Wines I'm Drinking: 2009 La Ronescina Collio Pinot Grigio

Having not long ago tasted all the Pinot Grigio wines on offer at my local Trader Joe's, I felt it my duty to try this wine, which has appeared since then. This comes from Collio (which means hills) in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region in the northeast corner of Italy (the area includes Venice). Most Italian Pinot Grigio comes from this general area, but often the best are from Collio. I liked none of the Pinot Grigio wines from Trader Joe's I tasted before--they were uniformly bland. I had higher hopes for this one. Tasting notes follow.

A typical, very pale straw color, pretty in a well-chilled glass. Melon and sappy scents on the nose. A hint of lime. A suggestion of toasted grain. A little honey perhaps. Overall, fairly fresh and attractive. Quite tart on the palate with some fruity sweetness on the mid-palate followed again by a rush of tartness and then a delicate lingering finish with hints of nuts and an attractive slight bitterness at the very end. A trifle too tart perhaps, but at least this has some flavor and it's clean and refreshing with a little nuance. Likely to be good with foods that need to be offset by something with an acidic bite. Probably excellent as an aperitif on a hot summer night. Not complex or profound, but quite acceptable light summer wine. A cut above nearly all the wines I tasted in the first bunch from Trader Joe's, where this costs $6.99 a bottle.

I have no financial connection with any producer or retailer of wine. 

For more wine reviews, use the Wines I'm Drinking label.

Wines I'm Drinking: 2008 Lockwood Vineyards Monterey County Syrah

At Trader Joe's recently I was approached by the wine buyer who asked if I needed any help. I didn't really, but I always answer that question the same way--by asking if  anything new has the buyer excited. He singled out this wine. I told him I generally wasn't a fan of California Syrah (often it's too fruity, too alcoholic, and too expensive--there are exceptions, of course; I recently had a very good 2005 Syrah from Balleto Ranch, for instance). In response, he suggested this one was atypical. I was sold when he said it was redolent (my word, not his) of violets. I'm a sucker for violets.

Well, I tried the wine. No violets that I could detect--none of that Southern Rhône velvet quality I was hoping for, and I don't think I'd buy this wine again, but I'll admit it was different and interesting--if not entirely satisfying. It was a deep purple-red, but not the inky purple-black that Syrah sometimes is. It looked appropriately young for a wine going on three years old. It had a fresh, grapey nose, but beyond that nothing I could really single out, at least at first. There was a hint of the typical Syrah pepper scent, but just a hint.

Most interesting, perhaps, was the texture of the wine. While it was fairly fruity and had a noticeable fruity sweetness on the finish, it seemed "chewy," with lingering, grainy tannins, and a low acid profile that gave the whole package something of the feel of cocoa in the mouth. I even suspected sediment, but I decanted the wine and didn't really find any. In the course of drinking a glass or two, the wine acquired a little more presence on the nose. My notes include "sandalwood," "chocolate cherries," "leather," "incense," "ladanum," and "boysenberry," but each of these words is followed by a question mark. A very difficult wine to describe. As I say, I can't exactly call the 2008 Lockwood Vineyards Syrah satisfying--it was too low in acidity to seem really vibrant to me and it somehow lacked focus--but, I think it worth tasting at least once, and, at only $5.99 a bottle at Trader Joe's, it's reasonably priced.

I have no financial or other connections with any producer or retailer of wine. For more wine reviews, use the "Wines I'm Drinking" label at top right

Wines I'm Drinking: Six Inexpensive Wines from Spain (Jan. 2011)

Trader Joe's has quite a few inexpensive Spanish wines at the moment. I wanted to know if any of them are good values, so I picked six to taste blind. There were two stand-outs--one costing a mere $3.99, the other only $4.99. These are not great wines by any means, but they're solid everyday wines at very attractive prices. The wines I tasted were all made from Tempranillo or Garnacha (the local name for Grenache), or from a blend of the two grapes. With one exception--a Rioja wine--they were from Calatayud, Carineña, or Yecla, all south and east of Rioja (Yecla considerably to the south). The wines were very young, all from 2009, with one exception (2008). The most expensive was only $5.99. Brief tasting notes follow.

