Tasting Notes: Summer Sippers

Well, it's that time of year again. People in other parts of the country call it summer. We call it, "OMG when did it get so hot and humid?" I think we Southerners have the same kind of thing happen to us that women who have children do. Every year, as we go into the cool, crisp days of fall, the painful memories recede until it's time to do it all over again, and then we tell our husbands, "It's too hot! You're not getting near me again!" Sometimes, as during our recent harsh winter, we even yearn for temperature ninety-five, heat index of you-don't-wanna-know.

All that to say, it's time to start drinking... We tried most of the wines mentioned below at recent JavaMonkey tastings. This is my attempt at an artistic picture from the last one:



Summer sippers need to have three qualities: refreshing, inexpensive, and dangit, they'd better make you look hot in that swimsuit! Okay, maybe just the first two. After a couple of glasses, you won't care what you look like in that tankini.

Let's start with whites...

One of the most reasonable and interesting whites is Vinho Verde, which comes from Portugal. Yes, the name is translated as "green wine," and it has a slightly green tint to it in the right lights. Don't worry, it's not green enough to send your toddler running (although that might be useful). The 2008 Quinta da Aveleda Vinho Verde (Vinho Verde, Portugal) is made of 60% Laureiro, 10% Alvarino, and 30% Trajadera. It's got a nice mineral backbone with some citrus and pineapple, and it's even a little fizzy. The Cashal Garcia, which may be more widely distributed, is also very good.

If you're looking for something a little more floral, the 2009 Quinta do Crasto White (Duoro, Portugal) will give you the sweet floral nose of your neighbor's gardenias without the mosquito bites. It's well-balanced with some melon and also made from a bunch of grapes I've never heard of (45% Rabogato, 40% Gaveo, and 15% Rapero).

Another reasonable option comes from across the border in Spain. The 2009 Nora Albarino (Rias Baixas, Spain) is 100% Albarino and has great body for a white without being syrupy or heavy. It also has a nice balance of floral and citrus with some lime coming through.

If you want to go classy, there are always bubbles!

One that's easy to find and easy to afford is the Saint-Hlaire Blanquette de Limoux (current vintage 2008). With 90% Malzac, 5% Chenin Blanc, and 5% Chardonnay, it has apple (but not fruit box) notes and good body.

Quick shout-out: the Saint-Hilaire and Albarino were both selections by Dan Browning at our recent tasting collaboration.

If you want to splurge, think pink with the Louis de Grenelle Brut Rose (Saumur, France). It has a yeasty nose and very delicate strawberry flavors. It's made 100% from Cabernet Franc. If you want something a little closer to home but just as good, try the Wolf Mountain Brut Rose, which is one of my all-time favorites.

But let's not forget my favorite thing about summer: peach pie!



If you're wondering why all the mommy references, it's because this coming Friday is our next Women of Decatur tweetup: 6:00 p.m. at the Palate side of McGowan's/Palate in Oakhurst. Non-mommies are welcome, too.

Metapost: Attention Ladies of Decatur (Georgia)!

First, thanks to all who have been attending the monthly tweetups! I'm super excited about how our group is growing, and I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone as we continue to meet.

One of the things I've been getting asked about is wine suggestions, so our next tweetup will be a wine tasting for beginners at The Little Wine Shoppe in Avondale Estates.



Here are the details:

Place: The Little Wine Shoppe
Time: 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Date: May 6
Cost: $15/person

I need a minimum of ten people to commit to coming, so please RSVP either on Twitter or by commenting below.

Thanks, and Happy Easter and/or Passover!

Random Field Trips: Atlanta Culinary Tour of Sweet Auburn Curb Market

I had lunch a few weeks ago with a friend at LottaFruitta on Auburn Avenue. "Is this anywhere near the Sweet Auburn Curb Market?" she asked. I'd heard of the place, but, like many in-towners, I had no idea where to actually find it. So when Hubby and I were invited to tag along with the Atlanta Culinary Tour of the curb market, I was excited to finally go and see what it was all about. There, we found that the people and food are down-to-earth with some surprises.

