grapeinabottle » wine review

Rare Bird Pinot Noir review

Rob — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:31:26 +0000

Last night Mrs Grapeinabottle and I shared a bottle of Rare Bird Pinot Noir. This was a very interesting wine. We selected it from the local market as it caught Mrs Grapeinabottle’s eye. She has a thing for birds and bird art as our dining room has a whole wall of birds, sounds kinda weird but is actually cool, especially the picture of a bird house in blazes being fire-bombed by a bird flying away. As I digress, back to the wine… Rare Bird Pinot Noir has a ruby color with a nice earthy overtone and smooth finish. This wine was a bargain for around $10 and is a great everyday drink to share with friends.

bubble trouble

Rob — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 23:50:02 +0000

And now for a guest post from Mrs. Grapeinabottle:

Our local grocery is holding a fire sale on its holiday wine overstock. And by fire sale, I mean selling its stock for pennies: I purchased grapeinabottle and I two bottles of bubbly for less than $5, which includes the sale discount and my handy discount card. En fuego! We’re not big sparkling wine drinkers (we’re not big white drinkers generally, but I digress), but who’s going to turn down (almost) free wine? I picked up a Barefoot Chardonnay Champagne and a Yellow Tail Sparkling Wine for purposes of comparison/contrast. I expected to like the Barefoot, especially considering the hang tag proclaiming its awards, which dangled from the neck of the bottle. But I much preferred the Yellow Tail–I detected hints of vanilla and pineapple, but with a crisp (rather than sweet) finish–which is a proprietary blend of 72% Semillon, with Traminer, Viognier, and Trebbiano. And it didn’t leave that egads! gag reflex in my throat, as *cheap* bubbly so often does. My verdict? Pour the Yellowtail into your party flutes, and mix the Barefoot.

blackberry friday

Rob — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:04:54 +0000

Tonight’s wine is Guenoc Petite Syrah 2005, a bottle leftover from the pre-Thnaksgiving supermarket rush. I received a phone call form Mrs. Grapeinabottle on Wedsnesday asking for a last minute stop at the grocery for those missing few items to finish Thanksgiving dinner, only to be followed by the important text “Don’t forget the wine!!!” As I pushed my cart through the melee, I was accosted at every corner by a different sample stand, including several offering wine tastings. Of course I could not refuse a sample, that would be rude … so after several different tastes of food and wine I decided to buy a Petite Syrah from Guenoc. This is a juicy blackberry and plum wine that is perfect after Black Friday shopping. I shopped on-line at home today and watched Baby Grapeinabottle, while Mrs. Grapeinabottle braved the malls with her aunt and grandma. This wine is a very smooth full bodied Petit Syrah with a hint of violet that finishes nicely, especially for under $10 USD.

a washington wine that goes bada bing!

Rob — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 03:06:51 +0000

Tonight I had a dinner meeting to discuss work business, so luckily it was at a nice Italian chophouse that serves excellent wine. I will not bore you with the minutes from the meeting, but the 2005 bottle of Cold Creek Merlot from Chateau Ste Michelle was very good. This Merlot from Washington had a deep color with berry undertones, which paired nicely with my Filet Mignon. Although it had a cherry base it is spiced nicely with oak and has a smooth finish. I really enjoyed this wine so much that we ordered a second bottle (especially since I was not paying). Although the meeting had a vaguely Soprano-ish feel, the wine made me feel more like Silvio than Christopher Moltisanti, which is definitely a good thing.

does the bohemian highway lead to good wine?

Rob — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 20:48:16 +0000

Last night Mrs. Grapeinabottle and I tried a bottle of Bohemian Highway Merlot. We paired this California Merlot with a grilled filet mignon and grilled vegetables. This merlot has a soft approach that finishes with an explosion of berry flavors with a hint of smoky vanilla and brown spice, which complimented our meal well. For under $10 USD this is a road I would travel again.