Daniel

Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones

Red Blend

Paso Robles, USA

Shira/Syrah

2016 / 13.9% / $20

I’ve been holding onto this bottle for a while now. Given the way things ended in the series, I felt I needed some time to let the filth of the final season clear from my mouth. And boy did this bottle of wine just refill my mouth with a whole lot of filth! You guys already know I don’t like throwing the word “best” around often, because there is so much more to enjoy in life and particularly wine. But oh man oh man, I don’t mind throwing out the word “worst!” And this bay boy was the worst bottle I’ve had to date!

If you’re like me – someone who has watched Game of Thrones from very first episode to the last… you had also been dreading the conclusion of the series. Like many others, I’d been hoping that somehow, the show runners could pull off a Breaking Bad-like ending. But man did they let us all down.

After waiting several months since the show’s finale, I finally dusted off this bottle with the hopes of sipping one of the finest “Dornish” reds, blood of my blood, etc, etc… and boy was I disappointed.

This was hands down some of the worst wine I have ever tasted. I’d even grab a bottle of Chateau Diana over this one – and not just because my mother’s name is Diana! My father is known for drinking some bottom of the barrel wines. I’ve even witnessed him drink a month old already opened Carlo Rossi, but I would never dream of disappointing my father by having him drink this rot gut of a vintage.

This bottle of wine is as if the creators attempted to throw some jazzy CGI at us with the belief that loyal fans would overlook all of the crappy dialogue, and horrible writing (aside from Season 8 Episode 2). I’m going to take this bottle and send it far north over the wall to follow Jon as he goes to do god knows what beyond the wall. Even this bottle knows nothing!

In all seriousness this wine is just bad. It was way too acidic and made my mouth feel terrible while trying to enjoy it on one of my last summer nights. I usually try to find flaws in my wine reviews but for this one I struggled to find a positive. All I could find from Game of Thrones attempt at wine was their intricately designed cork (it had all of the houses on it). I apologize but I couldn’t bring myself to actually rate it or even bother looking up where you can purchase and where you can get it delivered. If you go through that trouble, it’s on you.

Just like Tyrion, “I drink, and I know things.” I drank this wine and know I never want to have another sip of it!

Broglia

Broglia

La Meirana Gavi di Gavi

Gavi, Italy

Cortese

2017 / 13.5% / $20

I’ve been on a bit of an Italian kick lately… and honestly, it hasn’t been a bad thing. Who wouldn’t want to eat and drink their way through that picturesque country? Take me there tomorrow and it’d be difficult to find a reason to come back home. Despite having already spent so much time there, there is always a new town to see, or experience to be had each time you visit.

I was pointed in the direction of this particular Italian white by a salesperson at my favorite wine shop in Westchester – Rye Brook Wines. Not only is their stock exceptional, their staff is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. I had originally gone in there looking for a white from Sicily, but they were waiting on a delivery. Broglia was recommended as a standup Italian white (kind of like me) with characteristics similar to a Chardonnay.

The salesman was spot on. This white has many qualities of a full bodied, rich Chardonnay! I’d say that it sits somewhere between a Chardonnay and a dry Riesling. It was exceptionally smooth and dry with not much bite too it, and just a hint of acidity. If you’d like a break from Chardonnay and still haven’t been sold on dry Riesling, Broglia would be a great way to slowly dip your beak into the world of dry Riesling.

This is definitely a white that will be added to my rotation and if you’re someone who doesn’t mind spending $20 for a bottle of wine, add it to yours as well. Broglia will give you a delicious break from a typical Chardonnay and leave you refreshed and wanting more. As this was my last Sunday night of summer, the bottle was enjoyed in its entirety, before getting back to teaching after Labor Day.

Taste – 8

Recommend – 8

Price – 9

Smell – 7

Complexity – 7

Overall – 38

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Pierpaolo Pecorari

Pierpaolo Pecorari

Ros Alba Rosato

Venzia Giulia, Italy

Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Refusco

2018 / 12.5% / $15

I apologize that I wasn’t able to take a picture with this bottle full, especially considering that this wine had a unique, slightly orange hue to it. It was different than what I’m used to, but quite nice to look at in the bottle. Kind of like me in a suit…. You’re not used to it but when you see it, oh weeeee her some Mr. Steal ya Gurl!

Have you ever woken up and thought to yourself, “boy for dinner tonight, I could go for some tacos and Rosé?” No? Good, because I haven’t either! But when one person wants tacos and the other wants Rosé, you have to compromise, right?

A little history on Dan. He loves Rosé and he loves tacos. Do you want to know what Dan doesn’t love; tacos washed down with Rosé. This wine was no bueno con tacos but muy bueno sin tacos!

