Beringer 2009 California Collection Pinot Grigio - $4.99 Everywhere

Hit up this cheap vino for only $4.99 a bottle practically anywhere. I think they even sell it at dry cleaners. Sharp acid, strong citrus fruit (white grapefruit topped with sugar), great lemongrass backend, and a low alcohol content (only about 11%) make this the perfect Christmas lunch wine. Just as the sun starts hanging high and the most depressing start of the year inches ever-closer, pop this puppy open and smile knowing you spent the same amount on weird Uncle Mort’s Christmas present.

Estancia Zinfandel 2007 – $8.99 to $10.99 in Grocery Stores

No American holiday would be complete without a solid, cheap Zinfandel. The not as commonly found in 7-Elevens, the Estancia Zinfandel can be found in most grocery stores. This baby brings a powerful blast of ripe cherries, chocolate sauce and some stiff herb action (heh-heh) on the palate, leading to a slightly acidic but long finish. Much longer than I’m used to for a Zin under $10. Definitely pair this with either the ham or prime rib. Might be a bit too robust for the turkey, but if you’re like me on the holidays, your tastebuds will be destroyed long before the sun goes down.

Have a safe and Merry Christmas!

Cheers!

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This is the first of a two-parter (duh) because I wanted to break up my Christmas wine suggestions according to the major parts of the big day: Afternoon and evening.

Now, this may seem a bit unorthodox (neé alcoholic), but it’s the Christmas. The family has gathered, everyone is worried about that weird uncle or the asshole sibling, your grandmother forgot to put on pants, and all the kids are puking and hate their presents. Nothing helps complement such blatant joy better than cheap wine, amiright?

Picture this: Your alarm rings in the morning (why are we still forced to set alarms on Christmas-effing-morning?), you roll out of bed, down the hall, stop at the bathroom, then head out to the family room where everyone has already conspired against you, leaving you with nowhere to sit but the floor. You can see a pathetically small pile of gifts sitting behind the pajama-ed feet of your nieces and nephews, all of whom have dried snot and boogers crusting their faces (What is it with kids under 10? Do they not know how to work a mirror? You stare at it, stupid.) Someone forgot to make coffee, all there is to eat is cold bread and mustard, and it’s raining out. In short, Christmas morning sucks.

That’s why you need to look forward to finally reaching the socially-acceptable drinking time: Afternoon.

So here are two wines perfect for Christmas afternoon while that bird or ham is in the oven bubbling away.

Chateau Ballan-Larquette Bordeaux Blanc 2009

A beautiful white effort by this awesome producer. Their Chateau Ballan-Larquette Rose is a contender for our Best Wine of 2010. The Bordeaux Blanc is 50% Sauvignon Blanc and 50% Semillon.

Color

Wonderful, bright color with a nice green shade to it. Looks quenching.

Nose

Fresh, crisp, with the scents of herb fields in France: Rosemary, lavender, thyme, and a shot of sweet grass.

Taste

A long, delicious wine. Firm citrus acidity balances out the delicious tart apple and lemon peel. Great backbone to this and it does not let up. Crisp and sharp like cut steel, but it’s not pummeling or puckering you. It’s just right for that cheese plate (or-God help you-cheeseball) or salty appetizer before the main Christmas meal. Delicious.

Where to Buy

$9.99 at BevMo.com!

Little Penguin Pinot Noir 2010

A 2010 already you might say? And red? Well, yes, in fact. While just born, this little baby is delicious and worth more than it’s asking price of $6.99. And it’s from Australia.

Color

Light red with some hints of garnet. Just as a Pinot should look.

Nose

Weak, tight, some sense of red fruit but nothing really present, though I did detect a bit of cocoa for some reason. All this was expected drinking a 2010 already released.

Taste

Ok, so the wine may have a weak nose, but I have to say that I found it delicious. Strawberry, a bit of mint, and some delicious acid. The wine, for some reason, has balance. It’s not too firm or too weak and by all respects, a 2010 should taste like bitter grape juice right now, forget about a 2010 under $10. Still the wine has promise and though it disappears quickly on the finish, it’s worth it’s price.

