Thursday, April 30, 2009

#117 Auxerrois

Auxerrois... The spellchecker recommends "Terrorist" but my research indicates that this sweeter white is both a relative of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It is a chameleon of a grape being called Pinot Auxerrois or Auxerrois Blanc in addition to a few others. This wine is a Vin D'Alsace created for our pleasure along the French and German border in Alsace of course.

And as we would expect for a wine made near Germany this is very much like a dry Reisling or Gewurztraminer. Syrupy honey up front, fades into a light snap and is followed by a warm dry finish. Its a nice wine for a mere $16.99.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

#116 Savagnin

This was a difficult find. It might have been harder to find details about the wine than it was to find it for sale here in the United States. The long and short of it is that Savagnin is a local varietal found mostly in Cotes du Jura France. Interestingly (according to wiki) recent DNA testing in Australia has shown that what the Aussies had been exporting as the Spanish varietal Albarino is in fact Savagnin. It appears that wine questers could pick up a cheap Aussie Albarino and end up getting a difficult to find varietal checked off their list and enjoy a really nice wine to boot ($25).

As I was searching for a label picture I came across this review from Whisper Wine:

"This wine is a rarity in many aspects. Jura is known for its "Vin Jaune" (literally "Yellow Wine") made with the Savagnin grape, a very local varietal. To make a long story short, Vin Jaune, due to its very special vinification, would compare to a Jerez in taste - a very dry wine with unique aromas of walnut and morel. Alain Labet has been first (back in 1990) to change the ancestral tradition and use the Savagnin grape like a Chardonnay grape. Many have since followed in his footsteps. This Fleur de Savagnin is a pure expression of terroir - should you want an illustration of the nature of terroir, this is it. The wine is powerful, clean, a bit spicy. Côtes du Jura is a rare find not only in Pennsylvania but possibly even in the whole United States.

Share it with your very best friends only, it's quite unique. Want to play blind tasting? Many will think it is a top notch white burgundy!"


Wednesday, April 22, 2009

No time for relaxation. The quest continues!


Notice anything different about the Great Seal? Perhaps you noticed that if one was great then two must be awesome? Well I had already endeavored to complete the entire original Century Club list which numbered 165 wines (some quite difficult to find here). Now a new category of wine tasting mastery has been created. "Doppel Members" will have tasted TWO hundred varietals. So with very little hesitation I welcome this new challenge. As always the varietals I take credit for must come from a source which consists of at least 70% of said grape.

Wish me luck....

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

#115 Verdicchio

Why haven't I had this before?

If this was a blind tasting... I would have guessed a Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. Green in the glass with a tropical vanilla nose, strong acidity and a good bite on the finish. Of course as usual I would be wrong. This is a 2006 Verdicchio from donna Ginevra and its from Italy.

It all starts to make sense when I learn that Verdicchio hails from the Marche region in Italy (The calf in Italy's boot) right on the Adriatic. Presumably benefitting from the same sort of natural phenomenon that make New Zealand whites so wonderful.

To keep it simple this is just a fabulous wine for $17. It went so fast I had to intercept the bottle, steal a glass full and run to the computer to record my notes before it was all just a distant memory.