Tasting: Lobetia Tempranillo-Petit Verdot Roble

Lobetia Tempranillo-Petit Verdot Roble
La Mancha, Spain
2010
$15.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: Organic and naturally grown and made, this wine allows the varietal and the terrior to stant out cleanly. It shows a nice cherry colour with a violet shade. Red berries and cherries bouquet on the nose combined with spice and coffee. On the palate there are flavors of chocolate and cherries, it is fresh, sweet tannins and harmonious with a long finish. Pair with: beef sirloin with pepper sauce.
My Review: This blended wine has spent six months in oak. Once again, I tasted the darker fruits such as cherries that I seemed to taste with this brand of wine. It was soft at first in the front of the palate, but harsher once it reached the back portion of the palate. 

Tasting: Lobetia Tempranillo

Lobetia Tempranillo
La Mancha, Spain
2012
$9.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: Shows a nice cherry colour with a violet shade because of its youth. Red berries and cherries bouquet on the nose. On the palate it is fresh, slightly astringent and harmonious with long finish. Great with meats and appetizers.
My Review: I smelled dark fruits when sniffing it: plums, cherries, the works. Between its light finish and relative ease on the palate, I can imagine this would go well with a juicy steak and red steak. 

Tasting: Lobetia Chardonnay

Lobetia Chardonnay
La Mancha, Spain
2011
$9.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: Clean bright coloured at sight, with greenish yellow tone. On the nose, exotic fruits like pineapple scents. Full flavoured, fresh, with good acidity in mouth, it recalls a tropical fruits bouquet. Great with every kind of fish.
My Review: A 100% Chardonnay wine, I learned this wine did not receive the oak treatment and instead sat in stainless steel. I have come to discover that I really like the flavors that oak brings to wine, so that always kind of disappoints me when it skips out on that treatment. It was very soft on the palate though, which is always refreshing to me. Sometimes, I don't really want that harsh bite that some wines have.

Tasting: Lobetia Viognier

Liobetia Viogner
La Mancha, Spain
2011
$12.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: Shows a bright golden colour with lime reflections. Fruity citric aromas and magnolia or Tahiti flowers-like scent. Well balanced and good acidity, in the mouth it recalls the flowers perceived on the nose. Match with: Asian dishes, ginger and marinated fish.
My Review: This particular wine may be from Spain, but Viogner is a big grape in Virginia. However, I wasn't a huge fan of this wine. This wine was particularly flowery and herbal, both on the nose and on the tongue. 

Tasting: Lobetia Bubbles

Lobetia Bubbles
La Mancha, Spain
Non-Vintage
$9.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: Organic and naturally grown and made, this wine allows the varietal and the terroir to stand out cleanly. At sight, uniform beads of tiny bubbles reach the surface of the wine in a perfect and concentric crown. Clean bright coloured, with a greenish yellow tone. On the nose, exotic fruits like pineapple scents. On the palate, creamy bubble, full flavored, fresh, with good acidity, it recalls a tropical fruits bouquet. A perfect match: All kind of fish and seafood, cheese.
My Review: When smelling it, the aromas of pineapple struck me hard and remained with me after tasting it. It tasted very tropical, very fruity. I was also struck by the obvious flavors I was able to pick out in a sparkling wine. 

Wine Festival: Blacksburg Fork and Cork

The first winery we visited was Mountain Rose Vineyards from Wise, Virginia. With our young palattes, we chose to sample the sweet wines offered. This was probably my favorite winery showcased at Fork and Cork, as all the wines tasted like liquid candy. 
The two particular wines that caught my attention at Mountain Rose were Pardee Red and Autumn Gold. 

Pardee Red
Chancellor and Chambourcin
$10.50
Review Provided by Mountain Rose Vineyards: Delicious red sipping with nice cherry and light grape flavors. It's smooth from the beginning to end with great body and mouth feel. Pair with honey ham and pasta. Great for Mulling and Sangria. Sweet Wine.
My Review: We all know that for the most part, wines are made from grapes. But this wine really smelled and tasted like grapes, particularly white grapes. It's very sweet, if I remember it was the second to last before the dessert wine. It was even sweeter than grape flavored candy it seemed.

Autumn Gold
Vidal Blanc
$17.99
Review Provided by Mountain Rose Vineyards: Our late harvest or ice-wine style wine has a beautiful rich straw color made from Vidal Blanc grapes. The apricot and honey aroma is accented by a smooth lychee taste, lingering hints of honey and balanced acidity.
My Review: The woman pouring the wine said this was a wine that should be drank in moderation because of how sweet it is. Indeed, she was right. This wine was very, very sweet, with hints of thick honey and syrup, it seemed more like something I should be dumping on my pancakes in the morning then a wine.

Our next stop was at Lexington Valley Vineyards, located in the Shenandoah Valley. Maybe it was because my palate had just been overloaded with sweet, liquid sugar, but these wines certainly seemed drier than what I had just had at Mountain Rose Vineyards. 

