Because my lovely wife will spit out any wine that isn’t chardonnay made in California, my opportunities for trying other white wines are limited. But we had a bunch of people over and I thought I could sneak one into the mix. Shocking as it may seem, not everyone is enamored of oaky, buttery chardonnays. So this wine was a perfect foil, almost the opposite of the typical California chard. But not quite…it had a few of the characteristics that make those typical chardonnays very popular, such as abundant fruit and a lush mouth feel. But unlike many of those cookie-cutter chards, this Verdelho based wine had just enough structure to make it easy to drink. The fruit seemed to me to be sort of appley (is that a word?), but not sour, just crisp. And since it is Australian, it has a screw top, which makes me very happy. It wasn’t overwhelming, just nice and fruity, with a touch of richness. And even a bit of acid and structure to make you feel like you were getting your money’s worth — a whopping $8 a bottle!
I have never had a bad or even mediocre bottle of wine from Marquis Philips. Everything they make is at least good, with the high-end stuff verging on great. Oh, and I was shocked when I offered my wife a taste and she said, “I could drink this.” High praise indeed!
And just what is wrong with oaky Chards, or a dinner of only red meat and Zin, for that matter? I knew I liked her.
Nothing! I love ’em. And I love crisp Sauvignon blancs. And I really love huge zinfandels. And don’t get me started about martinis and margaritas and single malt scotch and…does this mean something? As for red meat? I assume you mean a steak, cooked rare on a hot grill. I love that too! So does my wife. Life can be grand sometimes.
So far I have only had the Holly’s Blend from the 2007 vintage (which is actually a blend of several different grapes as opposed to the same grape with a mixture between steel and oak aging). I really loved it! It was almost too drinkable… I found myself unable to stop sipping away at it!
What did you pair it with?
I have a bottle of Sarah’s Blend that I will be trying eventually. I can see myself becoming a big fan of the Marquis Philips brand. I will be picking up some of their Roogle wine next time I go to the store.