As promised, here are notes on wines that we’ve tasted in the past, which never made it to the blog. Creekside Cellars has since closed (excuse me while I shed a tear), but the wines are definitely worth recommending. This tasting is from February, 2013.
1. Saint Hilaire – Brut Sparkling – Limoux, France – $15.00 – This sparkling white was very nice. It had a nutty, almond flavor, and hints of vanilla.
2. Boutari – Santorini-Assyrtiko 2010 – Cycladic Islands, Greece – $20.00 – If you haven’t had a lot of Greek wines, might I recommend them to you? They are crisp, have a mineral taste to them, and are quite nice. This one had notes of olive oil as well, and would pair very nicely with some of the lighter Mediterranean dishes and Greek salads. We really liked this one.
3. Leveroni – Chardonnay 2010 – Carneros, Sonoma – $16.00 – This wine was very nice (like the Boutari, it earned a star and two exclamation points, which means given unlimited resources, we’d add it to our cellar). It was dry yet buttery and lots of oak (but in a good way). It had all these qualities balanced with cloves. It was a really robust chardonnay. It would hold up well with my chicken Swedish meatballs recipe.
4. Belle Glos – “Meiomi” Pinot Noir 2011 – Monterey, Santa Barbara, & Sonoma Counties, California – $27.00 – This wine was very good. With the nose, we were concerned that it would be very rubbery. It’s funny how this wine developed. After the swirl, it had more of a wasabi nose, and upon tasting, it was filled with cloves, vanilla, and peppers. It did very well with the cheeses that had big flavors, and I’d definitely pair it with spicy food and foods with a lot of punch.
5. Kokomo – Zinfandel 2011 – Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma – $27.00 – this wine was decently good. We felt it tasted a lot like Hickman Family Vineyards’ Zinfandel, and given the choice, we preferred the Hickman wine over Kokomo’s.
6. Perry Creek – “Altitude 2401” Petite Sirah 2009 – El Dorado County – $22.00 – This wine was also a star and one and a half exclamation points wine. It was high octane! It was very tannic, but it had a good fruit balance. This wine would pair well with comfort foods. The cheese plate we ordered had hush puppies, and it went very well with those.
7. Mitolo – “Jester” Shiraz 2010 – McLaren Vale, Australia – $22.00 – This wine was decently good. It had hints of mint, coffee, chocolate, and the tannins were noticeable.
8. Concha Y Toro – “Marques de Casa Concha” Cabernet – Puento Alto, Chile – $ 24.00 – On the nose, we thought this wine would be too sweet and that it would be almost like plastic. On the taste, it was not bad; it went well with the hush puppies. It had an understated spice to it. It would be nice with spicy Mexican dishes.
We did not taste the d’Arenberg “Hermit Crab” because we’d previously had it, and enjoyed it very much. In fact, we have some in our cellar.
Have you tried any of these wines? Please share your thoughts about them in the comments section.
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