First, the location: just west of the downtown connector at the corner of Edgewood Avenue and Jesse Hill Jr. Drive. Auburn Avenue is a block north of Edgewood, and the district is designated as "Sweet Auburn" because it was a prosperous business area for the city's African-American population in the mid-twentieth century. The "curb market" is so named because segregation at the time meant that the blacks shopped outside, while the whites did so inside out of the elements. In relation to downtown, it's approximately here:



Now everyone can shop there, and Hubby and I did some produce hunting before the tour started. We went to Natural Produce, which, in addition to locally grown fruits and veggies, carries pre-washed , shredded, cut up, diced, chopped, and otherwise deconstructed produce. However, as we found out, eat or cook the washed and cut up veggies quickly or re-pack them in produce bags with paper towels to absorb the moisture because otherwise, they won't last past a few days, even in the fridge.

As I mentioned, the food is "down-to-earth." Atlanta Culinary Tour leader David Jones (not the pirate or Monkee) had us sample some "white dirt," which is sold in some of the produce shops. It pretty much tastes like, well, dirt.

Our first real food stop was Ciao Boca. Owner Debora Kudelka treated us to samples of a meatball sandwich and one with arugula and pancetta, both of which were really yummy. She made sure to let us know that she has vegetarian-friendly soups and grilled cheese paninis for our non meat-eating friends.




After a stop to talk about the proper way to cook pig's ears at Country Meats, we stopped at Metro Deli Soul Food. Each of us got a little plate with something different. I had a rib, black-eyed peas, and collards. Hubby had meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and collards. Oh, and cornbread! They also gave us samples of either peach or sweet potato cobbler for dessert. The next time I want soul food, I know where I'm going, although I don't think I'm brave enough to try pig's ears yet.

We'd also talked about oxtail, as the curb market was known for its variety of meat shops, and the lower level was once an abattoir, where animals were slaughtered for sale. We got to sample some at Afrodish, and even non-adventurous meat eaters would be hard-pressed to resist the seasoning.

Our other non-dessert stop included Tilapia Express, where owner Farrah's daughter peered over the counter as he served us a deep-fried trio of catfish, tilapia, and whiting. Then it was on to the sweet stuff!

Sweet Auburn Bakery has the following case of temptation:



I didn't think it was possible, but I found room for a little sweet potato cheesecake there:



Then we got to meet Miss D and sample her New Orleans Pralines, which did, as promised, melt in my mouth.

Finally, we ended up at Café Campesino, where we had coffee to combat the food comas that threatened to set in at any moment. Oh, and the scones were good, too. Hubby and I knew them from the Saturday Decatur Farmer's Market, but it's nice to know where to find them during the week.

My only complaint about the tour is something that liability and legal reasons would prevent, which would be beer or wine to go with all the great food. Hubby and I made up for that afterward. We also had dinner reservations at Sound Table, which we ended up moving to 10:00 because we knew we wouldn't be hungry until then. Overall, it was a fun afternoon, and we enjoyed getting to know some of Atlanta's food, history, and the intrepid restaurant and shop owners that are making up our local food scene.

Metapost: Attention Ladies of Decatur (Georgia)!

This coming Friday is April 1, so you know what that means! Well, besides wanting to smack your husband and/or children for that rubber snake in the sink. It's our Ladies of Decatur Happy Hour!

I didn't get many suggestions this month, so I decided to bring it back to The Marlay House. I hope to see y'all there this coming Friday at 5:30-6ish.

Please @ me on Twitter or leave a comment so I know you're coming! No rubber snakes, I promise!

Tasting Notes and Winery Reviews: Brandywine Valley, PA, Day Two

Day Two:

Breakfast at the Kennett Square B&B on Sunday morning: French toast and turkey sausage. If you follow me on Twitter, you know that I've recently rediscovered a love of French toast, so it's our usual Sunday breakfast. It was nice to have someone else make it for me and clean up afterward, and I enjoyed her take on it.

