Over the holiday season we became the proud owners of an aroma wine tasting kit and with this first wine club of the year we totally geeked out with it. We found it quite surprising that scents which are quiet familiar through all walks of life, i.e. wine, food, candy, nature… are surprising and sometimes unexpected, like the realization that the aroma of gooseberry is in so many nostalgic candy flavors. Or an aroma like tree moss seems to be commonly referred to as notes of forest floor and wet dirt (less unexpected but eye opening nevertheless). So, this month we flared our nostrils and filled our wine glasses with an Austrian field blend, a wiener dog red, and a lunatic pig. A new year and a new opportunity to embark on this sensual journey with you.
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Cheers,
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P. & E. Mullins
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2021 Neumeister Gemischter Satz
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Styria, Austria
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Coming from the Southeast corner of Vulkanland Steiermark, close to where Austria, Slovenia and Hungary meet, this is a field blend of 35+ year old vines, predominately Gelber Muskateller, Welschriesling, Müller-Thurgau, and Scheurebe. The varietals are all co-fermented and aged in stainless steel. What is created is a delightfully aromatic wine that is beautiful to pair alongside a flavorful dish like curry or something spicy with big bold flavors. In the glass is it a pale clear sunlight tone. It was quite a way to start with our aroma kit, nothing came with expectations, there were no guidelines for these obscure old-world varietals. A real Lewis and Clark expedition with vials of essential oils. What we discovered was there was citrus, floral, and mineral notes on the nose. We picked up lime, orange peel, hawthorn, and kerosene. The aromas opened flavors of cherry and a little peach on the finish of the palate. A lovely acidity lingered throughout. This fun interesting white takes you somewhere new and unexpected.
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2021 Bonhomme TelQuel
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Loire, France
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Even though this wine is from the Loire, you won’t find it on the label, as we’ve got another renegade winemaker on our hands. In this release, Pierre-Olivier Bonhomme uses the classic Gamay varietal to make this Vin de France red, but also folds in some Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Grenache which doesn’t allow for the use of the Appellation on the bottle. That hasn’t slowed down the buzz on this wine, every vintage released is anticipated like the pup on the label wagging his tail. Pierre-Olivier is almost like a chef of winemaking, creating his own dish in a bottle. In the glass this is a soft magenta with mauve tones throughout. Some of the aromas we discovered were quite unexpected, a hint of cinnamon and banana on the back end, dried violet and rose and a bit of iodine, rust. The palate is held together with a savory note of bay leaf and silky and balanced with acidity. There are gentle dry tannins reminiscent of black tea on the long finish. Put a slight chill on it before serving and let it breath.
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2020 Le Couchon Lunatique Rouge
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Languedoc, France
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From a biodynamic farm in Southern France comes this classically enjoyable easy red wine. Perfect for a cozy evening at home with a movie on the tube and a fire in the fireplace. The Lanye-Barrac farm has created a place where everything works together and for each other, for example, the animals that are on the farm graze between the vines, pre-prune the vines and fertilize the vineyards. All the harvesting is done by hand, fermentation with indigenous yeasts and bottled unfined and unfiltered so you will see this blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan is naturally cloudy. An opaque purply red in the glass. Aromas of chocolate and plum meet leather. Although rustic in creation, this wine is bright and vibrant on the palate with a medium body and notes of strawberries and stewed fruit on the finish.
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