Vino Family Vineyards 2004 Syrah, Sonoma County

Review by Dr. J, TWAV Tasting Team Member

Dr. J was looking forward with great anticipation to opening a 2000 California Merlot that he recently acquired from a co-worker. Turns out the wine was past its prime, but luckily he had a back-up bottle…

Instead, I opened a bottle of Vino Family Syrah. I have recently become addicted to Lot 18. They give me credits for different things all the time, and I feel the need to use them (genius, right?). I got a deal on a duo of one of my favorite grapes.

My perfect Syrah is very dark, inky, and complex. This really didn't fit any of those criteria, yet it still managed to be a wonderful wine. This is a lighter body Syrah. The best description is very cherry!

The nose was full of cherry, violets, and spice. The palette was dominated by cherry once again, with remnants of cassis and a tart finish. I definitely enjoyed this and have no regrets of having a second bottle to consume.

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2006 Killibinbin “The Blend,” Australia

This Australian wine is a beefy blend from Killibinbin’s Langhorne Creek Vineyard. It’s a lush mixture of 52% Shiraz and 48% Cabernet Sauvignon.

The aroma is berry laden and the first sip shows the touch of sweetness that differentiates Shiraz from the drier approach of Syrah (it’s the same grape). The fruit forward Shiraz is balanced by an almost equal amount of Cabernet, which provides earthiness and spice.

We weren’t sure what to expect from the label, which shows a huge and sinister dark hand closing around a blonde woman. It looks like something from a graphic novel. The price of $15 sure seemed worth a gamble. It was one that paid off surprisingly well.

This is a round, pleasing wine with that is great for casual sipping. The tannins are very soft, but just like the sinister hand, it packs a punch with 16% alcohol. This should pair well with barbecue or pizza.

Killibinbin is Killigoodgood. ***+

Technorati Tags: wine,Shiraz

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Michigan Winery and Chicago Restaurant Team Up To Offer Keg Wine in Illinois

Michigan keg wine is making its debut in Illinois this week at the newly opened Farmhouse in Chicago. Farmhouse, partnering with Fresh Coast Distributors, is offering house white and red wines on tap from Domaine Berrien Cellars in Berrien Springs, Michigan.

As the first Illinois restaurant to offer Michigan wine by the keg, owners TJ Callahan and Ferdia Doherty are pioneers of kegged local wine, the next logical step following the popular local food movement along with the trend towards local craft beers and spirits. "We wanted to find the best local wine to offer on tap and were impressed with the artisan juice Wally is producing at Domaine Berrien. We went through several barrel tastings before we decided on Domaine Berrien's Marsanne and Merlot to feature as our Farmhouse White and Farmhouse Red," says Doherty.

The Domaine Berrien wine is brought to Farmhouse via Fresh Coast Distributors in 20 liter disposable KeyKegs which when tapped, do not allow air to enter the container, keeping the wines fresh for months versus days in a traditional bottle. The KeyKeg also offers a reduced impact on the environment because of its recyclable components while eliminating the need for a return trip to the winery for refilling as needed with stainless steel kegs. "We're excited to partner with Farmhouse on their keg wine project and expose Chicagoans to Michigan wine. Our Midwestern, lake-influenced terroir is unique and we're producing excellent wines just across the water from one of the best food cities in the world, certainly a great pairing."

Farmhouse is a Midwestern tavern featuring Midwest beers, wine and spirits and locally sourced seasonal fare from Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana like venison beer bratwurst, stuffed pasties and a boneless short-rib sloppy joe. The tavern will also feature house made sodas, catsup and chips.

Photo by Til Westermayer

Technorati Tags: wine

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Wine Tastings & Events: October 5-8, 2011

Image of Norman Vineyards via Snooth

Wednesday, October 5

The Andersons, Sylvania, Wine Tasting. 6-8 PM. Zins, glorious ZINS! We will be sampling four great Zinfandels, each from a different region, in order to showcase the breadth of styles this varietal can cover, as well as the influence imparted upon it by the climate, region, and so on. 1. Hobo Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel, 2. Pretense Paso Robles Zinfandel, 3. Predator Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel, 4. Thurston Wolfe “Howling Wolf” Horse Heaven Hills Zinfandel. $9 per flight or nominal fee per sample.

Beer and Wine Cave, 4400 Heatherdowns, (419) 382-6221. 6-9 PM. Michael David Winery Wines. Meet the winemaker/owner, leave with autographed bottles of your favorite juice. $15.