Where to Buy

$6.99 at BevMo.com!

That’s it gang. Look for Part 2 tomorrow for suggestions on what to have during one of the most depressing parts of the year: The end of Christmas Day.

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Many wine lovers are often put off by Kosher wine. They see “Kosher” or recognize a Kosher label and immediately assume that the wine is of a lower quality or will simply be heavily sweetened. This is simply not true. When you step back and look at the process of Kosher wine making, you will see that there is really not much difference in technique compared to non-Kosher producers. Try to think of Kosher wine as Vegan wine, which means a wine produced with absolutely no animal ingredients such as isinglass or gelatin, products used to fine or clarify wine. Kosher wine making processes take things one small step further, prohibiting the use of unauthorized yeasts when it comes to fermentation. Just like with non-Kosher wine making, wines produced can be of either low, medium or high quality, all dependent on the wine maker, the fruit and techniques used.

The prevalence of sweetness in many Kosher wines comes from the first Kosher wines produced in America nearly a century ago. When Jewish immigrants arrived in America, they found Concord grapes to be plentiful and decided to make wine from them. The wine was, how could we put it…crappy, and they found that adding sugar made it more palatable. Most people have heard of Concord grapes when it comes to jelly, which also has sugar being added to the grapes. Same kind of thing.

Anyway, I strongly urge all of you, Jew or non-Jew, to try a few Kosher wines this holiday season. In particular, seek out some wines from Israel as they can also be quite delicious, though a bit more on the pricey side. For now, head out to nearly any grocery store in the U.S. and you will be able to find a bottle of Baron Herzog wine. And if you’re ever in the Oxnard, CA area, I suggest you check out the magnificent Herzog Cellars. Fascinating place.

Color

Very, very light. I mean, like, water. Never had a Sauvignon Blanc this light.

Nose

Great sharp acid and gooseberry, reminiscent of good New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Some grapefruit and other citrus notes as well.

Taste

Sharp and flavorful. I expected it to be far too light, but instead it comes through with some good lemon-lime, some green orange (just think about eating an unripe one) and still those tart gooseberries. A little rhubarb and some sort of caramel taste finishes things up. All the while it is backed by great acidity.

With Food

Well, seeing as how this is a Kosher wine, I say some herring, gefilte fish, little horseradish, all on top of a matzo cracker. If you’re not really into the Kosher cuisine, I would definitely pair this with light cheeses or some shrimp ceviche. Also, remember to always keep this well-chilled. I know I’m a big proponent of drinking whites at slightly below room temperature, but this wine falls apart a bit without cold.

Where to Buy

Well, practically anywhere, but it’s $7.99 at Prime Wines.

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I don’t know what accounts for typical South African food fare, but this baby is made for grub. Rich and spicy grub, in particular.

Color

Light gold, but much darker than your typical New Zealand or California Sauvignon Blanc. This bodes well, young Jedi.

Nose

Very pretty with a lot of cream and lemon/lime peel.

Taste

Right off the bat, great acid. For those who have read my reviews of white wine in the past, you know that I loves me some acid. Acid to the point of feeling bubbly and the walls begin to melt (Flashback!). Melon and a some pineapple with lemon juice. Then, as you reach the mid-palate, you can sense some green bell pepper, bitter garlic (huh?), some broccoli. In short: Green, green, green. Very full mouthfeel, almost oaky in its creaminess, but it was all steel. Overall, a very unexpected surprise.

With Food

Like I said earlier: Built for food. In fact, I wouldn’t drink this without some. Would actually work well with quite a few difficult-to-pair foods like traditional tacos (meaning meat, onion, cilantro, and non-jarred salsa, pendejo). Spicy Asian cuisine would be great, too. Curry, Tandoori chicken or spicy crab.

Where to Buy

$8.98 at FineWineHouse.com!

