Chenin Blanc was this month. I have to say that I didn't think about this grape at all! I would see it and automatically skip over it. I lumped it in with jug wines and was sure I wasn't missing a thing....
I WAS WRONG - well, that sounds a little harsh - is mistaken any better?
If you are like me and have ignored Chenin Blanc - STOP! This is totally worth your time and attention and the price points are FABULOUS!
Let's start with some basic info on Chenin Blanc. For those of you who do not speak french, like me, "blanc" means white :0) This is a white wine from the Chenin Blanc grape. These are not blends. Chenin Blanc is primarily a French wine that comes from the Loire Valley. They are sold under their regional names (more on that later). California and South Africa also produce Chenin Blancs (commonly called Steen in South Africa), but these wines are considered to be far inferior and bland and not good examples of the grape.
This little white grape, when grown and handled in France, comes in 3 different styles. Savennieres (sah-venn-YAIR) is always dry. Vouvray (voo-VRAY) can be sec/dry; demi-sec/off-dry; or moelleux/sweet. This information is usually on the label (supposedly) but I never found it on the 2 bottles I bought. Coteaux du Layon (coh-TOE duh lay-OHN) is always sweet and Jay, the lovable wine guy at Wegman's said he had never even heard of it before - needless to say, we didn't try that kind.
So, here is the line up. We drank them from right to left. I will go through them in order and then I even took some really fun pictures of the bottles after using my latest find for wine!
Our first bottle is a Savennieres (remember always taste light to full in body but dry to sweet in taste). This is a Domaine des Baumard and cost $19.99 at Wegman's. I mentioned before that this wine is always dry. It was, but it was good. I could definitely see this wine on Thanksgiving with appetizers (you know, the spinach dip, cheese and crackers and such that everyone always puts out before you sit down to eat a really huge meal - cause you don't want to be hungry before a huge meal.).
Next up, is our first Vouvray. This is Clos le Vigneau and cost 14.99 at Wegman's. WOW! This is the bottle that made me realize I had really been missing out by not having Chenin Blanc all these years. This wine was so drinkable. Not too sweet, but not too dry - a beautiful balance with a nice, clean finish. This went well with everything except the andouille sausage (we had parmesan, camembert, 5 yr cheddar, spinach dip, apple pie muffins, and andouille sausage with this tasting). Everyone enjoyed this wine and darn it, they drank it all up! This wine is a keeper and I will not only ensure I always have some on hand, but I will also give this one as a host/ess bottle.
Second Vouvray and this is when we learned that not all Vouvray is the same - kind of an important lesson to learn. I looked for the sec, demi-sec, moelleux info on the bottle and didn't see it, but if I had to guess, this is a moelleux. This was totally different from the bottle before it! This was sweeter & darker. Definitely a fuller body, but after the balance of the Vouvray before it, it was almost too sweet. This bottle, a Domaine de Vaufuget Vouvray was 11.99 at Wegman's
We couldn't do a Chenin Blanc tasting without seeing why the ones outside of France are universally panned. This bottle was disgusting. I couldn't even tell it was the same grape as the 3 before it. I didn't drink it. There are those heroes in the wine club who will finish what is in their glass, just because. Not me! To quote a famous "food critic"..."If I don't like it; I don't swallow." (now, who can tell me where that line comes from - come on, impress me with your pop culture knowledge!). This bottle from South Africa cost 9.49 and I should go to Wegman's and demand I get $12 back for it cause it was that bad!
As always, we pop open other bottles that just happen to be laying around in the house. We had a really bad experience with the Jefferson 2010 Chardonnay Reserve when we did Virginia wines. BUT, I really like the bottles and we did like the Viognier we had tried, so when I came across this lovely gem at Poplar Forest this summer, I couldn't resist putting up the $30 for the bottle. WORTH EVERY CENT! This bottle rocked! If it weren't for the price point, I would keep this one on hand all the time. This was a great example of the Viognier grape - if you get the chance to try it, take it! (everyone at wine club loved it)
It was cold the night of our tasting and that always gets us drinking reds. This Campo Viejo Rioja is a reasonably priced and very reliable & drinkable red. This is a medium body wine with a nice fruity nose and no real tannins - just the way I like it :0) This bottle is about $8-9 depending upon the store you get it at.
Okay, let's recap and let me show you my new wine toy! I was "back to school" trolling through Target because I am addicted to office/school supplies and don't we always need notebooks, markers, pens, & paperclips?! Anyway, I found these WET dry erase markers - OMG - best thing EVER for marking wine glasses. I tested it out last month at the pot luck when we opened every extra bottle from 14 months of tastings. One of my GFs did a large monogram on her wine glass. Some people wrote their name on the glass. Some wrote on the base of the glass. Everyone had a really easy time telling whose glass was whose without having to remember what their "charm" was. The best part - a soapy wash cloth barely touching the glass was enough to remove the marker!!!! SCORE! This is my forever glass marking method - easy and straight forward cause by about the 3rd glass, not only do I not remember what my charm was, I don't really even care anymore :0P
So, here are the bottles with the summary of our tasting written on them!!!
"Great for Turkey Day"
"#1 of the night"
"Mom will like :0)"
"Bleh {-("
I hope you will give Chenin Blancs a try after our experience with them. If you do, let me know what you thought of the grape. Next month is Norton - the only truly American grape and my mom will be with us!
Until then,
Cheers,
Kitti
