
National Drink Wine Day
Let’s’ talk about wine. Today happens to be National Drink Wine Day, so it is a perfect opportunity to discuss my affair with wine. If you have been reading my blog for a while now, you probably know I love craft beer and might be wondering why I am talking about wine and not beer right now. Am I having an affair on those delicious, hand crafted 355 mL brown bottles filled with liquid hops, malts, barley and other grains? No, we are all in this together. In my house beer knows about wine and wine knows about beer. It’s a mutual understanding that I love and enjoy both regularly, but I have to be honest. I am more comfortable talking about beer than I am about wine. However, if you are a wine lover, you need to try wine by Cakebread Cellars, which is one of the finest collections I that I have come across. I feel more experienced. The smells and tastes of beer really come to me easily and with wine, I feel a little lost. But I do love wine and want to learn more so I have recently started attending local wine tasting events at Liquor on McLeod. They are fun, non-pretentious and educational! Mostly what I have learned in the few events I have participated in, is that I really don’t know a lot about wine! But I really like wine and I enjoy trying to taste what I am supposed to taste. Sometimes the flavour notes jump right out at me and sometimes I read the bottle and think “Tobacco? Nope didn’t taste that.” So I have a lot of learning to do, which will require a lot of wine tasting; and I am okay with that! Challenge accepted!
National Drink Wine Day
I have posted a couple wine reviews in the past – one being my main go-to wine – Apothic Red. I have to admit though, since starting these wine tastings, I have been exposed to a whole new world of wine and am finding myself buying anything but Apothic Red! But, for an inexpensive, delicious wine, I still know it’s there, waiting for me and I have a couple bottles waiting for me on my wine rack now!
Another review I did was on a bottle my parents brought back from the Okanagan for me. It was a white wine that was awesome and I have picked it up again since. I don’t drink a lot of white wine, especially in the winter, but when I do, I always enjoy it. On a hot summer day a cold glass of white wine is perfect!
I have a few wines that I want to share on this said National Drink Wine Day. I was introduced to two of these at the wine tasting events I attended and fell for them instantly! The last one I picked up on a whim, to be adventurous and it was a win!
The first wine event I went two was wines of Spain. This is where I learned that there is so much about wine that I don’t know. First off, Spain has over 400 grape varieties!! Little ignorant me thought the world consisted of a few, like Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, etc… Until now, I never heard of Tempranillo, Garnacha or Monastrell…So, as everyone in the room shook their heads in recognition of these grape types, I too played along acting as if I knew what she was talking about! It didn’t matter that I was faking the knowledge – the taste of these wines was truly amazing!
Honoro Vera
The first I am sharing with you is Honoro Vera, a 2013 Garnacha at 14% alc./vol. This wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks and then aged in French oak barrels for two years. The tasting notes include minerals, blueberries leading to a savoury and spicy tasting wine. When I tasted it, I tasted cherries with a bit of a spicy finish. It is a very easy to drink wine that would pair nicely with grilled meat, pasta and charcuterie. The price is decent, at $15.99 and the label of the bottle is really cool!
El Petit Bonhomme
This wine from Spain is a red blend. El Petit Bonhomme is a blend of 55% Monastrell, 30% Garnacha and 15% Syrah. It is also a 2013 and 13.5% alc./vol., fermented in stainless steel tanks and aged in French oak barrels for 5 months. The tasting notes are fruits, plums and dry black fruits, cherries and mulberries. I definitely tasted fruits, berries in particular. I loved this wine and the smoothness of it. Best part of this wine (in my opinion) is that it’s $14.99 here in Alberta! I great price for a great wine! It’s also a food versatile wine – goes well with pizza, grilled meat, pasta, almost anything!
Catena Malbec
Now I am bringing you across the globe, all the way down to Mendoza, Argentina. Mendoza is known for it’s highly rated Malbecs and this Malbec is highly rated in my books. From the High Mountain Estate Vineyard, I found this Malbec at Costco for an easy to swallow $14.99. Also from 2013 and at 13.5% alc./vol., this wine has a cold maceration process to extract aromas, then fermentation for 26 days and a post-fermentation maceration for another 24 days. It is then aged for 12-14 months in a varied barrel selection. I found this wine to be spicy, yet smooth, with lots of berry tasting notes and maybe some mocha or just chocolate. It is said to have traces of vanilla and lavender and lots of blueberry and blackberry notes. It pairs with rich red meat meals.
Anyway you put it, enjoy your wine how you want! With food and friends, or on the couch while binge watching Grey’s Anatomy. Happy National Drink Wine Day!
What is your favourite wine and are you celebrating National Drink Wine Day!?
One thought on “National Drink Wine Day”
Oh that first one sounds delicious and I love the bottle! I may have celebrated national wine day a little too hard… I think I was also pretending it was already a friday. Lol
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