Wente | Garnet | Hahn | Franciscan
For #WITS2012 Virtual Tasting
We’ve all heard of Vertical and Horizontal wine tastings, but have you ever participated in a Virtual wine tasting?
It’s where you taste actual wine and share your experience via Twitter with others drinking the same wine; wine lovers united around a laptop sipping and sharing wine-tweets! It is a lot of fun.
The good folks at Wine Twits hosted an event a while back featuring four wines which I thought would be perfect to pair with Thanksgiving Dinner. These are readily available, priced perfectly and crowd tested. I hope you enjoy them!
2010 Wente
Morning Fog Chardonnay
Wente Vineyards 2010 Chardonnay Morning Fog | Livermore Valley, San Francisco Bay
Very pale colors in the glass; with subtle lemon and pear aromas. Lemon vanilla pound cake flavors with a tiny bit of oak on the finish. This wine was fermented in 50% French oak and 50% stainless steel; the oak doesn’t take over the fruit flavors of the wine, but gives it just enough to know you are drinking a California Chardonnay. Retails for $13 | Alcohol 13.5% |
Hahn Winery 2011 California Pinot Noir
Brilliant red in the glass with lavender powder aromas and flavors of dark cherry and candy essences. Aged in 33% new French oak and 67% neutral oak, it would pair well with grilled salmon as well as a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Retails $14 | Alcohol 14.5% |
Garnet 2010 Carneros
Pinot Noir
Garnet 2010 Carneros Pinot Noir
Translucent cherry red with a slight brown hue in the glass, gentle perfume aromas with a wisp of forest essence; dried strawberry flavors and a bright burst of cherry on the finish. Aged in neutral and new French oak, this is a very classy Pinot Noir and would be very welcome at the Thanksgiving table. Retails $20 | Alcohol 13.77%
Franciscan Estate ‘Magnificent’ Meritage
This red wine is a blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 1% Malbec. The Meritage label is only allowed if the wine is crafted with in the strict guidelines of the Meritage Alliance; making American wines in the traditional Bordeaux fashion. I encourage you to read more about it at their website. Winemaker Janet Myers crafted this complex wine; showing a very deep red color with intense smoked meats, tobacco barn and clove aromas. The flavors developed later in the decanter, suggesting you could lay this bottle down for another year or two to experience it in its full glory. Yet drinking now it’s a robust earthy wine which I would offer to those heading out to the firepit with cigars. Retails $50 | Alcohol 14.5%
Which wines will you be serving this Thanksgiving Holiday? I’d love to know if you tried something new!
Many thanks to the good folks at Wine Twits and wine makers Karl D. Wente, Hahn Estates, Garnet Vineyards, Janet Myers for providing the wine.
Wine Everyday 
Enjoyed your post! This Thanksgiving, we have 20+ people and I’m serving these wines (in order) 1. 2010 Cold Slate Mosel Reisling;
from Napa’s Modus Operandi winery:
2. Modus Savignon Blanc,
3. Modus Rose, and
4. 2009 Modus Cabernet Sauvignon;
5. the 2001 Cos D’Estournel (St. Estephe),
6. either the ’98 or ’05 Reserve de la Comtesse (Paulliac), and
7. the 2007 Haut Charnes Sauternes.
also have the Chateau Duhart-Milon and Smith Haut-Laffitte (both rouge & blanc) on hand for an emergency.
Thirsty?
JvB Uncorked
Do you have room for 1 more at the table?
Nice selection you’ve chosen.
My wine choices will be a surprise as we are dining out & I’ll chose off the wine list.
Thanks for stopping by!
What a great resource you are for wine dopes like me 🙂 Now I wish we were having company so I could try out a couple of these!!!
Try them anyway! You ought to treat yourself like a guest once in a while!
Have a great Thanksgiving Holiday!
Excellent choice! I have experience with most of the wines you included, except Garnet. I still didn’t decide on my Chardonnay – need something rather buttery. Plan to include Hahn GSM, which was outstanding and If you see kay – this was an amazing wine (it has Primitivo in it, so it will be my Zin replacement : ) ). Will definitely start from Beaujolais Nouveau, And Pinot – right now I plan to include Seven of Hearts from Oregon, but might go for something different in the end of the day.
Cheers!
I like the price point on Hahn wines, great to keep on hand for anytime sipping.
Have a great Thanksgiving.
Great Thanksgiving to you as well!
Glad to see that you enjoyed the Hahn! I heard an interesting suggestion for Thanksgiving meal yesterday – Montepulciano! That’s not one you see everyday, but given the generally food friendly nature of Italian wines, I can see it working nicely!
Yes! I could see that working nicely!
Have a Happy Thanksgiving Martin!