Birthday Wine – Part 2

I had no intention of writing a birthday wine follow up blog, but I was blown away by the amount of people who had read the birthday wine bucket list (I get results through Google Analytics) and by the amount of people who said they were looking forward to seeing what I had on my birthday.   Thank you so much.  Actually the wines I had on my birthday and the days following the birthday, in which I was still celebrating (it’s been a great week), were all brand new to me, and they were all fabulous.   So, here we go.

While Prince George received some clothes and a bottle of Pinot Noir from the people in New Zealand, I received Bogle Phantom Old Vine Zinfandel from my friends Rick, Rayell, Heather, Brenda and all the gang at my favorite store on Larry Uteck.   It’s a blend of % Old Vine Zinfandel, 47% Petite Sirah and 2% Old Vine Mourvedre.  What a treat.  Gorgeous flavors of black cherry, tobacco, pepper and spicy oak.  Now although I didn’t actually enjoy this on my birthday, it was a gift that I enjoyed last night.  I had a Friday night BBQ with a stuffed pork chop, some spicy wings, and some vegetables and this was perfect.  So perfect in fact, there is none left in the bottle this morning.   Thank you!

So this picture was taken on my actual birthday.  My friend Sue took me to lunch in the beautiful neighbourhood called the Hydrostone here in Halifax, which is an English style garden suburb, which was completed in 1920 and one of my favorite places in Halifax.  On the menu that day was Sushi and Chicken Pad Thai on the patio and that gorgeous wine in my hand is a California Riesling.    The J. Lohr Riesling from California to be exact.

Regular readers of my blog know that I have written about J. Lohr wines many times before.  They make a spectacular Merlot, a fantastic Cabernet Sauvignon, and my Mom’s favorite Chardonnay.  I had never had the Riesling before, but it was perfect with lunch.  The perfect compliment of sweetness with the spiciness of the Chicken Pad Thai.   Flavors of apricot and peach and even my friend Sue, who said she did not like any sweetness in her wine, loved this one.  And loved it with her spicy food.

 

This is a picture of me and my friend Dan.  The night following my birthday he took me to his restaurant, East Side Mario’s for a delicious supper of pasta, which included wine of course.  Duh!  We had the Feta Brushetta to start, which was amazing.  And for my meal had the Basil Chicken & Fettucine Pomodoro which was so good, and there was enough left over to have for lunch the next day.  With this meal, I had the Peller Estates Merlot.  This Canadian wine from the Niagara region is easy to drink, medium bodied, fruity with flavors of plums and cocoa.

This is a picture of my sister Elaine with our parents.  The parents are coming to visit in a couple of weeks, but on Sunday my sister is throwing me a BBQ to celebrate my birthday.  I’ll be responsible for bringing the wine, cause that’s not her beverage of choice, and since we are grilling burgers, I am having a hard time deciding which wine.  There are so many great red wines that go with BBQ burgers.   Here are some of the choices in my wine rack at the moment.

  

The Menage a Trois is a blend of Zinfandel, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Now if that doesn’t say BBQ burgers, I don’t know what will.   The wine next to it is the Etude Cabernet Sauvignon, a gift from friends of mind.  However, with the $76 price tag that comes along with that wine, I’m going to save that for a steak.   And no, I wasn’t drunk when I took that picture.. LOL  (laugh out loud!)

 

Here’s a couple of more options.  The Curious Beasts Red wine from California is a Merlot, Syrah and Zinfandel blend … again perfect for the BBQ.   But the last wine here may be the winner.  I bought this back in January and it’s a single vineyard Malbec from Cristina y Bibiana and the Trapiche vineyard in Argentina.   Trapiche makes 3 different single vineyard Malbec wines, each sourced from 3 unique grape growers in the region.  Really looking forward to drinking this wine.

     

Before I go, a shout-out and big Congratulations on 3 local Nova Scotia wineries who have received the inaugural Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Excellence in Nova Scotia Wines.  Avondale for its Martock, Blomidon for its Cuvee L’Acadie and Domaine de Grand Pre for its Riesling.   This award is pretty special since it recognizes the exceptional quality of locally sourced and produced wines and honors the dedication and passion of those involved with Nova Scotia’s wine industry.   Yay for Nova Scotia wines.

Till next week Cheers

Darlene