Celebrate Today with a Cabernet

These past several weeks have been a difficult time with transitioning out of California, back into Ohio. As well as finding out that my namesake, my uncle, has cancer. My Uncle is someone who my mother named me after with the hopes that I would someone who is as light hearted, and able to follow my passions, like he always has. So after this shock, I have taken some things into perspective, and have realized I need to rekindle this blog, and other wine outlets. All with the hope of living out my passion of working in the wine industry soon. 

So as I turn over this leaf towards my future, I am humbled to inform you that today, yes today (Thursday 8/30/2012) is national Cabernet day! So take out your glassware, wine key, and open yourself up a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon. Enjoy it with friends & loved ones, and celebrate today!

I will be doing the same, and of course let you know all about the wine. I will be trying the Pink Floyd Dark Side Of the Moon Cabernet Sauvignon. I consider it a journey to somewhere I have never seen and have yet to experience. 

Cheers on this wonderful holiday!
-Bruce

Stanza 2008 - Cabernet Sauvignon

Reason:

I have developed a great relationship with my local wine boutique here in Ohio, and he stated that Stanza Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 is a wine that he has been enjoying this summer. As such, he recommended it based on what he knows that I like, and of course I bought it. The price point didn’t hurt either.

Overall:

Stanza Cabernet Sauvignon was a delicious wine to enjoy on the evening, while cooking, with steak, and hanging out after. An all around great buy that is simple to enjoy, and I think you will too!

Region:

Lodi, CA

Aroma:

This Cabernet has a subtle aroma of cedar, dark berries, with a black pepper finish that will perk up your nose in a delightful manner. This aroma will quickly leave the senses, awaiting to be  enjoyed for its taste.

Taste:
For this 2008 wine, it has aged exceedingly well, it is softer on the pallet, and the subtle tannins finish out well with the fruit forward essence of the wine. Upon first sip your mouth will be filled with a mix of black plum, black cherry, black currant, some smokiness from the toasting of the barrel, and will be rounded out by the flavor of black pepper elevating the wine off of your tongue. Leaving nothing more than a wonderful essence of wanting the next sip. This taste will last on the pallet for about 30 seconds, which is great that you can enjoy it for this long in its physical absence, I only wish this lasted longer.

Price:

$14.99

Glass Rating:

3 Glasses

 






Next Week's Wine:
Berrywine Plantation 2010 - Raspberry Wine

Next Post Wednesday

Today is my last full day in California for a while, and I must move back to Ohio tomorrow evening. This makes it a little difficult to put up a new post. However, you need not worry, there will be a wonderful post this Wednesday night to celebrate "Wine Wednesday." Stay tuned! :)

-Bruce

“Glass Rating”

One thing that I thought would be helpful if I was to have a rating system for the wines I try, but what to do…. Points? Overly done…. Stars? since when does wine have stars…. then it hit me!

Each normal 750ml bottle contains 4 glasses of wine, perfect! Starting with my previous post I will be adding a glass rating to each wine I try. This rating system goes from zero glasses to four glasses, with four glasses meaning that the wine is absolutely outstanding, and zero meaning I will not suggest the wine.

I want to recognize the fact that, like any other rating system, this rating is based on my personal tastes. However, I want you to know that I have been tasting lots of different wines, and I take every aspect of with wine (except price) into consideration when providing you a rating. The reason I do not take the price into consideration of the rating, is because of the fact that I want you to enjoy a wine by what’s in the bottle. Do not be scared of the price point, I am working hard to find you wines that you will enjoy regardless of price. The more open you are to expanding your possibilities, the more opportunity you have to find some hidden wine gems, but rejoice in the fact that there are some delicious wines at extremely cost effective prices. J

Moreover, I am open to suggestions on wines that you would like me to try, and gladly welcome your comments of your thoughts on the wines I’ve tried. Wine can, and should be enjoyed with others, so let’s ThinkWine together!

Cheers!

-Bruce

Williamson Wines 2010 - "Frolic" Viognier

Reason:

While visiting the California wine region, my brother & sister-in-law took be into this fun little boutique tasting room that according to my brother “knows how to sell some wine.” Boy was he right! Every single wine at Williamson was paired with food that was selected because it would enhance the experience. It was fantastic! This Viognier, unlike the other wines was paired with a curry encrusted cashew nut, something extremely unique, and I needed to pick up a bottle to see what it was like on its own.

Thoughts:

Similar to some of my other wine choices, Viognier is a different style wine that has its unique role to play. For this wine, I recommend enjoying it with spicy food, and it will bring out the sultry flavors enhancing your experience with your food.

Region:

North Coast of California

Color:

Pale yellow, with a gold tint

Aroma:

This wine starts with strong hints of cantaloupe. Then it evolves into aromas of pine, rosemary, and honeysuckle.

Taste:

Upon first sip, I tasted sharp pear with an oaky finish. This left a slight bite on the tip of my tongue, leaving me a little parched. Finally, overtime this wine Viognier opened up to be smoother with a soft fruit finish.

