They have a wine menu that allows you to try three wines and have a little mini tasting. Pretty ingenious.
I'm having the following:
Bearboat Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast, 2008
Castillo de Monjardin Garnacha La Cantera 2009
Vina Leyda Carmenere Rapel Valley 2010
I have had Bearboat before, so got that for contrast, although I think I had 2010 Pinot. If only I had started this blog sooner!
The 2008 is nice and light. I hesitate to say it is dry because I haven't had much food other than a clif bar for breakfast on the plane about two hours ago.
Josh suggested the tasting. Rachel here is taking care of me.
The Bearboat is much lighter and gentler than these two others. Perfect for drinking. The Garnacha has a richer, drier quality, but there is an unusual sweetness to it that is really appealing. It is hard to describe, but this wine feels nice and proper without being snotty. I think we can all agree there is nothing worse than snot-wine.
I have had only one Grenache prior to this, so I'm not as familiar with this varietal as I'd like to be. More about Grenache in the future.
The biggest surprise for me is the Carmenere. It a big bold flavor, but being a European varietal, it has a subtle quality to it. It's not like an American Cab where it beats you over the head, like the Garnacha, it feels proper (though it does have a little attitude). Very savory, a little jam, but this wine wants a steak. Unfortunately my roast beef sandwich will have to do for now.
So now that I have been eating sandwich and drinking the wines, the Bearboat tastes downright sweet by comparison. Especially against the Carmenere.
Wrapping up this experience, I would recommend that you drink wine with lunch.
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