Reviewing Germany - Tasting the Rheingau

Rheingau is a small but important region which has its vineyards located along
the slopes of both the Rhine and Main Rivers. It is protected from northern cold winds by the Tannus Mountain but the moderating effect of the rivers is the main environmental influence. The soils are a combination of weathered slate and quartz which retain and reflect heat. 80% of the land under vine is planted to Riesling which is typically produced in a fuller body, drier style though some sweet BA and TBA wines are produced as well.

2010 Schloss Vollrads Riesling
Clear, pale lemon color. Clean, medium- intense youthful aromas of lime and citrus blossoms. Off dry, light body, low alcohol, medium acidity and length with citrus flavors. Acceptable, not typical/drink now.

Around the village of Assmanhausen is a long tradition of producing Pinot Noir, known as Spatburgunder, which is considered to be some of the best in Germany.

2007 August Kesseler Spatburgunder
Clear, pale garnet. Clean, medium- intense fully developed aromas of leather, dank earth and baked red fruit. Dry, medium body, alcohol, acidity, tannins and length with an odd brackish water taste. Not recommended.

A bit of a disappointing tasting.

Reviewing Germany-Tasting the Mosel
Reviewing German-Tasting Rheinhessen

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Lust Zinfandel 2007

My husband loves this wine so he purchased quite a few bottles at a recent Michael~David dinner that we had attended. Last night, I decided to open a bottle to serve with dinner. I was making a roasted southwestern pork tenderloin, sweet potato fries (w/ chipolte ketchup) and a salad consisting of baby lettuce (fresh from my garden) with strawberries, red bell peppers, red onions and walnuts tossed with a white balsamic-raspberry vinaigrette. This turned out to be a great pairing. It is a bold wine that really stood up to the strong chipolte seasoning while complementing the fruit flavors. I opened the bottle a 1/2 hour before I served it as I have found this wine to be more enjoyable when I do so. The Lust Zinfandel by Michael~David 2007 was a dark purple color with a ruby rim. It has intense aromas of very ripe mixed berries and baking spices-both allspice and ginger with hints of cedar. It has flavors of creme de cassis, milk chocolate and also more of the baking

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The Salta Tour 2012

Vine Connections and Pioneer Wine Company hosted a seminar and tasting event for Houston's wine trade and media at Backstreet Cafe yesterday. All but two of the wines were from the Salta Province of Argentina. Salta is the most northern wine region in Argentina lying close to the Bolivian border. The climate is very extreme due to the high altitude. Plantings start at 5,000 feet above sea level and climb to 9,000 feet, making these vineyards the highest in the world. The intense sunlight the area receives helps to create grapes with more anthocyanins, these are the color pigments which result in softer tannins, lower astringency and more intense flavor. The wines produced are extremely pure, concentrated and terroir specific. Torrontes Riojano which is considered the best of the three Torrontes clones is the most widely planted grape with plantings of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat increasing. The seminar started with a tasting of four Torrontes wines, three from diff

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