Wine and Cheese Pairing

 For this pairing blog, my friend and I wanted to find pairings for our favorite cheeses, including white cheddar, gouda, and brie. We tried each of the wines with all of the cheeses -- and found one winner. 

 Wines from left to right: Vendange Cabernet Sauvignon, Liberty Creek Pinot Grigio, Liberty Creek Moscato

                           Cheese from left to right: White cheddar, Gouda, Brie

The first pairing was Brie and Liberty Creek Moscato. On its own, the Moscato was delicious. It was very fruity, with notes of pear/peach and citrus. It was very refreshing and sweet, but not too sweet. For being so cheap, it was very good. When we tried it together, we felt it really brought out the deeper flavors of the cheese and the sweetness of the wine. When we tried this wine with the cheddar, it made the wine much sharper and less sweet, but it was a decent pairing. We think that the saltiness of this cheese made the wine more intense. When we tried it with gouda, we mainly felt that it overpowered the cheese (however, we think our gouda may have been sitting in the fridge too long-- it didn't taste great with any of the wines). 

 Liberty Creek Moscato

Our next pairing was Gouda and Vendange Cabernet Sauvignon. On its own, the Cab was smooth and had fruity and woody notes, including smoky and cherry flavors. This pairing was bad. We felt like we could not taste the flavors of the cheese at all, and it made the wine taste very bitter. What made us sure of this was the other cheeses. We tried it with the cheddar, and it was amazing. It was very, very smooth and took away the acidity of the wine. It brought out the deeper flavors of the cheese and made it less salty (the cheddar was delicious, but we felt it was much saltier tasting than the others). This wine did not pair well with the brie. They both had strong flavors and brought out the worst of each. It made the cheese taste fattier, overpowered the wine flavors, and the wine flat out made the cheese taste bad. 

 Vendange Cabernet Sauvignon

Our third and final pairing was white cheddar and Liberty Creek Pinot Grigio. On its own, the Pinot Grigio was very light-bodied with strong notes of citrus and apple. It was also a bit acidic. With the cheddar, we felt it paired well with the saltiness of the cheese. Neither overpowered the flavors of the other, and the wine brought out the deeper flavors of the cheese. We also felt that the cheese made the wine more refreshing and brought out the fruitiness more. When we tried this with the gouda, it was terrible. It took away the fruitiness of the wine and made it taste bitter, and the wine overpowered the cheese to the point we could barely taste it. With the brie, it wasn't as bad, but it still wasn't a great pairing. We felt it maintained the fattiness of the cheese but that the flavors overpowered each other. 

 Liberty Creek Pinot Grigio

Overall, it was very fun seeing how these different cheeses and wines changed the flavors of each other. We found our overall winner to be the Cabernet Sauvignon with the white cheddar. They complimented each other perfectly, and it is definitely a pairing I would have again (and it wasn't even an original pairing!)

 Me with all the wines

Wine Dinner Blog

 For my first wine dinner blog, my friend and I decided to find a wine pairing for salmon bowls, a meal we eat often. Since we had to create a three-course meal, we decided to have dumplings for our appetizers, and because we couldn't find mochi at the grocery store, we settled on lemon pie... (not that good). 

Let's start with our appetizer. We got these delicious dumplings from the grocery store and paired them with a 2023 Josh Chardonnay. We first tasted the wine by itself, and it had fruity notes of citrus and pear/peach. It was overall very refreshing and also had subtle woody flavors like oak. The dumplings we had were pork and vegetable with a soy sauce-based dipping sauce. When we tried them together, we felt like the wine took down the saltiness of the soy sauce and brought out the sweeter flavors of the wine, making it more refreshing and less acidic, although it was pretty light to begin with. 

 2023 Josh Chardonnay

 Pork & Vegetable dumplings with the wine

For our main course, we had salmon bowls consisting of salmon, rice, cucumber, mango, crunchy onions, and spicy mayo. The wine we paired with this course was a 2024 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc. On its own, the wine had strong, fresh-grassy notes as well as citrus (lemon) and tropical fruits. We felt like the wine brought out the salmon flavor and paired well with the grassy flavors from the wine. Overall, it was a very fresh pairing and we felt that both the wine and meal complimented each other. 

 2024 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc

 Salmon bowls

For our dessert, we were hoping to stay on theme and try some mochi for dessert, but we couldn't find any and decided to try something different, a lemon pie. I have never had lemon pie before, so this was an interesting experiment. We decided to pair this with a Lamarca Prosecco (we could not find a vintage on the bottle). When we tried the Prosecco by itself, we felt it was very refreshing, with fruity notes of citrus as well as pear and strong flavors of apple. We felt that it brought out the lemon flavors very well. The pie was not very good on its own, but the citrus flavors from the Prosecco helped strengthen the weaker artificial lemon flavors from the pie. The Prosecco cut the sweetness of the pie and made it more refreshing. We also tried it with whipped cream as well and I felt that it made it sweeter but it started to overpower the Prosecco flavors. 