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UPDATE – I made an error concerning the vintage of this Chardonnay. It’s actually the 2007 since Cantara did not actually make an ’08. Thanks to Mike Brown (winemaker) over at Cantara for the correction.

I’m going to start a category called “Little Known” for wineries that are very small, below the radar, off the beaten path, or have little to no budget for advertising and so rely pretty much solely on word-of-mouth and (if they’re lucky) a “Wine Trail” pamphlet for their region in order to sell product.

In case you haven’t noticed, I tend to like these wineries. While they tend to have fewer bottles offered under $20, they often have impeccably-crafted wines offered at ridiculously low prices. The adverbs in that last sentence will really piss off my writer friends, so I hope you enjoyed it due to the tongue-lashing I’m about to take.

Also in case you haven’t noticed, Cantara Cellars is one of the kinds of wineries I’m speaking of. Cantara gets all of its fruit from Lodi, a region near the bloated Napa and Sonoma regions of California that forces my tax bracket to budget a yearly trip to get up there and visit them. However, the tasting room (and their home base) is located on what is known as the Ventura County Wine Trail. Hooray for a wine trail less than 2 hours from my house! (*cricket chirps*) Moving on.

Cantara got it’s start by getting away with what I’ve been arrested for: Making wine in your home’s garage. I guess they threw fewer “Chug from the Barrel!” parties. They even named it after the neighborhood they used to concoct this hooch in. My wife and I found them while staying at the awesome Glen Tavern Inn in Santa Paula, CA. We were desperate to taste some vinos and plugged “winery” into our GPS and , low and behold, a winery tasting room popped up in the midst of a non-descript office park. Seriously, you drive toward the area they are located in and you begin wondering whether you are actually visiting a tasting room or going to complain at a Time Warner Cable satellite office. It was there that we found the Ventura County Wine Trail brochure and learned that it crawls all the way up to Ojai, where we found more small wineries and tasting rooms (more on that later). Since then we were able to taste their delicious wines a second time at the Malibu/Calabasas Food & Wine Festival.

In conclusion, these people are the salt of the modern-day-wine-making-earth. And their wine kicks ass.

So let’s get into the Cantara Cellars Chardonnay:

Color

Golden, solid, textbook. Makes you confident that you are in fact drinking Chardonnay (I hate this section of the reviews).

Nose

Wait a minute, is this…is this really what I’m smelling? A wine that actually smells like lemon meringue pie? Cream, lemon, acid, full. Delicious nose.

Taste

The flavors match the nose in a step-by-step fashion. Bright lemon, some green apple, some white fig for a good mix of acid and fullness. Rich mouthfeel. Velvety but not buttery, just like a light pie crust. Great mid-palate of what seems to be cinnamon and a bread-like finish. Nice sourdough at the end. Weird but intriguing and great.

With Food

A very food-friendly wine. Thanks to the acid it won’t overpower already-buttery dishes. Chicken or Salmon Picatta, shellfish, savory crepes and the like. Not for an appetizer. This is Main wine.

Where to Buy

$21 at CantaraCellars.com. Yes, that’s the winery website, and yes I realize that it’s over $20. But it’s a buck. Dig through your sofa cushions.

Winery/Tasting Room Info

126 N. Wood Road #104

Camarillo, CA 93010

(805) 484-9600

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This is, however, the first review of a Hope Family Wine since their awesome production coordinator sent me a sample of their wines for review. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “They sent you their wines for free, so you’re just going to do great reviews of them all in the hopes of getting something new in the future.”

Wrong. Well…right. But WRONG. Oh, so wrong.

I’ve always prided myself on my honesty, particularly when it comes to this site. I make no money off of it (despite the ads) and I do it as a labor of love. If I think a wine quite frankly sucks some form of animal genitalia, I’m going to tell you. Keeping that image in mind, let’s get into the Liberty School 2007 Chardonnay.

