posted on 19 June 2009 by sarah
The dinosaur is a metaphor for many things. A few that come to my mind include your aunt Edna’s Nisson Bluebird, anything to do with Bryan Adams, steaks’s at “Outback”, mini-golf (check out the Orange Dinosaur) and Tim Wakefield. Basically anything that should evolve can be considered a dinosaur.
This week’s wine is a sparkling wine from Patagonia made by the winery Familia Schroeder. The name of the wine line is Saurus – named after the Titanosaur bones that were unearthed during the construction of the winery. The Titanosaur was one of the largest species ever known. The bones are featured in a special cellar on site at the winery.
The wine is 60% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir and produced using the Charmat method wine. It tastes leafy and peachy to me. It is fresh, has a good acidity, and a touch of sweetness. We had no problem drinking it.
My partner in crime for enjoying this bottle used the Napoleon method for opening the bottle - le sabrage. Traditionally this is done with a sword. We used a kitchen knife. This is a great party trick- you can learn to do this too
Tags: Sarah Osteen, Saurus, sparkling wine
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posted on 1 June 2009 by sarah
Yalumba Bush Vine Grenache: $15.99
When I was 14 my mother lost her wedding ring at the beach. We did what all people do when they lose jewelry on the beach; we rented metal detectors. Within hours I was sweeping the beach with a tool that resembled a light saber crossed with a cane: not a great accessory for an angst ridden teenager. What was worse was that I was suddenly one of “those” people, folks so miserly that they spend their day looking for hidden jewels while developing scoliosis in the process. Amazingly, we found the ring along with a number of razors and tin cans. Each time the detector (brand name “The Barracuda”) buzzed, fellow collectors would pop their heads up with a scowl to see if we had skeeched something good. I had a permanent eye roll the whole way home.
While most misers leave me with a bad taste in my mouth, this weekend I stumbled across a miser that I love: the Yalumba Bush Vine Grenache 2007. Miser wine? Yes. Grenache is a serious worker bee in its early years; the vines produce multiple bottles of wine per bush, but as the vines age over 25 years, they turn into nasty and selfish little squirrels producing barely one bottle per bush. I can almost imagine these old bushes out with their Barracudas giving bad tips to their waiters. While not particularly giving, the old vines produce a high quality grape. This Yalumba wine comes from grapes that have been aged 30-70 years: crotchety yet delicious.
Perhaps I am not that familiar with Grenache because it is always overshadowed by other Rhone varietals. The funny thing is that this is the most planted red grape variety in the world; it’s just that it is usually blended with other reds.
I like this red for summer because it is fruity and light but not thin like a disappointing pinot noir for example. One could pair this old magpie with almost anything, a tuna steak on the grill or bbq chicken would be a good bet. I was really blown away by this wine and will be drinking it a lot this summer. At $15.99 you don’t even have to spend an extra hour on the beach looking for spare change to buy it.
Tags: Australia, Australian red, grenache, Red Wine, Sarah Osteen
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posted on 26 May 2009 by sarah
Triennes 2008 Rosé
It would be nice if life was a musical. I would like for people to surprise me from upstairs window sills singing about the beauty of the morning or for folks waiting at the bus stop in Porter Square to move in synchronized jazz squares on the side walk. I realize that this is an unrealistic dream, but sometimes I wonder if life can mimic fantasy when I watch Giada De Laurentis - Italian American chef, writer, television personality, and the current host of the Food Network programs Everyday Italian. While Giada moves smoothly around the kitchen playfully sampling and dipping, soft music filters through and the lighting is reminiscent of soft porn. The food seems to take on a sensual life of its own and she almost flirts with the viewer –cut to close up of her mouth while she chews. I would like to look like that when I am in the kitchen but sadly I am more of a putterer.
While this week’s wine is neither Italian nor voluptuous, it does make me feel airy and inspires romance. The Triennes rosé is from Provence and made mainly from Cinsault grapes. I like this rosé because it is delicious and bone-dry but also because it is not a by-product of red wine. It is created for its own sake and is the main wine produced in the region. It’s a soft salmon color because the grapes don’t have contact with the skins for longer than it takes to transport the grapes.