• 2008 Condesa de Sarabella Calatayud Garnacha
• 2009 La Granja 360 Cariñena Tempranillo/Garnacha
• 2009 La Granja 360 Cariñena Tempranillo
• 2009 Marques de Montaña Calatayud Garnacha
• 2009 Bodegas Darien "Darien" Rioja Tempranillo
• 2009 Terrenal Yecla Tempranillo

2008 Condesa de Sarabella Calatayud Garnacha
According to the labels, this wine and the following three were all made by the same producer, despite the different brand names. They are quite different wines, however. The Condesa de Sarabella was a medium red with a hint of garnet in it, the palest of the six wines. It had an attractive nose, suggestive of cranberries and vanilla and under-ripe plums. Later it began to suggest something smoky along with coffee, and roasted grain. Later still, the nose began to shift in the direction of leather. On the palate, the wine was rather tart, but not unappealing, although there wasn't a lot of fruit apparent at first. Despite some grainy tannins on the mid-palate, the wine overall seemed light, short, and tart. With a little time, it gained more balance. While it remained rather too sour for my taste, it at least gained some redeeming fruitiness and a little more structure after sitting for about an hour. Acceptable everyday wine and not the worst of the lot (initially this seemed fairly interesting, but over time some of the other wines opened enough to eclipse my initial impressions of this one; see below), but I probably wouldn't buy this again. Reasonably priced at $4.99 at Trader Joe's Santa Rosa.

2009 La Granja 360 Cariñena Tempranillo/Garnacha
This was my favorite wine of the group initially, by a small margin (at first, all the wines seemed rather disappointingly thin and sour), but this really improved as it got some air. By the end of the tasting (and tasting the wines again the following day), it had blossomed, acquiring tasty black cherry flavors and a depth not at first apparent. The wine was a comparatively deep blackish purple-red. It had some floral scents and hints of vanilla at first, but was less fruity on the nose than the wine above, and, although  there were some nice coffee, chocolate, and plum notes soon afterward, the wine seemed quite closed at first. Tasting the wine, it had a bright, fruity attack, and there were some attractive coffee flavors on a moderately long, slightly astringent finish. The La Granja Tempranillo/Garnacha had noticeably more body than the above wine. Again, this wine changed most dramatically with air and time in the glass. In the end, I thought it the best of the group. Light and a trifle tart, but not without some complexity. Recommended for everyday drinking. If you buy it, consider keeping a few bottles back for a couple of years. If you drink it now, decant it and let it sit at least an hour or so before you try it. Look for the bi-colored (red and black) zebra on the label. (Don't ask me.)  $4.99 at Trader Joe's.

2009 La Granja 360 Cariñena Tempranillo
Much the same as the above wine in terms of color, but rather more distant on the nose than either of the first two wines. A hint of cucumbers, perhaps? Tannic, masked fruit on the palate. Seems short, thin, and tart. Not very interesting. Slightly astringent finish. With time, the wine gained a little fruity sweetness, but ultimately seemed unacceptably light. Not recommended. This wine has a pig on the label. (Don't ask me.) $3.99 at Trader Joe's.

2009 Marques de Montaña Calatayud Garnacha
A medium to deep purple-red, this wine was fairly nondescript on the nose, but what I did detect was different from any of the other wines. The initial impression was cola, but there were also light vanilla and wood scents and something vaguely suggestive of citrus. The wine was light and quite tart on the palate, with no real grip. It was rather short and had a slightly bitter finish. Although it gained a bit of presence with some time and air exposure, it remained quite tart and seemingly insubstantial even after standing open for several hours. Not recommended. $4.99 at Trader Joe's.

2009 Bodegas Darien "Darien" Rioja Tempranillo
A medium to deep purple-red, with light berry scents on the nose. Again, quite closed at first, although there were some suggestions of wood and vanilla. Despite the rather distant nose, the wine had markedly more fruitiness on the nose than either of the above two wines, with hints of cola and chocolate as well. Moderate length with light, fine-grained tannins. With a little time and air exposure, this wine began to show some earthiness. Something about it put me in mind of roots and fresh soil. Later there were hints of chocolate. Overall, not a bad wine. Quite acceptable for everyday drinking. Although this is the most expensive of the six wines, at $5.99, it's not overpriced. Like some of the other wines in this group, I suspect this would repay a bit of cellaring, but I preferred both the La Granja 360 Tempranillo/Garnacha and the following wine.

