Hello Spring

 

This is a picture from my work window on Tuesday March 1st!  Not a snowflake to be seen.  And to be honest, much of February looked like this.

This is what it looks like outside my window this morning as I’m writing this blog,  Spring was definitely in the air  when I decided to call this blog HElliott Sprong.   The days are getting longer and the sun shines brighter  and that tells us Spring is coming very soon .  You know a great way to celebrate Spring…. wine!

This is the bottle of wine I had the previous Friday night and what a treat it was.  The Layer Cake Cabernet Sauvignon from California explodes on your palate with vibrant flavors of spice-infused fruit, cherries, tobacco and cedar.  Rich and full-bodied with notes of chocolate, this is a stunning Cabernet Sauvignon.  Coming in at about $37, worth every penny.  If the weather is surprisingly spring like in your area, and you are kick-starting the BBQ any time soon, this is the wine for you.

Here’s another fantastic wine from the Russian River Valley in Sonoma County Napa Valley.  This region is gaining quite the reputation for spectacular wines and the Rodney Strong Pinot Noir from 2012 is no exception. I’ve written about the Merlot previously, but this was my first time trying the Pinot Noir.  The Russian River Valley is considered one of the finest places outside of Burgundy France to grow Pinot Noir.  Unlike some Pinot wines, this one is intense with plum, cherry, smoke, and spice flavors.   In my opinion, Pinot Noir pairs well with most foods.

And I recently got to try another wine from the Rodney Strong family, the Chardonnay.   This wine was barrel fermented with lees stirring every month.  What does this mean?  It gives it a nice aroma of ripe lemon and apple with a touch of toast.   Those apple flavors also show up on the palate and it has a beautiful lingering finish.  I tried it with my friend Rayell at the NSLC and when we started talking I told her the flavors were still there on my palate.

Time for my wine of the week….

The Bridlewood Cabernet Sauvignon from Paso Robles California.  Heaven in a bottle.   On several occasions I’ve written about another Cabernet Sauvignon from the Paso Robles region from Beringer.   It’s full-bodied and features bold dark fruit flavors including blackberry .  It also has flavors of chocolate, cassis and a beautiful smooth finish.  This was my treat bottle this past week, and I bought the store out.  This is in limited supply because NSLC has a special feature for California on, and they bought it this wine for one time only.   It’s a beauty, but probably going to be very hard to find.   Good luck… it’s worth the hunt.

Here’s to a great weekend of enjoying yoga and drinking wine.

Till next week, Cheers

Darlene