I don’t throw the word “best” around very often, but this Rosé is the best bottle of Rosé I’ve had to date. It’s just phenomenal, plain and simple. This is a wine that is clean, just dry enough, with a beautiful follow through. The finish of this wine leaves you wanting to drink more and more of it.

Unfortunately, I only had one bottle on hand during the tasting, and it was consumed rather quickly. As you’ve read above, this wine does not go with tacos. However, it does pair well with seafood, BBQ, and amazingly with burgers. I quickly purchased a second bottle the day after this tasting and enjoyed it with some Shake Shack, which made for a terrific meal with Pierpaolo.

As I’ve found with most Rosés, they lack complexity. For the majority of my tastings of Rosê, their texture tends to stay consistent throughout the drinking process. That theme continued with Pierpaolo; the taste didn’t change from first sip to last. Not a deal breaker by any means but if there is any flaw to find in this wine that would be it. Again, it’s just something to nitpick over.

Do yourself a favor and go find this bottle, buy two or three, and enjoy a warm summer day drinking some fantastic Italian Rosé

Taste – 8

Recommend – 8

Price – 9

Smell – 7

Complexity – 6

Overall – 38 out of 50

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Ravines

Ravines

Dry Riesling

Geneva (NY)

Riesling 100%

2016 / 12.5% / $18

At this point in our wine journey we are all aware of my appreciation for a great glass of Dry Riesling. Riesling’s texture is just completely different than all other wines I’ve enjoyed. It has the ability to match the structure that is associated with some of the best red wines out there, but you don’t often want a red wine in the summer months and that’s why a cold, crisp Riesling hits the spot.

I recently purchased one of those southern propane burners and massive stock pots for a crawfish boil. However, due to decisions out of my control, the boil was delayed for the time being. Now, I’ve been itching to find a reason to have another boil and a perfect Sunday summer night family dinner was the right occasion. I decided to put the burner and pot to use by boiling off some lobsters and making homemade lobster rolls. FYI ya boy can whip it up with the best of them. As you can tell from the picture the lobster rolls were banging. The wine was good, but the lobster rolls were out of this world.

There was no better pairing for the dinner than this bottle of Riesling. Ravines is another outstanding producer from the Finger Lakes. Upstate New York has a rich tradition of producing fantastic Riesling and Pinot Noir vintages. Their use of old-world wine making practices produces elegant and expressive wines.

Ravines’ Dry Riesling is a good wine. Unfortunately, all of my Riesling reviews get held up against the high bar set by Forge Cellars. The best way to describe this Riesling is Forge’s “little brother.” In my personal experience, the younger brother is usually the more attractive, athletic, and charming brother. However, in Ravines’ case that’s not exactly true. It’s not bad by any means, but it just doesn’t knock your socks off the way Forge Cellars Dry Riesling does. One nice quality of the wine that I’m able to take away from it is its pleasant fruity follow through that is present throughout the drinking experience.

Unfortunately, for both the wine and the lobster rolls, they were overshadowed by my father rocking the drum solo of Phil Collins “In the Air Tonight.” Let’s just say when Miguele gets to the second bottle all bets are off on what you’ll see from that man. I’ll leave you with this: if this bottle is available in your wine store buy it. If this and Forge Cellars are available, buy Forge. Either way you’ll certainly enjoy a classic Dry Riesling.

Taste – 7

Recommend – 7

Price – 9

Smell – 7

Complexity – 6

Overall – 36

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Lab

Lab

Rosé

Lisbon (Portugal)

Castelão 50% / Camarate 30% / Cabernet Sauvignon 20%

2018 / 12.5% / $8

Full disclosure, I wrote this review before I realized this wine is produced and bottled by the same family of wine makers as one of my go-to budget friendly reds (Colossal – an earlier review).

There are few things that can brighten up a cloudy, rainy day, like a bottle of Rosé. And what makes it better is the fact that it’s 3 o’clock in the afternoon and this guy is finally on summer break! Yea yea I know teachers! Always with their days off! Well stuff it, the kids make ya wanna drink more! Especially when you have ones with attitudes like these! If I was Mr. Garvey I’d be drinking on the job.

This particular Rosé was a new experience for Daniel. It was a very medium bodied Rosé with a hint of carbonation to it. And what made this a new experience for ole Danielson was the aftertaste that followed through pretty consistently. The follow through of the wine had a slight liquorice taste to it. And honestly, I hate the taste of liquorice but it was so subtle that it was quite pleasant. If you’re a fan of liquorice, then you’re really going to like this one. And if you’re like me who can’t stand the taste, it really won’t over power the entire drinking experience.