Color

Beautiful gold . Watered down Red Bull, though I know that doesn’t sound exactly appetizing. The “shinyness” of this wine is striking.

Nose

Thick and vanilla. Delicious pineapple and hearty caramel breaking through. Not a soft nose by any means. This does not smell like it’s going to be on the acidic Chardonnay side. 75% of the fruit was barrel-fermented in 10% new American and French oak while the other 25% was in stainless steel. Smelling that way.

Taste

Rich, saucy and bright, but not too much butter. The tropical flavors really hit home here with pineapple, vanilla-lime (yeah, I know, but lime is what I tasted) and some really awesome apple and pear Jelly Bellys. The wine is not confused as the structure is solid. Fruit in the front, not much acid, all leading toward the rich mid-palate and finally finishing with some of those caramel notes and the alcohol coming through. Very very full mouthfeel, like you’re drinking a Boston cream pie. Fantastic.

With Food

Go on the light side as the wine is too heavy for heavy white foods. Avoid your cream sauces and overly buttered shellfish. Simply grilled crab, shrimp or white fish, pastas in olive oil, mild cheeses and fresh tart fruits. Try pears, specifically.

Where to Buy

Obviously at the winery, but other than that, $8.99 at StirlingFineWines.com.

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But seriously: Buy Microsoft products.*

Color

Pale straw as opposed to rich golden. You know what? I’ve been using the same damn 5 terms to describe the colors of Chardonnay for the past year. Let’s change it up with help from Thesaurus.com:

The color of this Chardonnay is more of an anemic silage rather than fatty aurelian. Thank YOU, Thesaurus.com.

Nose

Hmmm. Lot of rock in this one, but I can’t pick out what kind. If anyone here is an expert on how different rocks smell, please let me know. Anyhoo, some good lemon and a bit of cream Methinks this might not have had too much oak, which is good.

Taste

Delicious is the first thing that comes to mind. The wine is velvety but with a stark crispness (again, evidence of little or no oak). The same flavors from the nose: lemon and cream. The wine mingles and never really processes onto something else. A bit of a one-trick pony, but still tasty nonetheless. The finish stacks up with some $10 Chards so this is a good deal based on that alone.

With Food

Have to go with fish here. Not sure if this could contend with buttery shellfish or creamy sauces (despite the cream flavors), but give it try if you’re the adventurous type (it’s a big risk pairing wine with food, you know). Hard cheeses might stack up as well, but don’t go too stinky. A good pool wine until the heat dissipates.

Where to Buy

$5.99 on Club Bev at BevMo!, $7.99 if you’re not on Club Bev (It’s a free card, people. Pull it together).

TwistedWine.com

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Color

A delicious off-white that looks crisp and refreshing.

Nose

Floral, apple and pear. You can smell the crispness and it looks made for seafood.

Taste

Look at that, I was right! Matter of fact, I’m always right. Otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this blog. Honeysuckle, pear and acidic apple juice. Good acid, but no real structure. The wine is all over the place but at least the fruit is narrowed. As usual for these under $5 wines, there is no finish other than the end of the bottle.

With Food

Would work with fish, but not shellfish. This wine can’t stand up. Tilapia, some grilled snapper with a Mexican-style rice would do quite well.

Where to Buy

About $4 at Trader Joe’s.

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I’ll just stop talking now.

Color

It’s $7 Beringer Chardonnay. It’s gold in color. What else do you want? Maybe I should eliminate this section since looking at the color of under-$10 wines is kind of ridiculous.

Nose

GREAT NOSE. Wow, this was completely unexpected. Full scent with some great peach and lemon notes. You can even smell the wood, though I’m not sure if they aged this in oak at all.

Taste

A solid, solid wine. Acid that isn’t over the top, good fruit, and a textbook structure. The alcohol level is perfect for the flavors or creamy almond and buttery stone fruit. The lemon isn’t there, but it’s been replaced with this weird caramelly flavor that reminds you of the wine’s price. There is no finish other than a little residual heat. Still, completely solid for a hot summer day.

