Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs Sparkling Wine

Name: Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs
Color: White
Varietal: Sparkling
Vintage: 2003
Country/State: California
Region: Various
Price: $30
Stars: 4 (out of 5)


We took a bottle of the Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs sparkling wine with us on our trip to St. Augustine to celebrate our 13th anniversary!! We drank it in our room without food (well, we did have some chocolates that we bought earlier in the day from Claude's Chocolates!)....

The wine had a fairly strong aroma (Krista could smell it from across the room after I opened it and poured some in our glasses). The nose was softly fruity and nutty. On the palate, I tasted creamy strawberries, peaches, and a doughy/nutty component. It was quite tasty, especially as the night went on. I don't have much experience with sparkling wines, so I don't have a whole lot to compare to. Being a 2003 vintage, I don't know if this wine was considered past its prime or not, but we enjoyed it for what it was -- the perfect accompaniment to our quiet anniversary celebration. I will always remember this wine for the role it played in our trip to St. Augustine.


I noted somewhere online that Wine Spectator rated the 2003 vintage 92 points.

Stump Jump Shiraz

Name: Stump Jump Shiraz
Color: Red
Varietal: Shiraz
Vintage: 2008
Country/State: Australia
Region: McLaren Valley
Price: $10
Stars: 3.5 (out of 5)

The Stump Jump Shiraz was recently featured in the St. Petersburg Times as the Wine of the Week. When I saw a bottle on sale for $10, I picked one up. Krista and I have always enjoyed the big fruity, jammy taste of a good Shiraz from Australia, so we took it with us for our day after Christmas meal at her parents' house. This wine also placed in the Top 100 of Wine Spectator's best wines of 2009.

Unfortunately for us, the tasting of this wine was tainted by some poor glassware at the in-laws house. The first two glasses we tried were plagued by a soapy smell that over-powered the wine. After rinsing the glasses, we were able to salvage one, but I ended up drinking mine out of a green plastic disposable picnic cup. Still, the wine itself was as we expected, full of blackberry and raspberry flavors with a nice mouthfeel and a decent finish. We will definitely have to try it again with better glasses.

Four Vines Zinfandel Old Vine Cuvee

Name: Four Vines 'Old Vine Cuvee' Zinfandel
Color: Red
Varietal: Zinfandel
Vintage: 2006
Country/State: California
Region: Paso Robles
Price: $12
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

We had this wine on Christmas Eve with a dinner of barbeque pork and ribs. It was delicious and paired very well with the BBQ. The wine was medium to full bodied with dark berry flavors with some smoke and oak spices. It was very smooth and juicy and was exactly what I was looking for in a Zinfandel to go with our meal. This was an excellent value and one I will gladly buy again.

Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone

Name: Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone
Color: Red
Varietal: Blend (Grenache/Syrah/Mourvedre/Cinsault)
Vintage: 2006
Country/State: France
Region: Rhone
Price: $11
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

The Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone is a red blend from the Rhone Valley made by the Perrin brothers, owners of Chateau Beaucastel, who are renowned for their Chateauneuf du Pape. They also make a very good value wine under the La Vieille Ferme label. We've had several bottles of the white and red versions of La Vieille Ferme and have enjoyed them very much. The 2006 Perrin Reserve is predominantly Grenache (60%), with Syrah (20%), Mourvedre (10%), and Cinsault (10%).

We drank a glass of the Perrin Reserve last night and finished the bottle tonight with a big bowl of chili and rice. It was very good on its own and with the meal. The nose was nice and dark and earthy. The taste was primarily dark fruits, like black cherry, blackberry, and blueberry, but you could also taste the earthy qualities that really give the wine some character. It's an excellent value.

I would like to try the Perrin Reserve side by side with the La Vieille Ferme to see if I can detect any noticeable differences. If not, then we might as well save a few dollars and go with the La Vieille Ferme.

Fetzer Gewurztraminer

Name: Fetzer
Color: White
Varietal: Gewurztraminer
Vintage: 2008
Country/State: California
Region: Central Coast
Price: $10
Stars: 3.5 (out of 5)

This was our first Gewurztraminer, which is known for its spicy-sweet flavor and medium body. It seems to do well in Alsace, California, and Germany.

This Gewurztraminer is from Fetzer Vineyards in California. It is consistently recommended as a great value wine that's also very versatile in terms of the types of food to which it can be paired.

We had this wine tonight with a chicken/artichoke/pasta dish and it paired very well. Krista also used a bit of the wine in the sauce for our meal. The wine was very good, but with a touch too much sweetness for my taste. The color was pale gold, with an aroma of sweet apricots and peaches. The taste was similar to the nose, with some honey in addition to the fruits. I didn't get a lot of the spice that is to be expected from this varietal, which is probably why I thought it was too sweet. The finish was nice and long.

I really want to try a Gewurztraminer from Germany or Alsace next to see how they compare to this one.

Clos du Bois Cabernet Sauvignon

Name: Clos du Bois
Color: Red
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2005
Country/State: California
Region: North Coast
Price: $9
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

Krista and I both really liked this Cabernet from Clos du Bois. The wine was nice and dark and inky in the glass, with a great nose of blackberry, black cherry, and plum, with some vanilla from the oak. It was well-balanced and velvety smooth in the mouth. I tasted mostly dark berries with a bit of spice. The finish was fairly long and left me wanting more.

We drank this delicious wine with steaks and mushrooms and a spinach salad. The wine went well with the steak and was also excellent on its own after dinner. It wasn't long before we finished this bottle. For the price, I would highly recommend the Clos du Bois Cabernet.

Cristalino Brut Cava

Name: Cristalino Brut Cava
Color: White (Sparkling Cava)
Varietal: Blend (Macabeo/Parellada/Xarello)
Vintage: NV
Country/State: Spain
Region: Cataluna
Price: $8
Stars: 3.5 (out of 5)


This Spanish sparkling wine has been widely hailed as a great budget sparkler and a terrific value for the money. I don't have too much experience with sparkling wines, so I don't have much of a base to compare to. For me, this was a good wine, but nothing to get too excited about. It was nice and dry and tasted primarily of toast, apples, pears, and a little bit of lemon. The finish was probably the most note-worthy aspect of the Cristalino Cava for me. It was very long, as the taste lingered well after each sip.

Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc

Name: Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc
Color: White
Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2008
Country/State: Chile
Region: Casablanca Valley
Price: $11
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

The Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc is one I'd been meaning to try for awhile now. I set out to pick up the Nobilo SB, but it was sold out. Then I remembered the Veramonte, stumbled across it, and brought it home. This wine was a pale straw color with a nose of citrus, melons, and white fruit. I also noticed a pretty strong grassy aroma, especially right after opening the bottle. The grassy smell went away as the night went on, leaving more citrus aromas.

The taste was also citrus with grapefruit and a bit of lemon and lime. It was really crisp and refreshing with great acidity. The acid wasn't as tart and overpowering as it can be with some New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. The finish was nice, but not exceptionally long. We drank this wine with Mahi filets, and easily finished the bottle later in the night. Krista and I both really enjoyed our first Chilean white wine and can't wait to more wines from Chile in the future.