Tag: Crémant

Tasting

16 sparkling wines to drink alone in your room on New Year’s Eve

Posted on by Josh

Girl, do not limit yourself. You can pick any day! New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, or fuck: why not March 6th? I support you.

On that note of celebrations, though, I don’t understand why it’s ridiculously vogue to aggressively bluster about how you’re over partying with large crowds and noisy beats. We get it. Can you stop making me feel bad for not fitting into your definition of introvert, for once? I can be the biggest withdrawn human endlessly swaying to Björk and eating baby carrots, but maybe my version of Saturday night Chopin and Netflix occasionally involves enjoying a Hillary Clinton drag impersonator rip off four layered tearaway pantsuits in a row at a bar where I’ve made just the right amount of mistakes over the past few months.… read more

Tasting

Rosé? For spring? Groundbreaking.

Posted on by Josh

Seminar led by the Wine Diva, but I’m quoting diva Meryl Streep, obviously. If you didn’t get that reference then why are we even friends? But really: I would wholeheartedly pair The Devil Wears Prada with a Loire wine. You’d need something light – maybe aloof – yet cutting, and dry. Also, that movie turns 10 this year? What?

I’ve once again come a little too underdressed for such an event, but I can’t help it because it’s muggy, sunny, and I like mesh a little too much. Cool off with Loire wines? Probably one of the favourite French areas of from last year’s Europe trip. My wallet cried.

Anyways, I think my main point here is that people need to get excited about weird Chenin Blanc and elegant light reds. … read more

Tasting

16 Wines to Pair with your Disappointing New Year’s Resolutions of 2016

Posted on by Josh

Rarely do I scroll through my phone in the morning (still in bed, furthermore) and decide to go to an event on a whim especially after a slightly pixilated night involving absinthe and a plethora of Real Housewives taglines, but making quick decisions was one of my resolutions for the year – malformed somewhere in the summer – prompting a quick change and a leap out of the door. Were we supposed to RSVP? Yes, says my phone. Whatever.

I remember attending the Annual Champagne and Sparkling Wine Tasting at Marquis Wine Cellars last year: it was a last-minute invite by text after the first Guild of Sommeliers blind tasting seminar held in Vancouver. I remember forgetting my wallet, so I had to borrow money from a friend to donate to the Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland, the charity who the event supports. … read more

Tasting · Travel

Finger Lakes: first spits and fire pits

Posted on by Josh

More wine in this post, I promise!

For some reason I was not tired after The Night Of No Sleep. My body knew. On a rainy morning dodging puddles and people, Christine, Amy, Leeanne, Sujinder and I bussed up to Elmira from NYC. This of course involved a cryptic and boisterous man who sat behind our group and modified the intensity of his New York accent depending on who he was talking to on the phone, including Joey, which included a mild conversation about picking up sodas at the dollar store; and then Beryl, to whom he aggressively told to check her mailbox and to “not worry about it” (severed hand?!). Obviously the world knew our NYC experience wasn’t over yet, and we’ve accomplished a lot before anything officially #WBC15.… read more

Life · Quaffing · Tasting

Post-Pride and Pre-WBC15 Wine Dump

Posted on by Josh

Bit of a tasting note dump between the Maryland trip and Vancouver Pride, since I am not drinking for a week in a simultaneous effort to recover from Vancouver Pride antics and to prepare my liver for the Wine Bloggers Conference in New York. Huzzah. I am surprisingly doing well so far, and I have stepped into the world of non-alcoholic beer.

(I’ve failed miserably.)

There’s not really a common thread here, except for maybe the general Old World?

I’ve also found out that my travel buddy had to cancel her attendance to both the Wine Bloggers Conference and our pre-conference trip to NYC due to a health issue, so I’m semi-alone in NYC (semi- because I’m meeting up with some Vancouver friends still) and I’m a little scared but also super excited. … read more

Tasting

Rock out with your Hawk out

Posted on by Josh

March 23, 2015

(Because, like, Alsace and rocks. And Hawksworth.)

Alsace as a person: some sort of plainly elegant freshly-shaven man – or a woman clad in some sort of colour-blocked dress – maybe something in-between? Possibly something cleanly cut yet bright that evokes images of Twiggy from the 60s, and maybe something equally as razor-sharp like a Polo and slicked-back hair with nary a thread out of place. Or like a United Colors of Benetton advertisement that shows five outfits that would all look disproportionately gross on me. (Truthfully, I’m an American Apparel medium and a Gap extra small, but I’m pretty sure my thighs set off fire alarms.) No oak, no malolactic, all vivid.

