greg drinks

Category: red blend

  • Drinking with Gary

    If you haven’t seen Gary Vaynerchuk on his internet wine tv show you are missing out on an experience. He’s funny, entertaining, and most importantly he knows his wine. He has been talking about the ’05 Bordeaux vintage for a while now and he offered a secret xmas pack of four wines to taste along at home on Christmas eve. I jumped at the pack as I need to learn more about French wines. It was great to taste these and compare my experience with Gary as he tasted them on the show. Here’s my stream of consciousness as I was tasting them.

    Chateau de Callac 2006 Blanc (Graves) ($15.99)

    Hints of lemons and bananas on the nose mixed with some grass. A bit of nail polish remover that dissipated after a while. Creamy smooth on the palate. A refined wine. Long finish. Delicious flavors of buttery lemon and pineapple. The nicely balanced acidity is not too sharp but definitely can stand up to food. This is fantastic and is one of the most interesting white wines I’ve had in a very long time.

    Chateau de Lavagnac 2005 ($8.99)

    Young, fresh fruity raspberry and cherry nose. Bright purple color. Fresh fruit right up front of cranberries and raspberries. Medium bodied. Nice tannins that ends with wood on the back palate. Fruit up front then wood on the end. Not bad for $9. Hint of earthiness on the roof of my mouth in the mid palate. I wish the fruit lingered a bit longer before the wood took over, but it is a very nice complex wine for the price.

    Chateau Moulin de Lavaud Pomerol 2005 ($18.99)

    Bright red color, not too deep. Cherries meet strawberries on the nose. Soft tannins, elegant, medium bodied, vegetable and sour cherries. Some wood and flowers on the end. Finishes with a spicy wood flavor.

    Chateau de Callac 2005 ($15.99)

    Dark purple red color. BIG nose of red plums, strawberry, red raspberries and licorice. Cherries, roses, red fruits, strawberries, strong tannins, soft acid. Medium bodied. Ends with tannic wood.

  • Wine from Michigan

    You do know that every state in the United States now has some commercial wine production. Last June I happened to be traveling along I-94 in southwest Michigan and I came upon some wine outlets just off the freeway. We stopped first at a St. Julian wine outlet. The wines were as expected – thin, sweet and unappealing. But right next to them was another winery outlet from an outfit called the Round Barn Winery. These folks from Baroda, MI do know their stuff. Now, I think some of the finest white wines in the country come from the Leelenau Penninsula of upper lower Michigan. But, red wines from Michigan? I actually found some palatable red wines from this place. They have a Merlot that is not too shabby at all. On the lower end is their “Vineyard Red”. I was eating a maple cheddar burger tonight and this wine went very nicely. It’s not a serious wine by any means but with a nice crisp acidity and a good cherry fruit this matched great with a cheeseburger.