Not about a wine but about life!

I know that this blog is all about wine. But, sometimes a girl's gotta vent. People ask me all the time about the choices I make and the way my life is going. I pretend like have all of the answers. For If I look like I have any doubts I'm afraid that people will start to doubt me. So here goes.....

Sometimes I feel like I'm in the waiting room of life. A little lost just waiting to find my own direction. It's tough because you are unsure of which path to take. What if you choose the wrong one? What if you waste your time going down something you felt was the right path? It just gets frustrating when you go down these paths alone. You have to muster up the courage to not give up and keep going and remind yourself why you are doing this.

There are days when I do want to quit and go to something more familiar. Go do something "Normal" with my life. Go out, meet someone, get married, have my white picket fence and three kids and a dog playing in the yard. Don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with that lifestyle I think its wonderful. And part of me wants a snippet of that "normalcy" but, which part do I want? I know I want the family part. It's what's most appealing to me. I want to someday have a house filled with noise and laughter and all be it chaos. I want a close knit family.

But, I myself want to lead by example. To show my children if you have a dream, desire and down right need you must follow it. Even if it goes against what society might coin as "normal". If you are lucky enough to figure out what you want to be when you grow up you better go for it. That desire better be just setting your heart on fire and make you crazy if you don't do it. Because without that passion, fire and drive you will surrender. You will give in and just take the easy route. The art of just getting by. The art of existing and not really living. I want to show them that people are going to tell you "NO" or "You will never succeed, or do that" doesn't mean you have to listen. Unless it's their parents saying no to something completely immoral.

So, I guess if you find yourself in the waiting room of life just bursting at the seams make your presence known! Make the journey and the waiting as fun and as educational as possible. For i have found in the waiting we receive humble patience. so when the opportunity of a path presents itself you will have humble courage and extreme desire to walk that path alone hand in hand with God!

A wine you should skip.

I feel bad having to do this, but this wine was really that bad.  Terre Delle Falcole 2003 Chianti Classico.  It is normally $15.99 a bottle, which is more than I will typically spend, but it was on sale for $9.99 so I thought it was my lucky day. Not so!  I cannot tell you how sad it makes me to have to bag an Italian wine, but seriously folks-DO NOT BUY THIS WINE! 

Starborough 2010 Sauvignon Blanc - A rising star!

It was my turn to pick the wine for the week so I was lucky enough to be able to hit the local Jewel-Osco liquor section sans children!  I thought it was time for another white, but was apprehensive about being responsible for picking one after the major hit that we had with the Kris Pinot Grigio.  I thought that I would try another varietal and went for another favorite, Sauvignon Blanc.  I will openly admit that I was drawn to the Starborough Sauvignon Blanc because of the beautiful label...I guess I drink with my eyes first.  Thankfully, I was not just another pretty face!

So, now for the tasting notes!  According to the Starborough website the wine is filtered before bottling and that is noticeable in it's clarity.  The wine doesn't just look good in the bottle it looks good in the glass, too.  When I put the glass up to my nose to take a sniff the first thought that came to my mind was, "YUM!"  It smelled nice and fruity, but not in a, " Oh no, this is going to be too sweet way."  The fruit notes are a little on the tropical side, likely because the wine is from New Zealand.  I thought it has a hint of kiwi in both the aroma and the taste.  The flavor of the wine is a match to the aroma, but it is also very well balanced between the fruit and the acidity that I tend to like in a white wine.  My overall impression of this wine was that it was the total package!  Well priced, pretty bottle and a delicious wine that I will certainly buy again.  I rated it an 87.5 on the Parker Scale, which was pretty much in line with the "experts."  It's a great wine, so go out and grab a bottle and let me know what you think! 

Until next time.  Happy drinking!

A Masterpiece or a Flop?

I feel as though it has been forever since I have gotten to indulge on a full glass of red wine and sit in my thinking chair. OK to be fair I don't have a thinking chair. I have a very small apartment and my only chair I frequent is also shared with a 17lb dog that needs to sit next to me. This occasion would be no different.

