by Ethan Johnson
November 2, 2008
I saw an old friend over the weekend, and brought him a hand-picked six-pack of various beers I thought he might be interested in trying out. In trade, he gave me this bottle of Riesling. He didn't know what paired well with Rieslings, and I said "when in doubt, tomato-based sauces." He figured I'd be rustling that sort of thing up before he did. And, he was correct. Onward:
Producer (Vineyard): Chateau Ste Michelle
Varietal (Grape type): Riesling
Vintage (Year): 2007
Country: USA (Washington)
Color: White
Cost: Inexpensive ($10 USD)
Swirl and Sniff: The color is pale yellow. Scent-wise, I was expecting it to be something of a one-trick pony, but there was a blend of apples and honey.
Taste: Verrrrry citrusy, which normally would be good because we need the acidity for the food pairing. Crisp apples, lemons, and grapefruit on the tongue. And then a heavily honeyed finish. As in, really syrupy. It reminded me of the sugar syrup I make for our championship trays of baklawa (not a typo).
Pairing: I drank this with good old Tagliatelle Bolognese. The wine was overly syrupy on its own, and when I took a big hot mouthful of food, the wine vs tomatoes battle did flatten everything out, but the syrupy sensation hung in to make it a not at all fun wine drinking experience.
Rating: When it comes to this wine, I would (and you may):
- Buy three or more bottles for regular enjoyment
- Buy a bottle or two for occasional enjoyment
- Ask for when dining out or at a party
- Settle for if your preferred wine is not available
- Politely decline and never drink again, ever
I feel awful panning this wine, and don't like coming off as an ingrate. We both entered into this wine giveaway with the expectation that he wasn't in a big hurry to drink this wine anyway, and I didn't know if I could still hang with white wines after several months of reds and now beers. I don't think this is a case of my palate rebelling against whites. I'm sure if I picked up a bottle of Noble House I would have been in food pairing heaven. We do sell this at the store, so my professional duty compels me to write this review and mention that we do sell Noble House for the same price. Stop in and see me. (Grin)
Oh: I took a huge flyer on some of his six-pack picks, so he could be cursing my name anyway, wine review or no. And he did turn me on to a red that I snagged a bottle of recently, so a more favorable review should be forthcoming. Salud!
If you do give this a try, please let me know how your experience compared with mine. Thanks! <EM>
(The Totally Unpretentious Wine Reviews Index may be found here.)
