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Every holiday season Don Melchor arrives at my doorstep for our annual get together. We have had a standing date for the last few years and I always look forward to it.  Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon is Chile’s first and most renowned wine and Concha y Toro’s signature red. Winemaker Enrique Tirado has been at the helm of this project for the past 20 years and each vintage of Don Melchor he has produced is expressive and elegant. However, the 2015 vintage is the crème de la crème. To quote Enrique, “ the 2015 vintage of Don Melchor is one of the best vintages of my life”.  Enrique Tirado, Winemaker Photo credit: Don Melchor Every year Tirado chooses grapes from 50 to 60 parcels, out of the 142 located in the Puente Alto vineyard on the north bank of the Maipo River in the sub-region of Maipo Valley. It is a 313-acre vineyard planted on the Maipo River’s oldest terraces.   Photo credit: Don Melchor Tirado says, “each parcel not only offers a unique expression, but that expression varies from year to year”. Enrique also adds, “Don Melchor is not a single Cabernet Sauvignon but multiple expressions and that making this multi-Cabernet blend is a challenge.” The 2015 vintage began in the vineyard with ideal conditions that were extraordinary. The perfect soil and climate conditions throughout the growing season led to an intense expression of aromas and flavors in this vintage. According to Enrique, “every block of the vineyard exuded a particular strength of character and contributed even greater complexity to the finished wine”.  Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 is a blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The wine was aged for 15 months in French oak barrels (69% new and 31% second-use). The color is ruby red with heady aromas of cherry, plum, spice, vanilla and a touch of earth. The palate is sumptuously layered with cherry, red currant, toast, fennel, spice, chocolate and hints of minerality. The balance of acidity and tannins leads to a smooth and luxurious mouth-feel. The wine is very drinkable now but has the aging potential of 20 to 25 years. Of course, I am revisiting this bottle much sooner! Pair with stews, meat, aged and creamy cheese.
Alcohol: 14.5% SRP: $120 This vintage is the ultimate expression of the terroir and Enrique Tirado’s master winemaking. It is an elegant and impressive wine. Until next time… Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com It was a Sauvignon Blanc kind of weekend. The weather was warm, company was on hand and I had a few bottles of wine chilling from different parts of the world.  Having tasted and enjoyed Casillero del Diablo Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2016 over a year ago, I was looking forward to opening the 2017 vintage. I am a big fan of Chilean wines as you may have guessed by now. And, the brands of Concha y Toro keep producing very drinkable wines. Since I have told the story many times of Don Melchor de Concha y Toro and the mysterious Devil’s Cellar, I will skip the tale this time. If curious, select Casillero del Diablo on the menu at right and read the story!  Casillero del Diablo Reserva 2017 Sauvignon Blanc grapes are grown in the Casablanca Valley region of Chile. The region experiences a cooler climate and a longer ripening period for the grapes. The vines grow in sandy clay soil.   The Casillero del Diablo Reserva is 100% Sauvignon Blanc. The color is pale straw with green hues. Aromas of floral, citrus and tropical fruit segue onto the palate along with pear and tart apples. This wine is refreshing and accompanied by lively acidity and a zesty finish. It drinks beautifully as an aperitif or served with seafood, salad and light pasta dishes. It’s a great wine to pack in a picnic basket! Alcohol: 13% SRP: $12 The other Sauvignon Blanc that we opened this weekend hails from New Zealand. Mount Riley winery is in Marlborough, an established winemaking region located at the northeastern tip of the South Island.  Mount Riley winery, established in 1992, is family owned with John Buchanan at the helm. His daughter Amy (general manager) and her husband Matt (chief winemaker) are the 6th generation of family in Marlborough.  John Buchanan and his daughter, Amy. Photo courtesy of Mount Riley winery. Marlborough is a dry and sunny region with cool temperatures and a long growing season. Mount Riley winery has seven vineyard sites throughout Marlborough with varying soils such as clay based, silt deposits, Rapaura, and loam. The region’s specialty is Sauvignon Blanc.  Photo courtesy of Mount Riley winery.  Mount Riley Sauvignon Blanc 2017 is 100% Sauvignon Blanc grapes that are a blend from multiple vineyard sites, including Awatere Valley and Wairau Valley. The color is pale straw and it is very aromatic with notes of tropical fruit, citrus, peach and floral. The palate offers white flowers, fresh stone fruit, lime and a dash of minerality. The finish is crisp and ends with lemon zest. This is another refreshing wine to drink as an aperitif but is also easy to pair with seafood, light pasta salads and cheese. Alcohol: 12.5% SRP: $12.95  With very hot weather predicted for the next few days, it’s important to stay hydrated with plenty of water…in between sipping your favorite wine!
