Vacation and Back

I'm certain that it is shocking to you that I fell behind yet again. It's been a bit hectic since our last post. We had a week in Quebec with my parents, which was amazing: we skied, ate and drank! Perfection. Then the day after we got back, I had to go to Toronto for 3 days for work. I barely even got to snuggle with Tyson before I left!!! Tragic. He was exhausted though from his week at camp, and was taking any opportunity to nap. I was able to catch this picture before I left, and it sustained me for a bit. Shane still had to send me some pictures while I was gone though. 

Anyways, on with the show. As we were away, we brought 2 bottles for last week, so we've got 3 to catch up on. 

January 21, 2016 (take 1)

The first bottle we picked up from Prince Edward County on one of our day trips there. It was our first time at this particular stop, Clafeld Fruit Winery, which opened in 2014, a partner of Waupoos Winery. This bottle was Almond Cielo from 2013. It is a sparkling blend of Vidal, Riesling and Seyval grapes that has been flavoured with natural almond extract. Very interesting. 

When we popped the top, I got a strong amaretto scent, very distinct for me because it brought university memories rushing back. My darling friend Eli and I used to put amaretto in our hot chocolates (her idea, she's older and wiser than me), and so when I smelled this bubbly, I smelled Eli. My dad jumped right into the tasting, saying that he got chocolate from it. Shane needed to one up him I guess and said that he tasted chocolate covered cherries. I didn't get the chocolate covered cherries on tasting (which is a good thing for me, I am not a fan), but it also didn't taste like amaretto. I got more of a tart fruit, and I'm claiming apples again, although I couldn't really be sure. The back of the bottle suggests almond cookie, green apple, and pear with hints of peach and nutmeg...

Mom didn't get much scent or flavour, and the bubbles were a little too burny for her to enjoy it. Shame, guess we should have got the Veuve again... 

In the end, it was finished. It was tasty enough, nice for a change. I could see us getting this again, but not for a while, because it is so different.

January 21, 2016 (take 2)

Up next, the zucchini bubbly. That's not actually what it was called, obviously, but sometimes when Shane and I are in the liquor store and are looking at the labels initially, we choose words that are close-ish to the name to make them easy to remember. We've had a debauchery, a Fixident, and now a zucchini.  

It's actually Zuccardi, from Argentina, named: Blanc de Blancs (2008). Mom didn't try this one, and that's probably a good thing (too many burny bubbles). It smelled quite dry on corking. Dad described it as exploding in his mouth, which he later clarified as tiny bubbles, and was dry. The bubbles were very nice, it was almost foamy with the volume of bubbles. It was very pale in colour. 

In the end we all kind of felt the same about this one: dry white wine flavoured sparkling wine. It didn't hold much in the way of extra undertones or outside flavours. It was fine, but we probably wouldn't get this again. 

January 28, 2016

Ahhh, that's better. Seeing that disgruntled little face in the background, as if to ask "Why did you make me wake up for this?", it makes everything right again. I think we can all agree, last week just didn't feel right without him. 

This week we enjoyed Dr L Sparkling Riesling by the Loosen Brothers from Germany. We loved the look of the beautiful, swirly lettered label, and the extra bright green of the bottle. Yup, another one we bought because of the label... Against our other instincts as the sweetness level on this one was higher than we normally choose. 

When we popped the top on this one there was a lot of the "champagne smoke", that kind of mist that follows the cork out of the bottle at first. So much that we were able to pour it into the glass before the bubbly. It was a neat thing to see (although not captured by the camera). In the glass it was very pale in colour, with a lot of big bubbles clinging to the sides. It smelled dry to me, and Shane (once again) smelled sugar cookies at first. 

The first couple sips were a bit sweet, Shane described it as tasting like the bottom of a Fruit Bottom Mixed Berry yogurt. I experienced a liquor-y aftertaste in the back of my throat. I thought it was maybe black licorice, but I didn't not like it (you follow, two negatives?), so it couldn't have been that... Shane said that it was kind of like the aftertaste of a sambuca shot. There was sugar and liquor lingering in our throats, but didn't taste like black licorice, but it certainly wasn't another liqueur... I know, we're weird.

It was nice enough, but we probably didn't like it enough to get it again. 

There. We did it!! We're all caught up again... until the next time...

~S

Jan 21/16 (1)

• Brand: Clafeld Fruit Winery, Waupoos Winery
• Type of Grape: Vidal, Riesling, Seyval
• Sweetness: Unknown
• Price: Can't remember, probably around $25
• Tasting Notes: Hints at amaretto, chocolate covered cherries and hard fruits. Would pair nicely with a chocolate fondue. 

Jan 21/16 (2)

• Brand: Zuccardi
• Type of Grape: Chardonnay
• Sweetness: 8g/L
• Price: $19.95
• Tasting Notes: Predictable dry white wine flavour, would pair nicely with a mild cheese.

Jan 28/16

• Brand: Loosen Brothers
• Type of Grape: Riesling
• Sweetness: 27g/L
• Price: $14.95
• Tasting Notes: Sugar cookie dough scent, fruity, with a liqueur-y aftertaste. Would pair nicely with a lightly charred cheeseburger with a toasted bun.