So glad this week is over! But…instead of relaxing with a glass (or two) of wine… I will be relaxing with my wine JOURNAL. It’s Lent, remember? No vino except on Saturdays and Sundays. Cheating? No, that’s survival. So in between making egg salad for dinner (no meat on Lenten Fridays) and pining for that Jacob’s Creek Pinot Grigio in the fridge, I will write a journal entry re-living our WONDERFUL dinner from LAST weekend at Upperline in New Orleans.
The journal was given to me by my friend Karen, let’s see…back in 2009. What a great gift – she knows I like to write and I love wine! But for some reason, considering how much wine I drink, I haven’t recorded wines in the journal that often. Well…maybe that’s because in the moment you’re drinking, eating, laughing, talking – it can be kind of awkward to whip out your journal and write about it. But when a wine or an EXPERIENCE with a certain wine really sticks with me, I can write about it just like I’m writing in my diary or other journal. And it’s fun to go back and read my tasting comments and who I was with, where we were, what we were doing. I’ve got 12 wines in here, everything from the chianti I had in chianti Italy to a chianti/sangiovese blend from Macaroni Grill. And because I like to go to regional wineries, it’s fun to write about unusual wines that I can’t get just anywhere. Here are the wines that have made it into my journal so far:
Flat Creek Estate Super Texan 2008 (Marble Falls Texas)
Lasios Nero D’avola 2007 (Sicily)
Independent Producers Chardonnay 2008 (Columbia Valley, Washington)
Altos de la Hoya Jumilla 2007 (Spain)
Michael David Petite Petit 2007 (Lodi, California)
Golden Kaan Cabernet 2005 (Paarl, South Africa)
Le Grand Donjon Chardonnay 2007 (France)
Acrobat Pinot Gris 2009 (Willamette Valley)
Monteluce Primoro 2010 (Dahlonega, Georgia)
Montecalvi Chianti Classico 2010 (Chianti, Tuscany)
Crane Creek Vidal Blanc 2011 (North Georgia)
Col di Sasso Cabernet/Sangiovese 2013 (Montalcino, Tuscany)
And tonight’s entry: Trimbach Gewurtzraminer 2010 from Alsace, which we had last Saturday at Upperline in New Orleans. A friend from New York and some friends from Minnesota were visiting and wow – what a fantastic dinner all around. I love Gewurtzraminer but don’t have it that often – probably because I don’t usually want to pay 42 dollars. My friends asked me to choose the wine from the wine list (of course!) and I knew it would be perfect. That Alsatian spice and fruit, so delicious with fish or seasoned meats can be the perfect compromise between red and white. My husband and my friend Nicol had the shrimp and grits (silky smooth) and I had the lamb shank with saffron risotto and, oh – the gewurtz brought out the flavor in both. To start? How about some spicy fried oysters in between sips of that spiced honey and lychee fruit. Can you say divine??? And afterwards, with honey-pecan bread pudding topped with toffee sauce? Smashing! Best dinner I’ve had in a while. I have to agree with the description on the Trimbach website which states, quite frankly: “It is in Alsace that this grape variety reaches the height of perfection”. Fortunately tonight I have a couple episodes of Mad Men recorded to go with my egg salad….
alittleway 
I wish I did a journal for the wines I have drank, so many wonderful wines, now lost to my memory. The best pairing I have ever done was in a wine bar in Rome. It was incredible and yet if you asked me about the wine I wouldn’t be able to tell you. So sad!
Yes it’s so much about the PAIRING isn’t it? Of course, being in a wine bar in Rome surely must have added to the incredibleness. It would be interesting to taste it again by itself and compare. Not too late to start keeping a wine journal though!
wow high price for a wine, living across the border from Alsace I will go check it out, I do love a good Gewürztraminer, also checked the pricing – it’s around 20 dollars before being shipped all the way round the world – a high price for a white but apparently it’s worth every penny 🙂
Yes! Because sometimes you have to splurge a bit! Glad you’re going to try it! The Trimbach winery sounds like a great place to visit, too. Apparently they’ve been making wine since 1626!
Wow! How interesting, I didn’t know people journal their wines and accompanying meals…makes me want to journal something…but I guess I do that with my blog!
Thank you for sharing your memories with us at this week’s Fiesta Friday 😀
I know what you mean, it felt kind of funny to be blogging about what I was going to put in my journal, but it didn’t feel redundant – the journal contains little tidbits that didn’t make it into the blog.
And how fab to remind yourself of what you felt and thought when you had that wine and meal 🙂
I’m not a wine connoisseur, but an occasional drinker. I like the idea of journaling specific experiences, though. For me it might be interesting to journal about music.