Kono 2011 Sauvignon blanc

Slightly sweet
Floral
Yes

Simone 2009 Chardonnay

$9.99 at liquor cabinet

Slightly buttery (more when cold)
Little citrus
Good with crab cakes
Probably

McGregor Vineyard, Finger Lakes

Ever since I started this blog, I've been looking forward to writing a post about the Finger Lakes. As hard as it is for me to remember labels and names with liquor store wine, it's that easy to remember names, locations, and varietals when I've actually visited the winery and drank the wine right there. The Finger Lakes is one of our favorite places: we visited there a few years ago on a whim and fell in love with it. When we got engaged, we both immediately agreed that it was the place we wanted to get married. Planning the wedding was nothing but fun, getting to go up there and drink delicious wine all weekend, and only occasionally pausing to meet with a caterer or DJ.

I could go on, but I still need to talk about our all-time favorite winery, and the amazing wine we had recently. McGregor is a pretty out-of-the-way winery off of Keuka lake. The whole tasting experience here is head and shoulders above the other wineries. You sit in their wood-cabin-y tasting room at a giant picnic table and enjoy a cheese and chocolate plate while super-friendly employees bring you wines of your choice and actually hang out to chat about wine, food, whatever. They never look at you like an idiot when you ask a stupid wine question, they never make you feel rushed, and they make the whole tasting experience so pleasurable that you just want to hang out there all day. And the wine, OH the wine. As much as we love the Finger Lakes, they are not known for their reds. But I have sweet dreams about the McGregor reds for days. Most of their best wines are far from cheap, but every last one is well worth the price.

A few weeks ago we enjoyed McGregor's 2007 Rob Roy Red with a Turkish lamb platter at a local BYO restaurant, Zeina. The wine is amazing. A smoky, full-bodied, dry red that went perfectly with the rich, flavorful meat. I could tell you I detected hints of cherry or chocolate or something, but can never taste any of that stuff. It's just a fantastic wine.

The tragedy here is that McGregor wines (and most Finger Lakes wines in general) are not distributed to stores in NJ, and due to some stupid New Jersey law they cannot ship us wine if we order it. So, I realize that this post will be useless to many people as a wine recommendation, but instead, think of it as a travel recommendation. I am evangelical about the Finger Lakes. They are easily accessible, inexpensive, and just such an amazing place to visit, not just for wine but just for plain old natural beauty. And if you do go, take time to visit McGregor. It's well worth the trip.

Lindemans 2009 Bin 70 Chardonnay Riesling

This was another $10-$15 impulse buy. I like both of these varietals (when they're good) but I've never had them in a blend that I can recall, so I figured I'd give it a try. It wasn't a terrible wine, but I was hard-pressed to find any of the riesling in this blend. When I actually checked the percentage of each varietal (guess I should have done that before buying it) I found that it's overwhelmingly chardonnay, which is exactly what it tastes like. It's too oaky and too sweet for my taste, so while we did manage to finish the bottle, I don't think we'll be buying it again.

Wild Rock 2008 Pinot Noir

I guess bad memories are stronger than good ones, because even though I drank this one a while ago, I still remember exactly what I thought of it. Or it could be that I didn't like it, so I only drank one glass, so my memory is unclouded... you be the judge.

For a Pinot, this wine was just plain too sweet. The flavors themselves weren't unpleasant, but sweet and Pinot just don't mix. Not liking your wine is sad enough by itself, but it's a double shame because the food we had with it would have gone beautifully with a more traditionally dry pinot. We had pasta with tomatoes, spinach, and a gorgonzola cream sauce, more or less based on this recipe. If you like a sweeter wine this one might be good for you, but with so much else to drink out there, I wouldn't go for this wine again.

Alamos 2009 Malbec

Where the heck have I been? I have no idea, and no good excuse except that I tend to drink beer a lot more than wine in the summertime. But I'm back, and I'm still on my Malbec kick, though it's waning a touch.

This Argentinean Malbec was a blind Costco purchase by Eric, and all he can tell me is that it was probably around $15. In turn, I guess I'm living up to my forgetfulness, because all I can tell you is this wine gets a thumbs up. What—specifically—did it taste like? Not a clue... What did we pair it with? Couldn't tell you... Would I buy it again? YES!

Getting a little philosophical, I think this whole wine blogging thing is a learning process. I started this in the first place because I couldn't even remember the varietal I was drinking, let alone the name or year. I'm making progress, but I do need to actually write down the specifics if I want to remember anything more than whether I loved it or hated it. I promise to at least attempt to do better next time. In the meantime, I guess I just need to buy this wine again so that I can refresh my memory!

Ménage à Trois, 2007, California

Grabbed this wine on the way to a BYO dinner, and in a huge hurry. It's got a pretty distinctive name, so I remembered having had it before, but I didn't really recall anything specific about it.

Turns out it's on the sweet side, with a pretty big, tannin-y taste. It's too sweet for me, so I probably wouldn't go for this one again. But aside from the sweetness, this is a good-tasting wine, so if you're into sweet red wines you'd probably like this one. In the future, though, no more Ménage à Trois for me (tee hee, maybe I will buy it again just for the name :-)