Gertrude

What can one say?  It's a wine called Gertrude and it features a pink piggy-bank on the label.  Once in awhile things are so bizarre they warrant a try. 

Officially the wine is la Maia Lina Gertrude Rosso Toscana 2008.  The wine is a blend of 45% Sangiovese, 25% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon which I guess makes it a "super Tuscan."  Deep colored wine with a nose of blueberries, dried cherries, earth and meat.  Medium body but full flavor with the fruit predominating.  It really does taste like blueberries. A good hint of wood tannin and a dry finish actually made for a pleasant wine with a grilled pork chop and a little bit of fresh pasta with good olive oil, cheese and chopped fresh tomatoes and basil.

13.5% alcohol and $13. 

Chenin/Vio

Nothing like something a little "off the wall" to grab my eye in a wine store. That was the case with this wine, a 2009 Vinum Cellars Chenin/Vio, a mixture of 80% Chenin Blanc and 20% Viognier.  A modest price meant it had to come home for a test drive.

Dinner was fresh blue cod encased in panko crumbs and served with a spicy Louisiana style Remoulade sauce with a touch of curry in it.  Interesting play of flavors between the sweet,  mild fish and the slight bite of the sauce.  It turned out to be a nice pairing with the wine as well.

Straw color in the glass and an unmistakable nose of Chenin Blanc, honeysuckle blossoms, peaches and pear skin.  Medium body wine with a great mouth feel to it that certainly brought out the Viognier.  Flavors of under ripe peaches, grapefruit, pears, and a touch of cloves.  Tremendous acidity to the wine and it ended with a great, refreshing flavors of citrus.  It worked wonderfully with the curry flavors in the sauce. 

Remarkably it also worked well with the appetizer for the evening, a fresh steamed artichoke with a lemon butter dipping sauce.

80% Chenin Blanc, 20% Viognier, 13.5% alcohol and $13.  Good wine at that price.

2005 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Merlot

Out shopping yesterday and came across a sale on the 2005 Cape Mentelle Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend from the Margaret River area of western Australia.  Dinner was a small rib eye steak from the grill with fresh white corn and a salad.  While the steak was grilling we opened the wine.

Nice aroma that was a great balance between dark fruits and wood tannin.  Very fruit forward wine with a taste of black cherries, a little cassis, some dark plums and a hint of mint.  Medium body weight and mouth feel.  Wonderful fruit, wood tannin and acid balance.  Good length to the finish that ended with a mature, but not old, flavor of a well made wine.  Easily drinkable with food in that even though it was flavorful it wasn't overpowering.  Very good wine for the sale price.

70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot.  14% alcohol and on sale $11.

Lunch

A chewy crust, tomato sauce, provolone cheese, fresh picked red and yellow tomatoes, sliced pepperoni,  fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil - and a beer.

Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc

The New York Times featured a tasting report on California Sauvignon Blancs this past week.  A long time ago I was a big fan of those wines but I have to agree with the Times when it argued that a number of them appear to be produced these days so that wineries will have a white to pour in the tasting room.  They are the redheaded step children of Napa Valley. 

One of the wines they recommended was a Sauvignon Blanc that I have always liked, the one from Frog's Leap from the Rutherford AVA in Napa Valley.  In this case it was the 2008 vintage.  Light, green gold in the glass the aroma is bright, grassy and citrusy.  Medium weight in the mouth the wine was tart and refreshing and tasted young and fresh.  There seemed to be a bit of tarragon in the flavor of this wine and there was a fair bit of grapefruit on the finish.  Very nice wine.

Dinner was several sizes of shrimp marinated briefly tossed on the grill.  The head on shrimp were small but delicious and the big boys in the middle of the below photo had great texture.  A great match with the wine.

12.5% alcohol and $22.

Gruner Veltliner

Shrimp, zucchini, snap peas, shallots, and red and yellow peppers all in a hot and sour sauce.  The wine was a 2009 Leth Gruner Veltliner, Steinagrund Lagenreserve from Austria.  Flowery, but reserved nose, pale color in the glass.  Intensely fruity at the front with ripe green grapes, melon and lime.  Tremendous acid in the mid palate that dried out the sweetness in the wine.  Long, lengthy and sharp and tart finish that ended with some herbaceousness.  Very nice wine with the richness and heat of the shrimp.

Good wine.  $16 and 12.5% alcohol. 

Rose' of Merlot

Beautiful evening yesterday, clear, bright, and cool for July.  I lit the grill and tossed on a rib-eye steak about an inch and a half thick.  There was fresh corn, and some just picked salad greens tossed with an orange marmalade and lemon juice vinaigrette. 

The wine of choice was the second bottle of Michel-Schlumberger rose' of Merlot, Le Flirt, pictured above with an echinacea flower. Lots of strawberries and cherries in both the nose and the taste, great acidity, and very little residual sugar.    Dry and enticing and just plain fun to drink, and it went well with all the food.

$16 and 13.2% alcohol