I saved this one to have with quiche and
then both the wine and quiche disappeared
before I knew what was happening.
The only thing I THINK I remember is that
the wine was richer in flavor and less
acidic than I would expect.
“Earthier” too maybe.
Now that I’m thinking about it, I
seem to remember fruit that was “milder”
than straight citrus. The white peach and
nectarine mentioned in the link below
sounds like it.
I will probably buy another one of
these with the hope that I will take
proper notes next time.
The drooling started yesterday when Theresa
told me that the egg salad was done.
I just finished making the finger sandwiches
and my stomach is growling.
I decided to dust off the Riedel white wine
glass for this one. I’m waiting for the glass
to chill.
First sip…
This is the driest and most austere R that I
have ever had.
First bite…
This might not be PERFECT, but it will do.
The egg salad wins the flavor battle, but the
wine wins the beauty contest and leads the
cheering squad.
It’s really hard not to shovel and gulp.
Give me an “A”, Apple of my Eye.
Give me a little “h”, honey.
Give me another “h”, honey.
…
What’s that spell?
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
Brunch is over and now I get to enjoy
a bit more of the wine without all that
“flavor distraction”.
Boiled eggs CAN BE real stinkers.
Maybe deviled ham WOULD BE better. That’s
easy enough to figure out.
“As The Grape Ripens”…
In this episode, our wine slush contemplates
which food might be best to have for a “wine
brunch” so he can keep having experimental brunches
until he can’t contemplate anymore.
Biscuits and Gravy
Liver and Onions
Gizzards, Gonads, and Geodes
…
The follow-on sips reveal a wine with subtle
flavors of honeycomb and softer, less citrusy
fruit than I’m used to in R. Not quite
pear, but getting there.
And there’s an “earthy” quality that I can’t
yet pin down.
Or maybe something “stemmy”.
No. It’s minerals. “Clean Slate”.
Now I can match the taste and smell. Very nice.
Judge: You have been accused of mixing food
and drink in “an unseemly fashion”. How do you
plead?
Wine Slush: Aggressively.
J: The court finds you guilty of violating
Wine Enjoyment Ordinance #337. You must pay $500
OR do “corrective” community service. Which
do you chose?
WS: Community service. What is it?
Court Order:
Prepare the palate.
Eat the sandwiches.
Clear the palate.
WS: What kind of sandwiches?
J: Court adjourned, it’s time to obey WEO #1.
Day Two…
I “preparing my palate” this morning.
The subtle things are becoming more evident, but
I need more time to prepare. For what, I don’t
know.
I actually got the impression of Semillon. How
can that be? Please tell me I don’t have MORE
brain damage.
How many times is Riesling mentioned in this article?
It’s not that this wine IS LIKE Semillon, it just
REMINDS ME of Semillon.
Now I’m back in Graves/Bordeaux and drooling again.
I want a dry Semillon that reminds me of Riesling.
So there.
OR, I’ll take a Sauternes and just shut up until I can
pay to play again.
For THIS WINE, I started out with earthy/stemmy and wound up
with minerally.
But the earthiness is still there. Maybe it’s grassiness like
the linked article suggests. If it’s good for the goose…
I’m having a MUCH BETTER DAY with this wine without the
“confusion of food”.
And I finally got the wine COLD ENOUGH. The extra chill
is sharpening the acidity and I can now see the stairway
to heaven.
Please read ALL of the comments and then answer the following
question.
What “musically significant thing” happens at exactly 4:19
in this “particular video”?
I keep looking at the neck of the wine bottle which is
exposed above the wine bib to see it the spelling has been
changed to “Sturm”.
Alas, it is static and I’m forced to investigate Stirm’s web
page.
Hmmm.
For a minute there I got a little “geographically confused”,
but after figuring out that the “Kick-on” vineyard was near
Santa Barbara I felt a little better.
As you know, I consider the Solvang/Los Olivos/Santa Ynez
“triangle” to be oenologically endowed by GOD, so when I
connected this wine to Los Alamos, I was “relieved”.
Maybe I need to add Los Alamos and Buelton to create a
parallelogram of sorts.
And the verdict is…
The bottle is empty and the wine will be sorely missed.
But school is still in session…
Campo de Borja/Calatayud/Cariñena is another “triangle”
that haunts me.
