Tasting: Seaglass Pinot Grigio Alcohol Removed

Name: 2023 Seaglass Pinot Grigio Alcohol Removed

Variety: Pinot Grigio

Region: Lodi, California

Country: USA

Year: 2023

Price: $9.99

Winery Review: With aromas of ripe peach and faint floral notes, our alcohol-removed Pinot Grigio is elegantly balanced with a crisp, clean finish. 

Vivino Rating: N/A

Wine Folly: Pg. 149: Pinot Gris is higher in acidity, higher in alcohol for a white wine, and lower in tannins and body. The main tasting notes on a typical pinot gris is white peach, lemon zest, cantalope, raw almond, and crushed gravel.

My Review: This NA wine was very weird. I had one sip and would not drink it again. We were comparing this wine to the alcoholic version, and I much preferred the alcoholic version. The NA version was very heavy compared to the alcoholic version, and the taste was totally different. We were getting notes of peach on the nose, but when we tasted it, it tasted like pear and it was honestly gross. There was no mouth feel components like acid or tannic components. Never again!

Wine Tasting! Morgan and Me!

Tasting: Seaglass Pinot Grigio

Name: 2023 Seaglass Pinot Grigio

Variety: Pinot Grigio

Region: Lodi, California

Country: USA

Year: 2023

Price: $9.99

Winery Review: Fresh aromas of ripe lemon, lime and peach with faint floral notes. Light-bodied with a vivid, mouthwatering finish.

Vivino Rating: 3.7 stars

Wine Folly: Pg. 149: Pinot Gris is higher in acidity, higher in alcohol for a white wine, and lower in tannins and body. The main tasting notes on a typical pinot gris is white peach, lemon zest, cantalope, raw almond, and crushed gravel.

My Review: I thought that this wine was good overall. We got pear and lemon hints off the nose, and then when tasting I thought it was crisp and acidic! The only thing is that I felt like the wine didn't have much taste after the first part of each sip. Overall, I thought this wine was very refreshing and easy to drink, but would opt for a Pinot Grigio with more flavor next time.

Wine Tasting! Me and Morgan!

Tasting: McManis Petite Sirah

Name: 2023 McManis Petite Sirah

Variety: Petite Sirah

Region: Lodi Ava, California

Country: USA

Year: 2023

Price: $14.99

Winery Review: Five generations of family farmers have strived to grow quality grapes with outstanding depth of flavor. Our winemaking team then crafts the fruit into character driven wines for everyday enjoyment. Our Petite Sirah is a full-bodied, delicious wine, with notes of chocolate, caramel, toffee, and rich black fruit on the nose and palate. The mid-palate is led by mocha notes that carry through to the long, luxurious finish. 

Vivino Rating: 4.0 stars

Wine Folly: Pg. 147: Petite Sirah. Petite Sirah is a bold wine with deep flavors and vibrant tannins. It is mainly high in body, alcohol, and tannins, and is low in acidity and sweetness. Main tasting notes for a typical Petite Sirah are sugar plum, blueberry, dark chocolate, black pepper, and black tea.

My Review: I thought this wine was nice! Based on smell, I thought that this wine would be super tannic, but after tasting it, I discovered that the wine was actually not super tannic or acidic in a way that it overpowered the mouth feel, which I appreciated! The main tasting notes that I got from this wine are black cherry, plum, chocolate, and maybe even a hint of smokiness. I also tried this wine with a milk chocolate covered salted caramel candy. This was pretty good, I thought that the candy brought out the chocolate taste within the wine, but having dark chocolate would have been even better!

Wine Tasting! Morgan and Me!

Tasting: The Magistrate Sauvignon Blanc

Name: 2023 The Magistrate Sauvignon Blanc

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc

Region: Marlborough, New Zealand

Country: New Zealand

Year: 2023

Price: $11.99

Winery Review: Bright and fresh aromas of green grass meld with guava and juicy pear on the palate that is balanced with a crisp green apple acidity. Every sip makes the mouth water for another glass.

Vivino Rating: Unrated

Wine Folly: Pg. 165: Sauvignon Blanc. Sauvignon Blanc is a unique and naturally grassy/herbaceous tasting wine. It is high in acidity, and low in tannins, alcohol, and body. It is meant to be served cold and the main tasting notes in a typical Sauvignon Blanc include gooseberry, honeydew, grapefruit, white peach, and passionfruit.

My Review: Overall, I give it a meh. I am not a huge fan of the grassy/earthy white wines, and I thought it was okay overall. The main tasting notes that I picked up on while tasting is grassy, gravel, white peach, and wet dog at the end there. I didn't think that it was super acidic or have much mouth feel, which was slightly weird.

