Beverages: Wine :: Leslie Durso

Archive for Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Northwest Totem Cellars

By Leslie · Comments (2) · May 15th, 2013

Happy Wine Wednesday! It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a new wine, but I’m happy to introduce you to Northwest Totem Cellars! They are located up in Washington state and make fabulous vegan wine! This is the “Qo-ne” which is a Cab Franc blend. It was delicious! Fruity and smooth this wine is perfect for a Summer afternoon! I paired it with my Tomato Quinoa Risotto and it was just fabulous! I also have the Cabernet Franc that I can’t wait to open, I’ll post notes here with what I thought, but if this first bottle is any indication I’m going to love it!

And if you happen to be in the Washington area check out their events page, it looks like Mike Sharadin (the owner/operator/wine maker) knows how to have fun! They through all sorts of events at the winery!

Cheers!

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Categories : Beverages: Wine, featured, the pantry

White Wine & Peach Sangria

By Leslie · Comments (10) · September 1st, 2011

September first…. really!!?? I can’t believe this Summer is almost over! In order to squeeze the last bits of sun and fun out of this Summer I decided to make sangria. Sangria always reminds me of warm Summer days, usually by the beach, hopefully somewhere on the coast in Europe. While you can make sangria about a bazillion ways, today I decided to use what I already had in the house (pure laziness not to have to go to the store). But in using what I had, I came up with a new sangria recipe I’d never made before (yay!). I hope you enjoy your labor day weekend and this sangria somewhere fabulous! Drink up these last days of Summer because we’ll be trading our bathing suits for sweaters before you know it!!

White Wine and Peach Sangria

Makes 1 pitcher

What you’ll need:

1 bottle of white wine (I used CalNaturale Chardonnay. I think chardonnay works great)

1/2 litre of club soda

1 cup lemonade

1/4 cup agave (more or less depending on how sweet you like it) or sugar

1 peach, sliced

1 small lemon, sliced

a few mint sprigs

What you’ll do:

Mix all the ingredients in a pitcher, cover and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight. Enjoy!

Printer Friendly Version

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Categories : Beverages: Cocktails, Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Red Truck Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

By Leslie · Comments (3) · August 10th, 2011

Ah, Wednesday… halfway through the week. It there a better time to crack open a nice bottle of wine and celebrate something special or nothing at all? This week I'm featuring Red Truck's 2009 cabernet sauvignon.

This wine was surprisingly good! Call me crazy, but I'm always a little more cautious of wines with pictures on the label, I know I just told you I'm crazy. But I really really liked this wine despite the very pretty picture of the red truck. It's full bodied, full of flavor and has a nice smooth finish! It's the kind of wine you can drink on your own or it would pair great with any food. Two thumbs up!

Another fabulous thing about this wine is that you can find it for under $10! I got this bottle at my local grocery store, but here is a website you can buy it online : )

Enjoy!

Red Truck wine did not send me this bottle for review, but I wouldn't be upset if they did want to send me some ; )

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Categories : Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Bonterra Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

By Leslie · Comments (2) · June 29th, 2011

First off, how gorgeous is that quilt?? We spent last weekend in Lake Charles, Louisiana for our friends wedding. It was a fabulous weekend! Even though the South is not always the most vegetarian friendly place, I adore it down there! It's so pretty and the people are so great! This quilt was on one of the guest beds at our friends house and is over 100 years old! I couldn't help taking pictures of it to share : )

Bonterra Vineyards is in beautiful Mendicino (if you have never been up there, I highly recommend it!). It's an 100% organic wine, which of course make it even more enjoyable.

Honestly, I don't often love a cabernet sauvignon. I find them a little too complex for me to drink alone and I find it hard to sometimes pair it with vegetarian food. (PS if you have bottles you'd like me to try, please recommend!) That being said, I loved this wine! It was much smoother than a lot of other cabs and there was no lingering on the back of my tongue. Really exciting flavors with a beautiful soft finish. Two thumbs up over here! I would pair this wine with some bold cheeses, tomatoes, olives or of course chocolate.

