Rosati Barbaresco (2004)

June 30, 2009 — Tom & Melody

Rosati Barbaresco 2004I just finished the bottle of this Italian Rosati Barbaresco wine. (I blogged about it yesterday if you would like to read my tasting notes.)

What I want to blog about tonight is my wonderful group of students who finished their last class in their Master of Educational Leadership program tonight. I am so proud of them. They are dedicated educators and have spent the last two years of their lives taking night classes and conducting a research study. This class was their last class where they (all but three — who are still working feverishly!)  handed in their final research report (and did an oral presentation on their findings). Congratulations to Linka, Tammy, Corrie, Richard, Yolanda, Denelle, Christian, Kristie, Mary & Eric!

Before class, I had put together a pot roast (I browned a chuck roast in hot oil, then added fresh garlic cloves, chopped onions, red wine and chicken broth and then covered it and put it in the oven at 225-degrees). By the time I came home from class, the meat was fork tender. I added potatoes and carrots to the roast while we had our cocktail and read the paper. By the time we were done reading the paper, everything was tender and delicious.

Cheers to the new Masters! Clink!

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Rosati Barbaresco (2004)

June 29, 2009 — Tom & Melody

Rosati Barbaresco 2004It is a Monday evening and Tom opened this wine to celebrate! Celebrate what (you may ask)? Well, we’re celebrating the fact that Tom finally figured out why our newly-installed (by him) ceiling fan was making noise. We were getting to the point where we were saying “This fan is really nice. We just can’t use it at night because it keeps us awake.” It clicked and rattled. But, he thinks he has it fixed, now. So, cheers to a quiet ceiling fan!

I purchased this wine because it was “discontinued” and on sale. The regular price for this wine is $40 but it was on sale for $19. So, I wanted to see what a $40 bottle of wine tasted like. Here are my tasting notes:

The color is cherry red (not inky black like many of the wines that I like). The nose is floral and sweet. On the palate, the wine has a velvety texture with not a lot of body (typical old-world Italian, in my opinion). The taste is woody with magnificent tannins. This is a delicious wine and I like it very much. I am glad I was able to try it; I wouldn’t have purchased it at its regular price of $40.

The weather has cooled off a bit since our latest heat wave, so I am making spaghetti for dinner. This wine will complement our dinner perfectly. Can’t wait to fall asleep under our quiet fan. . .

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Il Papavero

June 13, 2009 — Tom & Melody

We have had this Italian red table wine, Il Papavero, before and really enjoyed it. This is delightful; a juicy cherry-flavored  quaff; dark and spicy with ripe fruit and chocolate.

For dinner tonight, I am making baked, spicy chicken, steamed brown rice and vegetables. I also baked some brownies with chopped walnuts. Tom was craving my brownies. . .

We both had busy weeks. Tom was in Montreal on business and I was up north to see my folks and to watch our son, Tommy, play his bass guitar in The Ben Daniels Band at “The Loading Dock” in Traverse City. My 77-year-old mother came with me to the bar; the band started playing at 11:00 p.m. and my mom was as lively as can be. What fun!

I am missing our youngest son, Tony. Hurry home, Tones!

Posted in Blends, Italian wines, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Nero d'Avola, Over $10, Sangiovese. Tags: , , , . Leave a Comment »

Bella Sera Chianti (2006)

May 28, 2009 — Tom & Melody

I bought this Italian Bella Sera Chianti at our local grocery store for about $9. I chose this wine tonight to go with our spaghetti dinner. I started the sauce in the afternoon and it has been simmering in my big old cast iron skillet for hours. (There is something about spaghetti sauce in a cast-iron skillet; I am convinced it tastes better that way.) This was my third vacation day and I am loving my time off. I suppose many people would wish for some entertainment for their vacation, however, I just like being home and doing simple things. I really enjoy it.

This wine starts with a spicy nose. The taste is fruity (raspberries) and dry; to me, this is a very typical Italian table wine.  It is light bodied with medium tannins. I would definitely purchase this again and I would save it for our spaghetti nights!

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Bolla Bardolino (2007)

May 15, 2009 — Tom & Melody

Ahh, a Friday night and I am home from a 5-day trip to Atlanta for a conference. Everything is fresh and green at home on this mid-May evening in Michigan. The first thing I did when I got home (after kissing my husband and hugging my dog) was to see how my garden was doing. I have little green onions that are about 2 inches tall and I have lettuce that is ready to be harvested!

I chose this Italian Bolla Bardolino tonight for our laid-back evening. I set the table and was going to prepare  dinner, but Tom insisted that I should not cook on my first night at home (eat your heart out ladies). So, we will order a pizza and it so happens that this wine is the best choice from those available. (Our supply is getting sparse; we need to bring up bottles from the basement AND we need to purchase more.) This Italian red wine is  medium-bodied with intense flavors. The nose is robust with cherries and vanilla.  It is crisp, clean and dry — fairly acidic with firm tannins.

I like this wine and would defintely purchase it again. It is wonderful to be home.

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Crete Rosse Chianti (2007)

April 20, 2009 — Tom & Melody

It is a rainy, cold April Monday night but we are cozy and happy inside. We have music on the Bose and our son, Tommy, and his girlfriend Amanda are out in the kitchen making a salad to go with our spaghetti dinner. Wow, it is nice to have them making the salad; it gives me time to blog!

