Category:White wine

Labor Day wine 2022

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

plates of marinated olives
A porch, chilled white wine, and plates of marinated olives. Yes, Labor Day.

Four wines to help celebrate Labor Day wine 2022

The Wine Curmudgeon pitched a Labor Day wine freelance story recently, and the editor was unimpressed. Her loss.

How could anyone not be ready for chilled wine — even the reds! — and sipped on a shaded place on the porch. And maybe some brats?

These four bottles will begin the holiday, but don’t be afraid to find your own — and don’t overlook the blog’s porch wine guidelines:

• Cantina Cellaro Luma 2019 ($12, purchased, 13%): Easily one of the best Sicilian nero d’avolas I’ve tasted in years — varietally correct, with dark, fresh, and almost plummy fruit, and even some substance and body. An honest wine, and not made to be smooth. Bring on the brats. Imported by Gonzalez Byass

• Trinennes Rose 2021  ($18, purchased, 12.5%): Yes, more money than I’d usually pay for rose, but well worth it. This is classic Provencal-stye rose — not much fruit (“wild strawberry”) and long and clean and stony. Missing garrigue, the herbal aroma, but that’s the only disappointment. Highly recommended. Imported by Sorting Table

• Garofoli Macrina 2020 ($13, purchased, 13%): This vintage of the Italian white isn’t as well rounded as the 2019, but there is still plenty of almonds, light citrus, and minerality on the finish. Bring on the olives. Imported by Garofoli USA

• Bellussi Prosecco NV ($13, purchased, 11%):  Soft but surprisingly structured extra dry Prosecco, the Italian sparkling wine (so sweet). There is appealing candied lemon fruit, lots and lots of almost creamy bubbles, and a clean finish. Much better than I expected. Imported by Misa Imports

Photo: v2osk on Unsplash

For more about Labor Day wine:
• Labor Day wine 2021
• Labor Day wine 2020
• Labor Day wine 2019
• Wine of the week: Shannon Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2021

Wine of the week: Ant Moore Sauvignon Blanc 2021

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Ant Moore sauvingon blanc bottle
Ant Moore Sauvignon Blanc 2021/$10-$17

So far, New Zealand’s sauvignon blanc Armageddon seems to be less Armageddon-y than thought

There are certain things you can count on hearing all the time in the wine business – each harvest, despite challenges, is going to produce an excellent vintage, for example, or that bad weather will cause devastating shortages and higher prices in a region’s wine production.

And no, I have never been able to figure out why they aren’t mutually exclusive conditions. But that’s wine for you.

I mention this to note that the Ant Moore is the third New Zealand sauvignon blanc to appear as a wine of the week since forecasts of the New Zealand sauvignon blanc Armageddon last fall. So maybe, just maybe, the devastating shortages weren’t quite so devastating?

The Ant Moore 2021 ($10, purchased, 12.5%) is the kind of wine that represents the strength of the country’s production: Professional, varietally correct, and a step up from supermarket quality. There isn’t too much grapefruit, the finish is almost minerally, and something that sort of resembles tropical fruit in the middle – always a sign of a well-crafted Kiwi sauvignon blanc.

And all for $10. No wonder this is exactly the kind of kind of wine that if you like, you buy a case.

Imported by USA Wine West

Expensive wine 159: Les 13 Lunes Apremont 2020

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

les 13 lunes aprmeont bottle
Les 13 Lunes Apremont 2020/$20-$25

This French white speaks to the joys of wine, and that everything doesn’t have to taste like everything else

The Wine Curmudgeon rarely has to search for expensive wine to buy for this feature. For one thing, too many of the samples I get cost more than $25; for another, the few expensive wines I buy for my enjoyment are usually perfect fits for this review.

This month, though, I had nothing to write about. I tasted a dozen or so high-priced red wines over the past six weeks, and none of them were worth writing about. What’s worse, they all mostly tasted alike, even though they came from different parts of the world and were made with different grapes.

So I spent the past week trying to find something to taste for this review that wasn’t a smooth, high-alcohol red wine; that was sort of available; and would be something I could wax poetic about. Because I was tired of dumping expensive, smooth high-alcohol red wines down the drain.

Finally, I found the Les 13 Lunes Apremont 2020 ($24, purchased, 10.5%). So yes, Friday the 13th was lucky.

This is a stunning French white made with an unknown grape, jacquere, from an even less known region, Savoie, near the French Alps. So yes, geeky, and made even more so since it’s certified biodynamic. Ah, but how it tastes: Not quite chardonnay and not quite viognier, but something completely its own — almost savory, “alpine fresh,” to quote a tasting note, and with a hint of tart green apple fruit, a floral sort of aroma, and an impeccably clean finish. And did I mention just 10 1/2  percent alcohol?

I drank this with a half chicken marinated in lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil, and then roasted with carrots and onions. Anyone who doubts food and wine pairings would have doubted no more.

Highly recommended — even though it’s an $11 wine in France. That’s usually the kind of price disparity that makes me crazy, but, in this case, I’ll just buy another bottle.

Imported by Paris Wine Company

Wine of the week: Protocolo Blanco 2020

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Protocolo Blanco bottle
Protocolo Blanco 2020/$6-$10

Have $8? Want white wine for dinner? Then it’s time for the Protocolo Blanco

Once again, Spain is the answer to the question for those of us who want quality wine – and even to be able to buy it in the supermarket — but don’t want something smoooth or priced to hit some marketer’s sweet spot (which is much more than $10).

