Wine and Dinner Pairing #2

I did this second dinner pairing tonight with my boyfriend. We picked out a Shiraz, White Zinfandel, and a Cabernet Sauvignon to pair with an appetizer of crackers topped with hot and sweet mustard, habanero cheese and summer sausage, dinner of pesto pasta with grilled chicken and onions, and dessert of Ben&Jerry's Phish food. Every time I go to the grocery store I see these weird "juice boxes" of wine so I decided to try one tonight to compare to the normal bottles that I usually go with.

First we did an initial tasting of each of the three wines so we could get an idea of what we were dealing with.

Vendange Shiraz:

This wine smelled fruity like candied cherries and slightly sour. It tasted blander than we thought it would with a little bit of cherry and an alcoholic aftertaste that lingered. Not bad for a "juice box" of wine!









Bay Bridge White Zinfandel:

This wine smelled bland, a little flowery, and with no alcohol. Overall, it didn't have much of a nose. The taste was sugary, floral, light, some goat cheese aspects, and reminded us of artificial sweeteners. There was no aftertaste; no taste lingered at all.








Bay Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon:

This wine smelled fruity, bitter, like dark cherries, slightly alcoholic, and with some blackberry components. It tasted sugary, fruity: like cherries and blackberries, and with a little bit of alcohol that wasn't very overpowering. There was a slight bitter lingering aftertaste.









Next we paired each wine with our first course: crackers  topped with hot and sweet mustard, habanero cheese and summer sausage.

Shiraz: This appetizer brings out the bitterness of the wine, brings out the alcohol in the wine, and takes away any taste of fruit that was there before. The spicy cheese is all we can taste in the aftertaste. Really good; we thought the spiciness of the cheese went really well with this wine.
White Zinfandel: This appetizer takes away the sugary, artificial sugar taste of the wine leaving behind sweetness with no alcohol. Again, the spiciness in the cheese is all we detect in the aftertaste. This was a pretty good pairing, but nothing special.
Cabernet Sauvignon: This appetizer makes the wine very bitter leaving behind only a strong taste of alcohol and a lingering bitter aftertaste. Not good!

Next, we tasted each wine with out main course: pesto pasta with grilled chicken and onions.

Shiraz: This meal brought out sour notes in the wine however, we could still taste hints of cherry at the end. There was not a very drawn out aftertaste.
White Zinfandel: This meal brought out some sourness and alcohol taste in the wine that lingered afterwards. This food completely changed the flavor of the wine leaving behind a little sweetness but not too much flavor overall.
Cabernet Sauvignon: This dinner made the wine taste very sour with no sweetness and no aftertaste. There was a lingering alcohol taste however.

Finally, we paired each wine with our dessert: Ben&Jerry's Phish Food ice cream.

Shiraz: This pairing brought out the taste of fruit and alcohol in the wine however making the wine very sour. The ice cream overpowered the taste of the wine leaving no aftertaste of wine at all.
White Zinfandel: This pairing brought out some bitterness in the wine but the chocolate in the ice cream seems to overpower the flavor in the wine altogether. There was still some sweetness from the wine coming through however with no alcohol. This wine flavor cut through the strong flavor of the ice cream better than the Shiraz.
Cabernet Sauvignon: With this pairing we could only tasting the bitterness and alcohol in the wine with a sour aftertaste in our mouths even though the chocolate overpowered some of the sourness. Very bad pairing!

Tasting - "Jam Jar Sweet White"

Name: Jam Jar Sweet White
Variety: Moscato
Region: South Africa
Country: South Africa
Year: 2014
Price: $8.95

Wine Review: "This charming, easy-drinking Moscato offers flavors of peach, apricot, lychee and orange blossom. A lively jolt of acidity keeps it fresh and fruity. Fancy enough for a special occasion toast, yet sweet-natured enough to enjoy every day, our bright and cheerful sweet wines are sure to capture your heart."

