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Grilled meats. 'Nuff said.
2007 Napa Valley Petite Syrah. This is my other favorite. I can't even put into words how delicious this wine is. There's plum, there's spice, there's dark berry fruit. Don't pair this with just anything. Your perfect Filet Mignon is waiting for this.
Now, you may have noticed that most of the wines say Napa Valley, and we were in CT. The grapes are grown and crushed in California, and shipped East for fermentation, bottling, etc.
If you ever find yourself in the Mystic Area of CT, look this place up ~ you will NOT regret it!
So, the tasting consisted of 8 wines, 3 whites and 5 reds. Since there's so many, I'll try to make each one quick. So, let's get started...
2009 Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc. This is just light and crisp and complemented the day itself as we sat out on the deck in the warm sunshine. Very nice citrus notes that were not at all overpowering.
2009 Estate Connecticut Chardonnay. I enjoy this one ~ mainly because, while I don't normally go for a Chardonnay, this one doesn't see quite as much oak as you would typically find. It's partially oak / then into Stainless Steel. Makes a big difference in the end results.
2008 Napa Valley Chardonnay. So, contrary to my above comment, I still liked this one. It definitely sees more oak, and you get that in the more buttery flavor. I'd pick the Estate over this one, but I wouldn't spit it out either (and, yes, I've spit out wine).
Onto the reds...
2008 Estate Connecticut Cabernet Franc. Cabernet Franc is usually used as a blending grape, but we're finding a lot more simply being bottled as is and I, for one, am glad. It quite light, like a Pinot Noir, but the flavor is more earthy than a Pinot. I'd pair this with Thanksgiving dinner in a heartbeat.
2008 Napa Valley Merlot. I've said it before, I am not drinking any F(*&ing Merlot. OK, so I am. Don't pass this up. Really nice berry & fruit flavors, light oak. Pair with something savory.
2007 Napa Valley Zinfindel. I have two favorites. This is one of them. Not too heavy on the spices, but you get them. This is my perfect Pizza wine :)
2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Grilled meats. 'Nuff said.
2007 Napa Valley Petite Syrah. This is my other favorite. I can't even put into words how delicious this wine is. There's plum, there's spice, there's dark berry fruit. Don't pair this with just anything. Your perfect Filet Mignon is waiting for this.
Now, you may have noticed that most of the wines say Napa Valley, and we were in CT. The grapes are grown and crushed in California, and shipped East for fermentation, bottling, etc.
If you ever find yourself in the Mystic Area of CT, look this place up ~ you will NOT regret it!
Cupcake Reisling
Deliciousness. Refreshing. Good Stuff. Had it last night w/ Tacos, which I wasn't sure was gonna work out. I'm sure there's a better wine to pair with Tacos, but it was what I had open, so I went with it. Sometimes that spicy food with the slightly sweet wine works out.
OK. So this post could've been better, but you get what you get.
Tonight I'm making a pot roast, so I've gotta check my stock of wine to see what I can pair with it to make my next post a little better.
Ooo! I should also post about last weekend. We visited Jonathan Edwards Winery. Phenomenal time, Phenomenal wine :) Later!
OK. So this post could've been better, but you get what you get.
Tonight I'm making a pot roast, so I've gotta check my stock of wine to see what I can pair with it to make my next post a little better.
Ooo! I should also post about last weekend. We visited Jonathan Edwards Winery. Phenomenal time, Phenomenal wine :) Later!
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