2009 Terrenal Yecla Tempranillo
A medium-dark red with considerably less purple in it than most of the other wines. Light, floral scents. There was something perfumed about the nose. There were hints of paper, wood, and white pepper. Overall, the nose was fairly closed, but it opened up appreciably with time. Initially, the wine had some rather woody flavors, suggesting something medicinal—which is not to say unattractive. Moderate to good length and with more fruity sweetness and less acidity than most of the other wines in this group. In other words, this had rather more balance. Over time, the balance seemed to improve further, with the tannins becoming more forward, giving the wine noticeably more grip than it had at first. I enjoyed this one from the outset, and it continued to improve. Ultimately, it was my second-favorite wine of the evening. It has a rather more European flavor profile than many American wine consumers are likely to find attractive, I suspect—the tannins are more prominent, the fruit more subtle and less ripe than a typical California wine, for example—but this had a poise lacking in most of the others. Recommended for everyday drinking. Again, however, I highly recommend decanting this wine or cellaring it for a bit or it's likely to seem rather hard and ungenerous. Give it time. All of the six wines were markedly better after air exposure, lending support to the notion that inexpensive wines often benefit most from decanting. A very good value at only $3.99 at Trader Joe's.

Wines I'm drinking: 2005 Bodegas Gran Ducay "Monte Ducay" Cariñena Reserva

I recently tasted the 2005 Bodegas Gran Ducay "Monte Ducay" Cariñena Reserva from Trader Joe's. Although not indicated on the label, I suspect this is made mostly from Tempranillo, probably with some Grenache thrown in. It comes from Cariñena, one of the four Denominación de Origen wine growing regions in Aragon, in northeast Spain. Cariñena was originally known for its native grape of the same name, although we more commonly see the French spelling, Carignan (or Carignane in the US; confusingly, the locals often call it Mazuelo), but today Tempranillo, Grenache, and other grapes appear to be grown more widely here. Traditionally Cariñena made rough, highly alcoholic red wines mostly for blending, but a switch to better grape varieties, lower alcohol levels, and modern equipment has resulted in lighter, fruitier wines more suited to modern palates. This wine is a good example of the modern style. It comes unusually packaged, the entire bottle wrapped in paper. Tasting notes follow.

The wine was a medium blackish-red color, not really showing much age but without any of the purple hues of a young wine either. Bright, cassis-scented nose with hints of vanilla suggestive of aging in American oak. Generally, a fresh, attractive nose, if not highly distinctive in any way. Later there was a hint of cloves. Light but balanced on the palate. Good acidity with a rush of fruity sweetness on the mid-palate, balanced by fine-grained tannins. Overall the impression the wine gave was a trifle rough, but appealing. Light, fruity, tasty, and with a buttery quality on a moderately long finish. Good everyday wine and an excellent value at $5.99 at Trader Joe's.

Wines I'm Drinking: Pinot Egregio?

Last night I tasted all seven of the Pinot Grigio wines currently available at my Trader Joe's (Santa Rosa, CA). I don't normally drink Pinot Grigio much, but I was interested to see the wines were priced between $3.99 and $6.99 a bottle (mostly $3.99) except one--which was $19.99. I wanted to know if the expensive wine, the 2009 Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, was worth the money. I'm the curious sort. As usual, I tasted the wines blind. All seven were from Italy, mostly from the area around Venice. All were from the 2009 vintage. The wines I tasted were:

• 2009 Gaetano D'Aquino Pinot Grigio delle Venezie
• 2009 Santa Margherita Valdadige Pinot Grigio 
• 2009 Contadino "Vivace" Pinot Grigio delle Venezie
• 2009 Mezzacorona Vigneti delle Dolomiti Pinot Grigio 
• 2009 Contadino Pinot Grigio delle Venezie
• 2009 Villa Borghetti "Grigio Luna" Pinot Grigio delle Venezie
• 2009 Villa Sonia Pinot Grigio Piave

