Drink This Now! - Lesson 8 Activity

On Friday, March 23, my sister, her boyfriend, and I decided to try our hand at the DTN Lesson 8 activity. This lesson was The Big Whites, which had us sniff and swirl and taste wines at room temperature and chilled. This was a pretty neat lesson. I hadn't realized how much of a difference chilling a wine could do to the flavor and aromas.

The wines used for this lesson were:

Name:	Simi Sauvignon Blanc	Alamos Chardonnay	Pacific Rim Sweet Riesling
Variety:	Sauvignon Blanc	Chardonnay	Sweet Riesling
Region:	Geyserville, California	Mendoza, Argentina	Columbia Valley, Washington
Vintage:	2016	2016	2016

Alamos, Pacific Rim, Simi

~ The Thoughts ~

Wine #1: 2016 Simi Sauvignon Blanc

• Room Temperature: At first glance, this wine looked almost like a light white or clear color. But when I held it up to the light, I realized that it was more a greenish yellow color. The bouquet of the wine was apples, like sour green apples. There was also a really strong crispness in the aroma. The taste of the wine was really acidic and critius, both in feel and taste. There wasn't much of a flavor since the acidic component was strong. The body of the wine was light.
• Chilled: The color of the wine was pretty much the same as room temperature. I did find that the bouquet was more pronounced in other flavors. When I smelled it, I was reminded of a crisp fall morning. The aromas of the wine were stronger and there was more of a herb scent. The wine was lighter in its acidic component, but there were nice critius flavors present too. I could detect more of a herb undertone. There was also a lime or citrus fruit flavor too. The body of the wine seemed lighter. 
• Comparison: The Sauvignon Blanc was more acidic and bitter compare to the other two wines. The flavors of the wine also reflected the bitter and acidic aromas. Though the body of this wine was lighter. This wine was the lightest in color of the three wines. 
• Conclusion: This wine I was not a fan of. I found this wine to be too much for a white wine and it had too much bitterness and acidity for me to enjoy.   

Wine #2: 2016 Alamos Chardonnay

• Room Temperature: The wine had a pale golden color. It was also  darker than the Sauvignon Blanc, but lighter than the Sweet Riesling. The bouquet of the wine was like a typical Chardonnay. Though, there was an oaky and buttery smell. I did detect an apple undertone. When tasting this wine, I thought it was a bit acidic for a Chardonnay. There was a strong taste of ripe apple and oak. The body seemed heavy, but not full of sugar heavy. 
• Chilled: The color of the wine actually seemed lighter then when it was at room temperature. But that might have been because of light difference. The aromas of the wine were more clear in the chilled state, but the aromas themselves were pretty much the same. The only difference would be that there was more of a crispness to the wine. The tasting of the wine showed more of a difference. The wine definite had more of an apple taste, as well as a peach or apricot flavor. The body of this wine seemed lighter in its chilled form than the room temperature. 
• Comparison: The Chardonnay was the most mild of the three wines. This wine was a good representation of the middle of bitter and dry vs. sweet and sweeter. The color of the Chardonnay was also in the middle compared to the three wines. 
• Conclusion: This wine was pretty decent to me. It was definitely better than the Sauvignon Blanc, but still was a bit too acidic for what I'd prefer. 

Wine #3: 2016 Pacific Rim Sweet Riesling

• Room Temperature: This wine was a deep gold color and was the darkest of all the wines. I will say that the color reminded me of white grape juice or a really watered down version of apple juice. The bouquet of the wine had more of subtle smell, you really had a hard time detecting the aroma of the wine. What I did pick up was a berry smell, like peach or apricot. When tasting this wine, I found it to be a lot sweeter than I had been anticipating. It reminded me of apple juice or pineapple  juice. You could only really taste the sugar in the wine because it was so overwhelming sugary. The body of the wine was really heavy. 
• Chilled: The color was the same as room temperature. I did get more in the bouquet of this wine when chilled. The same smells that was in room temperature was present. Additionally, there was a honeysuckle and floral smell that really went well with the peach aroma. This wine definitely is better chilled. The sweetness of the wine is much more muted and doesn't take over the wine. I really enjoyed the tingly sensation I got when drinking this wine. The body of this wine was lighter when chilled. 
• Comparison: The Sweet Riesling was on the complete opposite spectrum from the Sauvignon Blanc. This wine had a nice smooth finish, sweet in flavor and aroma, and heavier in body. Additionally, it was the darkest in color of the three wines. 
• Conclusion: This wine is definitely a new favorite of mine. It had everything in it that I really like. I would definitely get this wine again.

My sister, her boyfriend, and I enjoying the snow and wine (not featured).

Conclusion
This was a really awesome lesson to do. I hadn't realized how much chilling your wine could affect the flavors and aromas. I thoroughly enjoyed smelling and tasting all the wines in the different temperatures. And now, I have a new favorite wine to add to my collection.