We started the day not with wine, but with flowers. We hadn't originally planned to visit Longwood Gardens, but the B&B innkeeper Ms. Gilja Kusano was insistent that we go. They should seriously give her a kickback on her guests' admission. No, she didn't check up on us as far as I know, but she's also the kind of lady you don't say no to, and she made it sound like we shouldn't miss it.

Thankfully we'd both taken our allergy medicine that morning. The main attraction at Longwood Gardens was the Orchid Extravaganza in the Conservatory, which seriously took us an hour and a half to go through. Yes, it's well worth the $16 admission. See my writing blog for more thoughts on the gardens.

Then it was back to wine tasting!

Our first stop was Twin Brook Winery, which is in a lovely wooden farmhouse. We were able to pick out eight wines from their list of fourteen to taste. We love Cabernet Franc and found their 2008 to be very good with bright red fruit, some tannin, and enough acidity to make sure you know it's a Cab Franc but not overpowering We got to barrel taste the 2010 Cab Franc, and it's going to be worth a trip back. We enjoyed talking to winemaker Tim Jobe, who's from Mississippi, and it was nice to hear a Southern accent after two days of Yankee.

On our way to lunch, we encountered a traffic hazard we'd never seen before: an Amish horse and buggy. No, he wasn't aggressive.

We had lunch at Rocco & Anna's Ristorante in Parkesburg, where the "small" calzones are bigger than the plates. We put the alcohol-soaking properties of dough and cheese to good use at Black Walnut Winery, where they "crush innocent grapes to make wine."

At Black Walnut, we got to try the whole list as well as the barrels. We particularly liked the 2007 Blanc Franc, a wine that's somewhere between white and rosé that has soft fruit but isn't too dry or sweet. Other highlights that we liked but didn't purchase were the 2006 Black Tie Optional, which would be a great barbecue wine, and 2006 Chambourcin, which is earthy but has a nice, tart finish.

We once again went off-trail to finish our tastings at Stargazers Vineyard, which is remarkable for its sustainable practices including use of solar energy (for the buildings, not just for the grapes). We particularly liked the unoaked 2008 Solar Celebration Chardonnay, which has a leading edge of vanilla over nice citrus. They have a Gruner Veltliner, which had the GruVe floral nose, but more tartness. The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc) had deep, rich blackberry and currant fruit with nice body. We bought bottles of the Solar Celebration and Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve.

We were amused by what they used for their doorbell and impressed by their sloping vineyards, which were still pretty in spite of the vines still being asleep for the winter (note the lavender garden at the bottom right):





I have to say that, in spite of the rumored aggressiveness and attitude, everyone was friendly, and they usually got even friendlier when they found out we're from Georgia. No, I didn't play the wine blogger card at most of them. Black Walnut and Stargazer win for most welcoming and congenial. To be fair, it was also Sunday, and they weren't nearly as slammed as the places had been on Saturday. Even so, both days were some of the most relaxed wine tasting Hubby and I had ever done, and we look forward to returning to the Brandywine Valley Wine Trail to see how the 2010's turned out.

Final Bottle Count:

Reds: 4
Whites: 4
Rosé: 2

Tasting Notes and Winery Reviews: Brandywine Valley, PA, Day One

Hubby and I have a mission to taste wine in each state that grows its own grapes and makes it. The original goal was to taste wine in each state that makes it, but some luster is lost when the juice is California or Niagara. Not that a talented winemaker can't put his own stamp on something, but where the grapes are grown matters.

While in Pennsylvania visiting Babysis, we took the opportunity to check out the wine scene. We lucked into the "Barrels on the Brandywine" (BoB) passport, which was $30 to visit most of the wineries in the Brandywine Valley area. It essentially covered tasting fees, but hey, we got glasses! Oh, and most of the wineries on the list were also doing barrel tastings of the 2010 vintages, so we got a peek of what's to come (hint: 2010 was a good year for Pennsylvania grapes).

