The Good Wine Guru » fruit flavors

Trefethen Double T 2006

George — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:00:10 +0000

Varietal: Blended Red Wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec)
Region: Napa, California – USA
Cost: $25

Deep color on this “Bourdeaux Blend” with silky flavors of fruit. Excellent body that pairs well with most meats or with a group of friends.

Recommendations: Well, it’s official – the last bottle from my October trip to California is finally gone. A moment of silence if we could….thank you. I had been eying my bottle of Trefethen Double T more and more recently, trying to decide what to drink it with. A recent grocery shopping trip made up my mind when my wife and I picked up a pair of excellent beef roasts.

Dark in the glass and with amazing flavors of fruit that were both silky and bold at the same time, the Double T was a great compliment to the beef, potatoes, and carrots that were my dinner on Saturday. As is my usual standard for excellent wine, the Double T was just as enjoyable after the meal was gone as it was during.

Sadly, all good things must come to an end and that’s never more true than with wine. While I do not lament opening up the bottle, I do regret that I can’t just run out to Trefethen and pick up a bottle any time I want. However, if you’re ever in Napa Valley, I do highly recommend a visit to them as their wine is amazing and their tasting room is a great place to spend an afternoon.

While I don’t think you’ll find the Trefethen Double T in most wine shops, if you do I highly recommend grabbing a bottle and enjoying it with dinner, with family, with friends, or with all of the above.

Gray Ghost Cabernet Franc

George — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:00:39 +0000

Varietal: Cabernet Franc
Region: Virginia – USA
Cost: $22

100% Cabernet Franc fermented in small lots and aged in French oak. Bright flavors of cherry and blackberry with the typical spicy pepper finish. Pair with grilled foods such as pork as well as pasta and tomato sauce.

Recommendations: Living in Virginia, we’re lucky enough to get a lot of quality Cabernet Franc, and this one from Gray Ghost is no exception. I was very pleasantly surprised by how light this particular Cabernet Franc was, as it paired very well with the grilled boneless pork chops and roasted red potatoes that my wife and I paired it with.

The usual pepper finish was there, but much more subtle than many other Cabernet Francs, and there was much more bright fruit flavors on the palate than I was accustomed to. Neither of these things is a bad thing. I like this Cabernet Franc because I find that those that are heavy on the pepper finish are great to pair with food, but can be a bit rough to drink by themselves. That’s not the case with this Cabernet from Gray Ghost. This is definitely a wine that can be enjoyed well after the food is gone, or without any to begin with.

The only real complaint I have about this wine is that they’ve only produced 40 cases this year. Certainly one worth trying whether you’re already a fan of Cabernet Franc or just starting to get into it.

Gray Ghost Vineyards 2008 Chardonnay

George — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 16:00:17 +0000

Varietal: Chardonnay
Region: Virginia – USA
Cost: $17

Tropical fruit flavors with a hint of vanilla and soft oak finish. Dry, but not overly oaky. Straw coloring that is typical of Chardonnay. Pairs well with poultry, seafood, and pasta.

Recommendations: I’ve had Gray Ghost wine before, but over the Labor Day weekend my wife, my parents, and myself made a trip out to visit the vineyard, one of my parents’ favorites. The vineyard itself was beautiful, and the staff was amazing (all of which is a post for another time), and after coming home with quite a bit of wine, my wife and I finally opened a bottle the other night to pair with our meal.

Our dinner of pork cutlets with a honey glaze and bacon pesto risotto was a great compliment to the wine (or the other way around). The oak of this wine is ever so subtle, and doesn’t mask a bit of acid on the finish, which I was a big fan of and did an excellent job of cutting some of the sweetness from the meal. The balance of light fruit flavors made this wine enjoyable long after our meal was gone – a feature I find key to any good wine.

At $17 a bottle it’s a good price for a top quality Chardonnay, especially one that you can pair with a variety of foods (or none at all). Definitely worth trying out if you’re a Chardonnay fan.

Volteo Tempranillo

George — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 16:00:47 +0000

Varietal: Tempranillo
Region: Spain
Cost: $13

Purple coloring with aromas of ripened fruit. Fresh, light, and fruity on the palate, this will pair well with most food, including fancier food such as elaborate pasta dishes, or with hamburgers and BBQ.

Recommendations: I picked this up on a recommendation from John, my wine guy, and was pleased by the results. A bit of alcohol on the nose doesn’t completely mask the aromas of ripened fruit. A fairly fruit forward tempranillo, this will be a great pairing with just about anything, including whatever you cook on the grill, or while watching TV on a Sunday with the wife (which is what I did).

One neat feature about this bottle is that, much like Coors Light is doing, they’ve placed a ring around the logo on the label that turns blue when the bottle is at the correct temperature for drinking, a nice feature that can take the guess-work out of what the correct temperature to serve a bottle is.

For the price this is definitely a Tempranillo worth trying out, if for no other reason than the novelty of the color-changing ring. With less alcohol on the nose than a lot of other ones, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one as much as I did.

Bodegas Viticultores de Barros Emperador de Barros Ribera del Guadiana

George — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:00:49 +0000

Varietal: Tempranillo
Region: Spain
Cost: $20

Very purple coloring with aromas of red currant, kirsch, and plum that lead into similar flavors on the palate. Great with grilled food, including ribs, burgers, and beef or pork barbeque.

Recommendations: My wife and I disagree on some of the flavors of this wine, but since this is my blog, my opinion is the one that shall prevail. Sorry sweetie. I found the wine to be fairly fruit forward, though not in the same way that many California wines are, just that the fruit flavors were very prominent.

A heavy aroma of alcohol masks most of the aromas, but this does mellow as you let the wine rest in your glass, which gives you ample time to appreciate the deep purple coloring of the wine. Paired with some burgers and fries, this was a great wine to just enjoy a simple meal. I’d really like to try it with some nice juicy ribs, as I think the barbeque sauce would pair great with the fruit flavors of the wine. This is a great cookout wine that doesn’t need fancy food to be appreciated.

Special thanks to the International Wine of the Month Club for supplying the wine.

2007 Ruffino Chianti

George — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:30:12 +0000

Varietal:  Chianti
Region:  Tuscany – Italy
Cost:  $9.99 – $12.99

Slightly fruity nose that has leads into spicy notes the more you inhale. This ruby red medium-bodied wine has a slightly fruity taste with just the right amount of tannins on the back end to fit perfectly with a traditional Italian dinner, but not so much as to make it hard to drink by itself.

Recommendation: If you’re not a big Chianti drinker and want to get into it, this is a good one to start with. Nice and smooth with a slightly more subtle finish than some other Chiantis, this will go great with pasta, steak, lamb, and pretty much anything that’s juicy or saucy. However, thanks to the smoother finish, this is also a great wine to enjoy by itself, something I find very appealing about the Ruffino. While it’s not my favorite Chianti (Gabbiano and Bell’agio hold my heart), it’s really hard to pass on for the price if you’re looking for something to mix in with your red sauce and then enjoy with a pasta dinner. Don’t pay more than $9.99 for this, but worth it at that price.