Tom and Melody's wine blog » French wines

Le Champ des Etoiles Pinot Noir

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 00:34:05 +0000

We at having this French Pinot Noir tonight with chicken and dumplings. I made this from scratch but started on the weekend cooking the chicken and then letting the broth cool over night so that I could take off the cooled layer of fat on the top. Very savory!

The wine is very light-bodied with subtle fruit. Although Pinot Noir is not my favorite type of wine, this was a good choice for our chicken and dumplings dinner.

Chateau Samion Montagne Saint Emilion (2009)

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:37:41 +0000

We had a very nice weekend. The weather is beautiful! Sunny and mild in January! I went to our Women’s Basketball game today and we won handily. We are tough.

I had spinach and fresh mushrooms to use (from food co-op) so I made a lasagna for dinner tonight. Very filling and tasty. Way too many leftovers, but I will be glad later in the week when I don’t have to cook.

I opened this wine tonight for no good reason except it caught my eye. It’s very dry and austere and was a good choice for this spicy and robust lasagna. It provides a nice paradoxical counterpoint to the tasty dinner. This will be great for sipping after the meal is over. Yummy. Time to watch Tim Tebow against the Steelers.

Domaine du Vallon Cotes du Rhone Villages (2010)

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 01:19:59 +0000

It is Wednesday night so we are celebrating midweek! It doesn’t take much to initiate a celebration in our house. I had a short night and a long day so I was eager for a comforting meal and a good wine. We had both. For comfort food, I made a skillet chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, steamed spinach and salad. Tom chose this French wine for our meal. Dark chocolate is the predominant word on this one. Dark. Chocolate. Pretty much sums it up. I really like it and it got better as it breathed.

Grande Reserve de Gassac (2009)

Tue, 05 Apr 2011 23:40:32 +0000

A dreary day in Michigan with gray skies and rain. . .and a Monday. Ucky. I felt low on energy all day. But, the work day ended and now we are home together and everything is AOK. I had nothing planned for dinner tonight but threw together a few stray ingredients: a lone chicken breast from the freezer, a pint of fresh pea pods from the vegetable co-op, a bunch of fresh asparagus, a fresh tomato from the co-op, some basil and freshly grated parmesan cheese. I did a quick stir fry of the chicken and vegetables and tossed with thin spaghetti, olive oil and parmesan cheese and it was delicious. The trick was not to overcook the pea pods. Their fresh crunch added just the right touch.

We had this colorful meal with this French Grande Reserve de Gassac 2009, which is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. Smooth and easy-to-drink with a sharply-pungent finish. This would go very well with a chocolate brownie, which is waiting for us if we choose to indulge.

Grand Réserve de Gassac Languedoc 2009

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 13:14:58 +0000

We had this Grand Réserve de Gassac Languedoc 2009 (a wine club wine) with steak (from our farmer) and pasta.

It was tasty and meaty (as Languedoc wine is supposed to be). A blend (of Cab, Merlot, and Syrah), but a big blend.

A really nice wine and a great meal.

Melody has to work late on March 17, so we made March 16 our St. Patrick’s Day night.

Domaine La Roquete Chateauneuf du Pape

Mon, 24 Jan 2011 01:13:58 +0000

We had this wine several evenings ago. It was delicious: dry, tannic, dark fruity. No negatives; a step up from our usual fare.

(Interestingly, the history of Chateauneuf du Pape is entwined with the Popes.)

A lot going on right now: my mother is moving up to live in our town this week. Just a little moving hassle, and then it will be smooth sailing. Melody is traveling for work this week. I’m traveling for work next week.

(It kind of reminds me of that old movie, “If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium.”)

Chateau Mont-Redon Cotes du Rhone (2007)

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 19:43:34 +0000

I welcomed Tom home tonight from his trip to West Palm Beach to visit his mother. He came home just in time for cocktails and the smell of dinner in the oven. We had a great cocktail hour catching up on all the news.

We had this French Chateau Mont-Redon Cotes du Rhone 2007 with our roasted, stuffed chicken, and baked squash. For dessert I made an apple crisp. Dinner was delicious and so was the wine. The color in the glass is brilliant; the nose a fragrant and clove-ish. The taste is somewhat old-world — complex with some fruit flavors and structured tannins. This finish is spicy and satisfying. Tom bought this wine for $14 at our local grocery store. Very good; very French!

Mouton Cadet Bordeaux (2007)

Sun, 07 Nov 2010 16:57:45 +0000

Tom bought this Mouton Cadet Bordeaux 2007 today while I was out running around Saturday errands. This was a beautiful November day in Michigan. Sunny. Breezy. Crisp. I love it! I have to admit that I love these 50- degree days even more than the 80-degree days. It is so beautiful.

So I made a pot roast today, which I started at about 3:30 in the afternoon. I started with a roast from the local grass-fed cow (I bought an 1/8th of it). I dredged the roast in flour and cracked pepper and then browned it in hot butter. Once it was brown on all sides, I put it in a pot and covered it with a mixture of cream of mushroom soup mixed with white wine. I covered and baked at 325 for 3 1/2 hours until it was fork tender. We had this with a roasted sweet potato and fresh green beans from my food co op.

This Bordeaux was the perfect choice. A medium bodied wine with a roundness in the mouth. I am having a difficult time describing the flavor. What is notable to me is the feel of this wine in the mouth. The taste is old world. . .not grapey. . .a touch of tobacco with significant tannins.

We like this very much. A definite buy again for us!

Chateau La Rose Saint Bonnet Medoc (2009)

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 11:13:30 +0000

This Chateau La Rose Saint Bonnet Medoc 2009 is a luscious French red wine.

Although it probably is more of a steak wine, we had it with our dinner of roast chicken.

In hindsight it was probably too big of wine to have with chicken, but nonetheless i enjoyed it. Lots of ripe berries, oak and spice with a touch of tobacco on the finish.

For dinner, we had a roast chicken, cole slaw (if anyone wants my super-delicious, easy recipe, let me know; it’s tangy, crunchy and delicious), and angel hair pasta tossed with olive oil.

LeGrand Pinot Noir (2008)

Sun, 20 Jun 2010 23:50:55 +0000

Our neighbors, Brad & Michelle, brought us this wine a couple weeks ago when we had a cookout in our back yard. I chose it tonight to go with our dinner of grilled salmon. (Thank you to Jim at Merry Hill Farm, who shared with me his recipe.)

This wine is delicious and it is the perfect choice for our fish dinner. This French Pinot has a black sheep on the label because it claims it doesn’t follow the herd. Obviously not! I find this to be a softer and more succulent Pinot than I am accustomed to with a nose of violets and cherries. The tannins are smooth and velvety with a finish of fruit and spice.

A nice way to end a beautiful summer day. I ran 10 miles and Tom worked on installing a storm/screen door. I think he had the harder job, today!