This was our first time tasting wine in the northeast. It has hazards that we hadn't encountered in any other part of the country:



Indeed, we saw several examples of the following highway exit maneuver, which Hubby dubbed the "Jersey Exit Strategy":

1. Slam on brakes in left lane approximately ten feet after the start of the exit demarcation.

2. Throw right blinker on and dash over to exit, regardless of who's coming up behind you or at what speed.

3. Curse out other drivers for honking at you and Department of Transportation for not putting the exit where you think it should be.

Okay, I made up number 3, but I imagine it's pretty accurate. Having seen this maneuver with somewhat less frequency in Atlanta, I feel that I have adequate confirmation that the second Yankee invasion has occurred, and they're driving around I-285.

Other challenges included Yankee cluelessness regarding sweet tea (hint: it is not the canned stuff that's premixed with lemon) and, back in Philadelphia, cab drivers who will try to kill you in their backseats and then curse you out in some foreign language when you pay with a credit card. Also, conversations in restaurants seem to occur in one of three volumes: loud, louder, and Jersey, which is really loud plus liberal sprinkling of F-bombs.

Back to the wine tastings… Lists of tasting notes get boring, so I'll hit the highlights at each winery.

Our first stop was Penns Woods Winery in Chadds Ford. Located in a lovely yellow farmhouse with green trim, it featured five wines for the BoB tour. It's here that we got our first taste of Pennsylvnia Pinot Grigio, which we found to be a strong wine across the area. Even Hubby, who tends to dislike PG, found several he liked. Their 2005 Pinot Grigio has lovely citrus notes with mineral/melon on the edges of the palate. No barrels here.

Chaddsford Winery had been recommended to us by a fellow wine blogger and a local, and they didn't disappoint. We particularly enjoyed the 2008 Naked (unoaked) Chardonnay with its lovely green apple nose and hint of smokiness. Our favorite was the 2007 Merlot, which is medium-bodied, smooth, and well-balanced with nice, dark fruit. We got two bottles in anticipation of needing a wine for a BYOB restaurant for dinner. They barrel tasted the 2010 Chardonnay and the 2010 Pinot Noir, which I didn't even know could be grown on the East Coast. It was a little rough, as expected, but it should be nice when finished. The Chardonnay should also be good.

Oh, and they use Hungarian oak:


Since we had an SUV, we went off-trail. Paying ten dollars for the "Signature Tasting" at VaLa Vineyards was worth it. Hubby commented that he's not sure whether winemaker Anthony Vieti is a genius or a mad scientist because the blends are complex and interesting in a good way. They pair each tasting with cheese, which makes for much foodie fun. Our favorite was the 2008 Silk, a dry rosato blend of "Barbera, Corvine, Carmine, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Nebbiolo, etc." They paired it with Shellbark Hollow goat cheese, a local cheese that has to be the best goat cheese I've ever tasted: fresh with just enough tanginess to identify it as goat cheese, but not at all funky. Oh, the wine was good, too. They bill it as "something for everyone" with enough crisp fruitiness for white lovers and mild tannin structure for those who prefer reds. We found it to be a nice rosé and smooth as the name implies.

The GPS brought us over the river and through the woods (literally) to Paradocx Vineyard, where they tried to be in denial of the cold by handing out plastic leis and having a cookout. I give them points for effort but detract them for not having printed tasting notes. Our favorite was the Yield, a blend of Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. Light-bodied, it has nice fruit through the middle and a lingering apricot-honeysuckle finish. We got a bottle of it, and it was opened on our first night back home.

Our last intentional stop for the day was Kreutz Creek Vineyards. We didn't find the wines there to be to our tastes, as they tended to be very tart and acidic. They should take note from VaLa and pair with food.

