17/04/2021
EVENT RECOMMENDATION (March 2021):
Tonight, some girlfriends and I all attended the "Winemakers Dinner" experience presented by Armstrong Valley Winery in Halifax - we enjoyed 8 wines, some from AVW and others from around the world, paired with various food selections from Premier Catering. What fun in experiencing wines from this winery side by side with wines from around the world!!
* Tonight's Food Selections included:
• Chicken Piccatta Satay - Mini Chicken Piccatta in a Lemon Cream Sauce
• Mini Lasagna Rolls - Filled with ricotta and marinara
• Mini Mason Jar Salted caramel brownie dessert
* The Wines included:
1. Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc / Viognier blend, 2020. Napa, California. Crisp, bright and vivacious, CB+V 2020 is an aromatic white blend boasting a bouquet of honeysuckle, lemon lime, yuzu and ginger spice. The entry is both crisp and clean, exhibiting refreshing acidity and roundness, opening to flavors of lemon curd, fig, honeysuckle, lemongrass and ripe melon. This delicious wine has viscosity in the mid-palate and finishes clean and long with a lingering hint of honeydew melon.
2. AVW Vidal Blanc (semi dry), 2019. Vidal Blanc was created in the 1930s by French grape breeder Jean-Louis Vidal as a potential variety to be used in cognac production in the maritime climate and cold winters of western France. Our 2019 Vidal Blanc has a slight hint of sweetness to balance out the acidity and to enhance the aromas of grapefruit, pineapple and pear. Acidity helps create a crisp, bright taste that many people enjoy in white wine.
3. Chateau Routas Rose, 2019. Provence region - south of France. Freshly cut watermelon, ripe peach aromas and floral notes lead to a palate alive with wild strawberries and hints of mineral notes. Crisp acidity and refreshing finish. Blend: 46% Cinsault, 30% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon.
4. AVW Rose, semi-dry, 2019. Rose is a type of wine made from red grapes, produced in a similar manner to red wine, but with reduced time fermenting with grape skins. This reduced skin contact gives rose a pink hue and lighter flavor than that of red wine. Rose is produced around the world, as it can be made from any red wine grapes cultivated in any wine-growing region. Our rose is a more flavorful version of the light delicate wine. Made from Pinot Noir and Chambourcin, it elicits flavors of red fruits like strawberries, cherries and raspberries. Stronger on the palate then French roses, ours is more a 'new world' style.
5. Beronia Rioja Reserva Red Blend, 2015. Rioja, Spain. The 2015 Beronia Reserva shows a deep cherry red color with granite rim. On the nose complex aromas of black fruits, above all blackberry. Great bouquet of spices with cinnamon standing out and notes of cedar on the finish. On the palate smooth with sweet and round tannins. Great balance between acidic fruit and oak. Fresh, structured and complex with a long aftertaste.
6. AVW Chambourcin, 2018. Chambourcin produces a wine that is typically high in acidity with modest tannins and strong flavors that can be complemented with the addition of oak aging. In the glass, you can expect flavors of black cherry, red fruit, herbaceous notes, black pepper, and even chocolate. It is a French - American interspecific hybrid grape variety used for making wine. Its parentage is uncertain.
7. Chateau De Laussac Bordeaux blend, 2016. Bordeaux, France. An aromatic complexity combining a fine woody and an explosion of red fruits of blackberry and blackcurrant. Pretty purple dress, garnet, dark, shiny, clean. Full mouth, fruity attack. Rich ripe dark plums and berries with cocoa powder and roasting herbs in the nose. Offers a wealth of succulent and fine tannins with crunchy dark plums to close. A blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc.
8. AVW Cabernet Sauvignon, 2017. Cabernet Sauvignon is actually the offspring of Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc. Our Cab is slightly higher in acidity, high tannin and medium to full body with black fruit notes of black cherry, vegetal notes of green pepper, and spice notes of vanilla from oak aging. The Bordeaux winemakers loved the grape's healthy level of tannins, which meant the wine could evolve in the bottle for many years. They also determined that it responded incredibly well to spending time in oak, as the oak brought out beautiful new flavors. The result was a wine that was full-bodied with a medium level of acidity that was fantastic for drinking with food.