 Lamarca Prosecco

 Our very sad lemon pie

Overall, I think we definitely could have made this more cohesive, but we really wanted to surround it with our favorite dinner. I don't think that the Sauvignon Blanc was the absolute best pairing with our entree, but it was alright. The pairings for the appetizer and dessert were much better, and I would try them again (with a better pie; this was so bad). 

 Here is us enjoying our dinner and wine together

 Me with each of the wines

Wine Tasting: Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Red Blend

Name: Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Red Blend

Varietal: Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Merlot, Syrah, Petite Sirah

Region: California

Country: United States

Year: Not labeled on the bottle

Price: $11.99

Winemaker's notes found online: The red blend combines some of the finest attributes of petite sirah, zinfandel, and syrah with a touch of other complementary reds, resulting in a deliciously rich, full-bodied blend. The wine offers warm, toasty aromas and flavors, including jammy blackberry, vanilla, and baking spices. It’s full and rich with a long, flavorful finish. 

Wine Folly references: Based on information found online, Petite Sirah and Zinfandel are the primary grape varieties in this wine. Petite Sirah is loved for its deeply colored wines with rich black fruit flavors and bold tannins (Pg. 147). Zinfandel is described as a fruit-forward yet bold red that's loved for its jammy fruit and smoky, exotic spice notes (Pg. 189).

My review: I decided to try this wine to go out of my comfort zone. Since I wasn't going to be pairing this with any food, I wanted to try a red blend that could be enjoyable on its own, and I felt like this was exactly that! I didn't have very high expectations, but this wine surprised me. I felt like it was very rich, and the first thing I noticed was the spice. It was really nice; it smelled like a sweet spice, like clove and maybe a touch of vanilla. It was very similar to the description of Zinfandel in Wine Folly. As I tasted it, I noticed the fruitiness, which reminded me of a tart raspberry or blackberry. I went back to smell it again, and this time, I noticed a chocolate-like smell. I could definitely taste the rich black fruit flavors from the Petite Sirah, too. Overall, I really enjoyed this wine. It was price-friendly, not too overpowering for my taste, and the flavors were deep and rich. 

First Wine Tasting: 19 Crimes Snoop Dogg Cali Rosé

Name: 19 Crimes Snoop Dogg Cali Rosé

Varietal: Blend of 75% Zinfandel, 20% Grenache, 5% Pinot Noir

Region: California

Country: United States

Year: 2022

Price: $10.99

Review found online: One reviewer described it as "simple on the nose with just candied strawberry and perhaps a little raspberry." They also suggested that it sits somewhere off-dry. They mentioned how rosés of this nature are ideal for wine drinkers who are new to wine, so I'm glad I gravitated towards it.

Wine Folly references: This wine is primarily Zinfandel, which is described as a fruit-forward yet bold red, loved for its jammy fruit and smoky, exotic notes (Pg. 189). It is also 20% Grenache, which produces rich, flavorful red wines as well as deep-ruby tinted rosé (Pg. 117). Lastly, it is 5% Pinot Noir, the world's most popular light-bodied red, loved for its red fruit and spice flavors that are accentuated by a long, smooth, soft-tannin finish (Pg. 150).

My review: This wine was a perfect pick for my taste; I wish I had tried it sooner! I really enjoyed this wine, and I would purchase it again. The first flavors I picked up on were very fruity and tart, almost like a grapefruit with a bit of lemon. As I sipped it, I tasted more berry, particularly strawberry, but still pretty tart. I felt like this wine was a bit dry but still sweet, and less dry than other rosés I have tried before. I also had this wine by itself with no food pairings. Overall, I felt that it was a very refreshing wine that tastes great on its own.

Introduction

Hi! My name is Lilli. I turned 21 last July, and this past year, I have been trying out lots of different wines. I was so excited to finally get to go to a wine tasting at a winery with my family. Wine is by far my favorite alcoholic beverage, not only because it tastes great but also because of the culture around it. That experience at the winery with my family was so memorable because of the beautiful sights, the staff's expertise and appreciation of wine, and, most importantly, the time spent around the table talking, laughing, and enjoying each other's company. 

I also have some experience from working as a server because I had to learn the different types of wine we offered and be able to give recommendations that guests would enjoy. I had a lot of fun with this, and it always made me happy when a guest liked a wine that I suggested. 

Personally, I have yet to find a wine I did not enjoy, besides that one time I tried a port. My favorites include viognier, riesling, and rosé. I don't particularly enjoy dry red wines, but I really want to expand my horizons and try every wine I can. 

The first wine I ever drank was a Gallo Family Sweet Red Blend, and I loved it! It is a bit too sweet for my taste now, but it was a great introduction to trying wine. My roommates and I share wine together every week, we all love it. On weekend nights when we want to just stay home and be cozy, we'll pick out one or two bottles to try and spend the night drinking them while chatting, cooking, playing games, doing crafts, and listening to music. 

In this class, I hope to learn about different wine varieties and their flavor profiles, and especially the history of where they came from and how they were created! I also would love to learn more about pairings, and I'm looking forward to creating my future blog posts. Lastly, I hope to gain a deeper appreciation for wine from this class. Our first lecture videos showed me how fascinating wine is and I'm excited to learn more! :)

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