Wine Appraiser

Kendall-Jackson's chardonnay is made using grapes grown in the cool, coastal regions of California, which gives the wine its crisp, clean flavor.  Whole cluster pressed and made in small vineyard lots throughout the winemaking process. Sur lie aging with monthly battonage (lees stirring) giving the wine silky texture and creamy flavor. Aged for 3 months in 44% French Oak (4% new) and 50% Amer...

Asti is a town in the Piemonte region of Italy. It is a DOCG-recognized wine area, the highest level in Italy. I have heard that specifically looking for a Barbera from Asti is worth the search. Tonight, we will check out this theory. Barbera has a deep ruby color, light to medium body, and is known for its high acid levels. In the past it was known for being a high-production, every-day drinking...

Tonight, we are tasting the 2023 Kirkland California Signature Cabernet Sauvignon box wine. To make the tasting more interesting and less biased, we will blindly taste against a bottle of Cabernet. This is a 3L box. A typical bottle is ¾ of a L, so it is the equivalent of 4 bottles. They say the box will last 4-6 weeks after opening, but expect it to be half that long. Tonight , our three wines ar...

Tonight, we have three red wines and each one cost under $10. As in most of our shows, we know the three wines we will be tasting, but we will blind-taste them. Can we find a wine that we like for under $10?  Tonight , our three wines are: 2019 Badet Clement & Co. Revelation Cabernet-Merlot red Bordeaux Blend. I purchased this wine from Trader Joe’s for $6.99. It has 55% Cabernet and 45%...

Tonight, we are having our third Wine Cocktails Show! We love these shows and I can’t wait to make some of these cocktails for family and friends. We are expecting this show to be more of the same. Tonight, we will one White Wine Cocktail and one Red Wine Cocktails. Last year, our winning cocktail was the Caribou. I actually prefer the Blood Letter Trinidad Sour. So I am crowning it the new champi...

Tonight, we are having our second Wine Cocktails Show! We loved our first cocktail show and got many comments. We are expecting this year to be more of the same. Tonight we will focus on Red Wine Cocktails. Last year, our winning cocktail was the Carribou. Tonight, we will have one very simple to make drink and a second that is a little more detailed. Also, one will have bourbon in addition to the...

Tonight, we are tasting and learning about two hybrid grape varieties. The first is Traminette and the second is Vidal Blanc. We are tasting a white wine blend of these two grapes. It is the Stone Hill Winery 2022 Hellbender Blanc. First, the Traminette is a hybrid white wine grape originally bred at the University of Illinois in 1965. It is an offspring of Gewurztraminer. Like its parent, it is p...

Tonight, we are blind-tasting three Pinot Noir wines. All three wines are from the United States, but are priced very differently. Pinot Noir is a medium-bodied, high-acid, fruit-forward wine. Pinot Noir from Oregon is typically more in the Burgundian Style. California Pinot characteristically has a little greater ripeness and spice. Here are our three wines for tonight. Tonight , we are enjoying:...

We are changing our show tonight, but we still have you covered with wine information. Tonight we are going to taste and learn about Gamay. Gamay is known for being a light-body and fruit-forward wine with low tannins. It typically has cherry and raspberry fruit flavors, and earthy and floral notes. Acid is typically medium to high. Duke of Burgundy banned Gamay in 1395 because he believed it to b...

The Iowa State Fair has been included on the New York Times list of places to see before you die, in a travel book about places to visit in the US and Canada, and one of the top experiences for every Midwesterner by Midwest Living magazine. It was also listed as the #2 choice for summer fun in America by USA Weekend in 2004. Here are some things you will see at the fair. Biggest boar, super bull,...

Bordeaux is famous for its red wines, but tonight we are focusing on the region’s white wines. While white wines are not what makes the area one of the most famous wine regions in the world. In the early 1970s the white grape Semillon was the most widely planted grape in the region, regardless of color. Today that is not the case, but it is still the most planted white grape. Just like the red win...

Port wine comes from the Douro Valley, Spain. It wasn’t long ago that we tasted a wine from the Douro Valley, Spain. The river continues west through Spain and runs directly through Portugal before it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at the City of Porto. This is Portugal’s second largest city and the namesake of the wine. Port wine is highly regulated. No other area can produce “Port” wine. After...

