Slip into the ambiance of this Cali Riesling

Bottom of the Barrel: Zinfully good: this bargain rosé has impressive taste

This week we decided to step out of our comfort zone and try out a White Zinfandel. While Brandon is not particularly fond of rosés, we felt it was only fair to add variety. While perusing our favorite wine section at Hannaford’s, we settled upon a Sutter Home White Zinfandel.
White Zinfandels come from Zinfandel grapes, but are processed differently to create a semi-sweet rosé instead of a heartier red wine. Our particular wine was actually created by mistake on the part of Sutter Home Winery. The accidental creation of this sweet pink wine proved to be incredibly valuable—White Zinfandels are now the third most popular type of wine in the U.S.
When Bryce first smelled the wine he initially noticed vanilla, but it matured into lighter floral and berry notes with undertones of melon. Overall, not the most exciting nose to date.
Let’s just say that this wine is easy to drink. It is sweet—akin to a Riesling—but far from a true dessert wine. Our White Zin is delicious on its own, by the glass or bottle, but could pair with anything you have on hand in your dorm for snacks, such as Wheat Thins or White Cheddar Cheez-Its. But honestly, snacking just takes time away from drinking.
The taste of the wine itself is like creamy strawberries with a slight nuance of watermelon. This wine has the unique ability to be sipped or—in Brandon’s case—guzzled. Like a good lover, this wine has a gentle and smooth mouthfeel that makes you want to keep drinking more. The body was a little thin for Brandon’s taste, but Bryce preferred its lightness and found the wine to be more delicate than thin.
You may have noticed this column is less snarky than usual. This is probably due to the fact that we loved this wine so much, we could not think of any disparaging comments about it. For those of you who know us, please try to contain your shock at this revelation that we have found something that truly pleases us both. This poses a difficulty in terms of any criticism, but we believe that what has occurred here this evening can only be labeled an epiphany. What had we been doing with our lives before we discovered this wine?
We had been lost on a path strewn with Barefoot Pinot Noir and Franzia Crisp White, but tonight we have found the one true wine and it is Sutter Home White Zinfandel. If you are partial to Franzia’s Sunset Blush, set down that filthy bag and grab a bottle of this wine. We promise you won’t be disappointed.
Additional NotesBrandon: “This wine is definitely a keeper. I can see myself in 20 years coming home from a long day of therapy to a screaming child and perpetually disappointed husband, sneaking into my kitchen, popping off the cork to a Sutter Home White Zin and enjoying a well deserved glass of ‘juice’.”Bryce: “Why this wine isn’t in Capri Sun-like packaging is beyond me.” Nose: 3 Mouthfeel: 3.5Body: 3Taste: 4.5 Grab some Sutter Home White Zinfandel before we drink it all. Hannaford: $7.99.