Tasting notes follow:

2009 Gaetano D'Aquino Pinot Grigio delle Venezie ($3.99 at Trader Joe's)

In ripe years, this producer is responsible for some decent, very inexpensive Chianti Classico wines, also available at Trader Joe's. The Gaetano D'Aquino Pinot Grigio was a very pale straw color. The nose offered very little. There was a hint of pears at first but not a lot else. Later the nose seemed simply grapey with nothing distinctive about it. The wine was clean and tart and rather thin. Not a lot of flavor. Although it was a trifle sweeter on the mid-palate, it mostly tasted like water with a few lemon slices thrown in. Perhaps a suggestion of almonds? Not unpleasant, but of no special interest. 

2009 Santa Margherita Valdadige Pinot Grigio ($19.99 at Trader Joe's)

Very pale gold. Distant caramel scents but little else at first. A hint of almonds and some musky scents later. A little more complex than the first wine, but generally similar. Somewhat drier but mostly tastes like lemon water. Only moderate body and flavor. Why does this wine cost so much more than the others? 

2009 Contadino "Vivace" Pinot Grigio delle Venezie ($4.99 at Trader Joe's)

It was obvious from the outset which wine this was because it's made with a little fizz in it and the bubbles were apparent. None of the other wines had any fizz.Very pale gold. Tiny bubbles. Has the scent of grain or toasted grain. Apricots perhaps? A little sweet, so more body than the first two wines, but no more flavor. Somewhat heavy and quickly tires the palate. Otherwise a rather dull wine with little to recommend it. Might be attractive very well chilled on a hot summer day, but there are better wines for that purpose.

2009 Mezzacorona Vigneti delle Dolomiti Pinot Grigio ($6.99 at Trader Joe's)

This was one of the better wines of the bunch. Again, a pale gold. Slightly toasted scent. More fruit than most of the other wines. Citrus flavors. Lemony, but still not very much on the nose or on the palate. Perfectly drinkable and probably my favorite of the group, but probably not sufficiently interesting to make me want to go back for more--although I might. 

2009 Contadino Pinot Grigio delle Venezie ($3.99 at Trader Joe's)

Pale gold. Again suggestive of apricots and roasted grain. Distant suggestion of hazelnuts perhaps? Flat compared with some of the other wines (less acidity). A tad sweeter than the first two wines, but less sweetness than the second pair (above), but all seven of the wines were quite dry, with the Vivace wine  and perhaps the Villa Sonia wine most noticeably with a little residual sugar. Ultimately, just plain, uninspiring wine. Little scent, little flavor.

2009 Villa Borghetti "Grigio Luna" Pinot Grigio delle Venezie ($4.99 at Trader Joe's)

Palest in color of the seven wines. Distant lemon scents. very closed. Almost no scent at all. Seemed more alcoholic than most of the others (but that was an illusion: they were all 12% or 12.5% alcohol). Seemed the driest of the bunch as well. Mineral hints on the palate. Good, peppy acidity. This was one of the better wines, I thought, but still thin and rather bland.

2009 Villa Sonia Pinot Grigio Piave ($5.99 at Trader Joe's)

Pale gold. The only wine in the group that had any sort of a nose to it. Really stood out by comparison. Strong floral scents. Nectarines. Roses? Suggestive of a Viognier wine. Similar on the palate. Some peachy, nectarine, apricot flavors. A bit longer than some of the others. Actually has a little body to it. Slight interesting bitterness on the finish. At least it has a finish. While this stood out, it was mostly by comparison. The wine was a bit sweet, fairly one-dimensional, and thin. This has some immediate appeal but it's the sort of wine that's easy to quickly tire of. If you like an easy, slightly sweet ,very light white wine for sipping, however, it's likely to appeal.