The brightness is no argument, because Alsace is literally the poster child-region for the dry and sunny climate that’s mentioned in every first paragraph that talks about the region.… read more

Quaffing

Princess Peach: NV Domaine Zinck Crémant d’Alsace Brut

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale lemon, bubbles
Nose: clean, med intensity, youthful, mineral, apple, citrus, lemon, stone fruit, white peach, hint yeastiness
Mouth: dry, creamy mousse, med- body, high acid, med- alcohol, med+ length, med+ intensity, green apple, citrus, lemon zest, stone fruit, peach, hint yeastiness
All in all: Good quality: the wine has well-balanced structure with high acid that doesn’t make the mouth pucker. A citrus zest flavour lingers on the finish, but the wine could use a bit more complexity. Drink now, not suitable for ageing.

NV Domaine Zinck Crémant d'Alsace BrutWell, here we are. Around ten days left until the terrifying WSET Diploma Unit 5 + 6 exams. After piling through a decent amount of flash cards, I decided I deserved wine. That and I’ve also been cooped up in the house for more than 24 hours and decided that a walk to the liquor store would be sufficient exercise – which obviously it wasn’t – but let’s pretend it was.… read more

WSET Diploma

“Flaws (Live Acoustic Version)” – Bastille: NV Domaine Breton “La Dilettante” Vouvray Brut

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med- lemon, bubbles
Nose: clean, med intensity, developing, mineral, citrus, hint herbaceous, lemon, lime, citrus zest, white bread, slight toast, mushroom, wet wool
Mouth: dry, creamy mousse, med+ acid, med- body, med- alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, mineral, lemon, lime, citrus zest, lees, savoury, mushroom, wet wool
All in all: Good (to very good) quality: the wine is well-balanced and has a relatively long length. Though not being very intense in its fruit, the Chenin Blanc character comes through with lovely earthy mushroom and wet wool aromas and flavours. Drink now, not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: High-priced Vouvray Brut from Loire, France.
Is really: High-priced Vouvray Brut from Loire, France.

NV Domaine Breton "La Dilettante" Vouvray Brut[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 5]

Last week’s version of this wine was corked so this was secretly slipped into today’s set of wines.… read more

WSET Diploma

A pink Rubik’s Cube: NV Louis Bouillot Crémant de Bourgogne “Perle d’Aurore” Rosé

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale salmon, bubbles
Nose: clean, med- intensity, youthful, mineral, dried red fruit, hint strawberry, hint raspberry, hint of yeast, hint herbaceous
Mouth: dry, creamy mousse, med+ acid, med- body, med- alcohol, med flavour intensity, mineral, dried red fruit, strawberry, cherry, med length, mineral finish
All in all: Good quality: though the sparkling rosé has elegant balance and finesse, the flavours lack a bit of focus and intensity. Drink now, not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced Non-Vintage Crémant Rosé from Bourgogne, France.
Is really: Mid-priced Non-Vintage Crémant Rosé from Bourgogne, France.

NV Louis Bouillot Crémant de Bourgogne "Perle d'Aurore" Rosé[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 5]

I am way too harsh with traditional method sparkling rosés. My eyebrows were raised and my lips were pursed as soon as I saw the pale salmon poured from the bottle, and I gave it a sniff with a confirmed nod.… read more

WSET Diploma

NV Domaine Breton “La Dilettante” Vouvray Brut (corked bottle)

Posted on by Josh

[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 4]

[Retried a proper bottle during the next class (Week 5)]

Unfortunately the bottle was corked! A big shame since it’s always nice to retry wines that were previously had in the past, especially with more tools under the tasting belt. Among other things, I’m pretty bad at detecting TCA unless it’s it’s a purple elephant in the glass – I was pretty sure with this one but at the same time I was doubting it. Huzzah – corked. I knew something was up.

NV Domaine Breton "La Dilettante" Vouvray Brut

Producer: Domaine Breton
Designation: “La Dilettante”, Brut
Region: France
Sub-Region: Vouvray, Touraine, Loire
Variety: Chenin Blanc
ABV: 12%
Vintage: NV
Tasted: January 24, 2014
Price: $39

… read more