My Review: This wine smells sugary like sweet candy with a slight stinky feet aspect. It tastes like sugar with no alcohol and no aftertaste.
I enjoyed this wine without food. 

Tasting - "Rare Red Zinfandel, Petite Syrah, Petite Verdot, Merlot"

Name: Rare Red Zinfandel, Petite Syrah, Petite Verdot, Merlot
Variety: Red Zinfandel, Petite Syrah, Petite Verdot, Merlot
Region: California
Country: USA
Year: 2013
Price: $9.95

Wine Review: "A multi-vintage blend of Zinfandel, Petite Verdot, Petite Syrah, and Merlot that is full-bodied and fruit forward with a spicy and complex finish. This wine has been partially barrel aged for eight months in American and French oak."

My Review: This wine smells fruity and flowery with a bitter, cherry, fruity, and light taste and sour aftertaste. 
I enjoyed this wine without food. 

Tasting - "Breca Tovana Old Vine Garnacha"

Name: Breca Tovana Old Vine Garnacha
Variety: Garnacha
Region: Munebrega
Country: Spain
Year: 2013
Price: $8.95

Wine Review: "Gnarled vines, grown without irrigation, are a mainstay of Spain’s winemaking tradition and produce small clusters of perfectly ripe Garnacha grapes. Aromas of blackberries, plums, and cherries fill the glass and develop into luscious flavors of black stone fruit. Long, supple tannins complete this extraordinary wine."

My Review: This wine smells of black cherries and strawberry hard candy with a light bodied taste and alcoholic aftertaste that dries out your mouth. 
I enjoyed this wine without food. 

Tasting - "Marques de Caceres Verdejo "

Name: Marques de Caceres Verdejo
Variety: Verdejo
Region: Rueda
Country: Spain
Year: 2013
Price: $9.95

Wine Review: "Vivid straw colour. Fresh, clean and intense bouquet enlivened by notes of citrus fruit with a depth of pears and apples. Deliciously fresh and full in the mouth where racy, focused flavours deliver notes of minerals, lemon rind and green apples. Good length and a refreshing finish. Has all the character of the best from its appellation."

My Review: This wine smells stinky and like sour apple with a watery, light bodied taste that doesn't linger with no aftertaste. This tastes like watered down wine.
I enjoyed this wine without food. 

Tasting - "Dibon Cava Xarel-lo, Macabeo, Parellada"

Name: Dibon Cava Xarel-lo, Macabeo, Parallada
Variety: 45% Macabeo, 25% Xarel-lo, 30% Parellada
Region: Catalonia
Country: Spain
Year: 2013
Price: $9.95

Wine Review: "Made from 45% Macabeo, 25% Xarel-lo, 30% Parellada, the nose offers regal yeast and richness, while the palate has complexity to prop up apple, citrus and grapefruit flavors. Solid from front to back, with health and freshness. Cava, Catalan sparkling wine, is made mostly in the regions of Penedes, and the capital of cava is Sant Sadurni d´Anoia. Dibon is located in Vilafranca del Penedes, aproximately 20 Km from Sant Sadurni. The Dibon vineyard is in the process of becoming fully organic. It consists of 75 hectares of trellised vines 1000 feet above the Mediterranean Sea."

My Review: This wine smells sour and toasty and is very bubbly with a fruity taste and alcoholic aftertaste that lingers. very good! 
I enjoyed this wine without food. 

Tasting - "Hahn Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling"

Name: Hahn Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling
Variety: Riesling
Region: Piesport
Country: Germany
Year: 2013
Price: $9.95

Wine Review: "This wine’s light, airy mouthfeel belies its sweetness and intensity of flavor. Honeyed pineapple aromas; similar flavors on the palate, adding gentle citrus notes toward the long, sweet finish."

My Review: This wine smells slightly sour and tastes like goat cheese. The taste is sweet but not sugary and has a no alcohol, Welch's grape juice aftertaste.
I enjoyed this wine without food.