Happy New Year!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas. We start the new year off right with this sparkling wine from South Africa called Pearly Bay. We gave it an 8.5 as it intrigued our noses with hints of honey and tickled our tongues with pieces of pear. Impress your friends with this bottle for new year's.

Z & R.

Beaujolais Day

Hello everyone. It is Beaujolais Day here at Weeknight Wine and to celebrate we have brought you our latest podcast, the Christmas Edition. Enjoy this French red for the holidays with friends and family.

Merry Christmas.

Z & R

2007 Me'nage `a Trois Chardonnay

I'll save any jokes on the name of this wine for any podcasts we may do in the future on it. But for now, I'll tell you Chardonnay lovers out there why you need to try this Me'nage goodness. First, is the bouquet filled with green apple and something creamy that reminded me of orange sorbet. Then, everything in the nose carries over to the palate! And to top it off, it has a nice, long, oaky finish. This wine gets a well deserved 8.4! For $10 a bottle, its a great wine to share with a friend(or two;)
HAPPY TASTING!
Z & R

2007 Fetzer Cabernet Sauvignon

For $6.99 this Fetzer Cab isn't a bad choice. The pleasurable smooth texture and the notes of blueberry and black cherry as it opens up I believe make up for the backbone this wine is lacking. I do admit that this wine was a little weak for my taste in Cabs to begin with, but it gets better after it opens up a little bit. So if you decide to pick up a bottle, you may want to decant it or just let it open up in your glass for a few before drinking so you can enjoy the best parts this wine has to offer. With a rating of 7.0, we consider this wine a Weeknight Wine! Cheers!

Z & R

IF YOU WERE A WINE BOTTLE, WOULD YOU DRINK YOURSELF?

I know I would if I were a Rosenblum Zinfandel! This 2005 Zin from Rosenblums Snows Lake Vineyard with its aromas of raspberry-strawberry jam and vanilla puts this wine at the top of my favorites list. But it doesn't stop there! With flavors of blackberry jam, ripe raspberry, and vanilla parfait, I gave this Zin a 9.4 in my wine journal. One of the best characteristics of this wine is that it doesn't fade after a glass or two. The last glass was as good as the first if not better! May I add that my brother helped me drink this bottle, and he likes it as much as I do. Now this bottle usually goes for around $35, but I found it on clearance for $10! This is why I bought the last ten bottles they had. As of now, I only have two bottles left, so I'm trying to be patient and not open another one until next year(a few weeks away;) This is definately not an everyday wine, but if you have some extra money for the holidays, this might become your new favorite Zin also! HAPPY TASTING!

Zack

SIDE NOTE: This wine goes well with the new STAR TRECK movie

2008 Bohemian Chardonnay

Hey guys and gals.

Check out the new cast for this Chardonnay. It's only $7.99 and that's for the big bottle. We give it an 8! And you should give it a try.

Thanksgiving Special

Check out the new podcast. We try some Fetzer that goes great with your Thanksgiving leftovers.

Halloween Special

Check out the Halloween Special available now on iTunes or just click on the link to the right. We do some catching up and drink a lil' sherry. Please email us and let us know what you think or if you have any questions at weeknightwine@gmail.com.

Z & R.

Episode 9 Black Swan Shiraz

The recent drop in weather is grounds for big red wines. Well, for us at least. We have started to crack open our ports that have been collecting dust along with this delicious Shiraz from the Aussies. Quit your job and go pick this bottle up today. If you are not impressed Zack will reimburse you.

Z & R

Special Edition Podcast Now Available

Hello blogger world. Our new podcast is up and ready for your enjoyment. This week we have special guest Dr. Nate on the show to school us maturing wines. We explore how to do it and what to look for in a good wine that has the potential to be a great wine in a few years.

Let us know what you think on our Facebook page.

2008 Alice White Lexia 8.0

Hey everyone. We enjoyed doing this listener request. Big thanks to Sarah for calling in and we hope you all enjoy the podcast.

2006 Pine and Post Cab Podcast

Hello everyone. This week's podcast is up at itunes. We try some good ol' American Cab and we find out that this variety comes in 31 flavors. Including green olive. Enjoy.

Stay tuned for next week's Special Edition cast where you could win prizes!

(j/k about the prizes but we really do have a special edition right around the cone-a.)

Z & R

2008 Yellow Tail Pinot Grigio

New podcast available on itunes. Are you tired of going to itunes each time we post a new podcast? Why not save yourself the hassle and just subscribe. It's easy: go into your list of podcasts in itunes and click subscribe next to the one that says Weeknight Wine. And TA-DA! It will automatically download each time we post a new cast. Thanks again to all of you out their listening and tasting along with us.

And look for our new Special Edition Podcast with guest available soon!


Z & R.

2007 Covey Run Riesling Podcast Available

The new cast is up. We do Riesling the right way this time. Check out this Covey Run, you won't be disappointed. Download on itunes or click on the live feed over yonder to the right.

Z & R.

2002 Lindemans Riesling PODCAST

A quick word about the new podcast.

We live and learn on this new cast about screwcaps. Screwcaps are a great thing for the wine industry because they cut down on the use of cork which is in short supply. Cork is also known to sometimes spoil a wine with the dreaded "cork taint." (That is the official word for it.) But on this podcast we learn the hard way that just because there's not a cork in your bottle doesn't mean your bottle still can't go bad. It's called REDUCTION.

