Thursday, January 30, 2025

Tasting - Stella Rose Blueberry Wine

 

Name: Stella Rose Blueberry Wine

Variety: Red Wine, Semi-Sparkling

Country: Italy

Price: $10.99


Description: Stella Rosa Blueberry Semi-Sweet Red Wine is a proprietary blend of several Italian red grape varietals. The wine is then combined with the natural flavors of blueberry distillates and puree to create a delicious and refreshing experience. Serve chilled by-the-glass, pour over ice, or mix with your favorite spirit for an all-natural, fruit-forward cocktail.


Online Reviews: "I am a huge fan of the Stella Rosa brand. If I drink wine, that is the only brand I will drink. If you like wine but don't like the 'wine' aftertaste, you will love this brand. It is exceptional on the palate and aroma is divine. And it is very reasonably priced."

"This wine is filled with blueberry flavor, a smooth aroma, and is a great value for your money! ... This wine is extremely smooth with subtle hints of fresh blueberries. The sparkles add to the rich taste! This, by far, is my most favorite wine to have after a long work day!"


Wine Folly: This wine does not state what varietal it is, simply red wine, but I think it was similar to Moscato. Looking at page 14 where it discusses body, I would say this wine is a 3. It is red and it is also semi-sweet, but I found it leaning even sweeter, which both increase body. It is semi-sparkling which decreases the body a bit. Looking at page 16 where it discusses sweetness, this wine would be the highest sweetness which I could definitely taste. Looking at page 22 where it discusses alcohol content, this wine would be the lowest on the scale. It is a low content alcohol and I think that affects the flavor, making it less strong. 


My Review: Part of the reason I picked this wine was the blueberry flavor and the other part was that there weren't many bottles meaning (hopefully) it was popular. I enjoyed this wine as did multiple friends that I shared it with so my reasoning of it being popular was correct. Because of the low alcohol content, this wine tastes more like a juice than a wine (which some people online have debated if this should even be called a wine). I believe that if it is made from grapes, it is wine. 

I did not get strong blueberry notes from this wine. It was more of a mixed berry flavor with no one overwhelming berry. It was very smooth and very sweet. I did not eat anything with this wine. I think mixing this with something else would make a delicious cocktail! I will definitely try this wine again!

Here's me with the bottle!

Tasting - Vino Bianco

 

Name: Opici Vino Bianco

Variety: 20% Chardonnay, 10% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Trebbiano, 40% Verdiccio

Region: Adriatic Coast

Country: Italy

Price: $12.99


Description: The Adriatic region of Italy has long been known for producing structured and balanced white wines from the Native Verdicchio variety. Trebbiano adds further structure to the final blend, while Chardonnay contributes the delicate fruit aromas. Dry in style with a clean, crisp citrusy finish.

Packaged in a traditional ornamental fish bottle used for centuries in this region, it pays homage to the Marche's rich history. It is also a good indication of the ideal pairing. Serve with any and all seafood dishes. Best when young. 


Online Reviews: "Light, crisp and refreshing. A great summer wine."

"I bought it for the bottle but the wine was very good."


Wine Folly: On page 96-97, it lists the primary tasting notes of Chardonnay as apple, citrus, and pear, as well as other fruits. 

On page 165-166, it lists the primary tasting notes of Sauvignon Blanc as very similar with the same notes and other tropical fruits. 

On page 179, it lists the tasting notes of Trebbiano as apple and lemon. I found that all of these notes were present in this wine. 


My Review: Not gonna lie, the reason I picked up this bottle was solely the look of the bottle itself. It's shaped like a fish! Even though that was what drew my attention, I was excited to try this wine. I am not usually drawn to white wine as I do not like a dry wine, and this wine was pretty dry. Even though it was dry, it was very smooth. I mostly tasted notes of apple and lemon citrus. 

I did enjoy this wine with sharp white cheddar cheese which I noticed diluted the flavor of the wine. It did not make it bad, but it was maybe not the best pairing since it did not enhance the flavor. While I did not strongly dislike this wine, I do not think I would try this wine again. 

Here's me with the bottle!

Saturday, January 25, 2025

Tasting - Dutch Chocolate Wine

 

Name: ChocoVine Dutch Chocolate Wine

Variety: Chocolate Wine - Cabernet Sauvignon

Country: Holland, Netherlands

Price: $12.99


Description: ChocoVine subtly combines fine French Cabernet Sauvignon grapes with rich chocolate and cream from Holland. Paired together to create a decadent, silky smooth drink, ChocoVine can be served on the rocks or as the main ingredient to an array of sinful cocktails.




Online Reviews: 

"Excellent dessert wine; tastes like a chocolate martini."

"Wonderful rich chocolate taste which complements the wine perfectly. It somewhat like a chocolate Irish Cream. Very good!"


Wine Folly: Page 65 - "Perfect for syrups on desserts with nuts, caramel, and vanilla ice cream." I agree that this chocolate wine would pair well with vanilla ice cream!

Page 88 - "The rich flavor and high tannin content in Cabernet Sauvignon make it a perfect partner to rich grilled meats, peppery sauces, and dishes with high flavor." As a dessert wine, I do not think it would pair well with meats or peppery sauces, but I do think this wine has a very rich flavor. Some of the primary tasting notes are black cherry, black plum, and blackberry. Even though the taste of the wine is primarily masked by the chocolate, you do get some of these fruity undertones. 


My Review: I enjoyed this wine and would drink it again. I did not drink it with any food. I found it to be incredibly sweet. As someone with a sweet tooth, I found that enjoyable but if you do not have a sweet tooth, I may not recommend this wine as it could easily be seen as too sweet. I think it has a decadent rich and creamy chocolate flavor with that slight black cherry undertone. Definitely not a wine that you could drink multiple glasses of, but a small glass would be perfectly paired with a dessert like vanilla ice cream!

Here's me with the bottle!

Thursday, January 23, 2025

My Experience With Wine

My overall experience and exposure to wine throughout my whole life has been quite minimal. I grew up in a family that does not drink so I never heard or saw anything about wine or any other alcohol growing up. Due to this, I never had any strong desire to taste or enjoy it. Once in college, I did have the freedom to drink and was exposed to alcohol, but not necessarily wine. Even then, I still did not have any desire to drink wine. 

As a junior and now senior, I have started to explore more types of alcohol including wine. Unfortunately, I have found that I am not the biggest wine fan. It seems that out of every ten wines I may try, I may only find one that I like or tolerate. I have found that I enjoy sweet wine. I recently tried a chocolate red wine (a very cheap one from Kroger) and did enjoy that. However, the flavor was much more chocolate than red wine so I'm not sure if that should really count. 

I have chosen not to give up on it though, and this course is a part of that! I think that having more exposure and knowledge of wine will help me appreciate different types and tastes while hopefully finding some wine that I will enjoy. Something specific I hope to gain in this class is more knowledge of wine pairings. I would love to be able to pair the perfect wine to whatever dish I may order at restaurants. I am also a fan of charcuterie and would love to know all about what wine and cheese to pair together!

Here's a pic of me!


Tasting - Rosé

  Name: Barefoot Peach Fruitscato Variety: Moscato Region: California Country: United States Price: $8 Description: This deliciously s...