Zinful Wine Bar & Restaurant, (419) 878-9463, 7541 Dutch Road, Waterville. 6-9 PM. Wine Tasting. Cost is $15.

Thursday, October 6

The Andersons, Maumee, Wine Tasting. 5-7 PM. Great wines of the Norman Vineyards, Paso Robles, California. 1. 2005 Vocation – Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre, 2. 2005 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, 3. 2005 Crescendo Meritage, 4. 2005 Reflection Syrah (56%) / Cabernet Sauvignon (44%) Blend. $6 per flight or nominal fee per sample.

The Andersons, Talmadge Road. Wine Tasting. 6-8 PM. Mollydooker Night: 1. 2010 Two Left Feet, 2. 2009 Maitre D’, 3. 2010 Boxer, 4. 2009 Blue Eyed Boy, 5. 2010 Blue Eyed Boy, 6. 2010 Gigglepot, 7. 2010 Carnival of Love. Nominal fee per sample.

Beer and Wine Cave, 4400 Heatherdowns, (419) 382-6221. 6-9 PM. Michael David Winery Wines. $15.

Corks Wine and Liquor, Promenade Plaza, 27250 Crossroads Pkwy., Rossford – (419) 872-6800. 6-9 PM.  Blends from around the World - Special guest host Nick Kuciak from Pere Jacques: 1. Mont Ferrant Cava from Spain, 2. Andrieux Cuvee de Provence from France, 3. La Calonica Rosso di Toscano from Italy, 4. Haut Guillebot Cuvee Especial from Bordeaux France, 5. Clay House Adobe Red from California. $2 per sample.

TREO Wine Bar, 5703 Main St., Sylvania, (419) 882-2266. Wine & Cheese Thursday. Explore the wonderful world of wine and cheese. Try four different wines with a sample platter of the day’s cheese.

Friday, October 7

* Special Event * Toledo Museum of Art Wine by the Glass Pavilion series: Veneto! Wines from Northern Italy. 7:00 to 9:30 PM in the Glass Pavilion. Enjoy four wines, light snacks, and a view of glassmakers working in the Hot Shop. Prices are $15 for members and $20 for nonmembers.

Aficionado Wine and Cigars, The Shoppes at RiverPlace, 26567 N. Dixie Highway, Suite 135, Perrysburg, (419-873-4444). 5:00 – 8:30 p.m. Wines of Rombauer with special guest Clyde Gilbert from Rombauer: 1. Chardonnay, 2. Merlot, 3. Cabernet Sauvignon, 4. Zinfandel. $15 tasting.

Saturday, October 8

Aficionado Wine and Cigars, The Shoppes at RiverPlace, 26567 N. Dixie Highway, Suite 135, Perrysburg, (419-873-4444). 5:00 – 8:30 p.m. Wines of Rombauer: 1. Chardonnay, 2. Merlot, 3. Cabernet Sauvignon, 4. Zinfandel. $15 tasting.

The Andersons, Woodville Mall. 1-3 PM. Saturday Wine Tasting. New Wines for You: 1. Big Brook Chardonnay, 2. Lolita Merlot, 3. Niepoort Twisted Red, 4. Camp Jack Apple Wine. $2.25 per flight or nominal fee per sample. Note: Beginning October 27, our wine tastings will move to Thursdays from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

Walt Churchill’s Market, 3320 Briarfield. Maumee, (419) 794-4000. 12:00 – 5:00 PM. Nominal fee per sample.

Walt Churchill's Market, 26625 Dixie Hwy, Perrysburg, (419) 872-6900. 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Nominal fee per sample.

Zinful Wine Bar & Restaurant, (419) 878-9463, 7541 Dutch Road, Waterville. 6-9 PM Wine flight TBA. Cost is $15.

AREA WINE BARS

• Tres Belle Wine and Martini Lounge, (419) 874-4555, 3145 Hollister Lane, Perrysburg (Levis Commons).
• Vino 100 Wine Bar & Restaurant, (419) 866-8466, Promenade West, 3355 Briarfield Blvd, Suite C, Maumee.
• Zinful Wine Bar & Restaurant, (419) 878-9463, 7541 Dutch Road, Waterville.

Technorati Tags: wine

[Information on tastings can be sent to TWAV@ATT.NET.]

