Wine Tasting Dinner: Summer Whites
Last Friday was a beautiful, sunny day in Seattle, the perfect day to enjoy some crisp, cool white wines for summer. Our wine tasting dinner this month was a slight departure from our normal tasting format. This tasting featured six different white varietals instead of six different wines within the same varietal. Since the Wine Peeps generally gravitate toward our beloved New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc when it comes to white wines, we wanted to expand our horizons and see how some other varietals from other regions stacked up in a blind tasting.
In addition to asking each of our guests to give us their rankings of the wines at the end of the evening, we added another twist to make things even more interesting. Each person was given a sheet of paper with a list of the six varietals represented in the tasting and a brief description of common characteristics for that varietal and we each tried to identify which wine was which varietal before we took off the sacks and unveiled them. We had done this exercise a couple years ago with a red tasting and it is no easy task. I’m happy to report that this group did very well with the exercise. One person matched all six correctly and two others matched four.
While the 2007 Nobilo Marlborough Regional Collection Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand was the consensus favorite, we did discover a fabulous Viognier from Nefarious Cellars in Chelan, Washington and once again thoroughly enjoyed the Poet’s Leap Riesling from the Columbia Valley in Washington. These top three wines were all excellent and each garnered a 4 star rating. Though very different, all three paired well with Mom’s dinner of braised chicken breast topped with olive tapenade, steamed green beans with red onion and roasted red peppers, and wild rice.
In addition to enjoying good wines and Mom’s delicious food, the best part of the evening was spending time with wonderful family and friends.
From 1st to last in the group consensus rankings:
2007 Nobilo Marlborough Regional Collection Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand): Beautiful nose of grapefruit, lime, tomato plant, and freshly cut grass. Distinct grapefruit flavors. Sharp, crisp acidity and a nice, long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: MadWine (Seattle), $10.99; Available elsewhere, $10 to $11
2007 Nefarious Cellars Defiance Vineyard Viognier (Lake Chelan Valley, Washington): Elegant floral aromas and flavors. Crisp and refreshing with a pleasant, smooth finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Winery, $18.99
2006 Poet’s Leap Riesling [Long Shadows] (Columbia Valley, Washington): Aromas of cantaloupe rind and pineapple lead to flavors of honeydew and peach. Off-dry and well-balanced with crisp acidity and a nice finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Pete’s Wine Shop (Seattle), $18.69; Available elsewhere, $16 to $24
2007 Pacific Rim Chenin Blanc (Columbia Valley, Washington): Interesting aroma profile of asparagus mixed with stale beer. Tastes better than it smells. Some acidity.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: QFC (Seattle), $9; Available elsewhere, $8 to $14 (different vintage)
2007 Kim Crawford Unoaked Chardonnay (New Zealand): Distinct dill notes on the nose. Fairly plain with a short, somewhat perplexing finish.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Fred Meyer (Seattle), $15; Available elsewhere, $15 to $20
2007 Voga Italia Pinot Grigio (Delle Venezie, Italy): Old World minerality is present along with aromas of pizza crust. Weak finish. This wine comes in a very distinctive bottle that looks a bit like a huge cologne bottle.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: QFC (Seattle), $9; Available elsewhere, $10 to $28 (different vintage)
What is your favorite summer white wine?
We blind-tasted these four wines: the 2007 Seresin Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand; the 2007 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley, California; the 2007 Shaw and Smith Sauvignon Blanc from Adelaide Hills, Australia; and the 2007 Snoqualmie Sauvignon Blanc from Columbia Valley, Washington. They all nicely complemented our light summer fare of grilled halibut, wild rice, and steamed broccoli. In fact, Sauvignon Blanc is our favorite summer white varietal whether we are enjoying it with dinner or just sipping it outside on the deck.
Sydney, my 13 month old daughter, is asleep right now and I finally have a moment to sit down on the couch, relax, start reading a book that’s been on my nightstand for over a year, and sip one of my all-time favorite wines, the 2002 Peter Lehmann Shiraz. Too many times when Sydney is sleeping, I am frantically trying to get as much done as I can (paying bills, washing dishes, working on these blog posts, etc.) that I rarely take time for myself. This comfort wine theme was perfect in that it forced me to slow down and relax a little.
When I’m not studying wine, I’m in the investment management business studying these crazy markets. I unwind at home in my sweats by sipping a good glass of wine while watching the sailboat races on Lake Union from my deck, reading a good book [currently I’m reading New Classic Winemakers of California], or going online where I browse sports, travel [fantasizing about my next trip Down Under], and wine.
My comfort wine is the Columbia Crest Two Vines Merlot Cabernet. The price is right, averaging between $6 and $8 a bottle, and it is a great all around wine. The wine has a fragrant nose of red cherry and hints of minerality. On first sip it is fruit-forward and balanced with just enough tannins for a good body and a pleasant finish. After it has had a chance to breathe, you can expect the tannins to open up so you can experience its true complexity. It’s not overpowering but definitely not a wimpy wine either.
Most evenings I unwind and relax with a book; my reading of choice is fiction. While I read I enjoy sipping a glass of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, most often Nobilo. While many people might question a Sauvignon Blanc as a sipping comfort wine, it is those characteristics that it provides that I specifically like: the fresh, tart, grapefruity taste with the soft golden color. I do not like sweet or oaky flavors, but I love a crisp, cold white wine…even in winter!
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