Creekside’s Grilling Wines Tasting

This weeks tasting focused on wines that pair well with grilled foods. The cheese plate featured the added bonus of grilled marinated sausage. It was definitely a very fun tasting at Creekside Cellars.

We started off with the whites, and skipped the sparkling. The first white was the 2011 Terranoble Sauvignon Blanc from Chile ($10). This wine had notes of grapefruit and granny smith apples. It was young, green, and good – but not amazing. My suspicion is that in a few years, this wine will develop further and come to maturity.

The 2009 Naia Verdejo from Spain ($15) was next. This was a very nice wine. It would go very well with a grilled peach dish or with an appetizer of chips and mango salsa. There was a tiny bit of oak on the taste, but it also had apricot and nectarine hints. I thought it would pair nicely with a desert I make involving broiled peaches and mascarpone cheese. For this, half peaches and remove pits. Sprinkle nutmeg and allspice over the fruit, and put a dollop of maple syrup in each half. Finally, spoon some marscapone cheese in and put peaches under the broiler for 5-8 minutes. Enjoy while still warm.

The 2010 Catena Chardonay from Mendoza, Argentina ($19) was pretty good. It was strong with a smokey oak flavor done well with hints of cream and artichokes.

Next up was the rosé, Bastianich’s Rosato di Refosco from Friulani, Italy. Until the experiences both of tasting Bertagna’s rosé and of the wine trail rosé wines, we would forgo this pink wine choice. Like many are now realizing, there are merits to a good rosé. This one had hints of parsley, it was pretty decent.

We then moved onto the reds. First up was the 2009 Moniz Family Pinot Noir from Sonoma, California ($20). This was a very nice wine. It paired well with gouda and bleu cheese, and it was very balanced. The wine itself had notes of plums, basil, and sage.

The 2009 D’Arenberg “The Stump Jump” 42% Grenache, 33% Syrah, and 25% Mourvedre ($13) was up next. This wine had a lemon lime and blueberry flavor. It wasn’t our favorite, but it wasn’t bad either. The 2010 Charles Smith Wines “Boom Boom” Syrah from Washington State ($19) was phenomenal. This wine was light yet peppery. It had hints of oregano, white pepper, marjoram, and berries. It had a floral perfume nose and was quite creamy. It would make an amazing pairing with chicken.

The final wine we tasted was the 2010 Ancient Peaks Cabernet Sauvignon from Paso Robles ($18). This wine had the wonderful smokey cigar box/tobacco notes that I’ve come to love in wines. It also had hints of espresso and blackberries.

What are your favorite flavors to taste in wines? Post your answers in the comments.