A rather random post

Due to the demands of work i have compiled the best random wines from the past few weeks into one easy to digest post. Enjoy!

Budget Price, Big Flavor

Prinz von Hessen riesling, Rheingau Germany, 2005, 12 or so dollars US
If you see this Riesling, buy it. In fact don’t even read the rest of this post, just click this link and buy it. This isn’t the best riesling in the world, but I am hard pressed to find a better value. It has the big floral, citrus, petrol notes of rieslings two or three times its price. This wine is good when you simply hope for drinkable. A cheap wine that will compliment any number of rich fall dishes.

Faux Ami

Domaine Belliviere Rouge-Gorge Pineau d’Aunis, 2005, 22 dollars US

i think it is important as wine consumers to try as many offbeat wines as possible, and to this end there are few wines i will not try if the name sounds strange enough. This next fits this description perfectly, being as it’s from a grape that was last popular in the 15th century, pineau d’aunis (not a misspelling, it just sounds like pinot).
Coming from the Coteaux de Loir appelation (no misspelling here, just a different, smaller, river, one i imagine has a bit of an inferiority complex) north of Tours this wine has all the makings of “rustic” which is generally a code used for “crap i thought was good on vacation and accidentally bought too much of.” Medium bodied and slightly spicy this wine escapes that unfortunate denomination and opens itself as a rather balanced wine that is perfect with light, spicy pasta. For more info on the appelation go here, to buy go here

Wine taste only seems gendered

It can be said without much argument from me that my favorite wines are whites from germany and Austria. My wife will often look at me when she is picking out a wine and wonder aloud why it is that we have almost no reds to speak of, but 10 bottles of Gruner (I tell her that’s her problem, i buy what i like). Now this would seem to reverse the standard gendered wine palate, but hey, 2008. one of the interesting things that has come out of my fascination with teutonic whites is the nonsensical attraction of mine to reds from the same country, despite popular evidence that i should stay away, and prices that say definitely stay away. Still, how could i possibly say no to a grape variety known as St. Laurent? This wine is a medium bodied red, not too tannic, with some light berry notes. This is the perfect wine to kick back with a small roast chicken and, uh, think of nights in Vienna (i made this last part up, i was in Vienna when i was 13). Purchase here.

What to listen to: You’re favorite mixtape, or just google Santogold X Diplo
What to eat: Squash soup with bacon for the riesling (or bacon substitute for the vegans), penne arrabiata for the Pineau, and Roast Chicken with the St. Laurent. Or just do a dinner party with all three. Stands to reason.

~ by Cory Cartwright on September 5, 2008.