Category:White wine

Wine of the week: Herdade do Esporao Alandra Branco 2017

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Esporao Alandra BrancoThe Esporao Alandra Branco is a Portuguese white blend that fits nicely into the middle of summer

A friend of mine insists that Portuguese wine offers some of the best value in the world, and he doesn’t understand why the Wine Curmudgeon doesn’t embrace Portugal’s wines the way I do Spain’s. When I tasted the Esporao Alandra Branco, I understood his point.

The Esporao Alandra Branco ($8, purchased, 13%), a white blend, offers a couple of things that I haven’t found in enough other Portuguese wines. The reds are usually too heavy and the whites are usually too thin, but the Esporao Alandra Branco finds the spot in between.

It’s crisp and spicy, with lots of pleasantly ripe stone fruit. This is the result of the blend, a common combination in Portugal (antão vaz, perrum, arinto) ) that is almost unknown to U.S. wine drinkers. The wine was a little rounder and a little heavier than I expected, another result of the grape blend.

Highly recommended, and especially for the price. It’s an ideal wine for the middle of summer, and especially with richer seafood like tuna steaks or chicken and rice with saffron.

Imported by Aidil Wines & Liquors

Wine of the week: Vinho verde 2019

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

vinho verde 2018Vinho verde 2019: Better quality this year than in 2018, including the always dependable Broadbent plus the Gazela and Faisao.

The vinho verde 2019 review is good news — much improved quality from 2018, with prices about the same as last year. How can we do better than that?

Vinho verde is a Portuguese white wine with a greenish tint that rarely costs more than $8. It has a slightly sweet lemon lime flavor, low alcohol, and a little fizz — all of which makes it ideal for hot weather.

Our vinho verde primer is here. Most of the cheaper wines, like Santola, Famega, Casal Garcia, and Gazela, are made by the same couple of companies but sold under different names to different retailers. These vinho verde 2019 suggestions will get you started:

• Broadbent Vinho Verde NV ($8, purchased, 9%): Not quite as well done as the 2018 (it’s missing some acidity), and it’s a little sweeter this year. But it remains balanced, rounded, and enjoyable — the vinho verde that sets the standard. Imported by Broadbent Selections

• Gazela Vinho Verde NV ($6, purchased, 9%): Stunningly enjoyable, and especially given how wretched it was last year. This bottling is not as complete as the Broadbent, but it’s not stupid, either — lemon lime fruit, pleasant spritiziness, and not too sweet. Much more than $6 worth of wine. Imported by Evaton

• Asnella Vinho Verde 2017 ($15, sample, 12.5%): Vintage vinho verde is becoming more common, but you still don’t see much of it. This bottle is more layered and more subtle than the $8 non-vintage labels — mostly dry, a more tropical fruit style, much less fizz, and more crispness. Imported by Ole Imports

• Bernador Vinho Verde NV ($5, purchased, 9%): This Aldi private label was perhaps the biggest surprise of vinho verde 2019 — almost dry, the correct amount of fizz, and with refreshing lime fruit. It’s a little thin on the back, but that’s not necessarily a problem.

• Aveleda Vinho Verde 2017 ($6.50, purchased, 9.5%):

• Faisao Vinho Verde NV ($7/1-liter bottle, purchased, 10%): The Faisao is noticeably sweet, something that I don’t usually like. But there’s enough crackly lemon-lime fruit and the fizziness is so well done that I drank it with dinner (roasted chicken thighs marinated in orange and lime juice, herbs, garlic and olive oil) and enjoyed it. And how can you argue with the price for a 1-liter bottle? Imported by Winesellers Ltd.

For more about vinho verde:
• Vinho verde review 2018
• Vinho verde review 2017
• Vinho verde review 2016

Fourth of July wine 2019

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Fourth of July wine 2019Fourth of July wine 2019: Four bottles to enjoy for the United States’ 243rd birthday

The Unites States celebrates its 243rd vbithday this week, and the Wine Curmudgoen has four wines to bring to the party. As always, keep our summer wine and porch wine guidelines in mind: Lighter, fresher wines, even for red, since lots of oak and high alcohol aren’t especially refreshing when it’s 98 degrees outside

Consider these Fourth of July wine 2019 suggestions:

• Ryder Estate Chardonnay 2017 ($14, sample, 13.5%): This California white is made in a less zippy style, with softer and less tart apple fruit. Otherwise, it’s well-made and proefessional, without too much oak and the right amount of apple and tropical fruit.

