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What The Pregnant Lady Will Be Drinking

Wednesday, November 26th, 2008 | California, Chardonnay, Cocktails, Germany, Holidays, Non-Alcoholic, Riesling, Wines Under $20 | 1 Comment

The holidays can be difficult for someone like me who loves wine or a cocktail and wants to celebrate along with everyone else, but happens to be in a situation where she can’t drink. But being pregnant or having a health issue that prohibits you from drinking doesn’t mean you can’t raise a glass of cheer — you just have to pick something non-alcoholic.

A couple weeks ago, we were at The Christmas Tree Shops and I saw a bottle of non-alcoholic Chardonnay (which I have since lovingly nicknamed “Chardon-not”). I joked to Drew that I’d be drinking the St. Regis Alcohol-Removed Reserve on Thanksgiving. At a mere $3.99 a bottle he suggested I give it a try. So we left the store with two bottles — one to try that evening and one for Turkey Day, provided it wasn’t terrible.

St. Regis is produced by Inglenook. It is made in California and has an APV of less than 0.5%. To my surprise, it was actually decent! There were floral notes on the nose, as well as hints of apricot and apple. Upon tasting I detected mostly apple flavors as well as a bit of grape (which didn’t surprise me). Overall it reminded me of flat champagne. Drew thought it reminded him of some of the Australian whites he had tasted. Now, obviously you can’t compare a bottle of alcohol-free wine to a bottle of regular wine. To try it with the same expectations is ridiculous, honestly. If I weren’t pregnant I wouldn’t be drinking this, but for the price it ain’t bad and I will happily chill a bottle for myself for tomorrow. I’ve had worse “real” Chardonnay, and I find this to be an acceptable substitute.

Another problem I’ve had to solve is the pre-dinner cocktail. In our family, we always like to enjoy a drink while we nibble on cheese, crackers, and sausage. Under normal circumstances, my go-to drink is a gin and tonic. Luckily, this one is easy to solve. I simply mix together tonic water, a twist of lime, and some sweetened lime juice. I used to prefer Rose’s lime juice, but recently I discovered Master of Mixes lime juice. I find it to be less sweet. (As a bonus, if you’re plagued by leg cramps later in your pregnancy, this make a mighty fine remedy as the tonic water contains quinine, which helps alleviate the cramping.)

My other favorite cocktail is a whiskey sour. By chance, last night I discovered a drink that comes pretty darn close. I simply mixed Cuervo margarita mix with ginger ale (I think I did I one-to-one ratio). Again, it has no alcohol in it so it’s not as potent, but hey — when you only have so much to work with, you make the best of it. Garnish with an orange slice and a maraschino cherry or two and enjoy.

Tomorrow we’ll be bringing a bottle of BEX Riesling to have with Thanksgiving dinner, so I am planning on tasting and spitting and seeing if it tastes any different to me now than it did when I tasted it a few months back.

To all my American readers, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! Please remember to enjoy responsibly.

WBW #45: Old World Riesling

Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 | Germany, Riesling, White Wine, Wine Blogging Wednesday | 5 Comments

When Tim Elliot of Winecast announced the theme (Old World Riesling) for the current edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, I was really looking forward to it. I don’t drink many Rieslings and consider the variety to be unfamiliar territory for the most part, and thus an adventure. German Rieslings are arugeably the most famous of all “Old World” Rieslings. The country’s Riesling vines can be traced back to 1435 and by the end of the 19th century Riesling was the region’s dominant grape variety. In Germany, you might hear Riesling called “The King of White Wine Grapes.”

I decided to come back to a German Riesling that I had quickly tasted at an industry event in the fall: 2006 Urban Riesling Nic Weis Selection. I remembered liking it and wanted to be able to take my time and get a better feel for it. Urban Riesling is produced from grapes in the vineyards neighboring St. Urbans-Hof Estate in Leiwen, Germany. St. Urbans-Hof has only 30 hectares of land on which to grow grapes, and with their reputation for high-quality wine that was growing in popularity, German winemaker Nik Weis reached the limit on what he could produce from his own vineyards. In 2006 he began to source grapes from his neighbors and began producing Urban Riesling. He put his name on the label to assure consumers it was a high-quality product. I found a bit of background on this wine at Wine Online:

“The Mehringer Zellerberg vineyard is a southern- facing site of slate soils which offers the perfect conditions for producing a typical Mosel Riesling on a high quality level,” said Weis. “Since the area is lesser-known than others on the Mosel, and because the vineyard is only slightly-steep, allowing some vineyard work by tractor, Urban Riesling also offers great value.”

As a member of Germany’s prestigious VDP (German Association of Praedikat and Quality Wine Estates), Weis is restricted from using the St. Urbans-Hof label on any wine that is not grown on his own property. He is diligent in honoring that regulation and thus, Urban Riesling carries the name I. Weis as producer on the label.

The wine has a very pretty light straw color. We were tasting it at about 9 PM, but I imagine that it would glisten beautifully if you were enjoying a glass of this Riesling out on the deck or porch. There were aromas of honey, pear, minerals, and a melony sweetness. The melon and pear carried through to the palate, and the sweetness rolled onto my tongue nicely. The wine resolved to a semi-dry, mineraly finish: quick and crisp. For around $11.99, I think that Urban Riesling is an excellent value. Like most German Rieslings it would pair well with foods that have a bit of spice to them. I think it would be great with grilled kielbasa (from a good butcher please, not the supermarket stuff if you can help it) and sauerkraut (with caraway seeds if possible). I could also see this pairing well with sushi. I think the sweetness of the wine would be a great contrast to the salty soy sauce and hot wasabi. Of course, Riesling is wonderful on its own and at only 10.5% alcohol, is a great choice for warmer weather when you don’t want to drink anything heavy.

Thanks again to Tim for hosting and picking a great topic for this round. Stay tuned for the announcement of the round-up, and the topic for Wine Blogging Wednesday #46, which will be hosted by Dr. Debs of Good Wine Under $20.

2005 BEX Riesling

Monday, January 14th, 2008 | Germany, Riesling, White Wine, Wines Under $20 | 2 Comments

I don’t drink a lot of Rieslings, but when I do I tend to prefer those of the drier variety. The BEX Riesling, from Germany’s Mosel region, was a good match for me. It is low-alcohol — only 10.5 %. This wine had a delicious nose of bright, crisp apple. It had a very fresh aroma. On the palate the apple notes carried through to some apple flavor along with a touch of lemon, some minerality, and nice acidity. The wine had a crip, medium-long finish.

We drank this bottle with Chinese take-out (General Tso’s chicken and Crab Rangoon). It paired well with the spiciness of the food. For the price (around $12), this is a decent dry Riesling. It was certainly enjoyable and I would recommend it.