Another great part about this wine is that it tastes expensive. Laugh all you like, but who likes a bottle that tastes cheap?? You can find this bottle for $11.99. I got this particular one at Whole Foods in Dallas, TX (long story short: we had to land in dallas and drive to lake charles!), so you can find this wine there or at my favorite place for wine, K&L Wine. (If you don't know that store, check it out! Full of great finds and great prices!)

Check out my latest videos:

http://swf.ifood.tv/flvPlayList.swf

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Categories : Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Castle Rock, Pinot Noir

By Leslie · Comments (1) · June 15th, 2011

Great find! Easily one of the best bottles of pinot noir out there for under ten dollars. I found this Castle Rock Pinot Noir at Trader Joe’s, but it’s also available at Costco.

This bottle is everything you want in a pinot noir. It was light, complex, fruity and fabulous! I served this with a hearty tomato sauce and it was delish.

Next time you are at Trader Joe’s definitely pick it up!

And for tips on how to properly taste wine, see the video below:

http://swf.ifood.tv/flvPlayList.swf

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Categories : Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: How to Drink Wine Like a Pro

By Leslie · Comments (3) · June 1st, 2011

Join me as expert Kristen Buttermore explains the best ways to taste wine and recommends a fabulous bottle.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37kauCqoXcY]

You can find this bottle and so many more fabulous picks at The Gold Medal Wine Club.

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Categories : Beverages: Wine, Videos

Wine Friday: Oberon, Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

By Leslie · Comments (1) · May 27th, 2011

Why do wine reviews only get to come on Wednesday?? Here's a toast to Friday! We made it through the week! Any big holiday weekend plans? Lot's of bbq's and parties?? This bottle may be a good thing to include : )

We were given this bottle as a gift by the lovely and talented Mr. Tim Dowling (screenwriter extraordinaire). Tim always has pretty good taste in wine so I knew this would probably live up and it did.

Apparently, this wine was named One of “a dozen American treasures, great wines under $20.” – Eric Asimov - The New York Times

And wine spectator gave it 86 points.

When it comes to flavor, this cab has a lot going on! There is a lot of complexity with lots of cherry. It's not too heavy, like a lot of cabs, but it can hold it's own. This wine was complex enough for my husband to eat meat with, yet it was light enough for me to eat vegetarian. (PS this doesn't happen that often) This wine is a new must on our wine shelf. Loved it!

Here you can find the bottle for about $20.00. Vine Rebublics Website

So no matter what you are doing, enjoy the holiday weekend!!

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Categories : Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Mark West Pinot Noir

By Leslie · Comments (0) · April 13th, 2011

Mark West pinot noir is a damn fine bottle for under $20.00, in fact it's under $10.00! I found this bottle for $9.00!

My Mom was actually the one who recommended this wine. It's light, fruity and full of smooth flavor. Not the most complex wine I've ever had, but it's easy to drink and I would categorize it as a social wine. Something nice to open with friends. A fun cocktail hour kinda wine. So next time you are in need of a good wine for girls night, check it out.

Enjoy!

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Categories : Beverages: Wine

Wine Wednesday: Anthropology Shiraz

By Leslie · Comments (0) · March 23rd, 2011

Whenever I see a bottle labeled "sustainably farmed" I take a second look. Sustainable farming is so important to our world environment! I won't go into a whole speech about it today because it's Wednesday and that means it's all about wine! I kinda love this quote taken from the Anthropology website:

Anthropology, by definition, is the study of the culture and traditions. Remarkably, one of the oldest social customs on record is the enjoyment of a great glass of wine. With this in mind, we use sustainable vineyard practices to craft a rich, well-balanced Shiraz that is perfect for all occasions. Pure estate-grown, Central Ranges, Australia.

It kinda sums it up right? But I do love this wine for two reasons: It goes down very smooth and it is under $10! This wine is not that complex, it is in fact pretty simple. But that's the kind of wine that's perfect for a little unwinding after a long day. This wine doesn't need to be paired with anything just a comfy chair and a glass. So if you are in that kind of mood definitely check out Anthropology Shiraz.