Other than that, this wine was very much like any other Rosé out there. Looked beautiful in the glass, has a crisp light smell to it, and is very easy to drink (and who isn’t a fan of a pooch as the design either?). I can see myself pairing this with a variety of foods, or just drinking it on its own. And if you’re a big fan of Rosé and don’t want to break the bank, this is an extremely budget friendly wine that’s a pleasure to consume. It’s nothing special as far as Rosé goes but it gets the job done.

It’s not going to knock your socks off but it’s certainly a pleasant surprise for the price. And that’s exactly why I brought up Colossal. Colossal is a great budget friendly wine that you can crack open for any occasion. Casa Santos Lima is doing things right and they’re quickly turning into one of my favorite wine producers. So, I suggest the next time you’re looking for a wine and find a bottle produced by them, give it a try. It certainly won’t break the bank but will leave you wanting a second bottle!

Taste – 6

Recommend – 7

Price – 10

Smell – 6

Complexity – 7

Overall – 36 out of 50

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Mount Etna

Alright, so for this blog post I’m doing things a little different. Unfortunately, I was unable to review a wine in the past week and will instead be diving into the wines of Sicily, especially those from the slopes of Mount Etna. If you’re an avid follower of theverydaywineguy you’ve learned about my love of Willamette Valley and The Finger Lakes. Well, now you can add wines from the slopes of Mt. Etna. In the coming months you’ll probably read about my new found love for a different wine region of the world. I’m a well-travelled wine connoisseur.

As many of you know Sicily is renowned as the origins of the Mafia, oil skinned paesanos, the creation of the cannoli, and most recently, pumping out superb vintages. Specifically, from the slopes of Mt. Etna. You can certainly find phenomenal wines from all around Sicily but I’m going to specifically stick to the vineyards on the slopes.

The dominant grape growing from the rich volcanic soil is the Nerello Mascalese which benefits from high mineral content, higher elevation, and rainy climate. Often times transferring that minerality into the wines giving them much depth and character. If you’re a fan of fruit forward wines, then these aren’t for you. If you like dry, well-structured wines then look no further than wine makers from Etna’s slopes. I’m specifically talking about red wines (Etna Rosso) but if you’d like to learn more about how Sicily’s Terroir is impacting Italian white wines I’ll link a great article from the New York Times (NYT’s let me get some love clicks if you’re seeing this). I didn’t want to just rip info from them, don’t wanna get hit with that royalty money.

I’ve sampled a number of Etna Rosso’s but really fell in love with two specifically. Le Vigne di Eli and Tenuta delle Terre Nere (which happens to be number 10 on my top 10 list). I liked these two specifically because they reminded me of rustic homemade wine done perfectly. Both needed time to open up but when they did, boy was I was brought to the Italian countryside sitting in a handmade chair, around a handmade table, feverishly talking with my hands.

If you’re in the mood for a white wine instead, please look no further than one of my prior reviews about DonnaFugata, an excellent summertime wine. Apologies again for my lack of wine review, but hopefully you’ve enjoyed our little jaunt down Sicilian lane. And the next time you’re in a wine store just ask the manager for an Etna Rosso (if in the mood for red) or a Carricante (if in the mood for white).

Find Le Vigne di Eli near you Here!

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Find Tenuta delle Terre Nere near you Here!

Tenuta delle Terre Nere delivered to your door Here!

Hermann J. Weimer

Hermann J. Weimer

Dry Riesling

Riesling – 100 %

2017 – 12% – $22

Seneca Lakes – New York

Oh man oh man oh man. Where do we start with Mr. Hermann? How about we begin with the day. It was a beautiful warm summer day spent at the pool. Bronzing a lil, sweating a lil, chatting with the 70-year-old leather backs, swimming some laps. Gotta work this spare tire off somehow! And on my way out of the pool I decided tonight was the perfect night for a crisp, dry, refreshing Riesling. And if you know me, I love me some dry Riesling (Forge!).

So, I decided to visit a local wine shop near me – one I typically don’t go to – to see what I could find. I enjoy these trips because I can talk to the manager and get their recommendations. I informed the manager that I was in a Dry Riesling kind of mood and have found success with Riesling from the Finger Lakes. Well it just so happened I was in luck! Hermann J. Weimer is a vineyard located in Upstate New York and the gentleman swore up and down how good this Riesling is and how dry it is. He kept saying, “well it’s called a Dry Riesling so it should be dry.” An obvious red flag I decided to look past.

This was a first for me and I’m sure not a last…. The wine was “good” with food (which happened to be some shrimp scampi ya boy cooked up!) and terrible without! I had my first sip right when I opened the bottle and things did not settle well. So, I thought I’d let it sit a little while and try again. And to my surprise, it was just as terrible! Though the taste changed when it was allowed to breathe, that change was not a pleasant one!

