From the Cellar

Giesta 2012 Dao (Portugal)

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Category: Uncorked Tonight

(December 21, 2014) ... I was very excited to go to the States for Christmas this year, sure I get to see family, spend time with the in-laws, and witness the joy on faces as gifts are exchanged (even if they're not what we thought they would be, right Curtis?).  But the other reason for my excitement was Virgin Wine Club, I joined in November and because I live in Canada I sent it to my in-laws' house, and the box of 15 wines had arrived safely with no muss, no fuss ... So I got to try wines that aren't even available here in Ontario.  Tonight's first bottle out of the case was from Portugal:  Giesta 2012 Dao, a blend of three grapes: Jaen 23%, Touriga Nacional 32% and Tinta Roriz 45%.  After the long drive it was nice to have a simple wine that delivered lots of lovely flavors.  Plum, sour cherry, a touch of cranberry, along with a bitter/ sour raspberry on the finish.  There's a nice freshness and good acidity to the wine, it came across as young fresh and quite easy to drink.  As mentioned, this was the first bottle from my Virgin Wine Club (VWC) selections and it proved to be a great introduction to the club as it was a lovely bottle of drink now wine ... Really enjoyed this one ... More wines from my VWC experiment to come over the next few days.

The Neighbors, Dinner & Drinks (Chile / France)

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Category: Uncorked Tonight

(December 20, 2014) ... We had our neighbors come over for dinner tonight and I pulled a few interesting wines out of the cellar to try for the occasion: a Chilean and two French.  Kicking things off I opened an Odfjell Vineyards 2002 Armador Cabernet Sauvignon, this was the Chilean wine of the evening.  For a twelve year old wine it held up rather nicely with its aromas of smoked-plum and cinnamon followed by a palate of dried dark fruit and backed by woody notes and decent spice ... The finish proved to be long and woodsy, but still rather enjoyable.

For my first French wine of the evening I grabbed out a Sasha Lichine 2006 Le Coq Rouge, a blend of Syrah (40), Cabernet Sauvignon (33), Merlot (23) and Grenache (4) ... When I tried it years ago it seemed like a simple wine and was probably meant for drinking sooner rather than later ... But the ensuing 8 years from vintage date has not hurt it at all.  The nose is subtle with red berries, while the palate has white pepper, black raspberry, and black cherry - not at all what I expected but pleasantly surprised.  The opposite can be said for my next wine, I had high hopes for the Domaine Magellan 2005 Vieilles Vignes, Syrah-Grenache, but what I got was a wine that delivered spicy alcoholic notes from beginning to end, and it just never seemed to get out of that zone ... Disappointing to say the least.  I'm not allowed to bad-mouth closures anymore so I won't mention the plastic cork.