Until next time… Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com Around this time last year, I reviewed two 2016 vintage wines from South America. Remembering how impressed I was with the price to value ratio of these wines, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to taste the 2017 vintages.  Reserva Casillero del Diablo Rosé 2017 is produced by winemaker Marcelo Papa. The grapes come from Chile’s Central Valley and are grown in riverbench and benchland associated soils.  The wine is a blend of 60% Syrah, 30% Cinsault and 10% Carmenere. The color of the wine is light pink-salmon with aromas of juicy berries, citrus, floral and spice. The palate is layered with red berries and a touch of spice that lingers on the finish. This is a crisp rosé with just the right balance of dryness. I love the design of the bottle as well as the wine inside it! Alcohol: 13% SRP: $12  Trivento White Orchid Reserve 2017 is produced by winemaker Maximiliano Ortíz The grapes are harvested from the Uco Valley, Mendoza where the vines grow in alluvial soil.  The wine is a blend of 85% Torrontés and 15% Pinot Gris. The color is pale yellow with intoxicating floral aromas mingled with tropical fruit, pineapple and honeysuckle. A burst of floral floods the palate followed by tropical fruit, apricots, honeydew and hints of citrus. Refreshing acidity and lingering notes of floral and citrus on the finish add to the perfect balance of this delicious wine. Alcohol: 12% SRP: $11  Both of these wines can be enjoyed with a wide range of summer fare or as an aperitif.  To read more in-depth stories about Chile, Argentina, Concha y Toro, Casillero del Diablo and Trivento, please visit the menu on the right and click on the categories you’d like to learn about.
Until next time… Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com  It was a cold and blustery night, the car temperature read 6 degrees outside, but Don Melchor and I were determined to reach the restaurant no matter what. As I was driving I kept looking anxiously at the passenger seat to make sure Don was safely strapped into the seatbelt. Having traveled thousands of miles from Chile to partake in the evening’s festivities, it was important for my journeyer to have a smooth ride. Concha y Toro Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon and I go back a few years. I’ve had the pleasure of drinking several vintages, all of them outstanding. My last story and review was on the 2013 vintage. Please take a moment and read it to learn the history of Don Melchor, the region, climate and soil so that you can appreciate the beauty of this wine. http://thewineknitter.com/1/post/2016/11/day-532-don-melchor.html  Enrique Tirado Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon is Chile’s first and most renowned icon wine. With winemaker Enrique Tirado at the helm, each vintage of Don Melchor is expressive and elegant. Every year Tirado chooses grapes from 50 to 60 parcels, out of the 142 located in Puente Alto on the north bank of the Maipo River. Tirado says, “each parcel not only offers a unique expression, but that expression varies from year to year”.  The 2014 Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc. Prior to tasting, we decanted the wine to allow the aromas and flavors to open. The color is ruby red with seductive aromas of dark cherry, plum and dark currant. The palate offers dark and lush berries, plum, cocoa, and spice. The wine is full-bodied with velvety tannins and a long black cherry finish. We paired the wine with a variety of dishes such as baked Brie with truffles, oysters, halibut and scallops with leek fondue. And yes, I saved a sip to pair with the apple and blueberry strudel. Alcohol: 14.5% SRP: $125  This is a wine to savor and share! Drinks beautifully!
I look forward to our date same time next year, Don Melchor! Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com When it comes to making and/or eating red sauce, the pasta itself tends to be an excuse for me to devour the sauce! In fact, whenever I eat pizza, I love a side of sauce so that I can spoon extra on my slice. I love tomato sauce in all its forms. Whether it’s arrabiata, basil, mushroom or plain tomato, I love it all! On a recent excursion to The Market at Pepper Place in Birmingham, AL, I happened across a booth selling marinara sauce. Of course, I had to stop and investigate!  Maw Maw’s Marinara is a beautiful blend of flavors sourced from the freshest and all natural ingredients available.  The company’s slogan which is written on the jar says it all. Big Italian taste from a small town in Alabam’.  Jamie Tolbert grew up eating a variety of meals made with his mom’s (aka “Maw Maw”) home canned tomatoes. She never actually made a marinara sauce with the tomatoes, but her creativity and passion for cooking inspired Jamie to take all he learned from his mom and developed his own recipes over the years. One of the recipes that Jamie created is an amazing marinara sauce that he has named Maw Maw’s as a tribute to his mom for inspiring him. Jamie and his wife Nancy sell the sauce to retail stores throughout Alabama. However, I’m sure that they would be more than happy to take your order and ship some to you! https://www.mawmawsmarinara.com When my package of Maw Maw’s Marinara arrived, I immediately opened a jar and ate a few spoonfuls. The sauce is light, with just the right amount of spice added. I love the fact that it’s “chunky” as opposed to so many pureed sauces that one finds on the supermarket shelves. Although I could have easily eaten the entire contents of the jar spoonful by spoonful, I made spinach and cheese ravioli to go with the sauce. It was a perfect marriage!  And, what would a meal be without a nice bottle of wine? So, I opened Concha y Toro’s Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Carmenere 2015 to pair with the dinner.  Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Carmenere 2015 is produced at the Cachapoal winery in the Rapel Valley of Chile by head winemaker, Marcio Ramírez. The grapes are harvested from the Peumo Vineyard, which runs along the Cachapoal River and the Coastal Mountains.  The wine is a brilliant color of purple with heady aromas of berries, cherries, plum, spice and cocoa. The palate offers a silky mouthfeel filled with dark berries, pepper and a long finish of fruit and spice. The wine is medium-bodied that has structure and depth. It was a good choice to pair with the marinara! Alcohol: 14.5% SRP: $17 Although the ravioli was delicious, the marinara sauce and the wine were the stars of the evening!  Cheers!
Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com I’ve just returned from a whirlwind press trip to Birmingham, Alabama that was filled with adventure, history, excellent Southern cuisine and a whole lot more. I’m taking a quick break before sharing this amazing city with you in a four part series.  Last evening with company coming and no time to shop, I took stock of what was available in my kitchen. I had a large spaghetti squash, fresh tomatoes from my garden and a few “salad” items to work with. I really need to go to the market today! I decided to make “squash pasta”. Using my slow cooker, I cooked the squash for about 5 hours. When done, I removed the seeds and scooped out the squash with a fork creating pasta strands. I served one dish with an arrabiata sauce and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and the other with extra virgin olive oil and pepper. They were both delicious! A tossed salad of tomatoes and romaine with a glass of wine rounded out the meal.  The pour for the evening was a Concha Y Toro 2015 Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay.   The grapes come from the Quebrada Seca vineyard in Northern Chile’s Limarí region which experiences a long growing season of almost 7 months. The grapes are handpicked and the wine is aged in new and used medium-toasted French Burgundian barrels for 11 to 12 months. This 100% Chardonnay is light yellow with lovely aromas of pear, hints of toasted nuts, yellow plums and melon. The palate is layered with pear, honeysuckle, a touch of lilies and a burst of lemon zest on a long finish. This is a full-bodied, crisp wine with loads of character. Alcohol: 14% SRP: $22 Surprisingly, the Chardonnay paired well with the piquant red sauce. The wine was refreshing and stood up to the spice. This is a versatile wine that will complement many dishes.   If you would like to learn more about Concha Y Toro and Chile, please check out my past stories from the menu on the right.  It’s time for me to go food shopping! Have a great day! Cheers!
Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com It was a beautiful summer evening and I was off to a block party.  Guess what I was responsible for bringing? Wine, of course! Since I had recently received two 1.5L bottles of Frontera Chardonnay and Frontera Cabernet-Merlot, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to taste and share them with my friends and neighbors.  Frontera wines are made by Concha y Toro, world-renowned wine producers from Chile. Concha y Toro wines are no strangers to my blog and I have tasted and reviewed many of their brands. Their Frontera label is an entry–level line with a variety of wines that are nicely focused, easy to drink and have a definite appeal to the millennial crowd. However, the wines that I brought to the party were enjoyed by a wide range of generations! The Frontera 2016 Chardonnay is pale yellow with pleasant aromas of apple, pear and citrus. The palate offers apple, tropical fruit and hints of wood. It is light and refreshing.  Alcohol: 13% SRP: $12 for 1.5L bottle The Frontera 2016 Cabernet-Merlot has a color that borders on purple. This is not a complex wine and it leans toward the fruity side. The nose offers dark berries, plum and vanilla that segue onto the palate. Soft tannins and a medium finish make this an easy wine to pair with foods.  Alcohol: 12% SRP: $12 for 1.5L Check out this link for interesting cocktails and sangria to make with these wines. http://www.virtualcookingschool.com/tag/frontera/ Have a very Happy Wine Wednesday!
