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Friday, May 29, 2009

Tasting Pinot Grigio in May

Are you a member of the Virtual Wine Tasting Club over at Bakespace yet? Do you drink wine anyway? Do you want to drink wine, but not know where to start? Do you feel the need to branch out from your normal wines? Well...seriously, come join us in our endeavors! A different type-varietal-grape is picked each month. You buy the vineyard-brand-region of your choice and then share your experience with everybody else. No wine snobs here, just regular old (and young) Joe's & Jane's sharing their likes, dislikes and experiences with wine. I was kind of stuck in a rut before I joined. Sure, I could have tried a new wine each time I went shopping, but I usually stuck to one of 4 or 5 that I know I like (or can afford). But now, I actually tested a bunch of new-to-me Pinot Grigio's this month! If memory serves, I think Pinot Grigio was the wine I started drinking years ago and then branched out and sort of forgot about. Well, I'm really happy that it was chosen as this month's wine, because I have re-discovered what I liked about it in the first place...and then some! It was Spryte that enticed me first, but I've since discovered other great foodie-bloggers who are also members of the Bakespace Wine Club...you may even know them... Shane, Bob, Dajana, Danielle...right!? Plus, there's more...come join us; drink one bottle (or glass) or drink many...you never know what you might discover! PINOT GRIGIO In general, I've found that Pinot Grigio's are fairly dry, at least a little sweet and fruity and most contain notes of one or more of the following: citrus, melon, pineapple, apple, pear. Some have flowery notes thrown in...most of the Californias I tried were pretty tropical tasting. I kept going back to thinking they'd be good with grilled tuna (after I tried one in particular with some that I made this month). They pair well with pasta, chicken and seafood. These were my observations...who know, yours may concur or they may differ greatly; come find out! These were the Pinot Grigio's I drank this month:
Stone Cellars by Beringer California 2008 $5.00 Winemaker intro: Our Pinot Grigio pops with vibrant pineapple, mango and orange fruit flavors leading to a crisp, smooth finish. Review: very pale in color and light in flavor. Dry & slightly sweet. Orangey nose with a mango finish and aftertaste. Very easy drinking. Buy again: Yes
Bella Sera Italy 2005 $7.99 Winemaker Intro: crisp and refreshing with citrus aromas and flavors of ripe apple and pear. Review: Straw color. Very skunky when first opened. Strong taste of fermented apples; almost like a hard cider. Mellowed a bit the second day. Leaves an aftertaste of pears. First PG I found that leaned more towards apples & pears than tropical fruits. Buy again: Probably, yes
Oak Leaf California No Year Stated $2.97 This is actually a Pinot Grigio/Chenin Blanc blend No intro from winemaker Review: Slightly lemony with melon hints. Light, understated and slightly sweet. Not outstanding in anyway, but not bad, either. buy again: yes
Villa Malizia Italy-Venizia 2008 $4.99 Winemaker Intro: floral and honeysuckle aromas are accented by flavors of peach and pear. Review: Lightly skunky & fizzy. Semi-dry. Light citrus flavor w/ peach in their somewhere. Sort of blah and non-descript. Better the second day, once the flavors bloomed a bit. Not very good as a stand-alone wine, but decent paired with food or for cooking. buy again: yes (see, I'm easy and I don't hold a grudge)
Bohemian Highway California 2007 $5.99 NOTE: THIS WAS MY FAVORITE OF THE PG'S I TRIED...AND I LOVE THE BACK LABEL...KEEP YOUR KARMA CLEAN! :) Winemaker Intro: Zesty and crisp with refreshing aromas and flavors of melon, tropical fruit and cool lemon/lime to finish. Review: Tasted of pineapple ending on a citrus not. Bold...permeates my senses. Pleasant aftertaste...perfect balance of dry & "just" sweet. Good stand alone wine, though I'd pair it as well. Couldn't tell you how it tasted the second day, because it didn't last that long. buy again: DUH!
Barefoot California no year listed $1.25 (mini-bottle...perfect for just tasting) Winemaker intro (not on mini-bottle, so I copied it from regular size bottle at market): A crisp & refreshing wine with bright aromas and flavors of citrus and fresh green apple. Hints of jasmine compliment a bright, delicate, flavorful finish. Review: Fizzy on my tongue...and even slightly visible in the glass. Dry, fruity. Melon and pineapple evident...citrus aftertaste. Good. Buy again: yes (probably even a big bottle)
3 Blind Moose California 2008 $6.49 Winemaker Intro: We think you'll fall head over hooves for our delightfully fresh and fragrant California PG...bright citrus, pear and melon flavors. Review: This tastes like a tropical breeze (in a good, pleasant way)! Light, clean, crisp and bursting with flowers. I thought at first that the big, floral smell would turn me off, but it did quite the opposite and made me want more. Bright, sweet...leaving pineapple and flowers resting on your tongue. Buy again: Yes
So I'm a big fan of wine...I'm not gonna apologize! And yes, I drink my wine from a jelly jar most of the time. A while back I was so tired of wine glasses that I gave all of mine away to the needy (needy= sister with no wine glasses). Ever since I've been drinking from jelly jars...they are rarely in danger of tipping. I did buy stemless wine glasses after ridding myself of the pesky stemmed variety, but those are sort of awkward to hold. I don't ask for a jelly jar if I'm out drinking wine...and I'm starting to come back around. I did just buy another stemmed glass, because I know to actually get the "full" experience the glasses are actually made with this in mind...so, I'll trade up every now and again! Hope to taste some wine with you soon! "You came to me like wine comes to this mouth, grown tired of water all the time...you quench my heart and love, you quench my mind." -Dave Matthews
**On a separate note, I've finally joined Friday Shoot-outs (from your town)...my first post on water is up on my girlichef: off topic blog**