Tasting Night! Morgan and Me!

Tasting: Specially Selected Rioja Reserva

Name: 2018 Specially Selected Rioja Reserva

Variety: Tempranillo

Region: Rioja, Spain

Country: Spain

Year: 2018

Price: $8.99

Winery Review: This wine has been made with handpicked Tempranillo grapes from our best vineyards in Rioja. A well-balanced wine with red fruit flavors, hints of black current and cherry and aromas of vanilla and oak from 30 months of barrel aging. 

Vivino Rating: 3.8 stars

Wine Folly: Pg. 175: Tempranillo. This popular Spanish wine has common tasting notes of cherry, dried fig, cedar, tobacco, and dill. This wine is relatively high in tannic structure, acidity, alcohol, and body. It is very low on sweetness. It is meant to be decanted for over an hour before consuming.

My Review: I thought this was okay. I had a good Tempranillo a couple of weeks ago during the wine dinner, and I really liked that one! This one had main tasting notes of black currant, cherry, oak, and vanilla. I thought that it was very aromatic, but it did not have a lot of mouth feel. It was lacking in tannic and acidic structure so it left a lot to be desired. I thought the bouquet on the nose and the very initial taste if the wine was really good, but again I wish it was more tannic or something to really pack the punch. Overall I give it a meh, but I give it bonus points for the unique cage-like packaging.

Wine Tasting Night! Morgan and Me!

Tasting: Landkastel Riesling

Name: 2023 Landkastel Riesling

Variety: Riesling

Region: Mosel, Germany

Country: Germany

Year: 2023

Price: $6.99

Winery Review: This exquisite, well balanced Riesling has a fruity bouquet with flavors of apricot and peach.

Vivino Rating: 3.9 stars

Wine Folly: Pg. 158: Riesling. This aromatic white wine ranging in style from bone-dry to very sweet. Main characteristics for Rieslings are high in acidity and low in tannic components. This wine is also varying in sweetness levels, low in body and lower in alcohol content, as it is 9.5% alcohol. Main tasting notes for a typical Riesling is lime, green apple, beeswax, jasmine, and petroleum. 

My Review: I thought this wine was awesome! The first Riesling that we tried earlier in the semester was not very good, so I was a little skeptical at first. This wine had notes of white peach and apricot, with no floral flavors. I thought that it was super easy to drink, with just the right amount of sweetness and a light acidity. Would recommend! 

Wine Tasting! Morgan and Me!

Drink This Now: #1

This is my first lesson from the Drink this Now! textbook, and I enjoyed this one. I decided to do the first lesson in the textbook, and i used a Merlot because that is what I had. I still tried to follow the lesson as close as I could! Below is the description of the wine that I used for this lesson:

Name: Flora & Stone Merlot

Variety: Merlot

Region: Hopland, CA

Country: USA

Year: 2018

Price: $7.99

Winery Review: An invitation to indulge, this merlot is a tapestry of dark fruit with a sumptuous toasted oak finish. It is composed of grapes from select California vineyards, whose diverse landscapes create a mosaic in the glass. From this unique tangle of flora, stone and sky comes a velvety red with plush tannins backed by notes of black plum, cherry, and clove.

Vivino Rating: 3.5 stars

Wine Folly: Pg. 131: Merlot is known for its black cherry flavors with a smoky or chocolaty finish. It is high in alcohol and body, and is also high in acids and tannins. Merlot is a low-sweetness wine. The main tasting notes on most bottles of Merlot is cherry, plum, chocolate, dried herbs, and vanilla.

During the First Tasting (3/20/2025): The first time I tasted this wine was on Thursday, and I did not decant it in any way. I really enjoyed this wine. From tasting the wine alone, I picked up on plum, black cherry, clove, and dried herb notes. I noted that it was tannic and acidic, but not too much. When I tasted it with the cheese and meat that I picked up, I noticed that the goat cheese overpowered the berry flavors of the wine. I did not think that the cheese and wine that I picked up was supposed to be paired together, as they did not compliment each other too well, but I still enjoyed them separately. 

During the Second Tasting (3/23/2025): I tried this wine again on Sunday, after leaving the cork off of the bottle of three days. This decanted the wine and I noticed that most of the flavors were the same, but I noticed the clove flavor was slightly stronger than it was before. The tannins and acids within the wine were definitely softer and were not as strong as the first time I tried this wine. Overall, I liked the second time that I tried the wine better because it was less harsh and was easier to drink. I also tasted the wine with the same foods that i tried it with the first time and I thought the pairing and flavors were pretty much the same.