Judith Smelser Tastings, Wine Experiences, Winemakers

Bodegas Valduero – Transcending Spanish Wine

Winemaker Carolina Garcia Viadero refers to the wines she creates for Bodegas Valduero in Spain’s Ribera del Duero region as “little pieces of art.” 

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Carolina Garcia Viadero with her Valduero 12 Anos

I don’t drink a lot of Spanish wines, but when I do, the ones from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain are often my favorites.

So I was thrilled to be invited to meet Viadero and sample some of her most prized masterpieces at a recent tasting for wine collectors and wine professionals in Orlando.

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Judith Smelser Wine Reviews

Massaya rosé: Perfect porch sipper and versatile food wine

I don’t know what the weather is like where you live, but here in Orlando, it’s well into rosé season.

Of course, I don’t really believe in rosé season. I’m a huge rosé fan – some might even say an evangelist – and I’m happy drinking the sunset-colored liquid any time of year. But there’s no denying that it pairs particularly well with a porch, deck, or pool on a warm Florida spring day like today.

I’m partial to Provencal rosés – like a lot of rosé lovers, I consider them the gold standard – but I was intrigued a few weeks ago when Tim’s Wine Market Orlando featured the 2014 Massaya rosé from Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley. It’s made mostly from Rhone varietals – 40% cinsault, 30% syrah – plus 30% cabernet sauvignon.

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Judith Smelser Wine Reviews

Terlan pinot grigio: Proof that an open mind is key to enjoying wine

Before I get to the main topic of this post, I want to take a moment to rejoice with four (that I know of so far) friends from my blind tasting group here in Orlando who passed the Certified Sommelier exam in Tampa today! I’m so proud of them and of Orlando’s growing wine scene!

One of the things I love about wine is how often it surprises me – now that I’ve learned to let it.

A few weeks ago at my Tuesday night blind tasting at Swirlery Wine Bar in Orlando, we tried a lovely white wine, with apple and white flowers on the nose. The palate was expressive with peach, pear, and mineral notes, a round mouthfeel, and good, balanced acidity.

I liked this wine a lot.

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Judith Smelser Beyond Central Florida

Slovenian Orange Wine & Japanese Koshu BTG … in Miami?!

South Florida is hardly considered a Mecca for adventurous wine palates. On a visit there last week, I found a handful of places that are trying to change that.

The standout among them is Uvaggio Wine Bar on Coral Gables’ Miracle Mile (ok, it’s a little south of Miami). This little bar-restaurant and its completely unpretentious sommelier Heath Porter are making wine waves. Just check out this wine list!!

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Geeking out over Uvaggio’s list

21 wines by the glass and half glass, plus Coravin specials … and not a cab or a pinot grigio in sight. The most conventional thing on the BTG list is a Chardonnay from Arroyo Grande near San Luis Obispo, California.

Everything else ranges from the sublime (half glass of Barolo, anyone?) to the completely weird and obscure (read on!). This place is a wine geek’s paradise. I wanted to try everything.

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Judith Smelser Uncategorized

Welcome to My Wine Blog!

For years, people have been telling me I should write a wine blog.

Another wine blog?!

Sure, I love wine, I go to several tastings a week, and I always seem to be talking about wine, but … another wine blog?! Just what the world needs, right?

Well, I’ve finally caved in, so here it is — My Wine Blog!

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1975 Graves at Bern’s Steak House, Tampa

I don’t pretend that it will be particularly unique, or that it’ll fill any particular niche, or that it’ll have any consistent theme, or even that I’ll post at consistent intervals.

But I do think it’ll be fun to have a place to write about wine for my friends (and any innocent bystanders), and a place to organize my burgeoning collection of notes and thoughts about wines I’ve tried, fallen in love with, and been surprised by.

 

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