Ceramic artist David M. Bowley's cork art at Lumiere
World of Wine is an event presented by the Temecula Winegrowers Association each March and it's a wonde...
Keeping with the Latin theme we moved on to the 2010 De Martino "Legado" Chardonnay from Chile. Scott prepared a chicken salad with peaches and cucumber with a mint and white wine vinaigrette. The salad was sensational and the wine was a winner, too.
From Napa Cellars we tasted the 2009 Dyer Vineyard Carneros Syrah. "From the first sip it's a wow!" said Tony. He found it excellent from start to finish and rated it 5 out of 5.
When the group saw the $95 price tag on 2005 Le Rêve Domaine Carneros by Taittinger, they let out a collective gasp. After tasting it, however, almost everyone said they wouldn't hesitate to buy it for a special occasion.
This was designed to be a live “speed tasting” of wines. It’s kind of hard to do without an internet connection! We’ll taste twelve wines in an hours and write ...
One taster who left their name off the sheet said 'It tastes like more, as in I definitely want more." They thought the nose was amazing and that it rivaled some well known Pinots from the Willamette Valley and the Santa Rita Hills. Tony said "yum yum yes!"
2009 Lake County “Ranch Collection” Cabernet Sauvignon. One of the favorites of the evening, this deep red cab was full of tart berry tastes, with hints of smoke, cherry wood and vanilla. It went well with the sharp cheddar, mustard and nuts but was especially enhanced by the chocolate and the desserts, particularly the genoise with its sweet lemon flavors. We agreed that this was an excellent buy for the quality at $19.
The most interesting part of this particular evening was how the taste of the wines changed with the wide variety of foods prepared. It was surprising that some of the food enhanced wines for which they were not specifically paired. It was a learning experience for all of us on how dramatically food can improve or detract from the taste of wine.
All of us looked forward to the next offering, the 2008 La Rochelle Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir. Michael called this "a Pinot for Cab lovers and I like Cab." Amy loved the color, mouth feel and flavor. Ken commented on the garnet color and full nose of raspberries and dark cherries.
I had seen Phil Baily earlier and he sent me off with a bottle of his Baily Winery 2008 M & M, 60% Merlot/40% Malbec blend. Tony wasn't shy with his opinion: "Super great nose!Awesome taste! Drinks like a $100 bottle."