I drank this wine with seared scallops cooked with sage and fiddleheads. It tasted like the essence of spring with the hope of summer. I could almost picture myself as Sandy in a high school rendition of Grease strolling on the board walk with Danny…
Tags: Cinsault, Food Network, Giada De Laurentis, Grease, Provence, rose, Sarah Osteen, seafood, Triennes
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posted on 7 May 2009 by sarah
Tortoise Creek Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, & Viognier
You learn a lot when you walk a dog. In the past three years of trolling the streets of Somerville and Cambridge with my beagle Charlie I’ve learned that folks over the age of 75 love to complain about garbage can placement, dog-owners of unfriendly beasts tend to walk head down and cross the street when you approach, and people leave chicken bones absolutely everywhere. It’s as if chicken bones are not considered litter since at one point they were part of a living organism. If the gutters were teaming with steaks or pork loins I would be less perturbed due to the decreased choking hazard they pose to dogs. Are chicken wings the new “on-the-go” food? Are south-beach diet obsessed moms going to replace oranges and cookies with chicken wings at soccer games? Are they going to kick “Go-gurt” and granola bars off the shelves? All I know is that I would like to start a movement to replace the wing with the nugget. I have pulled enough half-eaten filthy chicken wing bones out of Charlie’s mouth moments before what I fear is certain death.
What do nasty images of chicken bones have to do with this week’s Tortoise Creek wines? Good question.
In order to develop some semblance of an opinion about wine you need to walk the same four blocks around it. Over time you will begin to notice differences in grape, vintage, vineyard location, and wine-making technique. I have by no means trolled the streets of wine enough to consider myself an expert but this week I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to do a comparative study on three wines from the same vineyard. For an amateur, this is a great way to hone in on the nuances.
I explored three white wines from Tortoise Creek Vineyard. I found that the chardonnay was 100% chardonnay with nice overtones of melon. The sauvignon blanc was crisp and dry, I tasted grapefruit. I think my favorite was the viognier, it tasted like summer in a bottle to me. I could imagine sipping this before dining al fresco with friends on a warm evening.
Just as I noticed some differences between the wines I also noticed similarities. All of the wines are noticeably missing any taste of oak. They are all refreshing and make me smile, thinking of days with my feet up on a porch.
The Tortoise Creek wine makers Mel and Janie Master understand the richness of the Languedoc, and with their passion for good wine and good food, are commitment to producing quality wines at value driven prices. The Languedoc region of southern France is a land of many different eco-climates, soils, and weather conditions - reflected in the countless subtleties of its many wines. The remarkable weather conditions and vast array of quality growing areas give each wine a unique taste.
The Tortoise Creek chardonnay would be delightful with a chicken nugget.
Tags: beagle, chardonnay, compartive studies, go-gurt, Sarah Osteen, sauvignon blanc, Tortoise Creek, viognier
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posted on 28 April 2009 by sarah
I went out to dinner last week to a quirky restaurant in Harvard Square. It is a favorite of mine because the bar is lively, the food is delicate and fun, and there is a bar menu for those of us that want something delicious but can’t shell out the big dough. I dined with two close friends. The night was festive, marked by stories of scandal in the office along with the current dating dramas of my lovely and single friend.
While dipping into my asparagus custard and discussing male pattern balding I noticed my wine glass was empty. The waiter appeared in a flash angling for another glass. Fortunately we had recently ordered a bottle of Cabernet so I was not going to be without for long. The waiter scowled, “you ordered salmon; it will be DISGUSTING with that Cabernet!” I sheepishly shrugged and looked at him as if I had just been caught licking the inside of an empty Lays potato-chip bag – plastic covering my face, crumbs falling down my shirt. “Ooops.”
The truth is that it was a delicious Cab and I didn’t want to budge on my salmon selection. Perhaps it wasn’t the best combo but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Some wines do in fact pair better with food than others. Wines that are particularly food friendly tend to have a high acidity level. The higher the acidity the more alert your taste buds seem. That is my very scientific explanation - picture taste buds standing at attention.
This Vouvray Sauvion 2007 is great with food. With notes of melon and pineapple it has a nice level of acidity. It is dry to off dry and would go well with the slight sweetness of lobster or scallops – or a burger if you prefer to piss off waiters. Loire wines tend to exhibit characteristic fruitiness with fresh, crisp flavors. I didn’t know a lot about Vouvray wines but learned that they have some of the most complex and diverse plantings in the world leading to incredible blends. The whites are mainly based on the Chenin Blanc grape.
So next time you get an unwelcome eyebrow in regards to your wine and food selection I recommend:
1) Cock your head to the side and say, “Well now little man, it sure is better than that miller ice I’ve been drinkin’ at home!”
2) Laugh awkwardly and then start crying silently.
3) Think about the food you are eating, think about the wine you are drinking, and if you don’t want to make a change, politely tell your waiter to put the cork where the sun don’t shine.
Tags: Chenin Blanc, france, French white, Loire, Sarah Osteen, Vouvray, white wine
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