The last time we had this wine, I found it to be. . .well, thin. Thin in taste and in the overall body and aroma. I don’t feel that way tonight. This is a light-bodied wine  but the taste is fresh and spicy. I like this wine very much!

Tommy & Amanda just showed me the big and beautiful salad they made (romaine lettuce with dried cherries, walnuts, cucumbers, tomatoes, avocados and bleu cheese) so it is time for me to start the water boiling to finish off the spaghetti dinner.

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Salice Salentino (2005)

April 19, 2009 — Tom & Melody

It is Sunday evening and we are relaxing on this cool and rainy evening. We finished reading the Sunday paper because we had to cut short our paper reading this morning. I have a fresh chicken in the oven. I stuffed it was chopped celery because I read an article that suggested that this makes the chicken very juicy. The house smells quite fragrant so I think this will be tasty.

We had our cooking group gathering (for brunch) today. I brought “chocolate rasberry clafouti” which is a baked dessert with raspberries, milk, butter, cocoa, some flour and sugar. . .a custard like dessert with fruit.

This wine is not your usual Italian, austere red wine. The wine has a creamy texture. The taste is predominantly fruit and vanilla.  I think this wine will benefit from breathing although it is perfectly drinkable right after opening.

I am serving our roast chicken tonight with mashed potatoes, a fresh salad, and steamed broccoli.

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Torciano Crete Rosse Chianti (2007)

March 22, 2009 — Tom & Melody

I chose this Italian Torciano Crete Rosse Chianti for our Sunday night supper. I am enjoying being home after a 2-day trip to Indiana, with my school’s  Gymnastics team (it was our conference championship meet). I didn’t get home until very late and was unable to  unwind enough to sleep  — so, a short night for me. Then, up and out the door for my long run (11 miles). So, dinner tonight is simple: A batch of bean soup and a loaf of whole wheat bread. The soup is simmering and the bread is baking. . .and Tom and I are watching some of the basketball games (just watched Michigan State beat University of Southern California and Louisville beat Siena.)

So, back to the wine. This is a light wine. The nose is barely discernable. Perhaps it needs to open for awhile longer. The taste is understated and thin. This would be a great wine for new red-wine drinkers because it has a very mild taste. I’ll bet, though, that tomorrow the wine will have more character than it does tonight.

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Fortium Salice Salentino (2005)

February 14, 2009 — Tom & Melody

fortium-salice-salentino-2005It is a Saturday night and we are having a relaxing evening together. I chose this Italian red wine, Fortium Salice Salentino 2005, to accompany our dinner tonight. This is a surprise! We are accustomed to Italian red wines to being rather austere and musty. But this is everything but! The wine is made from grapes by the name of Negro Amaro (black bitter), Malvaisa Nera di Brindisi, and Malvasia Nera di Lecce. The Negro Amaro is responsible for producing one of the most popular, low-priced Italian table wines in the United States (thanks, Karen MacNeil, for this information). The wine is surprisingly fruity; it was almost off-putting to me at first taste, but with some air I warmed up to the taste (although I prefer a wine that is a bit drier and less fruity than this one). This is very fruity with lots of vanilla and spice. The texture is rather creamy. If you like Australian red wines, you will like this one.

Earlier today I went out for a run but discovered the roads were so slippery from a snowfall of about 5 inches. The snow plows had come through and the result was extremely slippery, sticky snow. The snow stuck to the bottom of my shoes, making ice skates . . .after 1 mile and several scary moments where I almost fell, I realized it was too treacherous. So I drove to the Wellness Center and made myself do 6.5 miles on the treadmill. Oh, misery! I do not like running on treadmills but I was due for 7.5 miles today. Somehow,  I played mind games and got it done.

For dinner tonight, I am making pork chops and small potatoes. Something I have recently discovered is that pork chops benefit from brining. So I brined these and am now cooking them in a hot cast-iron skillet with a bit of olive oil. These will be very brown and crunchy on the outside. I am also simmering small, yellow (organic) potatoes in chicken broth. I need to get up and make a vegetable . . . we’ll see how we like this dinner tonight. I’ll report back tomorrow!  Cheers!

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Merlot Veneto Allegro (2007)

October 9, 2008 — Tom & Melody

This Merlot Veneto Allegro 2007 from Italy is our choice for this Thursday evening. The nose is really nice: cloves and a touch of licorice. The taste, however, is, so far, nothing like the nose. I suspect this will change as it breathes. At this point in time, I would describe the taste as initally astringent with a thin texture and the essence of strawberries on the finish. This is not surprising from an Italian Merlot. In my opinion, Italian reds tend to be a bit austere. If one is accustomed to a fruity Australian Merlot, this would take some getting used to.

Tom chose this wine to go with our dinner of a casserole that I actually made last night — with brown rice, chicken broth, mushrooms, spices, and chicken. (I had intended to have it for dinner last night but it was taking too long to bake in the oven so I ended up serving leftovers last night and saving the casserole for dinner tonight.) I am going to make broccoli too.

Cheers. Tony, we miss you!

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