I was walking down the wine isle of my local Trader Joe's when I noticed this bottle called Da Vinci. I thought to myself well Da Vinci had created great masterpieces such as the paintings of the Last Supper, The Vitruvian Man, and his most famous on of all The Mona Lisa. But, this man was the jack-of-all-trades if you will. He could do it all he was a painter, he could draw, he was an architect, a sculptor and an inventor. Oh he was also as I like to call a slight over achiever. I'll be happy if I succeed in one thing let alone master five different fields. But, I digress. Yes, I now know they didn't name the wine specifically after him but, they did name the town after him and the wine was named after the town so not a bad trade off. I didn't know that until I did a bit of research so my initial thought was wow these guys were pretty ballsy to call something a masterpiece by naming it after the master himself.

I take back that thought now knowing what I do now. I like a good Chianti. I had never had a Chianti until my family and I were traveling in Italy, Tuscany to be exact. I like a good full- bodied red wine and Chiantis are just that. It's amazing because now I can always tell when a wine comes from that region without knowing where that bottle came from before I take that first sip. As soon as it hits my taste buds it's like they begin applauding. It really is something in the soil that you taste and it's delicious.

Ok back to the Da Vinci is it a masterpiece or a flop?

The cork seems like it takes forever to get out of the bottle and not to sound barbaric but, i have to use my teeth to get it out that last little bit!!! Stupid wine opener. My parents are going to be pissed that i used my teeth considering they paid a lot for these Chiclets (my family calls my teeth)! But, the cork is finally out. That was the most physical activity I have done all day including going to work. I examined the cork and it was moist at the end just perfect. I poured that wine through my personal aerator(yup i got one what am I am amateur?) and watched as it in an orderly fashion filled my glass turning it from clear to a lovely plum color. And I don't know if it was the wine or the tear in my eye from excitement( because it has been such a long time) but it seemed like the wine sparkles in the light.

The scent seems like a deep blackberry with some oak and a bit of earth in there as well. Hey earthy is fine with me. We are all trying to be one with nature especially out here in LALA land so consider this my contribution.

The flavor is just as I had hoped it would be rich and tasty. It goes down easy leaving no bad aftertaste at all. It's one of those tastes that doesn't linger but fades evenly. I do taste a deep blackberry and also a cherry and some oak in there. Just a lovely combination that comes together in this bottle. Its not a complicated wine. It's simply delicious. Honestly, It lived up to the name. Nice Chianti to wash down a rich meal with. I'm not a meat eater but, if I was I'm thinking a good steak would taste just divine. If your a veggie person I'm going to try it with a lovely risotto creation and once my food coma wears off I'll brag on how delicious it was together.

I hope you guys get a chance to enjoy this wine as much as I did. At Trader Joe's you can find it for a mean $9.99. Not a bad price at all for me and I'm poor. So go grab that bottle put on some true Italian music, close your eyes and day dream to Tuscany. I'll meet you there for it's where I go in my dreams every night!

FINALLY!!!! Da Vinci 2008 Chianti - Jennifer's Review

Well, it has been quite the hiatus for the old wine blog, but we are back up and drinking!  Poor Lindsay was really sick for a good long while and was unable to drink with the illness and then the antibiotics.

So, the Da Vinci?  I had my eye on this wine for a few years, but because I am typically a cheapskate I never indulged.  When Lindsay recommended it I was glad and it was also, coincidentally, on sale this week at Jewel-double win!!!

I always follow the Wine Lover's Simple Tasting Form when I do my tastings.  You can find it here.

After uncorking and allowing the wine to breath for 5 seconds (normal recommended time would be 30 minutes, but it had been a long day so cut me some slack!)  I poured it into the glass and took a good look at the beautiful rich magenta color.  Even though it was a red wine, you could see that it had clarity and the light shone through the wine to reveal many shades of reddish purple when I held it up to the light in my kitchen.  The aroma was mostly oak, but if you sniffed real hard that slight bit of fruit could be detected.  The flavor of the wine very much matched the aroma in that the oak was the first to be tasted and that was followed by the fruit in the finish.  I really loved this wine, as I tend to prefer "earthy" reds.  The medium finish was just the right length, in my opinion and left me wanting that next sip.  My final grade, according to the Parker Scale, was a 91.25.  I would definitely recommend this wine and I will certainly purchase it again.