In conclusion, I wouldn't write off Pinot Grigio entirely, as it's sometimes tempting to do. Collio in Italy makes some of the best--notably the wines of Livio Felluga (I noticed recently that the new Santa Rosa Whole Foods has the Livio Felluga Collio Pinot Grigio). There are good examples coming out of Oregon and Washington State. Having said that, none of the wines reviewed here is much of a recommendation for the grape. Not only was the Santa Margherita wine little better than the others, none of the wines was especially interesting. The best I've had recently is probably the 2008 Villa Teresa Pinot Grigio they've been pouring at Café Della Stelle, in San Francisco. Pinot Grigio can, in fact, be excellent.

For more wine reviews, use the Wines I'm Drinking label above. 

Wines I'm Drinking: Four Wines from Tuscany

Last night I tasted four red wines from Tuscany--three bottles of Chianti Classico and a Brunello di Montalcino--from Trader Joe's. I tasted the wines blind. They ranged in price from $8.99 to $19.99 (the Brunello). While $19.99 is an excellent price for any decent Brunello these days, I was curious to see whether it really stood out in a blind tasting. Notes follow:

2005 Incanta Chianti Classico Riserva
Medium deep brownish red with good color to the rim. Scents of wood, prunes, nutmeg, and orange rind. Tannic at first, with moderate fruit. Woody mid-palate. Fruit drops away fairly quickly. Finish is a bit tart with fine-grained tannins lingering. Comparatively long with some interesting brandy-like flavors on the end. After opening up a little, the tannins softened, but there wasn't a lot of fruit behind them. Bright, fresh acidity makes this easy to drink, but it doesn't have a lot of depth. Perfectly acceptable everyday wine, but the same can be had for less money. $9.99 at Trader Joe's.

2006 Lamole di Lamole Chianti Classico
Medium deep brownish red. Color a bit less intense than in the first wine. Interesting nose. Wood, nutmeg again and something that put me in mind of women's makeup--stage pancake, perhaps--which is an odd association, but there it is. Noticeably richer on the palate than the first wine. Attractive sweet, ripe fruit. Light tannins. Round. Tasty right off the bat. Well integrated flavors. Not a powerful wine, but immediately appealing with delicate, lingering, woody flavors. Delicate but with a decent balance of fruity sweetness, soft tannins, and acidity. This turned out to be my favorite wine of the four. As it's half the price of the Brunello (which I also liked), I went back for more of this. I don't know if it will improve much with time (I'll reserve at least one bottle for a few years), but tasty for immediate consumption. $9.99 at Trader Joe's. Recommended.

2007 Il Tarocco Chianti Classico
Color again very similar to the first two wines, but somewhat deeper. Had some "off" scents. Smelled of iodine and musty paper. The wine was slightly corked. I took it back for a replacement. The second bottle was fine. Mostly scents of leather with something a bit musky as well. Hints of prunes. Something was suggestive of sour hard candies, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Sour plums, maybe? Initial impression on the palate was tartness with some woody flavors. The mid-palate was more attractive, but overall the wine seemed somewhat short and austere with dry, woody flavors predominant. Remained fairly tannic even after quite a bit of time open to the air. Not unpleasant in any way, but not an especially generous wine. Acceptable for everyday drinking, but this was the least attractive of the four wines in my view. It's well worth spending the extra dollar for the Lamole di Lamole wine. $8.99 at Trader Joe's. [Update: This showed much better the following day, suggesting it might be worth tucking away a bottle or two for a few years.]

2003 Bonacchi Brunello di Montalcino
I was excited to find this. Brunello is one of my favorite wines (I have very fond memories of the 1985 Lisini Brunello, among others. Ahh, those were the days...). To get a good Brunello today usually requires spending anywhere from about $45 to $85, so $19.99 looks very attractive (for my local readers, the best selection of Brunello is usually at Traverso's, which has moved from its downtown Santa Rosa location to a new store off Fountaingrove). The wine was tasty, but I wouldn't say it was anything like twice as good as the Lamole di Lamole wine. On taste alone, I'd have chosen this as the best of the group, but in terms of cost performance it was a disappointment even though it's undeniably inexpensive for a Brunello.