• La Fiera Rose 2018 ($8, purchased, 12.5%): This Italian pink is a little softer than expected, without the acidity French-style roses have. But it’s bone dry with lots of red fruit, and offers tremendous value.  Imported by Winesellers Ltd

• Renzo Masi Erta e China 2017 ($15, sample, 13.5%):A surprisingly balanced and Italian-like Super Tuscan, where cabernet sauvignon is blended with the sangovese. It has that wonderful tart cherry fruit that shouts Tuscany, plus some backbone from the 50 percent cabernet. It needs food — ribs on the grill, perhaps?
Imported by HB Wine Merchants

• Princesa Brut Nature Cava NV ($12, purchased, 11.5%): Brut nature is the driest sparkling wine, and this Spanish bubbly doesn’t disappoint. It’s crisp, very dry, and has cava’s trademark apple and pear fruit. Highly recommended. Imported by Quintessential

Photo: “Sydney Foreworks Detail” by Jürgen Lison is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 

More Fourth of July wine:
• Fourth of July wine 2018
• Fourth of July wine 2017
• Fourth of July wine 2016
• Wine of the week: Bota Box rose 2018

Mini-reviews 122: Albarino, Chianti, Viura, Eberle Cotes-du-Robles

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Eberle Cotes-du-RoblesReviews of wines that don’t need their own post, but are worth noting for one reason or another. Look for it on the fourth Friday of each month.

• Lagar de Cervera Albarino 2017 ($15, purchased, 12.5%): This Spanish white offers $12 worth of value, and it’s not especially albarino like. It’s a little soft wiithout the citrus zip, not all that savory, and not especially fresh. Very disappointing. Imported by Golden State Wine Co.

• Renzo Masi Chianti Rufina 2018 ($15, sample, 13%): Very ordinary Italian red, made in a soft, fruity, less tart New World style so that it lacks all of the things that make Chianti interesting. Meh. Imported by HB Wine Merchants

• Azul y Garanza Viura 2017 ($10/1-liter, purchased, 12.5%): Spanish white missing the lemony snap and crackle that viura should have. The same producer’s tempranillo is much more interesting. Having said that, the viura is more than drinkable and the price is terrific. Imported by Valkyrie Selections

• Eberle Cotes-du-Robles Rouge 2017 ($34, sample, 14.1%): You get exactly what you pay for — rich, full and well-made Paso Robles red blend that has structure and restraint. But since it’s Paso, that means very ripe black fruit that keeps coming and coming.

Wine of the week: Domaine des Corbillieres Sauvignon 2018

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

TDomaine des Corbilliereshe Domaine des Corbillieres sauvignon blanc that reminds us that the varietal doesn’t have to taste like grapefruit on steroids.

The Domaine des Corbillieres sauvignon comes from another of those century-old, family-owned French producers; their wines used to be common on U.S. store shelves, but  seem to be disappearing as importers and distributors consolidate. Which is a shame, because this sauvignon blanc from the Touraine region of the Loire speaks to place and varietal.

Touraine isn’t as well known for sauvignon blanc as nearby Sancerre, but that has nothing to do with quality. The Domaine des Corbillieres sauvignon ($13, purchased, 13%) is fuller and fruitier and not as flinty as a Sancerre. This is neither good nor bad, just different. What matters is that the wine focuses on something other than piercing citrus fruit — some grassiness, maybe some soft lemon and green apple, and a long and clean stony finish.

Highly recommended. This is a perfect weeknight wine, and especially for summer. It’s food friendly in that it will pair with almost anything except red meat, be it vegetable salads (couscous, chickpeas and herbs, perhaps?) or grilled chicken. Plus, it’s light enough so you don’t have to worry about waking up in the morning.

