Dinner Pairing-Chenin Blanc, Chianti and Moscato

I recently did my last dinner-wine pairing for this class and it was interesting.

I paired 3 basic wines and dinners:
Beringer 2014 Chenin Blanc (California) and Sweet Golden Corn
Ruffino Chianti, 2013 (Italian) and basic chicken and marinara pasta
Menage a Trias 2013 Moscato (California) and Blackberry Pie

This dinner and wine pairing for me was about classic basic things that I would have for dinner normally, nothing overly speacial and tyring to figure out what would pair best.








2014 Beringer Chenin Blanc and Sweet Corn 

The wine was a nose of kind of tart and citrus. Slight flowering nose with limes and pears. It had a moscato taste and feel. It was tart and syrupy With pears, apricot and hints of lime. There was a little oaky tendency but not overpowering. It was slightly sweet. It was smooth and blended nicely with the sweet corn. The corn brought out the pear orchard bark taste. It was fruity but a little too alcoholic however the corn cut that alcohol which was nice .

2013 Ruffino Chianti and Marinara and Chicken pasta. 
The wine had a nose of berries, almost blueberry pie, slight buttery and fruity. Definitely cooked berries though. It had a licouric or scone taste with cherries. The taste was kind of bleh, there really was not any berries on the taste unlike the nose. It was alcoholic and not appealing to taste.
The pasta didn't help or hurt it. The wine was too alcholic and the sauce did not cut it. Maybe a more creamier sauce would have been better. I just didn't like the Chianti which may be the whole reason it was not a good pairing or good anything.

2013 Menage a Trias Moscato and Blackberry Pie 
The smell was not a lot going on, very light with hints of apricot. It was very floral, almost all flowers and then very syrupy smell. The taste was very apricoty but really sweet. It was too flowerly as well for me. The tart blackberry pie took out some of the sweetness which I liked and it became more citrus with the pie. The buttery/tart pie also took away the floral tones. The wine definitely needed the tart/not sweet pie though. We decided California Moscato seems too sweet and prefer Italian.

Tasting- Our Dog Blue Chateu Morrissete

--Riesling-Traminette Blend with Vidal Blanc

--Blue Ridge 

--Virginia 
--Unkown year
--$10.99 

About This Wine

This popular white wine is a semi-sweet Riesling-Traminette blend, using Vidal Blanc for added depth. Aromas of melons, citrus fruits, apricots, and delicate flowers highlight the soft finish of this soothing wine. 

Tasting Attibutes

Aroma: Melon, citrus, apricots, flowers. Palate: Sweet, firm acidity. Finish: Soft. Semi-sweet blend of Riesling, Traminette, Vidal Blanc. Serve chilled

My notes: Smell was very floral and exactly what I would expect from a Riesling. Slight apricot and a sweet nose. Almost smelled like a Moscato. The taste was sweet, definitley. It was not a fruity sweet though, floral sweet with slight apricot, orange and honey suckle. Mid palate grapefruit. It just did not have any depth or complexity. Definitely a good table wine with food though. 

Tasting-Encostas do Lima Vinho Verde

--80% Loureiro and 20% Trajadura

--Vinho Verde 

--Portugal 
--2013
--$10.99 

Review from Tastings.com :Pale golden silver color. Bright floral aromas of peaches, raspberry and honeysuckle with a soft, dry-yet-fruity medium body and a crisp, tart citrus and talc accented finish. A delightful sipper that is sure to please.

My notes: This was one of those: I need to try all the grapes. It had a slight carbonation to it and it was not very complex. It's nose was almost like Sprite, that citrus, lemon lime carbonated smell. However it was also very floral. The taste was very carbonated, light not acidic at all. It was very flowerly, rose petals and stoney. Had that mineral water taste. It would definitely be great with a shell fish. It was just very simple. 

Tasting-Liberty Servie Dog Red

--Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot 

--Blue Ridge 

--Virgina  
--Year unknown
--$12.99 

Notes from the Wine Maker: Chateau Morrisette 

About This Wine

This dry red wine is blended from some of Virginia's finest grape varieties, Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. Bursting with deep flavors and aromas of blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, and plum, Liberty features a long finish with hints of toast and spice. This sumptuous wine is a worthy tribute to Liberty.

Tasting Attributes

Aroma: Blackberry, blueberry, cherry, plum. Palate: Same as aroma. Finish: Long, toast, spice. Blend of Chambourcin, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot.

My notes: The description honestly seemed like something I would really like so I decided to try it. The smell was kind of farmy or hay. Had a mix of clay and fruit smell. There was a little orange, peach and slight hint of berries. Not a bad smell but very different. It was very dry but very smooth. It had a great mouth feel. There was a cheddar cheese taste which was very intriguing. Tasted like you have just opened up one of those fruit and cheese trays. Honestly I kind of liked this, very different but good. 

Tasting-Santa Julia Tempranillo

--Organica 

Tempranillo 

--Mendoza

--Argentina 
--2014
--$9.99 

Tasting Notes: The 2014 Organica Tempranillo shows intense red violet colors with ruby hues. The nose exudes black ripe fruit aromas, such as blackberries and raisins and also plums and fig jam. The tannins are soft and sweet with a well-balanced and long finish in the mouth.

