Pouring: McNab Ridge French Colombard

On Friday and Saturday this week, I'll be hosting a tasting at Liquor Direct. On Friday, you'll find me at the Covington store and on Saturday, I'll be at Fort Thomas. My theme, of sorts, is Spring Wines (or perhaps, Wines That Remind Me of Spring). All week I"ll be posting the tasting notes for some of the wines I'll have on my table. Come out to the tasting this weekend – I'd love to see you  and the tasting is free!
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You may remember that we had this at our Oceanaire brunch I wrote about last week. I was so taken by it that I begged the nice folks at Liquor Direct to order some for our tasting this weekend.

French Colombard
is a white wine that McNab Ridge is growing to "preserve history in the
county." Not many people grow French Columbard anymore, but it used to
be quite common. It is believed to be an offspring of chenin blanc, another favorite grape of mine. Colombard was originally grown in France for distilling into Cognac and Armagnac (yum), so I'm not surprised I have an affinity for it.

This is an off-dry wine with 1.8% residual sugar. It had
natural, bright acid. I noted that it was sweet, light, aromatic, and
refreshing. Kevin noted the intensely floral characteristics, such as
white flowers and pansies. During our more traditional first course at brunch, this wine added a bit of spice to
the first course – or perhaps the food added the spice to the wine. It
was certainly easy to drink and based on our own experiences, I think it might pair well with your own Easter brunch.
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Don't forget to buy tickets for the 2nd Annual
Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Dinner & Silent Auction. It's
April 18, 6-10 pm. Buy Tickets Now.

Oops! I got confused

A quick note that I've been telling you for a couple days that I'd be at Liquor Direct's Fort Thomas location on Friday. Oops!  Turns out that Mike will be at Fort Thomas on Friday and I'll be in Covington. On Saturday, I'm in Fort Thomas and Mike is is Covington.

I've fixed it in my previous posts, but I did want to call out my blunder.

Pouring: Saint-Meyland Brut

On Friday and Saturday this week, I'll be hosting a tasting at Liquor Direct. On Friday, you'll find me at the Fort Thomas Covington location and on Saturday I'll be at the Covington Fort Thomas location. My theme, of sorts, is  Spring Wines (or perhaps, Wines That Remind Me of Spring). All week I"ll be posting the tasting notes for some of the wines I'll have on my table. Come out to the tasting this weekend – I'd love to see you  and the tasting is free!
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I love bubbly. I particularly like French bubbly. And I particularly believe in bubbly and mimosas for Easter. That's why I'm pouring the Saint-Meyland Brut this weekend at Liquor Direct.

First off, it's French and it's only $15. However, it is not officially
"champagne." It's made in the traditional method, but it's just not
quite located in the Champagne region of France, and well, it can't
take the name. It's made from hand-picked grapes and has plenty of tiny bubbles and that nice dry taste you associate with a French Champagne. The nose has some vanilla and floral aromas and it has a long balanced flavor. It tastes more expensive than it is.

I can't wait to pop this one open this weekend. This wine is a real
value and your family might be impressed you showed up with such a
tasty morsel from France for your Easter brunch. Depends on your family I suppose.

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Don't forget to buy tickets for the 2nd Annual
Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Dinner & Silent Auction. It's
April 18, 6-10 pm. Buy Tickets Now. 

Pouring: d’Arenberg The Hermit Crab

On Friday and Saturday this week, I'll be hosting a tasting at Liquor Direct. On Friday, you'll find me at the Fort Thomas Covington location and on Saturday I'll be at the Covington Fort Thomas location. My theme, of sorts, is Spring Wines (or perhaps, Wines That Remind Me of Spring). All week I"ll be posting the tasting notes for some of the wines I'll have on my table. Come out to the tasting this weekend – I'd love to see you  and the tasting is free!
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The Hermit Crab from d'Arenberg, Viognier Marsanne 2008

I went to Liquor Direct several times last week to gather up various white Rhone varietals – Viognier, Marsanne, Rousanne … I wanted to have at least one, if not several of these on my table. (Turns out, I'm having trouble coming up with a second red for the "I only drink reds" drinkers.) One of the bottles I took home was The Hermit Crab.

What a funny name. In fact, they call it the Hermit Crab to encourage you to drink this with shellfish and seafood. I think it would also work fairly well with ham, but don't quote me on that. I tend to pair things terribly. Hermit Crab also short for Hermitage, the French appellation where Viognier is grown. But this Hermitage is from Australia, a combination of McLaren Vale and the Adelaide Hills. The Hermit Crab is a blend of 72% Viognier and 28% Marsanne.

It's a nice pale straw / hay color. On the nose are a lot of peach and pear blossoms, lots of spring blooms and tulips. It continues to be a floral wine in your mouth as well. There is a little bit of fruit loops, which I love to find in any viognier, but it also tastes an awful lot like drinking flowers. Just because it's a floral white doesn't mean it's a wimpy wine though. The Hermit Crab is round and full, but is also nicely balanced with acidity and spices from the marsanne. It certainly disappeared quickly enough in our house.

Our review:

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Don't forget to buy tickets for the 2nd Annual
Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Dinner & Silent Auction. It's
April 18, 6-10 pm. Buy Tickets Now. 

It’s Spring! Come Taste with Us for Free! – UPDATED

Our friends at Liquor Direct always find a way to incorporate the local blogging community. This weekend, along with Mike from The Naked Vine, I'll be hosting another free tasting at their stores. We'd love for you to come out and join us.

Friday:  I'll be at the Fort Thomas Covington store and Mike will be at Fort Thomas Covington
Saturday: We flip. I'll be in Fort Thomas Covington and Mike will be in Covington Fort Thomas

I don't know what Mike has up his sleeve. I know I'm pulling out some white Rhone varietals, including a Viognier Marsanne, as well as at least one pretty sexy pinot noir from Hahn. My theme will be Spring Wines. Maybe I can help you find some wines for your Easter brunch or dinner. All week I'll be posting the tasting notes for the wines on my table.

So let's recap:

Friday, I'll be at Liquor Direct Covington, down near the river across from Skyline and Riverfront Pizza and near the Holiday Inn.
670 W. 3rd Street, Covington, KY 41011
Tasting: 4-8 pm
Cost: FREE!

Saturday, I'll be Liquor Direct Fort Thomas, right off the Southgate exit of 471.
90 Alexandria Pike, Fort Thomas, KY 41075
859-781-8105
Tasting: 2-6 pm
Cost: FREE!

Pouring:

Saint-Meyland Brut
McNab Ridge French Colombard
Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc-Viognier
D'Arenberg Hermit Crab Viognier-Marsanne
Qupe Marsanne
Hahn Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

We hope to see you there!

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Don't forget to buy tickets for the 2nd Annual
Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Dinner & Silent Auction. It's
April 18, 6-10 pm. Buy Tickets Now.