Bottom of the Barrel: Sweet dreams not made of this: Insomnia Pinot Grigio

Did you miss us? We certainly missed you. Or at least we missed the wine. Because that’s what it is really all about, isn’t it?
As we write this, we are holed up in our Coles Tower room sheltering ourselves from Snowpocalypse Juno, which is currently raging just outside our window. On a night like tonight, there is no greater joy than to uncork a bottle of wine, put on a good rom-com, and spend time with those who mean most to you. After all, with weather like this, they’ll probably soon be buried under a mountain of snow.
We decided on “It’s Complicated” for the movie (can’t go wrong with Meryl) and we honestly can’t imagine anyone better than ourselves to spend time with. That only leaves us with the wine. This week we went with a California Pinot Grigio, this time under the Insomnia brand. Fitting, given the long hours we have both been keeping due to our level of schoolwork. So much for an easy senior spring.
Normally we supply an entertaining backstory regarding how we carefully compared and selected our wine. This time, however, our wine choice was gifted to us by Brandon’s grandmother as her highest sub-$10 recommendation. We shall see if it lives up to its lofty expectations.
So without further ado, the cork was popped and the wine was glugging into our glasses. Let the early week drinking commence once again. Our initial impression was that the wine certainly looked like pinot grigio, and carried a pleasantly light nose. Although to be fair, Bryce and I have been sick the past few days, so that may be a product of congestion more than anything else.
At first sip, we were initially struck by the dryness of the wine. It was certainly drier than our last pinot, although when you are drawing comparisons with FlipFlop you never really know what to expect. Bryce did not find the dryness to be totally off-putting. Brandon, however, felt that this wine tasted like you could strip paint with it.
In terms of mouthfeel, Brandon found it to be quite nice, however Bryce was not as approving. He felt that the mouthfeel was unimpressive and liquidy, seeming to forget that when one is drinking wine, liquidity is presumably to be expected. The body leaves something to be desired. And here we were in rare complete agreement, finding the body to be thin and rather watery.
Despite our ambivalence towards this wine, we still decided to drain the entire bottle. We felt it would disappoint you, our loyal readers, if we didn’t. If nothing else, despite the wine’s misleading name, it help put us to sleep. To be honest, most of the wines we review for this column have been used as a general sleep aid. And no, in case you are wondering, we are not alcoholics! Don’t judge us!
Additional Notes: Brandon: They must call this Insomnia because the taste of this wine will haunt my dreams for years to come. Bryce: The more I drink, the less happy I am. That should never be the case.
Nose: 2.5Mouthfeel: 2.5Body: 3.5Taste: 3.5
Make a 3 am run to get some Insomnia, Hannaford, $8.99.

Bottom of the Barrel

Slip into the ambiance of this Cali Riesling

This piece represents the opinion of the authors:

December 5, 2014

Going into the end of the semester is a trying ordeal for any stressed college student. We wholeheartedly endorse using wine as a medicinal coping mechanism for when you can no longer deal with reality. Brandon is a psych major, so you know our advice is legit.*

Deciding to kick the class up a notch this week, we chose Spotify’s “Coffee Table Jazz” to play as we expertly sampled our wine, a California Riesling appropriately labeled “Belle Ambiance.” Our spit cups nowhere to be found we decided to drink the whole bottle like we usually do. Keep the music classy, but true wine connoisseurs need to be able to taste the entire bottle.

As Brandon popped the cork we noticed that our “Belle Ambiance” Riesling fit the environment quite well. With a delightful glugging akin to a cherub’s laugh, the glasses were filled and the bottle was suddenly half empty.

A very light nose greeted us with floral notes, not very strong overall, but quite pleasing. Also, who really cares what it smells like as long as it tastes good, right? The color of the wine is a white gold, and the body is relatively light.

Rieslings are known to be quite sweet and low in alcohol content. This wine delivered on only one of those qualities.

Typically German, our California Reisling was sweet, but not cloying. With an American twist, however, our wine was at a comfortable 12 percent alcohol by volume, resting on the higher end of the scale for this type of wine. Have we found a wine that gives us the best of both worlds?

The wine is refreshingly sweet at first, yet finishes well with a light acidity. Easy enough to sip on its own, we didn’t feel the need to pair it with anything but more wine.

The aftertaste is lovely and lends itself to making this a casual sipping wine. It also makes you want to drink more.
This wine is the ultimate stress reliever. We highly suggest pairing it with some smooth jazz, even if you aren’t a fan, and then just let yourself feel the stress melt away. If you wish to go into a happiness coma grab two bottles, turn on the music, and throw on the Parent Trap (Lohan version, obviously).

Remember: you’re going to be okay, if you let the Belle Ambiance take you away.

Additional Notes:

Brandon: I can imagine putting on a record, curling up in front of the fire with my (as of yet, nonexistent) significant other and escaping into the Belle Ambiance.

Bryce: I am actually at such a relaxed state right now that I could find Nicolas Cage repairing the Coles Tower elevator and I wouldn’t even be fazed.

Nose: 3.5
Mouthfeel: 4
Body: 3.5
Taste: 4.5

As per the good doctor’s orders go grab your weekly bottle and de-stress. $9.99 at Target.

*Disclaimer: Brandon is not an actual doctor of psychology.

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