Washington Wine and Cheese

It’s not too late to change your travel plans and leave Wednesday morning!!!! On Nov. 20th, Washington Wine and Cheese Seminar presented a tasting featuring five Zinfandels from California. It seems only fitting that as we prepare to feast on one of the most traditional of American holidays, that we break from the usual tradition with a tasting of a truly American wine . . . ZINFANDEL! Although Zins are not usually considered your typical turkey wine, the fruit and balance of these wines may sway your opinion of the perfect complement for sweet or mashed potatos, gravy, and stuffing.Our wine selections will feature two wines from Napa Valley, two from Amador, and one from Lodi. The wines come from vintners Dominican Oaks, Sobon, Santino, Oak Ridge, and Titus. Two of the wines are characterized as “medium-bodied” and the other two as “full-bodied.” One is organically farmed, and all five will knock your socks off! The wines exemplify the spice, pepper, berry, and rich flavors that characterize Zinfandel. Frankly, the rich descriptions remind me of all my favorite Thanksgiving dishes!

Our selection of Zins will be accompanied by a morbier, a sharp cheddar and crusty bread. If you’re hosting Thanksgiving and your guests are already in town, feel free to bring them but keep in mind that we can only accommodate the first 96 tasters.

As I count my Thanksgiving blessings this year, I am thankful for ZINFANDEL!!!!!!! I look forward to sharing these wines with you tonight.

1. 2005 Domincan Oaks Zinfandel Napa - $14.99
2. 2005 Sobon Reserve Zinfandel - $24.99
3. 2003 Santino Zinfandel Old Vines - $15.99
4. 2005 Oak Ridge Zinfandel - Lodi $15.99
5. 2004 Zinfandel - Napa $24.99

Wine from Total Wine and More

Cheeses:

1. Horlick Sharp Cheddar - $9.49
2. Morbier - $9.99

From Calvert Woodley

Washington Wine and Cheese Seminar proudly presents Chateauneuf-du-Pape! This is a special $25 tasting featuring five excellent examples of the renowned C-du-P region. We have strained the budget to be able to present a tasting with not just one or two, but all five C-du-P wines! Four of the five wines are rated 90 points or higher, and one of the producers is receiving widespread recognition, at only 25 years old, as THE up-and-coming wine maker of the C-du-P region. These wines are bold, rich, luscious, and a real treat for us to present. Accompanying these wines, we will provide two excellent cheese and crusty bread.

1. 2004 Le Cep - $16.99
2. 2005 Clos St. Michel - $29.99
3. 2005 Dom Presidente - $24.99
4. 2005 Chante Cigale - 24.99
5. 2005 Clos St. Michel Reserve - $39.99

Cheeses:

1. Parrano - $9.99
2. Epoisse - $17.98

Sorry, this has taken so long to get the wine and cheese information out from Tuesday’s class. I never got home until after 11:00 pm and have been out the last two nights after work until late.

Here is the list of great wines presented by our dear friend and all around nice guy Jeff Bryant.

1. Gazela Vinho Verde - $5.99 - It’s light, fruity, refreshing, great for a graden party and you can’t argue with the price.
2. 2004 - Montebuena Rioja - $8.99 - Medium red finishes silky and very easy to drink, with no rough edges. A great bargain in Rioja.
3. 1998 - Montecillo Rioja Gran Reserva - $19.99 - Mature fruit aromas, complex and elegant, with notes of dark fruit, and full-bodied.
4. 2004 - Quinta Do Vae Meao Meandro - $24.99 - This wine is big and young still needs sometime to age.  Someone at the table even said it reminded them of beef jerky.
5. 1997 - Osborne vintagePort - $29.99 - Great port for the money and I’m not sure if you could lay this down until your really old, but a good number of years would be great. 

The two cheese that we had were:

1. English Stilton Blue Cheese - $12.99
2. Manchego - $12.99 -  sheep’s milk cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain.

 All the wine came from our good friend Mike Fraiser at Total Wine and More. The cheese and bread both came from Calvert Woodley’s.

Tuesday, September 18! The return of Two Blondes, A Brunette and Five Reds presented by Lori Draheim, Carol Rentz and Jill LaPanna. Our theme for this tasting is Big Bodacious Blends! These are some tasty juice!

The wines we will feature are red blends made up of three or more grape varietals. We will start the tasting with a gold medal winning Bordeaux style red from Dry Creek Valley, next will be a gorgeous Australian MSG with a 90 point rating, then on to an easy-sipping Cal-Italian blend from Sonoma, from there we will have a Bordeaux blend with classic Napa flavors and texture at a great price, and finally, a big nicely proportioned red said to be spicy with a long finish from THE hot brand from Australia right now. You won’t want to miss this variety of red blends that are additionally great values!

1. 2004 Forchini - Beauseirra (Sonoma) - $12.99 - Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carigane
2. 2005 Rutherglen Estate - The Reunion (Australia) - $14.99 - Mourvedre, Shiraz, Grenache
3. 2004 Ferrari-Carao-Siena (Sonoma) - $21.99 - Sangiovese, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon
4. 2003 Paoleti - Piccolo Cru (Napa) - $17.99 - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc
5. 2006 Molly Dooker - The Two Left Feet (Australia) - $19.99 - Shiraz, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon

The two cheese that we had were:

1. Provolone Picante - $11.99 - Provolone originally comes from the south of Italy but is nowadays produced in several regions of North Italy.
2. Fromage d’ Affinois- $12.99 - a creamy French cheese that is silky and smooth.

The wines came from multiple locations listed below:

1. Bell’s Wine and Spirit (DC)
2. Total wine and More (multiple locaions)
3. Total wine and More (multiple locaions)
4. Out of Site (VA)
5. Pearsons (DC)

The cheese and bread both came from Calvert Woodley’s.