Imported by Wines with Conviction

Barefoot wine review 2019: Cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Barefoot wine review 2019Barefoot wine review 2019: The cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay have a dollop or three of residual sugar, but otherwise taste like they should

This is the 12th Barefoot wine review I’ve written, and one thing is as aggravating today, for Barefoot wine review 2019, as it was 12 years ago: No screwcap. Why E&J Gallo, Barefoot’s owner, still uses a cork closure on most of its labels is beyond me. The only time these wines are “aged” is after they’re opened, when they sit in the refrigerator for another day. A screwcap would make that kind of aging so much easier.

The Barefoot wine review 2019 features the non-vintage cabernet sauvignon ($5, purchased, 12.5%) and the non-vintage chardonnay ($5, purchased, 13%). Both, save for a dollop or three of residual sugar, are among the best Barefoot efforts in years. Yes, that’s damning with faint praise, given the quality of the wines in many of the previous reviews. And their sweetness left that dried out feeling in my mouth for 20 or 30 minutes after tasting. But that Barefoot varietal wines taste like their varietal is worth noting.  Put a couple of ice cubes in the glass, and the wines are certainly drinkable, if too simple and not very subtle.

The cabernet tastes of dark berry fruit (boysenberry?), and there are soft tannins, a certain acidity, and restrained fake oak. No chocolate cherry foolishness here, though the sweetness gets more noticeable with each sip and may annoy wine drinkers who expect cabernet to be dry.

The chardonnay, ironically, is less sweet than the cabernet. Take away the sugar, and it’s a pleasant California-style chardonnay — almost crisp green apple fruit, that chardonnay style of mouth feel, and just enough fake oak to round out the wine. There’s even a sort of finish, which was about the last thing I expected. Once again, though, the sweetness gets in the way —  would that Barefoot had the courage of its convictions to make a dry wine dry.

More about Barefoot wine:
• Barefoot wine review 2018
• Barefoot wine review 2017
• Barefoot wine review 2016

Father’s Day wine 2019

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Father's Day wineFather’s Day wine 2019: Four wines to make Dad proud

Every year at Father’s Day, we’re told to buy Dad a big red wine. Because, after all, isn’t that what Dad is supposed to want? Maybe. But the most important thing to know is to buy Dad what he likes for Father’s Day wine 2019. Keep the blog’s wine gift-giving guidelines in mind throughout the process: Don’t buy someone wine that you think they should like; buy them what they will like.

Father’s Day wine 2019 suggestions:

• Eberle Syrah Steinbeck Vineyard 2017 ($32, sample, 14.2%): This red wine from California’s Paso Robles is balanced and almost nuanced — which doesn’t happen all that often with Paso syrah. Look for black fruit, a little earth, a just enough richness, and a wine that is clean and full on the finish. Highly recommended, assuming the price doesn’t scare you off.

• Ryder Estate Pinot Noir Rose 2018 ($14, sample, 13%): This is what the once-legendary Toad Hollow rose demonstrated to in the old days — tart cherry, a little ripe strawberry, and a long and pleasing finish that shows off the fruit. Not sweet, but fruity in the California style. Ryder is making a name for itself as one of the best $10 and $12 producers in the country. Highly recommended.

• Pedroncelli Friends.white 2018 ($12, purchased, 12.9%): Yes, a corny name, but this California white blend from one of my favorite producers is always well made and a value. The gewurtztraminer balances the sauvignon blanc, but doesn’t sweeten the wine. Pleasantly tart, fresh, and enjoyable — some citrus (lemon?) and an appealing crispness. Highly recommended.

• Chateau St. Jean Brut Rose NV ($15, sample, 13%): I expected almost nothing from this California bubbly, and was once again proved wrong — taste the wine before you judge it. Quality charmat method wine with a little more style and appeal than Prosecco, including some very nice berries and a creaminess that one doesn’t expect in charmat sparkling.

More Father’s Day wine:
• Father’s Day wine 2018
• Father’s Day wine 2017
• Father’s Day wine 2016
• Expensive wine 118: Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2013