Reduction happens to a screwcap wine when over time the wine begins to go 'sulfery' because of the lack of air that can get to the wine. It turns out that a tad bit of air is not a bad thing and actually helps a wine to mature. However, with a screwcap the wine gets absolutely no air until you open it. This can be bad sometimes as you will hear in this month's podcast.

We will be revisiting riesling next time with Covey Run so check out the new list of wines (to the right) and start shopping. Sit back and laugh at us as we almost kill ourselves tasting this 2002 riesling. And may your wine NEVER, EVER be reduced.

2002 Lindemans Riesling is up and available for download at itunes. Or you can download or just listen via our host site. The link is right over there --->

BEWARE OF THIS WINE!

Z & R.

Simply Sunny Sauvignon

Let me preface this short review with two facts: Sauginon Blanc usually smells like the room at the skating rink where you get your skates and I hate grapefruits.

So I find myself in a bit of a predicament when tasting this 2008 Yellow Tail Sauvignon Blanc (Southern pronunciation is "Sav-YAWN"). It smells like a freshly cut bouquet of flowers and it taste like a grapefruit without all the pucker. I'm amazed.

Most of the sauvignon blancs that I've tasted are really grassy; what the wine world calls "herbaceous." As gross as that sounds it's actually quite good. So this Yellow Tail is a nice change of pace. It's crisp and light with a hint of the sun shinning through on the tongue.

If you are planning a cheap, after labor day trip to the beach do yourself a favor when packing up the umbrella and chairs: slip a bottle of this sauvignon blanc into the beach bag. For six bucks you can't go wrong.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

~Rob.

The Hardy Boys Save the Day

Do you like chardonnay? I love chardonnay! While other people sip their pinot's I would much rather be on a beach somewhere with a glass of chard in my hand. Chardonnay is a great friend to have. If she ever lets you down it's never that bad and when she's on it, she's the best of all the wines. Well, to me at least.

Tonight I don't hear the waves crashing at my feet but I am trying a pretty decent chardonnay. I picked up a bottle of 2007 Hardys Nottage Hill .

The first thing that you notice with this wine is really nothing at all. It doesn't have a fancy, eye-catching label. It doesn't jump off the shelf at you. It just sits there and waits to be enjoyed. And enjoyable it is.

What I really like about this wine is it's texture. Sometimes textures in wines, like in many foods, can turn you off. Have you ever eaten something that smelled good but when you popped it in your mouth it felt too slimy or crunchy and left you disappointed? (Corn nuts anyone?) Well Hardys chardonnay has some of the best texture a wine can offer. (Forgive me because I'm about to wax poetic.)

The wine is supple and has a creamy texture. It goes past the "liquid" feel and actually has this, hmmm, I guess you could call it "round" feeling. The only comparison I can make is imagine yogurt but a little less consistent. Not to mention that this is really solid on the flavor side also. It smells very oaky and that carries over to a big fruit finish on the tongue.

Hardys Nottage Hill is a wine that you need to try but be wary that the oak may be a turn off for some. Overall I'm pleased with this bottle and very disappointed with the lack of ocean in front of me. I guess there's always next summer.

Check out Hardy's wines HERE and notice that they also put this stuff in a box. Awesome!

Cheers.

~Rob.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

The Frog has Fumbled

I recently got excited when I found a bottle of Toad Hollow 'Le Faux Frog' Merlot 2005 for only $3.99. So excited in fact that I bought quite a few bottles. Oh Toad, where to begin.
Well first things first: Toad Hollow makes good wine. I'm not a big viognier fan but they make a pretty good one. And I'm told that their chardonnay is not too shabby either. So it was to my utter disappointment when I popped the cork on this 2005 merlot.
I've never had a wine that had no flavor at all. I could not detect anything in this wine. No blackberry, no spice, no nothing! It was just flat. Flat up front, flat in the back and even flat under the tongue (if that's possible). Don't get me wrong, I still drank it. I was just a little suprised that's all.
So I'm not going to totally squash this frog. In fact I'll give you a link to their site to let you decide for yourself. (Their site does say that this series is from France and that this merlot is not "messaged" and is "100%" merlot.) Maybe I have not developed a french palate because Toad Hollow is known for pretty decent wines so I don't want to be too harsh. But it should be known that this merlot was pretty hollow.
http://www.toadhollow.com/

~Rob.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10

Wines for September 2009

Here are the wines we will be tasting this month. Feel free to purchase the wines mentioned each month and taste with us live on the podcast. This list is in the order that we will be publishing on the podcast. So if you are following along start with number one, then number two and so on. We have provided links to each vineyard's site so you can see the labels if you are having trouble finding the wine.

Happy Tasting,

Zack and Rob. weeknightwine@gmail.com

September Wines:

1. 2007 Cupcake Chardonnay Rated: 8.5

Now available at itunes. Do you love butter popcorn? If so, then definitely check out the chardonnay we taste this week. Cupcake has many things going for it and you don't want to miss out.

2. 2007 Primaterra Primitivo Rated 7.0

Now available on itunes Unripe Italians? What? We learn something new about the wine world as we try out this italian grape.

3. 2007 Grove Ridge Chardonnay Rated 8.5

(No Site: but here's where you can purchase)

Great wine at cheap prices. If we said $3.99 would you believe us? Our cheap ol' faithful. We are excited about this one. Podcast will be available soon!

4. 2002 Lindeman's Riesling BIN 75 Rated 1.0 (Warning! Do not purchase the 2002.)

***Now available on itunes*** We are certain that six years ago this was a decent wine. On this episode of Weeknight wine we learn the hard way about the shelf life of screw tops and a bad thing that can happen to them.