In-Laws Week!

Hello, my patient w(h)iners!

I know it's been a while since our last post, and we're sorry for the delay, but April has been a month full of traveling for our w(h)iners, and so we've had a minor hiatus! We'll be up and w(h)ining again soon, though!

So, in the mean time, Brandi went to Minnesota to visit her husband's family, and ended up having a wine night with them and making a video up for our fellow w(h)iners to enjoy!

So...without further ado...Enjoy this special guest edition!




We actually tried three different Minnesota wines before all these shenanigans, and I completely missed filming our reactions...Sadly.

However, the reactions weren't really great, overall, so I am just going to move on to the fun part (not that we didn't have fun--you just don't get to see it...So let's skip it!).

After we brought out the dessert cheese ball--a monster cookie cheese ball made by the lovely Lexi--we decided we needed to end the night on a good note, wine-wise. Hallie and I searched out a good red she'd found before, and Bruce broke out the yummy white, and we had an entirely new tasting!

Malbec-Merlot blend, Casa Piedra Alta, 2012

We started off the after-party-of-sorts with a dry, red wine from Argentina. This "House of the Higher Rock" wine was a deliciously smooth wine.

In the nose, we started off by smelling "deliciousness" and dried chiles, and "a lot of work." Whatever that means. Another w(h)iner pointed out a cotton smell, which was mistaken for hot, and also valid. The w(h)iners carried on with the bouquet, finding "attitude" in the smell, as well, which, sadly is pretty accurate. One w(h)iner found what we later termed, "terminal bread." Points go to the DeWitts (and co.) for creativity, certainly.

Moving on the the taste before we got any more ridiculous, we found an instant smoothness, though our not-so-wine-lovers thought it was vinegary and just "bad." There were certainly some tannins, and those of us who actually loved the wine eventually came to a consensus that it, "has a bite in the beginning, gets peppery in the middle, and finishes with dark chocolate." We did concede a slightly metallic taste mixed in, as well, but overall, it was a smooth and luscious wine.

The label we found to be fairly classy, and a little elitist, though not deterring. And with a $30 price point, it could stand to be elitist.

Bottom line: Would we recommend this wine? Yes--If you like wine (and particularly dry reds), I would say give it a shot! The price would not deter me in any way after trying this delicious wine!


Sauvignon Blanc, Joseph Mellot, 2011

After a short intermission, we moved on to a surprisingly semi-dry white wine from France.

Right at the front, we found grapefruit to be the overwhelming aroma, closely followed by honeysuckle and sugar. One w(h)iner proclaimed that she would wear it as a perfume, and we continued to deem it worthy of being a sugar body scrub. Ladies.

After such a sweet bouquet, I honestly went in expecting not to like this wine. And I was pleasantly surprised.

Grapefruit, again, was the initial taste that wowed the crowd in the smooth texture of the wine. We added on to our taste profile with "a little honey" taste, and some sort of berries--one w(h)iner guessed at blackberries. A honeydew taste joined in, added to the crisp, refreshing nature of the wine, though there was just the barest hint of a tartness at the back end. After a long guessing game, we ended the tasting with a red anjou pear to join the mix, and called it a wrap.

The label was, again, a fairly classic one, with nothing too exciting or off-putting. With about an $18 price tag, this wine hit us just right.

Bottom line: Would we recommend this wine? Yes--If you like a sweet, just-sort-of dry white with a nice, crisp taste throughout, this is a beautiful one! Seriously, Lexi gave it a smiley face in a bubble bath. What's better than that?


And that, my friends is all she wrote! I hope the long video didn't deter you, especially when some really delicious wines and fun times were involved in this particular tasting!

If you're looking for some help in making your own tasting happen, visit our Tasting Page for more info about how we throw our wine nights!

And, as always, check out the W(h)iner's Circle for an updated list of The W(h)ining Army Wives' recommended wines!