Wannabe Wino

We had some friends over for a dinner at our house recently and of course served my now famous homemade pizzas, bruschetta and chocolate mousse. Not to mention a good bit of wine. I love having people over because it gives me a chance to play hostess and I also get to serve a bottle of dessert wine, not something Matt and I would really drink on our own. A little too sweet for me to enjoy more than a cordial glass or two. And yes, I have little fancy crystal cordial glasses that I only drag out when we have company. Since Matt is our dishwasher for all things hand-wash needed, he prefers if I stick to dishwasher safe items! Such a deal though, I do all the cooking and his job is to wash the few things that can't go in the dishwasher!

We consumed 3 bottles over the course of the evening, beginning with a 2005 Mauritson Sauvignon Blanc. I've reviewed that one before and liked it every bit as much this time as I did the last. I'm much looking forward to the new bottling, which I understand from a club email has just been released.

With the pizzas I served a 2004 Marimar Earthquake Vineyard Pinot Noir. I believe it cost us around $37, is unfiltered, has a real cork closure and is 14.5% alcohol by volume. A few weeks ago I reviewed the 2004 Marimar Stony Block Vineyard Pinot Noir and wasn't terribly impressed. As I told you then, we had tried the Earthquake Pinot Noir in mid-October and I had remembered really enjoying it (though I could have just been delerious with excitement over passing the bar....) but I thought I'd try it again now so I could compare the two bottles.

The Earthquake was significantly better in my opinion. It had none of the thin or astringent flavors that characterized the Stony Block, though the price tag was still a little steep for what I found in the bottle. My first impression of the nose of this wine was that it had a distinctly toasty aroma, followed by raspberries and wood. The nose was pleasant, and perhaps I was too busy chatting with our company to notice more aromas, but I recalled it having an earthy and leathery quality the last time we drank this bottle. In the mouth, the taste was almost all black cherries, with hints of spices showing through as the wine aired. While tasty now, I believe this bottle could benefit from a bit more aging.