Cheers! Penina To leave a comment or if you have an inquiry, please contact me at wineknittercomments@gmail.com In anticipation of attending a South American wine tasting this week, I recently opened a bottle of Chilean and Argentinian wine to whet my palate! Both wines are perfect to serve as aperitifs or as an accompaniment to a summer meal. These are very food friendly wines and the price to value ratio can’t be beat!  The Casillero del Diablo Rosé 2016 is from Chile’s Central Valley. The wine is mostly Shiraz grapes with a touch of Cinsault and Carmenere blended in. The color is pink salmon with lovely aromas of strawberry, cherry and melon. The palate offers juicy blackberry with hints of spice and vanilla. This is a dry and refreshing rosé with a touch of citrus zest on the finish. The bottle is pretty and festive. SRP $11 If you would like to learn more about Casillero del Diablo and the winemaker, please read my story at: Day 518 "The Devils Locker" http://thewineknitter.com/1/post/2016/09/day-518.html  Skipping over to the other side of the Andes, I opened a bottle of Trivento White Orchid Reserve Torrontés 2016 from Mendoza’s Uco Valley in Argentina. Torrontés is one of the country’s most widely planted white grape varieties. This is an interesting blend of 85% Torrontés and 15% Pinot Grigio. The color is pale straw. It is a slightly dry wine with a rich bouquet of flowers and tropical fruit. The palate is layered with pineapple, apple and subtle notes of citrus. The wine has a long finish and is crisp and refreshing. Alcohol: 12% SRP: $11 If you would like to learn more about Trivento wine and the winemaker, please read my story at: Day 564 http://thewineknitter.com/1/post/2017/03/day-564-triventos-malbec.html  I have many countries to visit this week and lots of wine to taste. I’ll be back soon to share my adventures. Happy Monday!
Cheers! Penina  With an impending snowstorm on its way, my thoughts are turning to comfort food and red wines. Last month I made a big vat of vegetable bean soup, poured it into airtight pint sized gelato containers and stored them in the freezer. I do this with a lot of freezable recipes such as chili and stews. It’s a great way to store food and makes for an easy, no fuss meal. Just thaw as many containers as you need, then heat and serve! Several of my friends liked the idea so much, that they are doing the same thing. And the bonus is, you have an excuse to buy and enjoy gelato…just say that you’re running out of containers!  So, while the containers of soup are thawing, I’ll tell you about the wine I chose to pair with the soup.  Marques de Casa Concha is an outstanding brand of Concha y Toro and is known for its fine collection of single vineyard varietals produced by noted winemaker Marcelo Papa. The grapes for the 2014 Carmenere are sourced from the celebrated Peumo vineyard, located in the Cachapoal zone of Chile’s Rapel Valley. The Carmenere grape is a member of the Cabernet family and was originally planted in the Medoc region of Bordeaux, France. It is considered part of the original six grapes of Bordeaux. The name Carmenere comes from the French word crimson. The Carmenere grape was first imported to Chile in the 19th century which now has the largest area of planted Carmenere in the world. Today, Carmenere grows chiefly in the Colchagua Valley, Rapel Valley, and Maipo Province of Chile and produces the majority of Carmenere wines.  The Marques de Casa Concha 2014 Carmenere is a medium -bodied wine made with a blend of 88% Carmenere and 12% Cabernet Sauvignon. The color is an intense dark red with hints of light purple on the rim. The aromas of dark fruit, cherry, spice and a touch of floral are very inviting. The palate offers an amazing rush of black pepper that is immediately infused with layers of plum, dark fruit, essence of oak (from 16 months in French oak), dark chocolate and hints of vanilla and spice on the finish. Soft tannins, velvety mouthfeel and beautifully balanced, this is a wine that speaks. Alcohol: 14% SRP: $25 Although I paired this wine with a hearty soup, it would certainly complement meat, game and fish entrees such as tuna and swordfish. Try some Manchego or Brie cheese with this wine. Trust me, it’s an interesting combo!  My guest was happy that I saved some wine to serve with the soup!
Have a great Wine Wednesday! Cheers! Penina As a rule, the last type of wine that one might reach for in single digit weather is a perfectly chilled Chardonnay. We tend to gravitate towards more “robust” wines in cold weather, myself included. However, rules don’t seem to apply anymore when it comes to wine. Old school thought was to serve only red wine with meat and hearty dishes during cool weather. And white wine was usually served with light fare and seafood upon the onset of the warm season. But as long as wine doesn’t clash with the food you are eating, then I say anything goes!  The other evening I opened a 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Chardonnay from Concha y Toro in Chile. As you might recall, I reviewed the 2014 Marques de Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon a few weeks ago. Marcelo Papa is the winemaker for Marques de Casa Concha as well as Casillero del Diablo.  Photo courtesy of Concha y Toro The Chardonnay grapes for this wine are handpicked from a single vineyard; the Quebrada Seca Vineyard is located about 12 miles from the Pacific Ocean on the north bank of the Limarí River. The clay and chalk soils give the Chardonnay expressive minerality while the limestone soil balances it with crisp acidity. The color is soft yellow with succulent fruity aromas of peach, pear and toasted oak. The palate offers a creamy texture of pear, apple, spice and oak. This is an amazing Chardonnay that has a long and impressive finish!  I paired the wine with a vegetable risotto and sautéed shrimp. Although I may be more partial to reds during the winter months, I won’t hesitate to open a bottle of this Chardonnay again! Alcohol: 14% SRP: $25.  Happy Tuesday!
Cheers! Penina |
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