Tasting - Daniel Cellars Aurora Chocolate Raspberry Wine

Name: Daniel Cellars Aurora Chocolate Raspberry Wine
Variety: Blend, Red Dessert Wine
Region: Barboursville, Virginia
Country: United States
Year: Non-vintage
Price: Frontline $18 sale, $3.95

Store Review: Aurora is a sweet red wine that Daniel Cellars have added Chocolate and Raspberries to. Chocolate is the dominate aroma and flavor with Raspberry accents. This is a perfect wine for chocolate lovers. Best served ice cold with a friend.

My Review: I am not typically a fan of dessert wines, and for the most part this was no exception. While it was wonderful to smell, with strong suggestions of chocolate, and the raspberry did come across decently well on the tongue, overall the wine felt and tasted too syrupy in my mouth. That said, it felt brighter than most dessert wines.

I tried it on its own, with no food.

Tasting - Estrella Cabarnet Sauvignon

Name: Estrella Cabarnet Sauvignon
Variety: Cabarnet Sauvignon
Region: California
Country: United States
Year: 2014
Price: Frontline $17 sale, $5.95

Store Review: Bright medium dark garnet color. Fruity, creamy, attractive aromas and flavors of berry and cherry custard pies, watermelon, and chocolate and floral honey with a silky, vibrant, fruity medium body and a smooth, interesting, medium-length spiced blueberries and cherries and vanilla custard finish with soft tannins and light oak. A very smooth, charming, and fruity cabernet crowd pleaser.

My Review: This wine was a delight, with a lot of nuance and something that I believe most people would find approachable. It was a bit sweeter than the other red that I tasted just before it, making it a bit more of something I would bring for someone whose tastes I wasn't sure of. There were plenty of nice fruit flavors, making tasting this wine nice and pleasant.

I tried this wine on its own with no food.

Tasting - Terre dei Savoia Dolcetto d'Alba

Name: Terre dei Savoia Dolcetto d'Alba
Variety: Dolcetto
Region: Piedmont
Country: Italy
Year: 2011
Price: Frontline $20 sale, $6.95

Store Review: Violet, red berry and underbrush scents come together in this Dolcetto. Its savory, juicy palate evokes crushed blackberry, cherry and a touch of toasted almond alongside lithe tannins.

My Review: This wine was a bit on the dry side, but not too dry for my tastes. The cherry flavors came across nicely for me, along with a not unpleasant slightly bitter finish.

I tried this wine on its own with no food.

Tasting - Terra Minei Treixadura Ribeiro

Name: Terra Minei Treixadura Ribeiro
Variety: Treixadura
Region: Ribeiro
Country: Spain
Year: 2015
Price: Frontline $17 Sale, $6.95

Store Review: Firm and focused, this white supports the core of apple and pear flavors with flinty, steely and briny notes, accented with fresh herb and smoky details. Juicy acidity keeps this fresh and racy through the mineral finish.

My Review: I was not able to detect most of the flavors that were listed above, though the apple definitely came across as well as an earthiness on the finish. Light and refreshing, this would be a good go-to.

I had this wine with no food on its own.

Tasting - J & P Matheus Piesporter Treppchen Sauvignon Blanc

Name: J & P Matheus Piesporter Treppchen Sauvignon Blanc
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Region: Mosel
Country: Germany
Year: 2014
Price: Frontline $17, on sale $5.95

Shop Review: The wine is fresh and lively with tropical fruits aromas, a hint of citrus and ripe vineyard peach flavors. It has a multi-layered structure with a refreshing acidity with mineral notes.


My Review: This wine is exactly what I want in a white wine. It was fresh and light, and the acidic flavors of the citrus made it feel good on the tongue. Definitely a good wine to have chilled on a warm day.

I tasted this wine on its own, with no food.

My History with Wine

When I was younger, my parents frequented wineries; there were plenty of weekends that they would spend going around doing tastings or spending an afternoon at their favorite winery. They frequented Pearmund Cellars so much that the dog mascot, Tug, came to recognize their car. So when I turned twenty-one, I was no stranger to wine. I went to several wineries and did tastings with my parents around the Shenandoah Valley and Northern Virginia in the spring after my twenty-first birthday, developing a taste for both reds and wines.

My personal taste in wine is varied; I prefer wines that are off-dry to semi-sweet. Anything that is too far off to either edge is not particularly to my tastes, though I will give anything a shot once. I drink both whites and reds, preferring to sip wines out on the patio when it's hot out and cozy up with a red when it's cold. The only wines I will turn my nose up to entirely are dessert wines, which are far too sweet and syrupy for me.

What I am looking forward to in this course is to gain knowledge about wines from different areas of the world. As most of my experience is with local Virginia wines, I think it will be good to broaden my horizons and get an idea of what different styles of wine there are, particularly in the old world.