Would you like to comment?

  1. You are so fun! We used to have all our favorite wine bottles up above our cabinets in Dallas house, and people would look up and say "did you drink all that", and that was not even a fourth of our tasting habits! Now hubby has a PDA file and a photo spread sheet on the computers!

    One day we will *clink* a glass together, and shuck some corn!

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  2. I love Pinot Grigios and would love to join you. I know little about wine - except what I like. And am often in a rut. I appreciate the reviews! And our wine glass collection of not- expensive glasses - is shrinking. Sadie broke two wagging her tail by the coffee table and Pippin-kitten has already broken two! Do away with stems!

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  3. This was a really fun and informative post. So, line up the jelly jars, have a good day and a great weekend.

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  4. This sounds like so much fun! I love wine. I cook with it, drink it, worship it. Wine is food of the soul.

    I'll scuttle over there and check out the club.

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  5. A fun review to read! We enjoy wine frequently, mostly red wine, although we did find a white one recently that we liked (savignon fume blanc). My husband is the wine expert in the family, I keep trying to convince him to do a guest blog post.

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  6. Great post! I love a good pinot grigio and you can given me some good ones to look for. I love your jelly jars too!

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  7. Noting beats a glass of wine. I prefer chilled whites, my DH prefers red. Regardless, we enjoy a glass or two many times a week.

    Looks like that new camera of yours is working well. :-)

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  8. cute post! Thanks for the link!

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  9. I always like Pinot Grigio.... it has become more and more fashionable
    The best PG I have tried was from Friuli......Villa Malizia...Love Italian wine labels, they are just so funny, (not peculiar), and artisan...
    Great post!

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  10. I'm not big into wine-I'll sip it only if it's sweet.Otherwise I'd rather stick to grape juice ;-)
    Love the names of some of the wines-3 Blind Moose was the best!!
    BTW,the first port wine I tasted back in Goa(India) was a bottle called Vinicola!!

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  11. this sounds like so much fun. I think im gonna join in as well. Both my husband and I love wines eventhough we are still amateurs and trying to find out what we like and dont!!