Let me clarify something

The top of our blog reads "A small gathering of family and friends that try and critique the same wine each week in different parts of the country."

Actually we don't critique the same wine each week. We try to critique the same (but) different wine each week. There are some favorite wines we probably critique (read drink) almost every week (see my "The Kris blog") but our goal is to also try a different wine each week which we all try to find in our respective neigborhoods.

Also, we don't all go to different parts of the country each week to drink either. We just happen to live all over the country and drink it in our personal environs.

I just didn't want anyone to think that in order to join our blog you had to drink the same wine every week and had to travel someplace in the US other than your home town to enjoy it. Although that woudn't be a bad thing either.

The Kris

I know I am a little late with this post but I picked the Kris so I guess I get some slack for that. I cannot tell you how many bottles of this I've bought and drank as my wife may check out this blog at some point in time. I've always found it consistently crisp, clean and fruity but not over sweet. I usually drink it when Iam cooking, sitting, standing, walking my dogs and somethines even with dinner and naturally there's always after dinner etc. I guess its now a staple in my wine cupboard and it should be in yours. Great with pasta vongole which I always have when I am cooking, sitting, standing and so on and so on.

"Are you ready for a throw down?" Clos Du Bois Double Take - 2006 & 2007 Cabs - Jennifer's Reviews

So, Lindsay picked the 2007 Clos Du Bois Cab and I sent Steve to the store and he brought me back the 2006 cab.  Never one to look a gift bottle in the month, I took the 2006 and set it aside to await the arrival of its friend, and soon to be adversary,  the 2007 cab for a back to back taste test throw down!  Being that I have the house to myself and it's snowing, sleeting and just plain nasty cold outside I thought that tonight was a good night.   So, being that I've barely eaten meat this month I went out, bought myself a nice steak and got down to business.

How did these competitors stand up?  At first sight when looking at them in the glasses you would take them for identical twins.  They both have a deep purple-ish red color which is totally dense and completely opaque in the glass, just like a nice bold red should.  In my opinion the aroma was also similar, but that was where the similarities sort of ended and the differences began.  The 2006 had plum notes that were a little stronger in the nose and a lot stronger (than the 2007) in the glass, while the 2007 has more of the oaky notes come through.  The 2007 was definitely more dry than the 2006, but they were both more dry than sweet.  The finish would be medium and it is pleasant and leaves you wanting that next sip.  I thought that even though both wines were different that they finished alike.  They were also very balanced (unlike me) and had a complexity that was approachable and not over done.

I found both wines to be excellent and very drinkable. Both wines ran me $14.99 in IL (which is more than my cheap a** usually spends on a bottle), but I know that Lindsay picked hers up for $11.00 or so out West.  If you are in the mood for a rich, bold red with a lot of complexity, then you can count on the Clos Du Bois family of cabs! There website is also pretty stellar. You can visit them at http://closdubois.com/ and check them out.  They sell their many vintages online and ship where ever it is legal.

Wow!  We have totally lucked out with some amazing wines these last few weeks.  I received a tip from my brother in law on am excellent  Chilean Pinot, so I will be heading to Costco this week to pick that up for our next tasting.  Now I am off to share my steak with my date for the evening, Miss Gigi.  So, in closing.  Please leave your comments, suggestions (unless they are for Franzia or jug-o-wine), etc.  We would love to hear from you!  Until we meet again, cheers!

"A Kris on the lips may be quite continental but a good wine is a girl's best friend!"

