Canyon Road Merlot 2014

My mom and I recently went to a bunco fundraiser where we played bunco for the first time (it’s not as exciting as you think) but also won a sweet raffle prize. The basket we won included a bottle of wine, two wine glasses, and gift certificate to Pinot’s Palette. The wine was a bottle of 2014 Canyon Road California Merlot. Free wine is always the best wine and this one wasn’t awful. I’m learning Merlot is probably my least favorite wine but this one was pretty smooth. This is going to sound really weird but when I took a long sniff of it, I totally got notes of rosemary and Play-Doh. I mean, along with the normal cherry fruity smells you get from a Merlot. But the taste isn’t awful and goes down smooth, but it isn’t something I would seek out to buy again.

Tunnel of Elms Merlot

I finally opened one of the bottles of California wine my aunt brought with her as a gift when we had a mini family reunion in Massachusetts a few months ago. This Tunnel of Elms Merlot is 13.5% ABV and very smooth. Bold and spicy as a Merlot should be, but not too strong of tannins, almost on the sweeter side. Nice finish, not too dry or bitter. Almost fruity. This would be a good introductory Merlot for someone who isn’t used to very dry wines.

Robert Mondavi Private Collection Merlot 2011

Sorry I haven’t blogged in awhile, I got a new job at the Osprey Observer and things have been busy. Last Shabbat I decided to try some of a bottle my dad brought home even though the name Robert Mondavi leaves a bad taste in my mouth. For around $7 from the gas station this wine is slightly overpriced but the best of the Mondavi’s i’ve tried, which still isn’t saying much. With 13.5% ABV it has terrible legs that disappear almost immediately. It’s aroma was not impressive with it being mostly like rubbing alcohol but with hints or pine and dark cherry/berry. It tasted like a very tart, dry dark blackberry with lots of tannin. I think it would have tasted better chilled. I’m sure some people would enjoy this wine, it’s just not for me.

Flipflop 2009 California Merlot

My mom makes a delicious beef burgundy, even if she doesn’t use the right type of wine. For this particular batch of beef burgundy she used a wine i’d never tasted before. Flipflop 2009 California Merlot can be bought at Sweetbay supermarkets (or most likely any grocery store) for around $6. This wine is actually much tastier than I was expecting. The thing that threw me off was the fact that the bottle didn’t have a cork, it was a twist off top. To me, a wine without a cork is a red flag for cheap, disgusting wine, but I was pleasantly surprised. It has 13.5% alcohol by volume which is downplayed by the vanilla and berry flavors. It has nice legs and soft tannins which make for a smooth finish. It smelled mostly of blackberry to me but I could hint plum and cherry as well. The back of the bottle says, “Jammy aromas and soft tannins pair well with Texas chili, black & blue sliders or cheddar cheese broccoli.” If you are a Merlot lover on a budget I would suggest you try this wine, it just may surprise you. 

Flipflop 2009 California Merlot

Olympic Wines

What better reason to celebrate with some wine than the Olympics? Will Lyons for the Wall Street Journal reports this years London games have their very own wines.

From the article: “According to British wine merchant Bibendum, which was tasked by the International Olympic Committee with creating a bespoke Olympic wine, the brief was to produce three wines that ‘complemented the Olympic ideals, offered consumers something new and interesting, while being low enough in alcohol to promote responsible drinking.’”

I’d personally like to know how a wine can compliment the Olympic ideals. Anyhow, the three wines are a Chenin Blanc from Stellenbosch in South Africa; a rose blend with Pinotage, Shiraz and Merlot from South Africa; and a red blend of Shiraz, Tempranillo and Gamay from Brazil. My first question was, “Why no wines made in Britain?”

From the article: “…Bibendum points out that the three wines needed to come from the same vintage as the games, which rules out any estate in the northern hemisphere.”

Well that solves that. I wonder how hard it’d be to get a bottle of one of these in America.

Vin de Crete

During my two week summer break my family and I went on a day trip to the docks in Tarpon Springs. While we were there we went to this cute little place called Wine At the Docks where they have daily wine tastings. Since we were surrounded by Greek culture I decided to try some Greek wines. It was a little odd that I was only allowed to try wines that were currently open; they don’t open wines just because you want to taste them. I ended up taking home a mini bottle (375 ml) of Vin de Crete with a 12.5% alcohol by volume for around $9 which I just finished off last night. On the bottle it says “dry red regional wine of crete rotwein trocken vin de pays aus kreta.” I’m not sure what that means but it is a dry red, not overly dry, it had a dark cherry aroma and nice viscosity. I would liken it to a merlot. It was delicious and I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a dry red with dinner or even before bed.