With Food

This is uncomfortable, but I can’t really find anything to pair it with. I ate fish with it, and it just didn’t work. My mouth ended up tasting the way a dock smells. Maybe some of you like that. I’ll be honest and just say that this wine should be popped towards the end of the party when you just need to have another glass.

Where to Buy

7-Eleven (ahem) like I said, but it’as also $7.48 at VineRepublic.com.

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Anyway, I came here to review, so review I must.

Color

Water. Maybe with a little lemon juice squeezed in to make it look a bit “off” but Vinho Verdes are always near-clear.

Nose

Since we’re working with slight bubbles here, you get a spritzy shot of lemon along with some stone fruit scents. Peach, apricot, maybe a little honeydew melon. Then a slight sour stink.

Taste

This one beats the Broadbent Vinho Verde we reviewed previously (link above) simply due to the mouthfeel. It’s perfect. Not too over the top with good creamy lemon and bubbles that are barely-there, but can still be tasted. The wine has a very crisp flavor that makes you really want to pucker up and swish it around. Good finish of that stone fruit I mentioned in the nose with an appealing dry character.

With Food

Definitely a food-friendly wine. Seafood, to be more specific. Nothing too buttery, though, as this might not be up to the battle against fat. Better for grilled seafood with vegetables.

Where To Buy

$3.99 at Astorwines.com!

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We previously reviewed the Puerto Viejo Sauvignon Blanc, and their Chardonnay offering is just as awesome. Let’s rock:

Color

Beautiful, perfect gold. Just the right hue you are looking for to make your mouth water for that rich, juicy, somewhat-dry Chardonnay flavor.

Nose

Stiff lemon and green apple. You can actually smell the acid on this wine. For those of you who follow the site, you’ll remember that I love white wines with good acid, no matter what the varietal. I’ll have a review soon of a white varietal that had a strong acid nose, but ended up being absolutely acid-free, which is like smelling bacon as you wake up in the morning, but once you’re downstairs you find out it’s turkey bacon. Fail.

Taste

Great acid kick from the start. Now because I’m mentioning that first does not mean that the wine is too acidic. Far from it. The wine is structured. “Built like a brick shithouse” as my wife would say. You’ve got a textbook construction of flavors here, but each one is solid, rounded and pronounced just enough. Nothing wrong with following convention if you are confident that what you produce is good enough to make people think only in the moment, and not what came before. This wine is a classic. Great stone, apricot, some juicy green apple and even some white raspberry. There is something deliciously sour in the finish that you worry about for a moment, but then it’s gone, leaving you with an almond-satisfaction that puts a smile on your face.

With Food

As usual, shellfish, chicken, creamy pastas and CHEESE. Definitely a cheese wine. I should have said that first but I’m too lazy to go back and change it. Brie, camembert, even goat. Go crazy.

Where to Buy

$9.98 at FineWineHouse.com!

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Color

Nose

Taste

With Food

Where to Buy

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Color

Very pale for a Chardonnay. A little…too pale. Almost looks like a Pinot Gris with these grey tints I’m seeing.

Nose

Asparagus. Raw, cut asparagus. Some citrus and a shot of almond.

Taste

Great acidity. That’s what hits first. The wine is firm but not overpowering. Expected more oak from a Sonoma Chard, but not bad. A nice 1-2-3 structure: Acid on the attack, good fruity fig, then almond, then the vegetables, crisp finish. Some oaky vanilla on the tail. A solid wine.

With Food

Honestly, vegetables. This is a veggie wine. Put some type of protein in your dish if you must, but go low on salt. Stick with vegetables as the centerpiece and you won’t regret it. If you remember our Pebble Beach Grand Tasting menu, thinly-sliced raw asparagus with olive oil, lemon and parmesan was one of the best things we ate. Asparagus Carpaccio, they called it.