Vignoles Vignoles
Vignoles
$13.00
Review Provided by Lexington Valley Vineyard: An excellent crisp, dry white wine with aromas and flavors of peaches and pears. Enjoy with cheese, appetizers, pasta, fish and chicken. Also great with Chinese dishes. 
My Review: I try to love everything Virginia, I really do. Virginia sports, Virginia politics, Virginia wine, I try to love it all. But this wine just didn't strike my fancy. It was very dry and just didn't strike me as anything special. 

2010 Norton
Norton
$16.00
Review Provided by Lexington Valley Vineyard: Tired of wimpy red wines? This original Virginia varietal has a great taste with black cherry flavors and complimentary tannins for a truly satisfying glass of real wine. Try Norton with chocolate, wow! Also pairs with a juicy steak, lamb, game meats and sharp cheddar.
My Review: My palate is not very sophisticated yet and had just been bombarded with liquid sugar, but I was not a fan of this wine. It was very dry and very spicy, too much so for my taste. It took everything in me just to finish the tasting of this wine. 

Next were the wines offered by Peaks of Otter Winery. The line was really long, and took a really long time as well. Best known for their "Chili Dawg" wine, the pourers insisted everyone who tasted together take the Chili Dawg together as a shot with a chaser, putting to life the philosophy that nothing brings people together like alcohol. They were very much about bringing the crowd together at Peaks of Otter.

Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry, Apple
$12.00
Review Provided by Peaks of Otter: Light Apple, Strawberry Wine; Smooth, Crisp, Refreshing
My Review: This was my favorite wine I tried in the entire festival. It was very sweet and very light on the palate when I tasted it. I love strawberry and apple wines, and the combination of these fruits in a wine was perfect. 

Blueberry Muffin
Blueberry
$18.00
Review Provided by Peaks of Otter: Light Apple, Blueberry Wine
My Review: A perfect breakfast wine, as the pourer described it. I could imagine drinking this wine in the morning with pancakes. It was very soft on the palate, and very fruity, but not so sweet that it would clash with morning pancakes. 

Pure Passion

Apple

$20.00

Review Provided by Peaks of Otter: Light Apple, Passion Fruit Wine

My Review: When the pourer said this was their passionfruit wine, I knew right away that I would love it. And I was right. When it hit my mid-palate, it tasted of pineapple. It was sweet at first, and then soured out and tasted more of grapefruit. This was definitely one of my favorite wines of the day. 

The festival was called Fork and Cork for a reason. It was a wine and food festival. They had cooking demonstrations scattered all throughout the festival. One that we watched and sampled  was one on Asian Cabbage Salad. Whenever I try Asian food, I always like it more then I think I will. This would definitely go good with a drier wine better than with any of the sweet wines I tasted. 

At Peaks of Otter winery, the pourers offered cheese to pair with one of their spicier, chili wines. Festival goers were instructed to taste the piece of cheddar cheese and then knock back the "Kiss the Devil" Chili Pepper wine as if we were taking a shot. When the two mixed together, they tasted just like pepper jack cheese. It was remarkable.

All in all, Fork and Cork was a fabulous time. Drank lots of great wine, ate some great local food, and met some fabulous Blacksburgians. I love supporting local businesses and hanging out with the local townsfolk, so festivals like this just make me excited about living in such a great town!

Tasting: Cantine Rosa del Golfo

Cantine Rosa del Golfo
Alezio, Italy
2010
$14.95
Review Provided by the Vintage Cellar: Colour is ruby red with purple reflections. Bouquet generous, persistant bouquet recalling almond and hazelnut. Palate dry, soft and harmonious, and well-structured. Accompaniments red meat, game-birds, seasoned cheese.
My Review: This is another wine that I liked so much I decided to add it to my collection. The aromas on this wine are fantastic and very fitting to my nose palate: fall spices such as nutmeg and clove. It also doesn't have such a harsh ending as some wines do, but it instead softens at the end. This is also a very toasty wine.

Tasting: Stickybeat Chardonnay

Stickybeak Chardonnay
Russian River Valley, California
2010
$12.95
Review Provided by the Vintage Cellar: The nose shows intense characters of pear, spice and almonds. with underlying peach notes. The palate is long and powerful displaying dried pear, toasty, creamy, custard tart and nuances of cashew with lingering stone fruit and a fresh, clean acid finish.
My Review: Stan, the guy pouring wine at the Vintage Cellar on Saturday, gave us a good explanation of where the term "Stickybeak" comes from. Stickybeak may be located in California, but it is Australian-owned. "Stickybeak" is an Australian term for someone who is nosey or a busy-buddy. When you look at the label, you can see above the hole in the fence so that a nosey neighbor can see in to the next neighbor's yard to see what's going on. I could definitely tell this wine had spent some time in oak. Stan told me that it is mostly stored in old oak, but can be stored in new oak as well. I got that sense from the spicy, toasty, almond tastes dancing on my palate.

