Food Friendly Wine Reviews
I drank these 12 wines and tasted apple, bright, floral, food friendly, minerality, peach, pear, slightly sweet, smooth tannin, spice. The wines are aged, biodynamic, food friendly, my favorites, small production, whole cluster and came from a variety of sources, including wine clubs, wineries, and wine stores.
Wine reviews by: Jessyca Frederick |
2021 Rustenberg Wines Rustenberg Chenin Blanc
A food-friendly white wine featuring typical Chenin Blanc floral and stone fruit flavors, but in a more subdued presentation (as compared with California).
Tasting notes: bright, apple, peach, floral, slightly sweet
Talinay is like Bourgogne in Chile, but with a fruit forward, new world sensibility. This is a winery to know if you like Pinot Noir (or Chablis-style Chardonnay)
Tasting notes: black cherry, berry, spice, bright
2020 Tabalí Talinay Chardonnay
A Chablis-style Chardonnay characterized by mineral-driven, saline, lemony citrus bursts, bracing acidity, and a light body from limestone soils near the coast in Chile.
Tasting notes: bright, lemon, minerality
2020 Penrose Hill Firstleaf La Douleur Exquise
A touch sweet, more so than I’m used to, for a Grenache Blanc, but it had excellent acidity to balance the sugar, making it very approachable and food friendly.
Tasting notes: slightly sweet, bright, food friendly
2019 Penrose Hill Firstleaf Scapolo’s Charm
This Sangiovese was slightly sweet and bright, had nice tannins, and savory notes. As $15 red wine goes, I gave this a thumbs up.
Tasting notes: bright, food friendly, lightly fruity, slightly sweet
2021 Finca Sophenia Sophenia Altosur Malbec
It is really rare I find a red wine under $15 I like. This Malbec — not cloying, flabby, or oaky — proves you can make great red wine at this price.
Tasting notes: smooth tannin, balanced
2018 Francine et Olivier Savary Savary Chablis
This Chablis was on point with scents of apple, chalk, and a fresh energy that delivered subtle pear notes.
Tasting notes: apple, chalk, pear, bright
2021 Naked Wines Franc Dušak Viognier
A very subtle viognier offering typical varietal flavors like jasmine and honey, but the fruit profile was apple, not the usual stone fruits like apricot.
Tasting notes: floral, honey, apple
2020 Quinta Nova Pomares Duoro (Tinto)
This Duoro Tinto is smooth, with subtle fruit and spice. A bright and food-friendly wine that while enjoyable was not necessarily unique.
Tasting notes: smooth tannin, red fruit, spice, bright
2019 Bodega Renacer Punto Final Cab Franc Reserva
I personally tend to prefer my Cab Franc in a heavier-bodied, more fruit-forward style than this light one. This was a nice, but unremarkable, food-friendly red wine.
2021 Taboadella 1255 Villae (Branco)
A food-friendly white wine (branco is white in Portuguese) was light and refreshing with flavors of stone fruit and minerality.
Tasting notes: bright, stone fruit, apricot, peach, minerality
2021 Camaraderie Cellars Pinot Gris Yakima Valley
This is an example of a wine that wasn’t especially distinctive, but was exactly as advertised, “Fresh, bright acidity matches aromatics of apple and pear.” Food-friendly, indeed.
Tasting notes: apple, pear, bright
Notice: I hold no formal wine credentials. I am a wine geek who has consumed 1000+ of bottles from 100+ different wine clubs and 1000s more bottles that didn’t come from those wine clubs. I do not accept payment for wine reviews, and I do not accept payments to influence my opinions. I happily accept free wine (and I buy wine).
Why read my wine reviews: Wine taste is subjective. What I like may not be what you like. I try to leave room for you to form your own opinions, so I don’t provide a score or a rating. I do point out wines that are an incredible value or truly not worth the money. I note flaws, wines that don’t have typicity (because this matters if you are buying wine without having tasted it yourself), when wines are out of balance, and when wines lack appropriate body.
I don’t like wasting money (or anything for that matter). I’m careful about where I spend my money and my mindset as a reviewer is to be careful about where you spend yours. I don’t believe a high price tag equals quality and I know for sure there are wines of very good quality that are also a great value.
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