Where to Buy

Gets difficult here because I found this at a local Ralph’s supermarket for $11.99. Outside of California I believe there is Kroger and Food 4 Less. I have yet to see it anywhere else, so I’d stick with those stores if you can. If someone is able to find it online anywhere, please let me know in the comments below!

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Like a very ripe apricot, the Gnarly Head Chardonnay kicks some serious ass. The juicy, full mouthfeel is very satisfying, with a great finish that leaves you a bit heated, but still wanting more. Fantastic with some ceviche or lime-grilled chicken.

$12.99 for 2 at the BevMo 5 Cent Wine Sale!

$7.99 at PJWine.com after that.

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You can thank some God-forsaken summer bug for the delay in posts the past week or so. I was too busy hacking my lungs out and not keeping meals down to write any new gems of wine wisdom here at the old WW. But now I’m back and ready to dig into some bottles.

I should warn you though, the posts may come fast and furious at first. Eight days without wine for a guy who really LOVES wine is painful. Not heroin-withdrawal painful, but I still ended up yelling at everyone who offered me water or juice. Anyway, you don’t want to hear about my EPIC BATTLE AGAINST THE COMMON COLD so I’ll just move onto some wine:

P.S. The reviews are going to be pretty condensed since I want to plow through a lot in the next week or so. Don’t like it? Send me an email so I can curse at you directly.

Trinity Oaks Pinot Grigio 2008

Good sweating wine. Put this on ice, wait until you’re blazing hot after floating in the pool for too long, then pour yourself a glass of this instead of a margarita. The flavors are concentrated and well-wrought. Nothing goes by unnoticed in this Pinot Grigio.  Lime cream with good acid and some caramel. It’s still good even if it warms up a bit once you pass out on your raft.

$5.99 at MadWine.com!

Query Riesling 2009

White fruits, including some honeydew, with an explosive flavor. Solid sweetness that can push it a bit, but still very very good. Apple acidity and some great sort of almond aftertaste. I can’t wait to get sunburned pounding a bottle of this juice.

$14.99 for 2 at the BevMo 5 Cent Wine Sale!

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Solid. A pleasant, mellow gold.

Nose

Strong rock. Some Emmentaler cheese. Cut raw potato (that’s new!). Oak.

Taste

Hello fire in the mouth cradled in swaddling oak. This stuff is supercharged oak. Puuuuuure Cali. I’m getting some wet rocks and some intersting almond and marzipan flavors, but it’s all out-gunned by our woody friend. Full, FULL mouthfeel. Almost too filling. Chardonnay cake comes to mind. Not a Summer-Sipping white. Intense finish that leaves you begging for a glass of water.

With Food

Buttery white foods only. Alfredo sauces and shellfish. This thing could melt cheese. Woof.

Where to Buy

$10.21 at UltraLuxeWine.com!

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The Foundry Viognier 2006

Yellow-green and very bright. Looks very refreshing. Lot’s of honeysuckle and citrus with a strong burst of apricot. Good rockiness on the back-end that leads to a crisp finish. A good hot summer white to enjoy with the TV outside.

WHERE TO BUY: $8.99 at WineLegacy.com!

Fair Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2009

Apple freshness with very bright acidity. Good creamy lime flavors come through once it’s not so chilled, making this great for grilled chicken or fish with lime and some salsa.

WHERE TO BUY: $7.01 at FineWineShop.com!

Jam Jar Sweet Shiraz 2004

This is a weird one. There aren’t a lot of sweet red wines out there that aren’t fortified or taste like spiked Kool-Aid, but this one was actually pretty tasty. It fits into the summer heat thanks to the sweetness. But don’t let the name or my use of “sweetness” throw you. This isn’t sugary or syrupy, but only slightly sweet. Not a regular Shiraz, but not a straight-up dessert wine. Great juicy plums and maraschino cherries. Still a few tannins in there, but I would leave this for after the meal.

WHERE TO BUY: $11.89 at TheWineStoreRI.com!

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COLOR: Pale and not much to it. Very surprising for the flavors you’re about to read about.