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  12. This was a REALLY good post on wine. Don't apologize for being a wino..we're classy people! = )

    I like to cook with the Pinot when a recipe calls for white wine. I drink about two glasses of Merlot or Cabernet every night while I'm cooking.

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  13. Oh wine, how I love thee. Although I'm slightly allergic due to the histamines in wine especially red wines, but that hasn't stopped me from take a small glass or two every now and again. LOL.

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  14. my sis is the big wine snob of the family and I don't drink it as much anymore as before and I have kind of forgotten what each wine is noted for being like - thanks for making me rethink this whole "wine" thing again!!!
    (I have my redwine favs and ususally just stick to those - stuck! very stuck!)

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  15. First of all, I am so jealous of the reasonable pricing on wine in the States, Ontario has a government controlled monopoly on booze and we pay at least 3x more.
    Love that people are doing wine posts.. maybe I should anyway.. just for fun!
    ps, blogger let me in - yay!

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  16. I don't drink wine but I enjoy reading about it, especially your descriptions! Skunky wine, tee-hee!

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  17. I love having a glass of wine after dinner but I've never had Pinot Grigio. I'll have to try that. Thanks!

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  18. I'm actually not a big fan of wine...I remember I had the hardest time getting them right when I was working at Olive Garden!
    my dad, however, cannot live without at least 2 glasses of wine a day. that's the highlight of his day!

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  19. Ooooh, fun blog! I'm not a wine drinker myself, but if I were to be, this is the first place I'd start!

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  20. I must admit, I know absolutely nothing about wine. But I've always wanted to learn!

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  21. Wow... wine! I think I need to bookmark this post so I can understand better about wine, thanks for sharing :)

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  22. This is a great post on Wine.
    Love it:)I enjoy wine red rose ect.
    Thanks for sharing your wine post:)

    Welcome!
    foodcreate

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  23. I love a good Pinot Grigio. (which reminds me of a comment in Bride Wars:)) Anyway.. I love making white sauces with it too. Thanks for the great run down of your recent try's!

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  24. Girlichef, you make me SMILE! I appreciate your reviews of the wines. I like Pinot Grigio too.

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  25. I love this post, I've marked several wines to try. I'll have to go check out the virtual wine tasting, what a wonderful idea!

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  26. Il have to try some of the ones you like. I love the santa margerita version:)

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  27. Those were some great reviews. I got stuck with the first PG I tried, I liked it too much to move further.
    And, as my friend used to say, "People, drink wine, not water, water will make you rusty"

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  28. Excellent reviews! Thanks for joining our wine club. Sorry it took me so long to mosey on over here and check out your blog...good stuff!

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  29. That is quite a bit of wine to drink in one month...maybe I should join : ) I'm glad to see that you don't discriminate. You just love them all!! I'm pretty much the same way.

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  30. Yay for being a wino! I saw some wines on there that I've never tried, so I'm definitely going to have to check them out. I'm usually more of a chardonnay girl, but it wouldn't be hard to talk me into having a pinot grigio!

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  31. Wow all good stuff.

    Love wine.

    -Green
    www.ahacook.com

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  32. Oh my gosh - what a fun blog you have! Very interesting...a wine tasting blog club - we'll have to check this out! I can't say that pinot grigio is my favorite - but I will have to pick out a couple of your picks to try!
    Cool music by the way!!

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  33. I'm so glad you've enjoyed our wine club!!! I'm so happy you decided to join. :) I just love when we get a new face in there....which brings a new taste and a new twist on things :). I think we start voting tomorrow for this months winner, who in turn gets to choose the wine for June! Wooo hooo!!!

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  34. Pinot Grigio - ultimate summer wine! I love it especially with tapas style food.
    Cheers....

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  35. I'm so glad you joined the wine club and are diggin' it!

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  36. How fun! Pinot Grigio is great because it really goes with just about anything!

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