Vinho Verde is one of the best-known wines from Portugal. It comes from the Northwest portion of Portugal. The area is green because of its Atlantic Ocean influences as well as denoting the “green” wine that is made from grapes that are less than fully ripe. It comes in both red, white, and rose'. The red wines are mostly consumed locally and is an extremely fruity wine. The white wines are typica...

  Mourvedre is most commonly known for being the "M" in GSM Blend.   The grape originated in Spain, and is known for being a warm-climate grape. The grapes ripen extremely late. In fact, the Southern Rhone Valley is about as far north as the grape can be grown. The berries are small and the skin is thick, which produces a wine that is typically high in alcohol and tannin. It often h...

Tonight, we return to South Africa to taste two blended red wines. The first is a Shiraz-based blend from the Stellenbosch Region of the Western Cape. The second wine is mostly a Bordeaux Blend of Cabernet-Merlot. These wines basically come from different sides of a mountain. The Shiraz blend comes from the cooler Stellenbosch area. The Franschhoek (FRAHN-SHOOK) wine valley is a French area. Black...

The Dutch set up a supply colony for the sailors of the Dutch East India Company. This was in the mid-1600’s, and they soon started producing wine. Some of the areas have very warm climates, similar to Sydney or Perth Australia, but can also cool significantly due to elevation or ocean breezes. South Africa also has a unique feature known as the “Cape Doctor”, which is a gale-force summer south-ea...

Last week we had a Chianti from Tuscany, a Susumaniello from Puglia, and a Montepulciano from Abruzzo. Tonight, we have a Barolo from the Piemonte region. The area is known mostly for the home of two red grape varieties, Nebbiolo and Barbera. Nebbiolo is used to produce Barolo and Barbaresco, and Barbera is the typical table wine for the area. Barbera has become known over the last 30 years for it...

Three grape varieties from three different Italian wine regions. Italy is known for producing great wines at affordable prices. It is the number one wine-producing country in the world. Chianti is from central Italy, from the Tuscany region. Puglia is located on the heel of Italy. A Mediterranean climate with fertile soils, and according to the “Atlas of World Wine” is the flattest wine region in...

Vignoles is a moderately cold-hearty grape. It produces a dry to off-dry white wine, and can also make a sweet late-harvest dessert wine. It is a fruity wine known for having high levels of sugar and acid. New York is the best-known region for Vignoles. The wine is also common in the Midwest, Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois. LaCrescent is a German-type wine grape that produces off-dry to sweet wines....

Margaret River is only one of the nine regions in Western Australia but is the most popular and most famous of the regions. Margaret River is also somewhat unique in that it is a peninsula bordered on three sides by the ocean. The area has a temperate maritime climate because of the ocean’s proximity. Western Australia accounts for only 5% of Australia’s wine production, but accounts for 30% of it...

Torrontes is an aromatic dry white wine that originated in Argentina. It pairs well with spicy foods due to its acidity and sweet floral aromas. It has aromas of honeysuckle, orange blossom, lavender, geranium, and rose petals. Torrontes from the Salta wine region of Argentina is often considered the best because of the high elevations of the vineyards. Many are over 3,000 meters (9,840 feet). The...

With Memorial Day behind us, we are looking forward to summer. What is the best summer wine? You are not wrong if you said Pinot Gris, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, or any other wine. But you might want to try a Rose’ and I think if you are a red wine drinker, Rose may be the answer. Denise and I have really grown to love Rose’ over the past few years. It gives you freshness and crispness, but still...

This tasting will compare different priced wines, from about $7 to $24. It also compares Tempranillo wines from Rioja and Toro Spain, as well as the Yakima Valley, Washington. I can’t wait to learn about the differences in these wines. Rioja is known for its Tempranillo based blended wines. The wines are historically classified based on how long they have been aged (especially in oak). In 2017 cha...

Tonight we will each do a blind tasting. We will talk about our thoughts and the decisions we make regarding the two wines we taste. We will use the Five-S’s. They stand for; Sight Swirl Sniff Sip Savor We start our tasting by looking at the wine. We hold the glass tilted at a 45-degree angle and view the wine over a white sheet of paper. We look at the rim of the wine. What is the color? Are ther...

Tonight is all about mom, but we are also lacing up our disco boots and platform shoes to remember the 70’s. We are going to reminisce while we talk about wine options for mom. If your mom wants a wine, what are you going to serve? White wine is often thought to be a woman’s wine. However, 44% of women prefer red wine and only 42% prefer white wine. They also like Rose’ and sparkling wine. Women a...