Grassy nose, with light citrus and oak. A controlled citrus hit on the front palate with soft minerality and rounded oak. Soft. Round. Smooth. These are your keywords. This is a versatile white that could fit just about anything you might want to eat. I tend toward more citrus for salty oysters, and more mineral for yellowtail, but you can’t go wrong for different tastes here.
This wine was gifted to me and proves that sometimes you just get lucky. I will admit to being a fan of dry muscats, which, incidentally I have only ever found in the French Catalunya region. The golden, straw color of the pour barely hints at the bursting fresh melon, stone fruit pits, apricot, and passion fruit that explode on the nose and palate. An interesting heaviness to the mid-palate, with a tight vanilla-like finish. Luscious and delicious, I’d buy this one again . . . even if I didn’t buy it the first time.
Fresh grassy nose with hints of strawberries and lemons. A fresh hit of acidity greets the fore-palate. Cantaloupe and grass blend with soft strawberry notes so faint, you could call them a whisper. The finish closes with soft tannins and faint citrus notes. The whole affair is over quickly, like a summer fling, leaving only a hint of ever being there. This is a great, easy-drinking little rosé for spring and summer.
I received this estate-bottled wine as a gift. The vineyard is in the family of a work colleague. I’m not a big chardonnay fan, but have to admit this was a nice, balanced wine. The nose has interesting notes of pineapple and vanilla with a faint slate mineral note. A straw color typical of the varietal, the wine was quite balanced in spite of that initial pineapple cake advertisement. I’m not sure how much this goes for by the bottle or where to find it, but I’d say a chardonnay lover should be willing to spring for it at $45 and below.
Sheridan and I shared this the afternoon that we crushed the first vintage of our “estate” Barbera, proudly grown in Kensington, MD – more on that in a later post.
This one was subtle and refreshingly fruity with plums and berry fruits. It only had a hint of oak, which made the sense of place shine through. The wine and the three varietals that define it, Mencia, Bastardo, and Garnacha Tintorera, were grown in Galicia, Spain, which boarders Northern Portugal (no wonder this was a hit with the two of us). Not sure how much it goes for or how the heck to buy it here…Sheridan, any thoughts to offer on this?
A delightful, light, acidic, and slightly fizzy bottle of white from the hills of the Basque lands. I was first introduced to this by a friend’s father at Taberna Alabardero, who related his childhood memories of visiting family in the area and having Txakolina with bonito (somewhat resembling tuna). As he explained, the light acidity is the perfect paring with firm tuna-like fish. I also found the exact same bottle in San Sebastian, as well as at Sherry’s in Woodley Park for about $18.
Posto Novo 