They say "never judge a book by its cover!" Well I take it a step further I say "Never judge a wine by its bottle" Just because the bottle is pretty doesn't mean the wine is going to be just as delicious. So I was at a loss because I found myself judging this bottle because of its screw top. What no cork? I just twist and there it is? I usually have to work for my flavor so this is weird. I didn't think it could be considered a "real wine". So now the stakes were high. Let's see how this one pans out. I haven't had a white in a while due to the fact that I usually alternate and for the past couple of months my lips have been craving a deep red wine. But, not one to turn wine away I thought let's get the glass and assess this situation.

Alrighty, the wine glass is prepped the bottle is chilled and my interest is peaked. So let's screw off that top and give this a swirl. The scent is a light fruity scent and not overly perfumed. For a white not having a strong scent is a great thing in my opinion. I have actually had some Pinot Grigio that smelled like and this is not a joke BUTTER! I like butter on my bread and not in my glass. So the smell of a light fruit was just divine in my opinion. The color of the Kris Pinot is a light blonde and very clear. So far this wine looks like a keeper so lets see if it tastes like one too.

OK again everything leads up to this moment. Is it too dry, too sour; does it kind of burn as it goes down the hatch? Well, the Kris Pinot Grigio is the perfect balance of flavor for a white. It isn't too dry at all and the flavor is soooooo smooth! I don't like drinking something that once you take a sip you make that face of whoa that was rough! that is just me though. This wine gave a smile to my taste buds. It is easy and delicious to drink! To some people having a wine that is easy to drink can be a negative to your wallet but a positive to your taste buds!!! But rest assured this wine runs about $11.00 at your local target so smile away!

This is the type of wine that is great for sharing and I think it would be great for those warm summer nights with spaghetti with clam sauce and good friends by your side.
I would absolutely recommend this wine to anyone who is looking for a delicious addition to their dinner.

So in conclusion my dear sweet readers if you like white wines give this one a try I guarantee you will not regret it! And don't be afraid of the screw top it is in fact a REAL WINE! So make a good light dish to eat and screw off the top of that bottle and enjoy. You will find relaxation if you follow my simple instructions of eat, pour, drink and repeat.

Until next week my dear friends may your glass stay full and your heart stay open to new wines!

Kris 2009 Pinot Grigio - Jennifer's Review

Well, this has been a long time in the making.  It took me soooo long to find this wine, due to Jewel not carrying it and then being snowed in by Snowmageddon, the 3rd largest blizzard in Chicago's history.  I have to say she was worth the wait!  The bottle art along is really appealing to me, although I know a pretty label does not a good wine make.

So, let's get down to business!  The wine is a beautiful color and brilliantly clear. The aroma hints of the citrus and floral notes in the wine and the flavor delivers!  You can taste the citrus and the floral, which are really well balanced for me.  The wine is dry, but not overly dry and the aftertaste is fast and leaves you wanting the next sip.  My overall impression was that my father did an excellent job selecting this wine.  I loved it!  It came out to an 87.5 on the Parker Scale, which seems even a little low for how much I liked it.  Definitely try this wine.  I think it cost around $11 or $12 at Target and it's well worth it!  Yum!  Until next time, cheers!

Oh, and please be sure to add you comments and tasting notes or make suggestions for future tastings!

"Is Michelle My Belle?"

I would like to start this blog with a quote from the head winemaker at the Chateau Ste Michelle Vineyards.
"Our goal with the Columbia Valley Cabernet is to highlight concentrated Washington red fruit in an accessible style. This is our inviting Cab with plenty of complexity and structure with silky tannins. It's also very versatile with food---try it with beef, pork or pasta."- Bob Bertheau Head Winemaker.

The pasta is cooking and I stare at this bottle of wine wondering what its soul has to tell. It's go time. Time to open that bottle and try it out. It was on sale for $11.00 at my local grocery store here in Hollywood. I opened the bottle and immediately let it breathe for about ten minutes. The clock just dragged for those ten minutes. They say " a watched pot doesn't boil" but my pasta water was boiling and still not ready to drink the damn wine! 8, 9, 10 Finally, I pour the wine through my Christmas present a dear friend bough me, A Vinturi wine aerator. If you enjoy red wine and want to taste good flavor of that wine, this is a very good purchase! I strongly recommend it.