Glass Rating:

2.5 Glasses

Price:

$32 (In Tasting Room)

To Screw, or Not To Screw?

More and more when you go into the wine aisle you will notice screw tops on the bottles! Upon seeing these bottles I know I thought to myself was “does screw that this is a cheaper wine?...does the sine of a screw top mean it is of a lesser quality?” and “does buying this wine make me look like a lush?” In doing some research on the use of this type of closure I have seen the same, or similar questions from many others.

The reality about screw tops may surprise you. However, before I reveal the result, I need to first inform you about the different types of ways used to seal wines.

Wine can have one of three different types of closures:

1.       Traditional Cork

2.       Synthetic Cork

3.       Screw Top

The oldest method of sealing a bottle of wine was to use a cork, which comes from the bark of a cork oak tree. There is a level of nostalgia that comes from removing a cork to open up the wine for your special occasion. However, many do not realize that those wines using a traditional cork are playing the cork lottery. The cork lottery is in reference to the potential of your bottle of wine being “corked,” a flat wine with a musty smell. A trait that comes from TCA, a substance used to sanitize corks. Unfortunately, it is estimated that 1/10 bottles of wine with a cork are plagued with this issue. :(

After over a century of using traditional corks, scientists developed the means to produce synthetic corks, those made with plastic. These newer corks are not subjected to the issue of creating a “corked” wine. HOWEVER, these corks have had a noticeably hard time controlling the oxidation of the wine. Oxygen is essential to developing, and aging great wine, but too much can create a horrible experience.

Finally, there is the creation and implementation of the screw top. The screw top has risen to the issues presented by the older methods, and conquered them. Yes, these wine closures have removed some of the mysticism around opening that bottle of wine with a cork screw. BUT, one should not let this fact alone prevent you from purchasing a wine that you may seriously enjoy during your next event.

So the next time you are in the store, do not turn a blind eye to the screw top, give it an honest chance, because you never know if you will like it till you try it. :)

Delicious Oven Filelt Mignon

Fillet Mignon with Red Wine Balsamic, and Bleu Cheese Butter (without a grill)

Last week I wanted to make something special for the fourth of July, a day of celebration that I usually find myself enjoying beverages, and delicious grilled food. However, this year was a challenge. I did not have a grill, and am 1,500 miles away from those whom I would normally celebrate with. So the challenge was to make a delicious meal with no grill that could be made to serve one. Inspiration set in for Fillet Mignon, and I just had to learn how to cook this wonderful meal without a grill. I spent time searching around online, and eventually found several helpful websites. I then combined their information, created my own recipe,  and was happy with the result! Below I have listed out the recipe I created, and steps so that you can make this mouthwatering dish yourself, so that you can enjoy it with a savory wine (or two).

Ingredients:

·         Fillets (about  1-2 inches thick)

·         EVOO Olive Oil

·         Balsamic Vinaigrette

·         Red Wine (I used the one that I was going to be drinking)

·         Bleu Cheese

·         Butter

·         Ground Sea Salt

·         Ground Black Pepper

Recipe:

1.       (1.5 hours before) Remove butter from fridge, place in small bowl, and let warm to room temperature. Once at room temperature add Bleu Cheese to the butter, mix thoroughly, place back in fridge.

2.       (20 min before) Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove Fillets from fridge and let them warm up to room temperature, once at room temperature place EVOO all over each Fillet, and then grind up sea salt and black pepper onto each side.

3.       Place a skillet on the stove, and heat up to a Medium-High heat. Once heated place Fillet on the skillet, let it cook for 3 minutes. FLIP ONCE and let it cook the other side for 3 minutes, this is to char the outside of the fillet so that you will have a greater flavor.

4.       After cooking on each side, remove the fillet from the pan, and place it in the pre-heated oven for 6 minutes for your fillet to be a perfect medium rare. Return the skillet to a low temperature.

5.       Once you place the fillet in the oven pour the balsamic vinaigrette and some red wine into the low temperature skillet to make your sauce, use your own preference in amounts (you cannot go wrong). Make sure to stir them so that your balsamic vinaigrette doesn’t separate out of solution.

6.       Once your fillet has cooked, remove it from the oven, place on a plate, pour the sauce over top of the fillet (slowly, to allow the juices to soak in), and remove your pre-made bleu cheese butter place a dollop atop your fillet. Once complete, cover your plate/fillet with aluminum foil for 5 minutes. This will allow the juices to soak into your fillet, the bleu cheese butter to melt and cascade flavor atop your perfectly cooked meat.

7.       Uncover, and place your fillet on the plate it will be served on. It is recommended that you already have your sides on the plate so that your fillet will be served warm.

8.       Pour yourself a nice glass of red wine (I recommend a well-aged Napa Cabernet Sauvignon), and enjoy.

I hope that you will enjoy this recipe as much as I did. Please let me know your thoughts. Cheers!

-Bruce