My notes: There was a smell of berries, lots of berries, slight oaky but sweet delicious cherry. It was never very complex but smelled delicious so I got very excited about a big bold fruity red. I was disappointed. It was acidic, oerly dry but also a leave your mouth dry feel. You do not taste any of the berries, it was earthy and slightly poopy. There is definitely too much Oak and basically no fruit or flavor. Not good. 

Winery Visit-Chateau Morrisette

Last weekend I was able to go on my final winery visit to Chateau Morrisette, which I was excited about since it had pretty high reviews. It was a gorgeous day and the Blue Ridge Parkway was absolutely beautiful.

Open in the 70s, it has that classic outdoor, dog friendly and a relaxing appeal. Loved how everything was buy a bottle, come sit out and enjoy the view!

We tried 10 wines while at the winery:

My wino buddy! 

Chardonnay Reserve-2013 the notes provided "Lemon, fruity, toasted almond and cononut with a crisp buttery finish." I definitley smelled a lot of oak, a little nuts and butter. It was very zesty but classic chardonnay smell. There was a slight grapefruit taste on the mid palate, overall not impressive due to its extreme oakness.

2012 Vidal Blanc- Their notes: Citrus and apple with pear, melon and pine
apple." It was similar to a Pinot Grigio, definitely could smell the coconuts and pineapple. It was very fruity and sweet. It was smooth with surprisingly no oak and a slight hint of melon. It was extremely light.

2014 Vin Gris- Their notes "Strawberries, gigner, raspberries and white peach." It was compared to a dry Rose. Kind of an old fruit smell to it, definitely ginger and spicy. However it was kind of waterdown almost and then hints of peach. Nothing really going on and not complex.

2011 Pinot Noir- Their notes "Berries, strawberry, tannins, smoke." The pourer mentioned that it was not a good year for the grape due to a lot of rain and it was noticeable. It was very water down and lighter in color. There was hints of wood and vanilla, overpowered by the oak and then very fruity. It was bland to the taste, very tannic slight strawberry but way too bitter.

2012 Archival 1- "Rose petals, mocha, black cherry, curarnt, espresso." It was majority Merlot at 42%, it was very fruity and smooth. Slight chocolate and sweet. There were hints of all the classic Merlot tastes such as Cherry, strawberry, raspberry. It was a very flowerly taste as well and like all of these wines I noticed more spice.

Giant Press 

The Black Dog- "Fruity, berries subtle spice." This one was described as a training wheels red. It had a very peppery and fruity smell. But it had a sweet pepper taste, which was odd in wine. And then classic cherry and blackberry on mid palate. The pepper overpowered it though.

Nouveau Chien- "Fruit, citrus, full and smooth." There was vanilla and spice and citrus. It was kind of Chardonnay and Moscato feel and taste. There was too much burn though to really get much out of it.

Farmhouse Sangria- "Fruity, sweet, cherry, orange and lime juice." It had a Merlot taste and you could just smell all the fruits in that. It was dryer than I'd expect for Sangria and very smooth. If I had bought it, I would have put the actual fruit it in because it needed more to it.

Red Muscadine- "Fruity, sweet, lightly-sparkling." This was was interestly it had a cherry and cotton candy smell to it. The taste was all dry grape soda though which was kind of not appealing ot me at all.

Sweet Mountain Apple- "Sweet, smooth apple." I've always decided you cannot go wrong with another fruit wine if you want something light and refreshing. It was 100% VA apple and it was just an alcoholic apple juice, not really heavey like some ciders are. Was just blend but okay would be great at breakfast.

All the wine bottles! 

The winery was beautitful, gorgeous overlooks. There were no chances for tours, so I just walked around a
nd it was cool just to see the faciliaties, how everything works and the winery. Though I was not super impressed by what I tasted it was still a great experience to see how a big winery operates!

Overlook to the Blue Ridge Mountains 

Tasting-Little Penguin Cabernet Sauvignon

Little Penguin Cabernet Sauvignon 

--Cabernet Sauvignon 

--South Eastern

--Australia 
--2013
--$5.99 

Winemaker Notes: The biggest Little Penguin wine has an awesome ruby red color and the scent of fresh berries. The palate jumps with sweet Australian Cabernet fruit, soft background tannins and a great taste that lingers. An age-worthy Cabernet that drinks beautifully now. Ideal with grilled meats, poultry, hard cheeses and pasta.

My notes: This was on the list of looks solid and it has a penguin on it! buy. It's smell was all cherries, that classic berry fruit, you'd expect with this red. It had that classic good Cab smell, slight blackberry, mocha, barely any mint and then slight hints of cidar box. It's taste totally threw me off guard, it was actually kind of sweet but not overly sweet, like a sweet you enjoy and doesn't overpower everything. It really did not have that big Cab taste I expected. Slight sour cherries but also kind of marchino cherry. It was swet on the mouth feel which is what kept me intrigued. There was a slight burn on the after taste that went away as it aired. It was solid cab with a Strawberry syrupt taste. I really liked this, despite its slight sugar. The BBQ that it suggests to be paired with actually brought out the big Red Cab you'd expect, very tart. I will definitely be buying this again.