Tasting: Foris Pinot Gris

Foris Pinot Gris
Rogue Valley in Oregon
2011
$15.95
Review Provided by the Vintage Cellar: Although the 2011 vintage was difficult, Foris did particularly well with this light, spicy, fruit-laden Pinot Gris. True varietal flavors of pear and apple are perfectly set against vivid acidity.
My Review: I liked this wine so much that I actually came out with a bottle of it once I was done (I always seem to do that at the Vintage Cellar). The apple and pear tastes and aromas were very prominent in this tasting.

Tasting: Mokoroa Txakolina

Mokoroa Txakolina
Spain
2011
$13.95
Review provided by the Vintage Cellar: Young, fruity, dry white wine with high acidity and medium alcohol content (9.5%-11.5%). As a result of the fermentation process, this wine is slightly sparkling, producing a tingle on the palate and a full range of aromas. Two grape varietals, Hondarrabi Zuri, which makes up 95% percent of the vines, and Hondarrabi Beltza, which makes up the remaining 5%. Txakoli is excellent as an aperitif and is best when drank within one year of bottling. Mokoroa's Txakoli is a tremendous value for its quality.
My Review: I didn't really think a wine could be this fruity and this dry at the same time. It was kind of weird for me. I can't really say that I was a huge fan of this wine.

Tasting: Yalumba Museum Muscat

Yalumba Museum Muscat
Australia
Year Unlisted
$22.95
Review Provided by The Vintage Cellar: The non-vintage Museum Reserve Muscat boasts a medium deep amber hue as well as stunning aromas and huge flavors oozing with glycerin, sweetness, honeyed figs, jammy berries, and notions of tea, molasses, and prunes. This wine does not improve in the bottle, but it will last for many years.
My Review: It's amber hue reminds me of syrup, so much so that I half-expected it to be thick and oozy coming out of the bottle. Alas, it had a usual wine consistency. While it's consistency was that of a wine, it's aroma and taste reminded me of honey and syrup. I feel like I could pour this all over my waffles in the morning. Very delicious.

Tasting: Villa da Filicaja Chianti Superiore

Villa da Filicaja Chianti Superiore
Chianti, Italy
2009
$12.95
Review provided by The Vintage Cellar: Chianti Superiore DOCG "Conte Andrea" is the best product of first-choice Sangiovese grapes from our best vineyards. It rests for twelve months in barrels of white oak (Quercus Alba), producing a very special high standard Chianti Superiore wine.
My Review: The aromas remind me of dark fruits such as cherries and especially plums. Upon tasting it, the plum flavor is what really popped out at me. I actually bought this wine after tasting it, since it goes best with my favorite kind of food: Italian! I'm really excited to try this wine with pasta or pizza.

Tasting: Simonet Vin Mousseux Sparkling Wine

Simonet Vin Mousseux Sparkling Wine
Alsace, France
year unlisted
$9.98
Review provided by Wines and Words: I had to put this one in, because it often gets lost in the shuffle due to its low price. Don’t be fooled. It’s a very respectable sparkler of 100% Chardonnay. That’s why it’s called Blanc de Blancs, “a white wine from white grapes.” And since it’s not from the Champagne region, it has to be labeled Vin Mousseux (“sparkling wine”) as well as Brut (“dry”). It’s made by Caves de Wissembourg, a very respectable producer of prize-winning sparklers that are distributed throughout Europe. So treat yourself to “Champagne” on a beer budget...and let the bubbles flow.
My Review: The only other sparkling wine I've ever had is champagne, which probably everyone has had. I don't know how carbonated sparkling wines usually are, but I was surprised at how not carbonated this wine was. The best descriptors I can get from this one were herbal and floral, as the carbonation kind of threw my taste buds off.

Tasting: Arca Nova Alvarinho

Arca Nova Alvarinho
Portugal
2011
About $13
Review from Wine Spectator: A taut style, with graphite and mineral notes to the green peach and crunchy apple flavors. The crisp finish features hints of smoke.
My Review: The wine smelled of pears and apples and remained true to its aroma upon tasting. The tastes were fruity and floral, but most of the fruity tastes reminded me of a crisp, green apple. 

Tasting: Dom de la Louvetrie Muscadet

Dom de la Louvetrie Muscadet
Loire, France
2010
$15.95

Review provided by the Vintage Cellar: Jo Landron's Muscadet Sevre et Maine is from a beautiful walled vineyard sloping towards the Sevre, with clay, sand, and quartz stones over a bedrock of Orthogneiss. The vines average fourty to fifty years of age, the vineyard is certified organic and biodynamic and gives very low yields. Always one of my favorite Muscadets, the 2011 is superb with citrus, pear and herbal aromas with a bit of smoke and sea-salt. The palate is dense and very long with fabulous acidity. It will provide exhilarating early drinking and will be very interesting in twenty years as well.
My Review: A good start for my wine tasting experience this go-around. The herbal aromas mentioned in The Vintage Cellar's review were evident and the sea salt provided a unique touch to the wine.