Wine Thursday - Middle Sister - Rebel Red

As I was walking around Target looking for get well goodies for Grandpa Wonderful (he's been a bit under the weather lately), I walked down the wine asile. I LOVE the wine asile at Target. They have some of the silliest labels that I've ever heard of. Then I saw the Middle Sister labels and they all made me giggle. So I chose Middle Sister Rebel Red... mostly because I'm rebellious... HA! not really... secret agents can't really do that. It is a red table wine. And as such is a mixture of all things good. According to the website:

"38% Zinfandel, 34% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Syrah, 2% mixed red varietals.
100% California grapes with 42% from the Lodi appellation."

For those of you like me... that means... hmmm... let's go for some taste description then:

"...a huge mouthful of ripe summer berries. The fruit goes on and on, ending in a luxurious finish."


But really... it reminds me of one of the best berry pies that I have ever had the pleasure to eat. Not bad for under $10. This... I will definitly have to find a reason to buy for Bee. I believe that as a sister in the middle she would definitly enjoy it!

~Emme

Wine Tuesday: Moscato D'Asti

Moscato D'Asti is a DOCG wine from Beviamo in Italy. I have been having a hard time finding their website so I give up... or maybe I give up since I'm on the second glass. Though you know which one I'm talking about... the beautiful, odd-shaped blue bottle from Sam's Club.

I am not sure why but this was the hardest wine I've ever tried to open. The cork split in half. In half! So I popped in a decorative stopper that I bought to save for an exciting occasion. That one split too... maybe the lip of the bottle isn't designed right. Who knows?

The wine itself tastes like drinking old pineapple juice with a little bit of blubbly. It is very syrupy. Mostly I bought it since it was on sale and I know of another agent that owns a kiln and can melt it down into something lovely. Now I'm on the second glass, mostly as I have no way of closing the bottle back, but I really don't want anymore.

~Emme

Wine Thursday - Layer Cake Primitivo

Layer Cake's Primitivo is their Zinfandel. I'm not sure I would have purchased it had I known. I'm not usually fond of Zinfandels. This is what one finds out when reading the back (which is what sold me):

"My old grandfather made and enjoyed wine for 80 years. He told me the soil in which the vines lived were a layer cake. He said the wine, if properly made, was like a great layer cake, fruit, mocha, and chocolate, hints of spice and rich, always rich. 'Never pass up a layer cake', he would say. I have always loved those words."

You know what... so do I. I love those words. It made me remember seeing the layers of dirt while working at the dig site.

At first glance this red wine from Italy is not what I would look for. It is not from Chile, Australia, or even California. It is from Italy. This wine even comes with a screw top cap... no cork. I'm inwardly really grateful that it is missing a cork. My good arm is killing me still from the hospital run the other day.

It smells like the table wine I drank in England when I was 17. I do not remember what it was, but we had a lot of it. It was a good adventure, complete with rabbit and an opera singer... only one of which was eaten... I'll let you figure out which.

I'm going to have to give this a try some other night to make sure I like it as much as I do. It is not as if I've already had a shot of sake and a glass of that pinot noir from Monday. I'm still waiting for the pain to dull in my shoulder.

Good job layer cake. I'm not sure I would often spend $16 on a bottle of wine... but I couldn't pass up the layer cake.

~Emme

Connoisseur Friday

Connoisseur Friday?

I enjoy trying new wines. I typically go for the under $10 crowd unless I'm hosting a party. It's just me enjoying a glass either midweek or on the weekends with Mr. Wonderful. I am a fan of Little Black Dress, if for nothing else their wonderfully black corks (awesome for crafting). Yesterday as I was walking through the wine aisle I looked for my usual Pinot Noir (LOVE IT!). It was absent (it is amazing after all). So I bought Little Black Dress Pinot Grigio instead.

Yeah... I'm from what used to be a small town. Forgive me for not using wine speak.

What LBD says it should taste like:

"Aromas of bright fruit on the nose including apple, pear, lemongrass, floral notes, and lively orange and tangerine. Balanced mouthfeel full of citrus notes."

The first sip was not pleasant... I was very disappointed. After all, I enjoy their Pinot Noir from beginning to end. The Pinot Grigio tastes like green apple mixed with citric acid. The aftertaste is of wood and lemon (assuming the lemon grass does this) ... mmm... pleasant. As I am not one to throw away money (aka... wine that isn't quite as pleasant as I would have hoped) I went and got a second glass. It is definitly better on the second cup.

So if you have a bottle of Little Black Dress Pinot Grigio hanging out in your fridge, have no worries, the second glass is way better than the first and then you'll have a cool cork to craft with.

And no... Mr. Wonderful... I have no idea why I bought a white wine to begin with, but do not let the rest of you readers (whomever you may be) sway you away from Little Black Dress wines... go buy the Pinot Noir it is fabulous for an under $10 pick!


~Emme