So I was talking to my parents this evening. Apparently they had somebody to the house and they asked something to the effect of “Does he really taste (smell?) those things?” Despite my natural cynicism I will treat this as a real question ;). When I smell and taste wine I smell and taste things that remind me of other smells and tastes. I find that trying to put a name to those things is an interesting intellectual endeavor and one that actually increases the enjoyment of that wine. Complex wines will make you think of many different things simple wines, not so much. Thinking of what the wines tastes like makes you examine the taste more critically. Taking notes is extremely nerdy but will actually make you a more active taster over time. I told my parents to get a wine and then look for a review on the web. There will be tasting notes. Open your wine and let it breathe for at least 1/2 hour and then see if you smell and taste the same thing. You may agree on some of the notes and disagree on others. Your journey has begun!
Which brings us to tonights wine. Abrente 2010 Napa Valley Albarino $25. This is a combo effort of Morgan Twain-Petersen (Bedrock Vineyard!) and Michael Havens (yeah THAT Havens). I am a big fan of Bedrock Syrah but more about that another time. California Albarino, interesting! I’m on the bedrock mailing list so I got an email about this and since I like the winemaker and I like the grape I had to try.
After giving it some time I started to smell what I can only call bubble gum (I kid you not) and cantaloupe with a hint of lemon zest on the nose. In other words, very interesting. On the palate there was a touch of effervescence but a lot of lemon, yellow peach, what feels like peach skin on my tongue and a mineral dry finish. A very interesting wine for me. At the price point it seems a bit expensive but I will say it is worth trying if you like Albarino.
A white wine you don’t hear that much about is Albarino which is a shame because it is a great wine, especially with food. It comes from Spain and is typically a bit lower in alcohol and quite dry. This is another one I got from my local wine club 2009 Pazo Senorans Albarino. I keep waiting for those complimentary bottles to start rolling in ;).