Posts Tagged ‘green apple’
Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
Region: California – USA
Cost: $10 (SRP)
Winemaker’s Notes: Picked at night or early in the morning, these grapes underwent fermentation in stainless steel tanks and were freed from the common secondary malolactic fermentation which is a frequent sentence for Californian Chardonnay. The result is a fresh and bright unoaked Chardonnay that is more reminiscent of an aromatic white that its namesake. Flavors of pear and green apple will pair well with braised scallops, pork tenderloin, roasted chicken, or fresh pasta with olive oil and basil.
My Review: When I was offered a sample of the 2009 Big House Unchained Naked Chardonnay I didn’t even hesitate to say yes. I’ve had several Big House wines in the past and have mostly enjoyed them, and given my wife’s preference for stainless steel Chardonnay, I take every opportunity I can to try one she might enjoy – I’m thoughtful that way.
Varietal: 50% Macabeo; 35% Parellada; 15% Xarel-lo
Region: Spain
Cost: $10 (SRP)
Fresh, toasty nose with flavors of citrus, green apple, and mineral with a clean, crisp finish. Pairs well with caviar, sushi, seafood, fried foods, and Asian dishes.
Recommendations: This bottle showed up quite unexpectedly at my office one day, but once I opened the packaging, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to checking it out. This past Friday, after a long week, my wife and I decided it was time to toast the weekend and popped open the bottle.
The nose was very subtle, without the typical yeasty aroma I associate with sparkling wines, but I did get a hint of the toast and it was certainly a fresh, clean aroma. Mineral flavors were the most dominant on the palate, with citrus and green apple showing, but not dominating. The wine was crisp and the bubbles were small enough to make it easy to drink without feeling like you were drinking a soda. Read the rest of this entry »
Varietal: Chardonnay
Region: California – Carneros – USA
Cost: $18
Bright, concentrated citrus, pear, green apple, and nectarine with just a touch of oak on the palate. Pairs well with chicken, pork, and seafood.
Recommendations: When this wine first showed up I was looking over the tasting notes and saw that it had spent 9 months in French oak and instantly thought that maybe my wife wouldn’t like this wine as she doesn’t typically like oaked Chardonnay. Fortunately we opened it to pair with some grilled pork chops and she gave it a try. She was glad she did.
Green apple and a bit of pineapple were noticeable on the palate, with just a hint of oak on the finish so that you know it’s not a stainless steel Chardonnay, but not enough to turn off those that don’t like oaked Chardonnay. Read the rest of this entry »
Varietal: Jongieux
Region: France
Cost: $11
Light and crisp with aromas of tropical fruit. Green apple on the palate with a slight mineral finish complimented by just a touch of effervescence. Pairs very well with seafood.
Recommendations: I’ll be the first to admit that I had never heard of the Jongieux grape before receiving this bottle, but then I don’t drink a lot of French wine. I was told to pair it with seafood, and so I had to sit on the bottle for a bit while my wife and I got the ingredients together for a shrimp jambalaya that we had been planning for for a while. It was worth the wait.
The wine was light in the glass and the aroma of tropical fruit was present, but very subtle. Crisp and refreshing, it took me a few minutes to put my finger on the flavor, but the green apple I got was very enjoyable, and a perfect pair to the slight mineral finish that the wine offered.
Slightly effervescent, the wine as a whole was a great compliment to the slightly spicy dish of shrimp jambalaya, and would pair well with any well seasoned seafood. I can imagine this as a great compliment to a spicy peanut tilapia dish.
At the end of the day, the real question on any of my reviews is would I drink this again, and in this case – absolutely. At $11 it’s a great value for a good white wine to pair with seafood, and I’d actually pair more for it. Definitely one worth grabbing for your next seafood dinner.
Special thanks to Wine & Beer Westpark for supplying the wine for this review.
Varietal: Pinot Grigio
Region: California – Anderson Valley – USA
Cost: $20
Fruity with bright orange and melon aromas. Light, lemon and green apples on the palate end in a refreshing acid finish. Pairs with salads, melon, cheeses, seafood, or by itself.
Recommendations: I’m very hit or miss on Pinot Grigio, preferring Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc for my white wine selections, but I did find this Pinot Grigio to be quite enjoyable. Purchased by my parents during our trip to California several weeks before and sent home with me, this bottle had been chilling in my refrigerator for a few days while I tried to select something to pair it with.
A meal of salmon and and roasted red potatoes was what my wife and I paired this white with, and it was a great compliment to the seafood and the well seasoned potatoes, the melon and apple flavors, along with the acid finish, cutting through the richness of the salmon.
While I still prefer my Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, I can say that I enjoyed this Pinot Grigio and would recommend it to anybody in the market for a quality one at a good price.
