Archive for February, 2009
EOS Petite Syrah 2005 - Paso Robles, CA - A Wino Review
Wednesday, February 25th, 2009 | Wine Tasting Notes | 2 Comments
Last night I had a chance to sip on a wonderful little petite syrah out of California Central Coast - 2005 EOS Petite Syrah - from Paso Robles. (Some of you who know me understand my love of that region.) “Don’t let the label fool you”, as my good friend pointed out….. “It may look like another cheesy, cheap wine label, but the flavor inside holds magic”. (Ok, they didn’t actually use the word magic, but it was pretty darn wonderful.)
The color is beautiful, a really bright garnet purple color. The aroma is fantastically spicy with lots of jammy fruit - raspberries, blackberries, boysenberry. Black pepper spice is obvious in the background, but not overwhelming. There is also a subtle coffee aroma that you have to look for, but really seems to be part of the ‘glue’ holding a lot of the flavors together. Lends itself to a long relaxed finish. Texture is really smooth and silky. The nose kind of reminded me of sticking my nose into the oven when a blueberry pie was baking….just all that great spicy fruit enveloping my nostrils. Now… what to eat with this?
Food pairing suggestions:
- Paired phenomenally well with some nicely aged cheese. Try a Roaring 40’s Bleu cheese.
- Some braised short ribs in a sweet balsamic fig glaze.
- Pan seared Long Island Duck or a Roasted Quail stuffed with dried fruits.
- Some italian meatballs went great with this as well.
- Spicy Asian BBQ comes to mind.
Other wines you may enjoy if you can’t find the EOS:
- 2005 Stag’s Leap Petite Syrah
- Any Walla Walla, Washington Syrahs
- 2005 McMannis Petit Syrah (suggested by my lovely gal pal, Amanda)
- BR Cohn SyrCab (Syrah Cabernet blend) if you can find it. They have it at the Wine Knot in Southport, CT.
Cline 2005 Los Carneros Syrah - Syrah/Shiraz Red Wine
2 purple thumbs UP!
One last thing I love about EOS winery - they are the first large winery in the Paso Robles area to be completely Solar Powered! How great is that??
Cheers!
Upcoming Wine Tasting Dinners / Events - Fairfield, CT
Thursday, February 19th, 2009 | Restaurant Reviews, wine | No Comments
There seems to be a slew of upcoming wine events in the Fairfield / New Haven CT wine bars and restaurants, so here are a few key dates to mark in those wino calendars! I’m sure you’ll catch me at a few of them myself.
Strada 18
Strada 18 will be hosting a Belle Pente Vineyards wine dinner that includes a 7-Course tasting menu.
- Includes 3 whites (Riesling, Pinot Gris, Chardonney)
- 4 Reds (ALL Pinot noir)
- $115/pp, tax and gratuity NOT included
- DATE: March 11th, 2009, 7PM
Belle Pente Vineyards is from Oregon, specifically they Yamhill-Carlton district of Willamette Valley, also one of my MOST favorite regions from which I highly recommend picking up a Pinot Noir. These are Burgundy-style Pinots with such amazing balance and flavor that they are world-renown.
I realize this one is a bit pricey, but it’ll be well worth it! This is NOT to be missed!!
Location:
122 Washington St.
South Norwalk, CT 06854
203.853.4546
Email:steven@strada18.com
Website: http://www.strada18.com/index.htm
55 Wine Bar & Restaurant
Location:
55 Miller Street
Fairfield CT 06824
203.256.0099
info@55winebar.com
Website: http://www.55winebar.com/home.php
Barcelona Wine Bar - South Norwalk
FAT TUESDAY!
Barcelona is throwing a Carnivale! party on Tuesday, Febuary 24th at 7PM.
$45/pp plus tax & gratuity. Payment is due upon arrival. Wine food and entertainment are included in the price. Additional drinks will be available at the bar for an additional charge.
Call for reservations.
Location:
63-65 N. Main St.
S. Norwalk, CT 06854
Telephone: 203-899-0088
gretchen@barcelonawinebar.com
Website: http://barcelonawinebar.com/sono.htm
Other Wine Events:
Bin 100 Restaurant - Wednesday, March 11th - Charles Krug Wine Dinner- Call for Details
Bin 100 Restaurant
100 Lansdale Avenue
Milford, CT 06460
203.882.1400
Cava Wine Bar - Tuesday, February 24th, 6:30PM - Spanish Wine Tasting Dinner- Click for menu
2 Forest Street
New Canaan CT 06840
203.966.6946
info@cavawinebar.com
Bistro Basque - Tuesday, March 2nd, 7:00PM - Basque Regional Wine Tasting Dinner - Call for details.
T. 203-878-2092
Meigas - South Norwalk - Wednesday, March 4th, 7:00PM -Meet the Winemakers Dinner / Flamenco Dancing.
Click for Details / Tasting Menu
10 Wall Street
Norwalk, CT 06850
Tel: 203-866-8800
Fax: 203-899-0576
Email:
manager@meigasrestaurant.com
For you BEER lovers:
The Gingerman, South Norwalk - Monday, February 23rd - B. United International importers - Call for time.
$75/pp includes 5 course dinner with beer pairing.
99 Washington Street
South Norwalk
Connecticut 06855
Phone: 203-354-0163
Fax: 203:642-3382
The Economic Stimulus of Wine 6-Pack, $30 Off MyWinesDirect.com
Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 | MyWinesDirect.com, Wine.Woot | 1 Comment
Looks like even resident wine lovers are getting into the new ‘talk’ of the town……
My Wines Direct has a great deal going on for President’s Week:
Economic Stimulus Pack
6 Wines (3 Red, 3 White) for only $74.95 and shipping is FREE! This set is normally $105, but it’s on sale for the week, so get it while it’s hot!
Included:
- A staff favorite California Zinfandel, which is $24.99 (along with the other 5 bottles)
- A tasting party kit
- Free Shipping
MyWinesDirect.com offers a few different options for online wine purchases. They have a selection of great wine sets to choose from. Whether you’re new to the wine world, or a practicing taster, there’s something for everyone. You will have access to lots of smaller wineries that you wouldn’t find elsewhere online since some of the vineyards only product small amounts for distribution.
The one ‘rule’ they have is that they only ship in packages of 6 Bottles at a time. That way, shipping is FREE for you and cheap for them. It’s a good deal if you ask me. And if you place and order, you will receive special offers for future orders and from the wineries they ship from.
They are also affiliated with Wine.woot, so immediately I love them!
Some of the wine packs they offer:
Winter Selections
Our Sponsors
Categories
- Cooking
- Favorite Wine Destinations
- Food Pairings
- Hopkins
- MyWinesDirect.com
- new zealand wines
- Priorat
- Restaurant Reviews
- Rioja
- Spain
- Tannat
- Tasting Room Stories
- Uncategorized
- Uruguay wines
- vineyard
- wine
- Wine Access
- wine educator
- wine events
- Wine Stories
- Wine Tasting Notes
- wine.com
- Wine.Woot
- WineExpress.com