It was getting to be evening, and the event technically ended around 5:00, so we headed to Kennett Square and checked into the Kennett House Bed and Breakfast. We wandered through town to see where we might like to go for dinner and stumbled upon the Flickerwood Wine Cellars tasting room. The winery is actually in northwest Pennsylvania, so we were excited for the opportunity to taste some PN wine from a different area. We liked the whites better than the reds and ended up with a bottle of their Pinot Grigio, which was more like a dry Riesling with its floral and stone fruit characteristics.

So, by the end of day one, the bottle tally was:

Merlot: 2
Pinot Grigio: 2
Rosé Blend: 1
White Blend: 1
Chardonnay: 1

Yes, two Pinot Grigios and a Rosé. This is almost unheard of for Hubby. By the end of the day, I was wondering whether the second day would live up to the first. Tune in Sunday to find out!

Tasting Notes: Dr. Goldilocks and the Six Tempranillos

Once upon a time, there was a stressed-out allied health professional with curly hair the color of old pennies, but shiny. We'll skip the debate as to whether it's blond or red, and we'll completely ignore the gray that's popping in – they're just really light blond, darnit! She had a long four-day week with lots of patients, emails from a marketing minion who wants everything NOW, and a very patient adminion who wouldn't let Dr. Goldilocks put off important tasks for too long. Oh, and contract work that makes for a nice change of pace, but which needed to be done before she left the next day to see Dr.-in-training Goldilocks 2.0 (aka Babysis) in Philadelphia.

So yes, she was stressed out, and when she finally left the office at 8:30, she was tired, hungry, and ready to have some wine. She wandered through the food aroma gauntlet of downtown Decatur (of which Atlanta is a suburb in case you're reading this, and you're Carl), but having given up red meat for Lent, Ted's wasn't an option, Ruby Tuesday was too chain restaurant, and Leon's was just too crowded. It was too early for the Decatur Diner, so she ended up at JavaMonkey, where she knew her friends would be gathered for the biweekly wine tasting, in this case Tempranillo.

Tempranillo, if you're wondering, is a Spanish varietal red, and the only people who can say the name right are from places like Peru. Seriously, it sounds like they're making love to it in their mouth. It's swoon-worthy. You may know it better as the primary grape in Rioja, which goes with fun words like Crianza.

For the sake of narrative, I'm going to mix up the tasting order. Just bear (no pun intended) with me.

Dr. Goldilocks tried the 2008 Protocolo Tempranillo (Vino de la Tierra de Castilla, Spain). Aged in American oak, she proclaimed, "This wine is too thin!" Indeed, it didn't have much to it outside the cedar-y finish.

Then she tried the 2009 Vega Sindoa Tempranillo (Navarra, Spain). This one she deemed as, "too earthy, and it's doing strange fruity things on the roof of my mouth!"

The 2008 Emilo Moro Finca Resalso (Ribera del Duero, Spain) had interesting caramel-cedar notes, and had a caramel/chocolate finish. "It's good, but still not what I'm looking for."

Enter the 2006 Raimat Viña 43 Tempranillo, which spends 18 months in Virginia oak. Because there's nothing like knowing *exactly* where your wood comes from. It has to be good if the founding fathers got drunk on it, right? This one was all cherry smoothness. "That's more like it!"

The 2006 Sierra Cantabria Crianza from Rioja, Spain (told you!) had a nice raspberry-cherry nose that Hubby said had a whiff of sunscreen. It went very well with the Bello Prosciutto sandwich. "This one's very good."

Finally the 2007 Venta Mazzaron Tempranillo (Tierra del Vino de Zamora, Spain) had a little hickory smoke to it, but was well-balanced with yummy fruit. It also has an interesting history in that it's mostly from un-grafted, pre-phylloxera vines.

"Ah," said Dr. Goldilocks, "this one is just right!"

Look for blog and Twitter updates this weekend from Pennsylvania wine country!