Someday I will have a wine from from this area that is
“light and elegant”. I can wait…
If I’m going to drink more of this
kind of elixir, then I’m going to have to alter
my “style”.
That’s not a problem.
I can start drinking around 8:30am. That part
is easy.
The challenge is deciding what to have for “brunch”.
A totally perverse thought just entered my mind…
Deviled ham (canned) finger sandwiches.
Or ANY kind of light sandwich, like tuna, chicken or
egg salad.
Ah yes. Egg salad finger sandwiches.
I have another R in the cooler, so that’s the
plan for that one.
I’m drooling again.
I hesitate trying to describe the wine for fear of
insulting it.
Such a delicate flower.
The nose is tropical maybe. Or pear???
Although “acidy enough” for me, it’s not overbearing.
Gentle on the tongue for a dry Mosel R, I imagine.
If I had to work hard for a living, I would opt for
picking grapes along the Mosel.
Wine Picker: I’m home.
Wife: How was your day at the office.
WP: Excruciating.
W: Why don’t you look for another job?
WP: I like the benefits. What’s for supper.
W: Egg salad sandwiches and this Goldtröpfchen stuff you keep bringing home.
WP: Sehr gut.
I’m daydreaming so much that I haven’t cracked
the books on this wine.
I think I get the picture.
And the honey is subtle. I find that “compelling”.
This IS the first wine that I have ever thought of slapping
the “compelling” word on but that’s what happened.
Let’s not stop with “compelling”, how about “evocative”.
Even my empty glass is “seductive”.
I’ve totally lost it.
Is this wine REALLY GOOD or am I just in an altered
state of mind?
Day Two…
I saved a LITTLE BIT of this one for
“brunch” today.
The wine has been moved from the cooler to the
fridge so it will be REALLY COLD.
I’m having leftover André’s Quiche Lorraine which
I will gently warm up in the convection oven.
I need a distraction until I get hungry.
OK, that helped. I cleaned my wine glass three
times.
Finally…
I’m just smelling the top of the uncorked bottle.
I can pick up that “salty minerality” on the nose.
This is going to be interesting.
There’s an odor like “Epsom salts”, but wonderful.
The “salty minerality” description and my nose suggests
that the “minerals” are iron and magnesium as opposed to
slate or graphite.
I’ll remember this wine the next time I sharpen my
mower blades.
Let me pour some and swish it around a bit.
Can I smell it from two feet away???
First sip…
An exploding tart citrus bouquet.
Dry to be sure but I taste that wee bit of
sugar dictated by the Feinherb classification.
I thought I picked up a whiff of honey and expected it
to more evident on the tongue. I say it is subdued.
OK, it’s there, just hiding behind the kumquats.
One sliver of quiche down and the wine is still bouncing
off the walls.
No complaints about the unsheathed “rapier-like” acidity here. Sheesh.
An now, for a bit of geography. First, I had to struggle to learn that
this one is not from the Saar. Did I take home something from Saar? I know
you mentioned something about Saar. Anyway, it appears that St. Urbans-Hof
has two terrain disadvantages. It is on the flat AND
north-facing side of the river. 0-4. The Mosel gets a bye.
Does this have any bearing on the “style” of wine?
Of course it does. It’s ALMOST bone dry, SUPER acidic, and
REALLY LOW in ALC. Who needs sunshine?
Nevertheless, perfect. No need to chug this one. I COULD drink it
all day. We’ll see how it goes.
Maybe there’s a bit of apple in there. Tart, but ripe,
not green.
Now this is really bizarre. I just got an “oiliness” sensation
along with some “herbiness”. I didn’t get that sensation straightaway
even though the description was trying to help me. Without further
guidance, I declare it to be thyme with a hint of tarragon, but I’ve
been smelling THAT since I cleaned up the herb garden yesterday.
Maybe the wine and I are relaxing a bit.
I love the citrus flower girl with thyme braids in her hair.
Afterthought…
Now I’m bouncing off my cranial walls after seeing that the urbans-hof.de site
actually specifies “iron” as the “mineral”. I didn’t make it to this site
until I re-corked the bottle for the day. I can’t believe I pulled the correct
rabbit out of the hat.
Day Two…
I’m just going to have the leftovers as an aperitif
to lunch.
Option Trader's Wine Notes 