Thursday, March 27, 2025

Wine Tasting - Blackberry Wine

 Name: Country Crush Blackberry Wine

Country: Michigan, USA



Review: When I was at Kroger to get the Malbec wine that I tried, this caught my eye. My mom was talking to me about this blackberry wine she had tried at her friends house and it made me want to try another fruit wine other than grape. To be honest, I haven't had much luck with finding a wine that I have enjoyed. This blackberry wine was refreshing and tasty. It was very sweet and fragrant. This is definitely a desert wine to 

Monday, March 17, 2025

Wine Tasting - Malbec

 Name: Barefoot Malbec

Variety: Malbec

Region: Mendoza

Country: Argentina

Year: NV

Price: $6.99

Wine Folly: https://winefolly.com/grapes/malbec/
Wine Folly told me that Malbec wines primary flavors typically are red plum, blackberry, vanilla, sweet tobacco, and cocoa. It is a full body wine with medium dryness. It recommended to decant for 30 minutes and to pair with red meat. 
Wine Review: 
This wine was definitely on the dryer side. I tasted currant, blackberry, and dark cocoa. However, I did not taste vanilla or sweet tobacco like what wine folly said I might taste. I paired it with my dinner of venison just to try it with a leaner red meat like recommended. 
Personal Review: I was very excited to try this Malbec with my dinner. I knew I was going to have venison and wanted to have a fun date night with my boyfriend and try it together. So I looked up what would pair best with it and Malbec was recommended. While it was fun doing the tasting and experiencing it together, we both did not enjoy the combination of the deer and the wine. 




Monday, February 17, 2025

Wine Tasting - Pinot Grigio


Name: Seaglass Pinot Grigio
Variety: 93% Pinot Grigio, 4% Gruner Veltliner, 3% Albarino
Region: Central Coast (California)
Country: USA
Year: 2023
Price: $13.99



Wine Review: I picked this wine up at Kroger when I picked up my last blog on the Woodbridge Pinot Noir. I decided to pick up a pinot grigio because it is one of the more familiar wine varieties that I have heard of. Dennis who helped me pick out the Pinot Noir, saw I had a Pinot Grigio as well and he told me I would get lemon zest and citrus flavors. 

Wine Folly: https://winefolly.com/grapes/pinot-gris/
The wine folly told me that the Pinot Gris (grigio) typical primary flavors are white peach, lemon zest, cantaloupe, green almond, and crushed gravel. It did not recommend to decant and I followed the recommendation to drink it between 45 and 55 degrees F. 
Personal Review: This wine was refreshing. I got the hints of lemon and citrus zest as well as apple. It just felt clean. However I did not get the flavors of white peach, cantaloupe, green almond, or crushed gravel which is what wine folly said is typically the flavors of Pinot Grigio. This wine was light. 

 

Monday, February 3, 2025

Tasting - Pinot Noir

 Name: Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Pinot Noir

Variety: Pinot Noir and Syrah

Region: California

Country: USA

Year: NV

Price: $8



Wine Review: When I was shopping in Kroger for my groceries I decided to pick up some wines to try. A man named Dennis introduced himself to me when I was browsing and helped me pick this Pinot Noir out. I don't have much knowledge of wine and he understood that and I told him that I was looking for something that is basic that could just get me started. Dennis told me I would get notes of cherries and raspberries. 

Wine Folly: https://winefolly.com/grapes/pinot-noir/ 
The typically flavors of Pinot Noir based on Wine Folly are raspberries, cherries, mushroom, vanilla, and hibiscus. I did get the notes of cherries and raspberries but none of the others. They recommended to serve at slightly cooler than room temperature and to allow to decant for 30 minutes. I did not try the decanting but possibly will attempt that next time! 

Personal Review: This was the first wine I have tried and thought about after drinking. I did taste cherries and raspberries but I also go hints of dark chocolate. The finish was short. The wine was quite smooth. I did not try with food but would love to retry it with a meal!







Monday, January 27, 2025

Introducing Me

Hello! 
My name is Blair, I am a junior at Virginia Tech, and I am very excited about this semester because I am taking Geography of Wine. The main reason I am taking this course is because I have no experience or prior knowledge of wine. I have only tried a handful of wines but I am looking forward to expanding my palate. 

What I am most excited to learn about the most is the different between types of wines, and what wines pair best with types of food. I have only briefly tried sips of wine here and there and have never just had a glass and enjoyed it and thought deeply about it. As of right now, I don't have any preferences to tastes due to lack of experience, however that is what I am looking to get out of this class. 

I grew up in Roanoke, Virginia, and there are a few wineries around but I have never explored them. My parents aren't wine drinkers so I have never gotten the urge to just relax and try wines. Well that is until now. Over this course I am going to really dive in, and challenge myself to learn as much as possible while having fun!

Thank you!

Wine Tasting - Blackberry Wine

 Name: Country Crush Blackberry Wine Country: Michigan, USA Review: When I was at Kroger to get the Malbec wine that I tried, this caught my...