The Brunello was very similar in color to the other wines, although a bit deeper in hue and more garnet. Attractive "dark," musky scents laced with prunes, plums, and nutmeg again. At first seems tart and woody, but has a good mid-palate with ripe fruit and an extended, dry, finish marked by attractive, delicate tannins. Has some finesse. Fairly tight. This will need a little more time to be at its best, perhaps. The wine kept evolving over the course of the tasting, however, which is always a good sign. Later it seemed softer, with scents of leather and meat developing. While this is tasty, well made wine, it was not as exciting as I was hoping. Probably fairly priced at $19.99 at Trader Joe's, but, as noted above, the Lamole di Lamole Chianti Classico was nearly as good and half the price.

For many more wine reviews, use the "Wines I'm Drinking" tab on the right.

Food I'm Eating: The Great Yogurt Taste-off: Part III (The Yogurts--Continued)

I tasted four more vanilla yogurts today. If you want to know what prompted all this yogurt tasting, see the Introduction.

Voskos Greek Nonfat Vanilla Yogurt

($1.29 for a 5.3 oz. container, or $0.24 an ounce, 0% milkfat, 17 grams sugars, 45mg sodium)

Pale in color with a slightly runny appearance, but quite thick and creamy when stirred up. Nothing to stir up from the bottom. Vanilla specs throughout. Good vanilla scent, but also a sour yogurt scent. Good texture. Not tart but has a noticeable yogurt tang. Comes across as neither sweet nor sour. Moderate vanilla flavor. A compromise between the sweet and sour schools of yogurt making. Sweetened with cane sugar. Comparatively expensive, but among the better yogurts in the tasting, in my view.

Trader Joe's Organic Lowfat Vanilla Yogurt

($0.99 for a 6 oz. container, or $0.17 an ounce, 1.5% milkfat, 22 grams sugars, 75mg sodium)

Pale in color, but rich with vanilla specs. Not especially runny or thick--somewhere in the middle. Rather distant vanilla scent. Hints of yogurt sourness, but not very heavily scented, which doesn't prepare you for the rather full and decadent flavor. Sweet, creamy, rich. Strong vanilla flavor. This is on the sweet side, which usually isn't my preference, but I liked it. At 22 grams of sugar (cane sugar) this had less sugar than some of the yogurts I tasted (as much as 33 grams) but for some reason it tasted sweeter than some of the others. It may have something to do with the sodium levels, which, unfortunately, I didn't pay attention to in the first batch I compared. Sodium has ranged from 45mg to 110mg in the yogurts I have checked, putting this one in the middle of that range. While The Trader Joe's Organic Low-fat Vanilla lacks any discernible yogurt tartness, it was the tastiest of the sweeter examples. At $0.99 for a 6 oz. container, it is also in the middle of the range price-wise (the range of prices has been $0.40 to $2.39 for a 5-6 oz. container).  

Clover Organic Vanilla Bean Lowfat Yogurt

($1.18 for a 6 oz. container, or $0.18 an ounce, 1.5% milkfat, 16 grams sugars, 110mg sodium)

Solid rather than liquid. Pale, with no flecks of vanilla. Scents of both vanilla and yogurt. Thick, slightly cheesy graininess, but nice creamy texture when well stirred. Much less sweet than the others in this group, but not a lot of yogurt tang either and comparatively little vanilla flavor. Somehow this is tasty but doesn't have any especially notable characteristics. Good solid yogurt, but not a standout. Sweetened with cane sugar. 

Weight Watcher's Nonfat Vanilla Yogurt

($0.89 for a 6 oz. container, or $0.15 an ounce, 0% milkfat, 12 grams sugars, 110mg sodium)

This is the only yogurt I left unfinished. It had an odd and persistent saccharine-like aftertaste, although there are no artificial sweeteners in this. It is sweetened with crystalline fructose and inulin. Inulins, I see, are a group of polysaccharides that occur naturally in many plants. The inulin may have been the source of the taste. Otherwise, the WW yogurt was very pale and slightly gelatinous with nothing to stir up from the bottom. There was a pronounced vanilla scent. It was medium-thick when stirred. Very strongly flavored--giving a strong impression of sweetness, despite only 12 grams of sugar, but I suspect the inulin isn't included in that number. Any yogurt flavors there may have been were effectively masked by the sweetness.

[The Great Yogurt Taste-off Part IV (More yogurts)]