The scent of this wine isn't necessarily strong but there were hints of deep fruit and oak. A very good blend for the nose I thought. The color was a nice burgundy in my opinion and quite clear! Ok that first sip. It swishes around in my mouth for a bit. The flavor was very well balanced and pleasant. It wasn't too dry and wasn't overpowering. It was enjoyable. There wasn't a bitter taste to it at all and it didn't even block my sinuses( which I have found some red wines have that affect on them). It was a very beautifully crafted wine in my opinion. So good in fact I had forgotten about the pasta in the pot and had to strain it immediately.

I thought the price was fitting for this wine! It's something that will be on my counter as a permanent fixture. Being a vegetarian myself I haven't had the luxury to try it with beef or pork. I guess i will leave that to the rest of my meat eating family. Not like I'll have to twist any arms. With a nice pasta it's the perfect addition. The bottle didn't last long in this household and if you enjoy wine(which I assume you do because except my mother why would you be reading a blog about wine?) it wont last long in yours either. It's delicious and goes down so easy!!!

So, I absolutely agree with the head wine maker's quote I started the blog with. Good job sir!!!!
A 97% on the Parker Scale isn't a sharp stick in the eye is it? Go out and give this wine a shot. And let me know what you think.

Until then my dears I raise a glass to you and wish you a relaxing day!

2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - Jennifer's Review

This week's pick was done by Lindsay and I have to commend her on a job well done!

I loved this wine.  It was complex, but not over the top.  It has a rich, deep, garnet color.  The aroma contained notes of both fruit and oak.  The taste matched the aroma.  You could taste both fruit and oak and the oak was just right, not too over powering.  It's exactly what you want in a cab.  The best part it is the after taste, it isn't over powering and actually leaves you wanting another sip.  I did my tasting sheet and gave this one a whopper 91.25 on the Parker Scale! 

The Ste. Michelle website is also pretty cool and so I've pasted the link here for you to check it out.  This is only one line of wines that they craft and I have to say I will surely be trying others in the future!
 Chateau Ste. Michelle Website

Well??????????????

What's the next pick? I am getting thirsty.

And the Oscar goes to?

Sharing wine between friends makes everything better. Sharing wine, friends and food makes everything seem for a moment perfect. At least that's how i feel when I'm surrounded by good friends good wine and good food.

I had high hopes for the wine of the week the Coppola Claret, i really did. I don't know what it was for me but with those high hopes might have been added because the price at the local grocery store by me was $21.00 yikes. I am not a high paying actress yet so yeah 21 bucks for wine is rough. However, if it is an amazing wine then you forget the dollar signs with ever sip until you have to pay your bills and you realize you're broke!!!! But, with all that said and done lets get back to the real reason of why I'm writing this blog ah yes the WINE!

I opened the bottle like any good Italian woman would and smelled the cork(which was stained a deep purple). I poured the wine into three different glasses(not just for me so mom don't worry) and had everyone taste. The color was a rich purple and flawless. I have never actually caught myself staring at the color of the wine in my glass before. Most of the time i worry about whether my glass is half full or half empty(depending on the mood of the day) or if my dad has mistakenly taken mine again! But, the color was beautiful. Flawless even. The aroma was a mixture of floral but not sweet floral just the smell of flowers and oak and i hate to say a bit of rubbing alcohol. Trust me i drank and smelled this wine on three different occasions just praying i was wrong but each time the same result.

So here goes the first sip. The smelling is over and for what I thought was a strong scented wine the flavor wasn't a match. It was rather BLAH. I don't know if it was blah because i was expecting a full bodied wine but it was just ehhh in my book. I am sorry but i am someone who enjoys a good full bodied wine once and awhile and it didn't add up it was a shock. I tried it three times just to be sure. Also, when i scored it by the scale my sister posted it did well. But, by the Lindsay taste bud test it scored a 70%. Trust me if there is anything i learned in my many years of school grades don't mean everything! Sorry old teachers but they just don't.

