Tasting notes: A tale of two blahs
I've been sick and post-vacation broke for the past couple weeks, so the only drinkin' I've done is from a couple of bottles of generic Nyquil.
But I'm more or less over my crud (with the exception of my right ear, which, at this point, feels like it could use a nice lancing; Amber, can you come down to help me out with that?) and I had some money to burn (not really, but I burned it anyway) so brought home a couple of cheapies from Tip-Top, my neighborhood liquor store.
Sampling, the first
The Little Penguin Cabernet Sauvignon is a bold, heavy wine. It's sort of like drinking a grape-flavored steak. In other words, this wine is not fucking around, despite the cute little penguin waddling around on the label. Little Penguin is an Australian wine — South Eastern Australia, to be precise — and much like Yellowtail (the only other Australian red I've ever tried; it was a Merlot/Cab combo), Little Penguin seems to be a lot heavier than many domestic Cabs.
I bought a hunk of Vincent gouda and laid out several cubes on a plate with my beloved Breton crackers and proceeded to form a whole different opinion of the Little Penguin as I shoved cheese and crackers into my cheese-and-cracker-and-wine hole. Its aforementioned heaviness (I'm serious, the wine is nearly black) nicely complemented the dry sweetness of the gouda and the flaky consistency of the crackers. The Vincent link up there suggests trying medium-bodied reds like Zin and Merlot, which sounds like a fabulous idea. But Vincent and Little Penguin ain't a bad combo either.
Ha, I am totally blogging about cheese and crackers.
Anyway, Little Penguin seems to me to be a wine you'd want to save for a time when you're eating something savory: Cheese, or perhaps a nice steak. It's a bit much to drink by itself. That said, I also think you can find a much smoother, much better Cab for the same price range (about $10).
Sampling, the second
Hacienda, yet another Pinot Noir from California, is nothing much special. In fact, I drank the whole thing and totally forgot to write down any tasting notes. I remember thinking "meh" on the first couple of swigs and by the time I got to the second glass or so, I remember liking it a bit more. But, well, every wine is good by the second or third glass.
But I'm more or less over my crud (with the exception of my right ear, which, at this point, feels like it could use a nice lancing; Amber, can you come down to help me out with that?) and I had some money to burn (not really, but I burned it anyway) so brought home a couple of cheapies from Tip-Top, my neighborhood liquor store.
Sampling, the firstThe Little Penguin Cabernet Sauvignon is a bold, heavy wine. It's sort of like drinking a grape-flavored steak. In other words, this wine is not fucking around, despite the cute little penguin waddling around on the label. Little Penguin is an Australian wine — South Eastern Australia, to be precise — and much like Yellowtail (the only other Australian red I've ever tried; it was a Merlot/Cab combo), Little Penguin seems to be a lot heavier than many domestic Cabs.
I bought a hunk of Vincent gouda and laid out several cubes on a plate with my beloved Breton crackers and proceeded to form a whole different opinion of the Little Penguin as I shoved cheese and crackers into my cheese-and-cracker-and-wine hole. Its aforementioned heaviness (I'm serious, the wine is nearly black) nicely complemented the dry sweetness of the gouda and the flaky consistency of the crackers. The Vincent link up there suggests trying medium-bodied reds like Zin and Merlot, which sounds like a fabulous idea. But Vincent and Little Penguin ain't a bad combo either.
Ha, I am totally blogging about cheese and crackers.
Anyway, Little Penguin seems to me to be a wine you'd want to save for a time when you're eating something savory: Cheese, or perhaps a nice steak. It's a bit much to drink by itself. That said, I also think you can find a much smoother, much better Cab for the same price range (about $10).
Sampling, the second
Hacienda, yet another Pinot Noir from California, is nothing much special. In fact, I drank the whole thing and totally forgot to write down any tasting notes. I remember thinking "meh" on the first couple of swigs and by the time I got to the second glass or so, I remember liking it a bit more. But, well, every wine is good by the second or third glass.
posted by theogeo at 11:31 AM
1 Comments:
We used to have Little Penguin at the Lob.
That penguin looks pretty fat to me.
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