Wine Life - Houston

The 2008 Franciscan Estate Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley was purchased at my local HEB grocery store for about $14 to serve with my also HEB purchased tortilla crusted tilapia that I was pan sauteing and topping with a mango salsa. In the glass, the wine was a very pale straw color with -medium intense aromas of lime, grapefruit and hay. On the palate, dry, medium body, medium to medium+ acidity with crisp, mainly lime/mixed citrus flavors with a bit of minerality and a medium length finish. A good wine at a good price.

More Mer -love! This time for the 2004 Rutherford Hill Reserve Merlot from Napa Valley. My husband and I shared this bottle after dinner the other evening while catching up on some TV shows on the DVR. Appearance: Clear, deep ruby color. Nose: Fresh red fruit aromas-plums and berries with just a hint of vanilla and cedar. Palate: Dry; balanced, medium+ body, acidity and smooth tannins with rich flavors of mixed red & black berries and milk chocolate. Finish: Long & juicy. *This bottle was purchased by my husband at The Tasting Room-Uptown Houston. He does not remember the price.

     I purchased the 2009 Martin Ray Chardonnay Russian River Valley at my local HEB grocery store for about $12. I have served it a few times this summer with grilled and pan-sauteed seafood with and without cream sauce and have found it to be another nice wine at a nice price. Appearance: Clear, pale lemon color. Nose: Lemon-butter, baked pear, bit of vanilla Palate: Dry, medium body, medium acidity with lemon, peach and a bit of pineapple. Length: medium

     The Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut NV was part of an impromptu sushi night with some friends during my husband's week long birthday celebration.       In the glass, this Champagne was a pale gold with a steady stream of pinpoint bubbles. Floral aromas of jasmine and lime blossom were dominant with fresh-baked pastry and citrus notes. On the palate, it was dry with racy acidity balancing the mixed citrus flavors and long toasty finish.       Elegantly luscious at $45 a bottle.      

     I was grilling sockeye salmon on a cedar plank for dinner so I decided to open the 2007 Domaine Faiveley Mercurey to serve with it. This red wine is a Pinot Noir from the Mercurey commune in the Cote Chalonnaise subregion of Burgundy, France.      In the glass, it was a sheer garnet color with medium intense fruity aromas of red cherry, strawberry and raspberry with just a hint of an earthy underbrush. It had a medium body with medium smooth tannins and medium+ acidity balancing the primarily juicy red cherry/berry flavors and just a bit of an undefined herbal note ending with a medium+ length finish.      Quite delicious alone and with the salmon. A very nice wine for approximately $30 at Whole Foods.

     I purchased the Francois Labet Cremant de Bourgogne Brut NV at Spec's for about $15. I served this as an aperitif recently. Though not particularly complex, I was impressed with the quality for the price.      In the glass, it was a pale lemon yellow with abundant bubbles. It had light aromas of fresh apple and a bit of toast. It was dry and crisply acidic. Perfect for a before dinner drink or to use in sparkling cocktails. We did not finish it that night. I closed it and put it in the fridge before dinner. Two evenings later, I was reading out by the pool and decided to pour myself a glass (okay, two glasses) and it was just as fresh and fizzy as the first night. A good sparkling wine at a good price!