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Diverse Lineup Rocks TWAV 2nd Anniversary Tasting

From Italy to the coasts of California and Missouri to a wine vinted in Toledo, the recent 2nd Anniversary TWAV tasting covered a lot of turf stylistically. The tasting team and friends gathered last weekend to celebrate the blog’s second anniversary and the TWAV Facebook page passing 200 friends. We don’t need much of an excuse to celebrate!
Here’s a partial list of the wine selection:

2009 Foley Estate Vineyards, Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay Steel – This is one delicious Chardonnay. We didn’t realize this was steel finished until we more closely examined the label. The minerality of the fruit is in the spotlight rather than the oak you get in other Chards. This has a lively crispness with an edge of lime. The bottle retails for $30 and we rated it a **** on our 5-star scale. This was my favorite of the night!

2010 Dreaming Tree Central Coast Chardonnay – Thanks to Dave Weiden of Walter Berman & Co. we were able to sample this and several other wines. Dreaming Tree is musician Dave Matthews’ entry into the wine world. We found this to to have a fantastic QPR (quality price ratio) at just $14.99. It has tastes of pear and lemon with just the right touch of light oak. We rated this between a ***+ and ****.

2005 Tabbarini Montefalco Sagratino – This is a wine I picked up at the 2011 North American Wine Bloggers Conference in Charlottesville. Sagratino is native to the Umbria region of Italy and there are only about 250 acres of this grape in the world. This wine has massive tannins and is not for the squeamish. It’s a big wine with charisma overflowing with dark fruit and earthiness. This wine goes for about $40 if you can find it. We rated it between ***+ and ****. This was a favorite of yours truly.

2009 Dreaming Tree Central Coast Cabernet – Another wine from Dave Matthews’ label, this is a smooth drinking Cab with raspberry flavor notes. It isn’t complex, but it is rewarding. *** All three Dreaming Tree wines are at the $14.99 price point.

Cellar No. 8 2009 Eight Red Wine – A  proprietary red blend from Cellar No. 8, this is a mixture of Petite Sirah, Grenache, Merlot, Mourvedre, Syrah, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese. It retails for $9.99 and is a great QPR selection. It has ripe red berry flavors. This is an easy drinking wine that would be at home for a tailgate party or barbeque. ***+


2010 Kessler Vineyards Pinot Noir – We were thrilled to have a tasting of the first batch of Pinot Noir made by tasting team member Josh Kessler. He currently has bottled wines made from his own vines, but the Pinot Noir was made from Washington State juice. Fiancée Casey is not yet ready to give up her day job, but the vintage shows promise. We rate it a *** and in the future we will be able to tell Wine Spectator that we knew Josh when he first started winemaking!

Dreaming Tree 2009 Crush Red Wine – This is the third of the Dave Matthews’ wines (OK, he got help from Sonoma winemaker Steve Reeder) we sampled and we rated it the best. This had smoky berry and red jam. This compares very favorably with other popular red blends. We couldn’t determine the exact blend, but Dave Matthews rocked out this wine. ****

2008 Stone Hill Vineyard Norton, Missouri – Norton is a true native American grape and perhaps no one makes it better than Stone Hill Vineyard,which has 160 years of winemaking heritage. It is a dry red that tastes very different from Cabernet. The deep impenetrable color befuddled our tasting crew – it actually colored the sides of the glass and the decanter.  It has a beautiful nose and a light body of blackberry and spice. One taster said its value lay in its uniqueness while others were undecided. I enjoyed the adventure. The average score was ***.

Special thanks to Glorious T and Ace of Bass for hosting the tasting. The food and hospitality were spectacular!

Technorati Tags: wine,Dreaming Tree wines,Norton

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Vino 100 Maumee Announces Tuesday Wine Tastings

Vino 100 Maumee, (419) 866-8466, Promenade West, 3355 Briarfield Blvd, Suite C, has announced a new series of open house style tastings every Tuesday Night from 6:00 to 9:00 PM. According to co-owner George Burk, they are “trying to create an experience as if one had went to the winery itself.” The cost of wines sampled will be from $15 to $60. The concentration will be on. Included in the tasting will be a high end wine that makes a great value from the featured winery. Wines from the featured winery will be showcased by the glass in the wine bar.

Upcoming tastings include:

October 4th -- Chateau St. Jean Winery. 1. Fume Blanc, 2. Pinot Noir, 3. Merlot, 4. Cabernet Sauvignon and 5. Cinq Cepages. Cost is $25 for all five wines. No RSVP. Light appetizers served with tasting.

October 11th -- Mendocino Wine Company. 1. 2009 Woodstock Chardonnay, 2. 2008 Rolling Stones Forty Licks Merlot, 3. 2007 The Police Synchronicity Red Blend, 4. 2007 Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon Cabernet Sauvignon. Cost of the tasting is only $10, with will include cheese and crackers. No RSVP required.  

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