The Protocolo wines have made regular appearances on the blog for the past couple of years; the rose has been an especial value. So it’s no surprise to find the 2020 version of the Blanco ($8, purchased, 12%) here: It’s intelligent cheap wine, made to fill a market niche that too many others refuse to acknowledge.

This vintage of the Blanco isn’t as full and rounded as the 2019 was, and it’s a a little short in the back – the finish just sort of drops off. But it’s certainly worth $8 (and maybe a couple of bucks more, depending on how sad the rest of the wine section looks). It’s a blend of two especially Spanish grapes with some lemon fruit (though the wine is not especially tart). There’s also a dose of stone fruit in the middle.

In other words, just the white wine for a blazing hot Dallas summer — or summer anywhere else, for that matter.

Imported by Fine Wines from Spain

Wine of the week: Shannon Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2021

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Shannon Ridge sauvignon blanc bottle
Shannon Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2021/$10-$14

Sauvignon blanc offers value and quality – so, yes, it can be done in California

Every once in a while, someone emails to ask why there aren’t more California wines on the blog. The reason, of course, is price – there just aren’t many $15 or less from the Golden State that offer the kind of value and quality that readers here expect.

A very pleasant exception is the Shannon Ridge Sauvignon Blanc 2021 ($11, sample, 13.8%). It’s classic California sauvignon blanc at a more than fair price.

That’s possible for a couple of reasons. First, the grapes come from Lake County, where the land is less expensive and allows producers more leeway with pricing. Second, the producer has a history of terrific cheap wine, including the sometimes hard-to-find Wrangler Red.

So let’s count our blessings. The sauvignon blanc features some lemongrass, some lemon zest, some stoniness, and even a little tropical fruit in the middle that doesn’t get in the way. In other words, there’s a lot more going on than most supermarket whites at this price, and no one has sugared it up (another problem with California wine at this price).

Highly recommended, and a candidate for the 2023 Hall of Fame. This is summer wine, chilled, either on its own or with any number of summer salads (grain bowls, even, for younger wine drinkers) or grilled poultry.

 

Porch wine 2022

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Chairs on a front porch
Does the chicken have the ice cubes?

Once again, why porch wine matters — and bring the ice cubes

I usually don’t update the porch wine post every year, but this year is special — and not just because of the 100-plus temperatures in Dallas. And those of you in Dallas who are angry at the blog’s unofficial weather forecaster — don’t you have something better to do?

Rather, I’m updating the post this year because Esther Mobley of the San Francisco Chronicle, of the most important members of the Winestream Media, says it’s OK to put ice cubes in your wine.

Welcome to the fight, Esther.

Porch wine is about lighter wines, red and white (and of course, rose), that are lower in alcohol and that offer relief from the heat. The idea with a porch wine is to drink something that won’t make the sweat bead on your forehead. The blog’s original porch post is here, and there is even a porch wine terms post.

And keep the ice cubes handy. These four wines will get you started:

• Zestos Blanco 2020 ($12, purchased, 12.5%): This Spanish white is one of the all-time great cheap wines, and the 2020 vintage may be the best ever — subtle and interesting, with less tart white fruit and maybe even some spice. Sure to make the shortlist for the 2022 Cheap Wine of the Year. Highly recommended. Imported by Ole & Obrigador

• Librandi Segno Bianco 2020 ($12, purchased, 12.5%): Well-made, varietally correct Italian white that uses the little known greco bianco grape. That means some lemon fruit as well as very clean and very crisp, if a bit thin. Imported by Winebow

• Château Laulerie Bergerac Rose 2021 ($10, purchased, 12%): Yummy cabernet sauvignon-based rose from southern France, with a little merlot to round it out. Almost raspberry fruit, some garrigue, and long on the finish, almost stony. Highly recommended. Imported by Skurnik Wines

• Brunellesco Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2019 ($10, purchased, 12%): This Italian red is much more savory and herbal than other wines from the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo region. The cherry fruit isn’t the only selling point. Highly recommended. Imported by Monsieur Tonton Selections

Photo: Taliesin vis Morguefile

More about porch wine:
• Memorial Day and rose 2022
• Update: Porch wine for the long, hot summer
• Wine of the week: Vinho verde 2022
• Wine of the week: Domaine Duffour Cotes de Gascogne 2020

Wine of the week: Kono Sauvignon Blanc 2021

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Kono sauvignon blanc bottle
Kono Sauvignon Blanc 2021/$10-$19

This New Zealand white is one more example of the failings of wine availability

In 2013 – yes, 2013 — I reviewed this wine and wrote: The Kono is more than just another one-note grapefruit effort, and offers quality at a terrific price.

So why did it take almost 10 years to review the wine again?

We all know the answer to that, don’t we? The three-tier system and how it screws up wine availability. As I told the PR person who sent me the wine: I haven’t seen it Dallas for so long that I figured that no one made it any more.

Fortunately, I was wrong. The 2021 Kono ($12, sample, 13%) offers the same value and quality that it did almost a decade ago. It remains more than just another New Zealand supermarket sauvignon blanc, one of those cute label “Bay” wines that costs $8 and tastes like it.

Yes. there’s plenty of grapefruit, but it’s more white than pink. And, as all well-made Kiwi sauvignon blancs, there’s a hint of something tropical in the middle, as well as that wonderful crisp finish.

If it’s not a candidate for the Hall of Fame next year, it’s something almost as rare: A quality, dependable supermarket white wine that hasn’t been sugared up.

Imported by Total Beverage Solutions