NOSE: Flower, flowers flowers. It’s rare that we find a floral nose here on Wine Welfare, nevermind a cheap wine. Most value wines don’t exude floral scents or flavors. Now, if you want me to dig into the actual type of flower, you’re barking up the wrong tree.

TASTE: Very, very full mouthfeel that coats your tongue like nobody’s business. It’s like wine-Pepto-Bismol. You know how that crap coats your stomach or whatever? That’s what this wine does. The fruit is getting pushed aside by the mouthfeel. The mouthfeel is the ass**** on the subway who just shoves you to the side so he can grab the handle. If the fruit were to fight back, you’d taste some delicious canteloupe, pear, almond cream and (I think) a little nectarine. Acid is there as well, but again, it’s being slapped by the thickness. Not the most balanced Chardonnay I’ve had, but it’s still pretty buttery for this price.

WHERE TO BUY: $9.99 at MadWine.com!

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While there is still a large section of the winemaking industry that produces wines minus organic or sustainable practices (mostly the larger, corporate wineries), the majority of boutique and smaller wineries have all adopted sound environmental practices.

What’s ironic (and great) is that many of the wines we have reviewed in the past year have actually been wines produced organically and sustainably. We’ve even tasted a wine whose winemaker used sheep to weed his vineyards (it was over $20 so we couldn’t review it, but it’s called Osso Libre).

But enough of that for now, on to the Barra Organic Pinot Grigio:

COLOR: A nice, off-clear white. Don’t know how else to describe it besides my favorite description: lemon water.

NOSE: Tight, a little lacking. Some sour green apple and, if you can believe this, green Sour Patch Kids. That’s what popped into my head. And I don’t even like Sour Patch Kids.

TASTE: Very crisp with a strong pear element. Good flowers breeze up to your nose through the mouth. The balance is there, but that’s about it. The wine is a big fat yawn for the most part. It’s attractive because it touts “Organic” on the label (something few wineries do, even if they are organic), but beyond eliminating the guilt you might have felt destroying the environment with every sip, the wine is pretty basic.

WITH FOOD: As Pinot Grigios go, it’s a great appetizer wine with some thick cheese or a shellfish starter. Not really a solid dinner wine.

WHERE TO BUY: $16.99 at WineMerchantCincinnatti.com!

WINERY WEBSITE: http://www.barraofmendocino.com/barra/index.jsp

I’m thinking about promoting a specific section on Wine Welfare for organic or sustainably produced wines. Let me know what you think in the comments section!

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So let’s get into the Puerto Viejo Sauvignon Blanc:

COLOR: Near water, very light. Looks crisp from the get-go.

NOSE: Good acid even on the nose. Crispness continues along with some stinky brie and some great lime blossom. Lime blossom may sound a bit foofy, but I’ve recently been drinking lime blossom tea and the scent of this wine is a spitting image, so to speak.

TASTE: Lime jello, folks. Pure lime jello all around. This is an absolute first, and we are thrilled. To be more specific, my mother used to make this lime jello mold that consisted of half regular lime jello, the other half was like a creamy version of the lime jello. It was weird but delicious. It appeared for nearly every Sunday dinner and holiday.

Anyway, back to the wine. So the fruit is very forward here for a Sauvignon Blanc. Most of the time, with California or even French Sauv. Blancs, the fruit appears and is quickly taken over by a good dose of alcohol. This wine doesn’t suffer from that, despite it’s 13% ABV. Good crisp lime peel and acid appear in the mid-palate and it finishes off with a glorius almond flavor. Brilliant.

WITH FOOD: Lime-marinated chicken, fish, anything related to light Mexican food. That’s right, I said Mexican food. This would also work as a great opener to an evening dinner with shrimp cocktail. Just keep it away from the enchiladas, burritos, etc. Fish tacos would work, but I’m telling you, use lime with this bottle.

WHERE TO BUY: $7.99 at Vendome Wine & Spirits

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