In conclusion, I don't believe for the price its something I will invest in again. I got a good flavorful red that's cheaper sitting on my counter that has been a favorite of mine for a while.

So better luck next week dear taste buds. Until then I guess there's nothing a little Frank and glass of old faithful cant fix. May you have a wonderful week.

Coppola Wines

I didn't try this wine because I tried one of Coppola's wine a couple years ago. It was a Zinfadel. I found it harsh and not really appealing and in retrospect, over priced.

Hopefully the next wine will be more appealing.

Coppola 2008 Claret - Jennifer's review

Well, after the Chicago Bears crushing loss to the Green Bay Packers I though I would drown my sorrows in this week's pick, the 2008 Francis Coppola (which I picked in honor of my sister, Lindsay, who is an aspiring actress in LA and the person who came up with the idea for this fun blog).   A bottle of the 2008 Claret runs about $12 at your local Costco retailer.  A claret is a Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine blended in a Bordeaux style.  The Bordeaux style blend, as I understand it, means that they have blended Cabernet sauvignon with Merlot along with varying percentages of Cabernet Frac, Petit Verdot and/or Malbec in an attempt to create a more complex, sophisticated and elegant wine.

I chose to decant it for about 30 minutes before drinking .  When we all were talking about how we would rate the wines my father, Jim, found http://www.wineloverspage.com/tastfrm1.htm that we could all use to have a common ground on which we would rate the wines.  I did use this form and found it to be helpful. 

So, for the taste test.  I thought that the wine looked great.  It was a nice deep red and didn't have any impurities.  I thought that the aroma was very woodsy/oaky that smell was the overwhelming smell that blocked out any fruit scent for me.  The flavor was full bodied and rich, as it should be, and the flavor definitely matched the aroma.  For my personal taste, it was a much heavier wine than I am accustomed to drinking.  The aftertaste was also very strong, which I didn't care for.  My overall impression was that it was average.  It wasn't terrible, by any means, but it lacked complexity and was some what single note to me.  On the Parker Scale my ratings came out to an 80.  I would recommend this wine to anyone that loves rich, earthy reds.  Would I buy it again, maybe.  I would have to be in the mood for it.  It isn't a wine I would drink all the time.

Until next week, cheers!

It all started with a Resolution

Many New Year's go by and you make those fake promises to yourself like "I'm going to lose two dress sizes,'' or "I'm going to be a bigger and better business person" or even my personal favorite, "I'm going to meet the person of my dreams this year." Instead of making a New Year's Resolution, my idea was to not make one. Plain and simple, and I couldn't fail at that, could I? Well I did, and its not even February. So way to go me!

I failed because a dear friend of mine suggested to me what just might be the best resolution I've ever heard. She said this year our resolution should be to try ever single wine located in the wine aisle of our local grocery store. Brilliant!!!! What a great idea. This combines two of my favorite hobbies: drinking wine and shopping. Done! While brainstorming a little bit more looking up and down the aisle I realized I haven't even tried a fraction of what's out there. I'm pretty sure not many people have. Because you find something you like you stick with it. Also with the economy the way it is, spending money on a good bottle of win is tough. You don't want to buy a piece of shit bottle of wine for cheap, but you also don't want to spend twenty dollars of your hard earned money on something that might taste like shit too.

So this is where the Idea came from two poor ladies in love with wine who choose to broaden their horizons on the good, the bad and the overpriced.

So here's the concept: four people(no real names) go out and buy a different wine every week, taste it and give their opinions. We write the blogs, taste the wine and share what we think goes best with it if we like it, ect ect ect. Simple, delicious and just plain fun.

Now, for the readers I cannot stress this enough. This is just a matter of opinion. We are not doing this to hurt any vineyards feelings or shut companies down. This is just for fun and maybe will help those looking for a decently priced bottle of win. That's it! Also, each person is going to have their own opinion about the wine. Not every one's taste buds are the same so not every one's critique is going to be the same. If you want to go out and try a wine, do it and send us your opinion. This is just something nice to bring the loved ones together in spirit(or spirits,literally) while they are separated by states!!