It was not dry as the store manager had insisted – in fact it was pretty sweet for my liking. Maybe the vineyard is at fault for labeling it as a Dry. Perhaps my standards are too high—or in all likelihood I just generally lack knowledge on the subject. If you’re a fan of semi dry/semi sweet wines then please go buy this because it will be right in your wheelhouse! But for Daniel, not so much. The sweetness is overbearing, and while it’s extremely light, it has no real character.

Dan’s wonderful warm summer day was ruined by you mister manager! I’m not going to call out this shop by name but oh man if the subscribers clamor for names to be named these jabronies will start flowing!

Taste – 4

Recommend – 5

Price – 8

Smell – 6

Complexity – 5

Overall – 28 out of 50

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Erath

Erath

Pinot Noir

2016 – 13.5% – %15

Dundee, Oregon

Acid – 3.9 out of 5

Dry – 2.5 out of 5

Pinot Noir and Oregon go together like lamb and tuna fish! Yes, you heard me. And if you don’t get that reference than you can get the hell out!

Sorry… but when expressing my love for wine there are few times when I don’t loop in how amazing Oregon’s Pinto Noir’s are. Wine makers in the state have been producing knock out Pinot’s in Oregon for years. Some vineyards have even beaten out makers from the finest wine region in the world, Burgundy France. And that’s why I’ll be taking Secondbottle remote to Willamette Valley very soon!

Now with all of that said. Damn, did Erath just blow this one! Erath claim to be grapes from the earth and wines from the heart. Please next time put a lil more heart into Erath and show us you can back up the words.

I always expect the best from Oregon’s Pinot’s but this one just misses the mark altogether. It’s way too acidic for my liking and has no back bone to it. It doesn’t leave me asking for more or really inspire me to put some thoughts together for my loyal readers (I did anyways). It’s basic – just a basic Pinot from a really amazing Pinot producing region. The only positive I could find from it was that it did have a pleasant smell. Plus it hits the mark on a light bodied red and that’s about it.

Hey, if you’ve got a cheap – ahem – basic date that you’re trying to figure out where you want things to go, buy this, what the hell! If she/he wants another date after sharing this bottle then you definitely know she/he likes you for you! Drop some knowledge on Willamette’s prowess as a Pinot Region and tell them how their Terroir matches Burgundy’s almost to a tee. It’s not really about what you know rather how confidently you talk about it. I don’t know shit about computers, but I can put on the charm and confidently explain it to a bunch of monkeys!

I digress. Bottle was consumed second bottle will not be purchased.

Taste – 5

Recommend – 4

Price – 9

Smell – 6

Complexity – 5

Overall – 29 out of 50

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Domaine La Manarine

Domaine La Manarine

Rosé Wine

Grenache

2018 – 13.5% – $14

Cotes Du Rhone, France

Acid – 2.7 out of 5

Dry- 4 out of 5

The 4^th of the July in my book is the real start of the summer. It’s a celebration not only of America’s birthday but a way to get you in to full swing of what’s to come during the remaining summer months (the barbeques, the beaches, the pools, the hikes, etc). And there’s no better way to kick off summer than having a group of friends together for a weekend away on the beach. Synonymous with friends and beach, is drinking lots of Rosé.

For this review I’m going to shy away from my usual write up about the wine and instead write about how wine can be experienced/shared with others. And just in case you’re curious this wine was ok, nothing special. A really dry Rosé that for $14 is worth $14. The company is better than the wine.

As I’ve said in previous reviews, wine has the magical ability to not only tell you about its place of origin but to transport you there. Wine can transmit a sense of place, culture, people, and time. Most importantly, it can bring family and friends together, seated around the table and provoke heated discussion about what the wine means to each person. In this particular instance my friends weren’t the most eloquent individuals when explaining the wine, but still the enjoyment was there. As one of them so brilliantly described, “mouthsome, crisp, the salt of the balls really opened it up.” (He’ll remain nameless…)

Wine is special. It’s meant to be shared. Its purpose is to be enjoyed and there is no better setting than around a table with some of your closest friends or relatives. You’re not always going to like the same wine and certainly won’t be able to describe or appreciate wine in a similar fashion, but you can guarantee bottles will be emptied with lots of laughs. While drinking this wine I was reminded to enjoy every moment, to cherish those close to you, and live your best life.

A bottle of crushed, fermented grapes can bring individuals together to discuss what they feel, experience, and like. Yes, sometimes people don’t take a tasting seriously and the wine may not be great, but those shared moments are what makes it all worth it. So, go buy a bottle or two of wine, gather some friends to experience it with, and appreciate all those little moments that follow.

Taste – 6

Recommend – 6

Price – 9

Smell – 7

Complexity – 5

Overall – 33

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