We're late again...

Quick pint up at
Tremblant

Whooops. Big delays. Sorry. It's been a crazy few weeks. There's been flooding, two trips to the mountain, kids, a Mother's Day brunch, and not one, not two, but THREE Champagne Thursdays. Because of that, I'm going to skip right to it. 






April 27, 2017

This week we had a bottle that Shane got for Christmas, the Robert Mondavi Woodbridge Brut. This one started out quite feisty, with a huge pop that, I think, dented the ceiling, but despite the big pop, there wasn't much on the nose from the bottle. In the glass it has a dry doughy scent, and you could clearly see there was a lot of bubbles. 

The first sip was an entertaining one, for me at least: Shane claimed it was "tart" but he looked like he had just eaten a sour candy with the way his mouth was all twisted up. I thought it was a dry tart, with lots of nice bubbles. 

We were getting a couple flavours, and we're not sure if they were right or not. I said crab apples, Shane said a granny smith apple that were maybe starting to ferment (not in a bad way, at least for wine, probably wouldn't be so lovely in the actual apple...). 

There was a familiar flavour in the background that we couldn't quite identify. But we liked it. It had a kind of sour-tart thing going on. It's pretty solid and we'd get it again.

May 4, 2017

This week we had a very exciting one: another Lambrusco! You'll remember this type being one that our Champagne Guy pointed out, and dubbed the experiment, as people either love it or hate it. We obviously loved it. So when Shane saw a new one in the LCBO, he snapped it up: Fiorini's Corte degli Attimi. 

It was so beautiful. We were swooning as soon as we poured it into the glass, a vibrant red, with lots of bubbles coming through. The first couple sips we couldn't get too many flavours out of it. Shane said it tasted like "not sweet Baby Duck" (an inexpensive, sweet rosé bubbly, for when you just need bubbles, but don't need much taste). We both thought a dry, tart red wine flavour... Shocking. 

It had a bit of a red fruit scent going on, but was significantly less fruity than the previous Lambrusco we've had, but still tart, and still dry. As it was warming a touch in the glass, more and more berry aromas were coming through. Some Swedish Berry candy scents, some raspberries, a little of everything. But the taste? Still red wine. 

This one is a tricky one, so be careful. It has a glorious nose, full of fruity tones (after it's not ice cold), but it doesn't taste anything like that. And it's certainly not as sweet. Shane described it as what happens when you smell a flavoured coffee (keep in mind, he drinks his coffee black): It smells glorious and sweet, but unless you put cream and sugar in it, it tastes just like regular coffee. It's all in the nose. 

But we liked it anyways, we would DEFINITELY get this again, and will continue to scoop up any Lambruscos we can find. 

May 11, 2017

This time we had a new (to us) bubbly: Terroir La Baume Saint-Paul's Crémant de Limoux (unable to located a website). On popping the top, Shane said he got sweet donuts. 

In the glass we could see that it was nice and bubbly, and a nice dark golden colour. On the nose it had a slight cider scent, like a Strongbow (not like a hot apple cider). It had a very sweet back taste (like right after you swallow), maybe apples or pineapples? 

It felt quite sweet, and the bubbles seemed quite sharp for a crémant. It had a touch of a sour/tart finish, Shane thought along the lines of a sour pear, I disagreed, but only because for me, pears are a texture more than a flavour... As it warmed up a bit, the bubbles developped a bit of a creamier feel. 

It was good, but the problem was the Lambrusco last week was much better. It's tainted us for a while. I mean, it was fine, but not very exciting. 

Til next time! Hopefully sooner that last time. 

~S&S

April 27, 2017

• Brand: Woodbridge, by Robert Mondavi
• Type of Grape: Not Noted
• Sweetness: 17g/L
• Price: $14.95 (not currently available at the LCBO)
• Tasting Notes: Dry doughy scent, appley flavours. Would pair well with a chicken caesar salad.

May 4, 2017

• Brand: Fiorini
• Type of Grape: Lambrusco
• Sweetness: 7g/L
• Price: $18.95
• Tasting Notes: Glorious lambrusco, bright fruit forward aromas, nicely dry red wine flavours. Would pair well with eggs benedict.

May 11, 2017

• Brand: Terroir la Baume Saint-Paul
• Type of Grape: Not noted
• Sweetness: 10g/L
• Price: $18.95
• Tasting Notes: A nice, relatively sweet (at least it seemed so) bubbly with hints of apple/pineapple. Would pair well with a baguette and tropical fruit chutney.