Vintage Cellar Tasting - Opera Prima

• Opera Prima
• Sweet Red
• Daimiel, Ciudad Real
• Spain
• 2010
• $4.95
• Doesn't try to hide its warm-climate terroir, with a soft texture framing jammy-sweet black raspberry, cherry, red currant, root beer and sweet tea.  Drink now.
• This wine was ridiculously sweet, I mean obviously, because it says "sweet red," so I guess I should have expected it.  When I first smelled it my nose literally tingled, I could tell it packed a super sweet punch.  And it did.  It was delicious, I could taste all the berries and fruits so easily...maybe a little too easily though.  It was definitely too sweet for my liking, I could have a half a glass, one time, and then I would be happy for awhile.  Definitely meant as a dessert wine, nothing wrong with that, but not really for me.
• And again, no food.  I would like to find a place that pairs food with their wine tastings sometime.

Vintage Cellar Tasting - Montes Alpha

• Montes Alpha
• Syrah
• D.O. Colchagua Valley
• Chile
• 2009
• $7.95
• Blackberry and cola aromas are cool and collected.  The palate has weight and texture to accompany berry, mint, herb, and peppery flavors.  Turns more herbal and roasted as it unwinds.  Pepper and spice lead the finish.
• I could definitely smell the berries in this one was the description mentions, it was very fruity and fresh smelling.  This wine had a very deep, rich flavor that really sank into my taste buds.  There were more tannins than before, but not too much so.  This was definitely one of my favorites, but the price deterred me from purchasing it unfortunately.
• No food with this one either.

Vintage Cellar Tasting - Coreto

•  Coreto
• Tinto
• Lisboa
• Portugal
• 2010
• $6.95
• Despite its light touch, this is fruity and full, with its blackberry fruit dominating the warm spice note and acidity.  Soft tannins keep the wine together.
• When first assessing the wine by smell, I first noted that it did not smell incredibly sweet and also may have had a slight pungent aroma to it.  When tasting this wine, it had a very nice, fruity taste with a little bite at first, but then with a little bitter aftertaste.  It was light on tannins as well, which I enjoy because it doesn't leave my tongue feeling like sandpaper.
• No food tasting with this wine.

Vintage Cellar Tasting - Maipe

• Maipe
• Sauvignon Blanc
• Mendoza
• Argentina
• 2011
• $7.95
• Yellow color with green hints.  Expressive wine, fresh, very aromatic.  This Sauvignon Blanc displays grapefruit flavors, with hints of melon and honey.  It finishes with bracing acidity and fresh mouth feels that make it a terrific aperitif and an excellent accompaniment to virtually all seafood, especially shellfish.
• First thing I noticed when tasting this wine is that there was a stronger bite to it.  Like a little kick, which I liked, it also was not as dry as the previous wine.  The wine smelled very strong, I didn't have to focus to get the smell, it went straight up my nostrils as soon as I put my nose to the glass.  Overall, a good wine but I liked the Encostas do Lima a little better.
• No food served with this wine.

Vintage Cellar Tasting - Encostas do Lima

I am under the impression that I should do a separate post for each wine I taste each week.  So let's start this out in order to avoid confusion.

• Encostas do Lima
• Vinho Verde
• Ponte de Lima
• Portugal
• 2010
• $4.95
• 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.
• Although I am not supposed to copy the above review of this wine, it does cover its bases quite well.  I have to say that when I smelled it, there was a definite crispness to it, I could tell it would be refreshing from the start.  Upon tasting it, I immediately got a fruity taste and it was a little on the dry side.  It was not too sweet, which is good in my opinion (because I can drink more of it without feeling sick!).  You may have noticed in my first post I mentioned not liking white wines, but ironically, this was the bottle of wine I chose to buy at the end of the tasting.  Diversifying!!
• We did not have this wine with food.  I didn't see any food at least, no crackers, nothing.  So I assume the Vintage Cellar just doesn't do that kind of thing, at least not every time.

My Personal Experience with Wine Thus Far

Hello, and welcome to my first blog post.  Blogs are very foreign to me so let's just jump right into it and see how it goes.  I thoroughly enjoy wine, but am incredibly ignorant about it as a whole.  I acquired my taste for wine within the past couple years, either because I turned 21 or because I wanted to be "that guy," you know, the one who everyone is like, "Wow, he must be really sophisticated because he is drinking a glass of wine instead of pounding down shots of Aristocrat Vodka."

I started out by drinking small sips of white wines when I was younger during family get-togethers (yes, I was under 21, but my parents gave it to me, which makes it ok...right?...don't call the cops).  At that age though I thought even white wine was disgusting.  I couldn't see how anyone could ever drink it.  But slowly it grew on me, and last summer I took a summer study abroad trip to Italy where we visited multiple wineries, drank dozens of glasses of wine, and ate tons of bread and cheese with it too.  I learned a lot about wine and wine production during that trip as well as developed a much stronger palate for it, especially reds.  But I still didn't feel like I knew enough about it to make wise purchases on my own.

Since that trip I have visited many wine stores and done many wine tastings, trying to learn exactly what I do and don't like.  I now know, white is not my favorite.  I just don't feel like it has enough kick, it feels kind of bland or flat to me, and some are far too sweet.  But then again, maybe I'm just not picking out the right wines.  I have really learned to love red wines though, the bold, woody ones are my favorite, but I hate the feeling on my tongue when there is too much tannin.  I hope all that terminology made sense.

I'm very excited about taking this class.  Actually, I have been very excited about the idea of taking this class since my freshman year when one of my TAs told me about it.  I couldn't wait to learn about wines and being proper.  I want to know what foods go best with what wines, what kinds of wine come from what areas of the world, what glasses to use, how to hold those glasses, how to understand the aromas and flavours of the wine, and so much more.  I am stoked for this class and can't wait to see how much there is to learn.

Blogger out.