Wine Review: Little Black Dress Rosé 2017

It feels like it wasn't that long ago when rosé was just suddenly everywhere... but it wasn't a consumer driven push. The wineries and marketers were responsible and the people weren't buying it. Whelp, the strategy worked because since then things have changed. Rosé is HUGE with consumers. And I feel like I've tasted and/or reviewed a thousand of them already this spring (my wine pick for the month of June is even a rosé).

Today I've got Little Black Dress's 2014 Rosé. It's made from Zinfandel and Petite Sirah out of Mendocino County, California, and it has an ABV of 12%.

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Wine Review: Domaine de Magnaut l'Esprit Passion Tannat 2014

Thanks to Heavenly Spirits I'm reviewing five wines by Domaine de Magnaut out of Gascony, France. I started with their Equilibre de Manseng 2014 and Euphorie de Rosé 2016, Les Hauts de Boilin 2014, Manseng Sec 2014, and now I'm cleaning up with Tannat 2014.

Paul Scott of Heavenly Spirits says: Domaine de Magnaut is a family owned winery in the Armagnac Tenareze region of Gascony. They also produce Armagnac and Floc. Jean Marie Terraube and his wife run the winery and four diverse vineyards. They harvest Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah (for rosé), gros and petite Manseng in all four vineyards. Most of their production is sold from the winery. They are Designated "vigneron Independant".

The l'Esprit Passion 2014 Tannat is a a Cotes de Gascogne Rouge that's 100% Tannat; a black grape variety native to France that's notorious for its astringent tannin. The final ABV is 13%.

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Wine Review: Domaine de Magnaut l'Esprit Passion Manseng Sec 2014

Thanks to Heavenly Spirits I'm reviewing five wines by Domaine de Magnaut out of Gascony, France. I started with their Equilibre de Manseng 2014 and Euphorie de Rosé 2016, Les Hauts de Boilin 2014, and now I'm on to Manseng Sec 2014 before I conclude with Tannat 2014.

Paul Scott of Heavenly Spirits says: Domaine de Magnaut is a family owned winery in the Armagnac Tenareze region of Gascony. They also produce Armagnac and Floc. Jean Marie Terraube and his wife run the winery and four diverse vineyards. They harvest Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah (for rosé), gros and petite Manseng in all four vineyards. Most of their production is sold from the winery. They are Designated "vigneron Independant".

The l'Esprit Passion 2014 Manseng Sec is a a Cotes de Gascogne Blanc that's 100% Gros Manseng; a white grape variety from southern France that produces high acidity and juicy fruit flavors. The final ABV is 14%.

 

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Wine Review: Domaine de Magnaut Les Hauts de Boulin 2014

Thanks to Heavenly Spirits I'm reviewing five wines by Domaine de Magnaut out of Gascony, France. I started with their Equilibre de Manseng 2014 and Euphorie de Rosé 2016, and now I'm no to Les Hauts de Boilin 2014, to be followed by Manseng Sec 2014 and Tannat 2014.

Paul Scott of Heavenly Spirits says: Domaine de Magnaut is a family owned winery in the Armagnac Tenareze region of Gascony. They also produce Armagnac and Floc. Jean Marie Terraube and his wife run the winery and four diverse vineyards. They harvest Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah (for rosé), gros and petite Manseng in all four vineyards. Most of their production is sold from the winery. They are Designated "vigneron Independant".

The 2014 Les Hauts de Boilin is Cotes de Gascogne that's 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Tannat, and has a 14% ABV.

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Wine Review: Domaine de Magnaut Euphorie de Rosé 2016

Thanks to Heavenly Spirits I'm reviewing five wines by Domaine de Magnaut out of Gascony, France. I started with their Equilibre de Manseng 2014 and now I'm on to Euphorie de Rosé 2016, which will be followed by Les Hauts de Boilin 2014, Manseng Sec 2014, and Tannat 2014.

Paul Scott of Heavenly Spirits says: Domaine de Magnaut is a family owned winery in the Armagnac Tenareze region of Gascony. They also produce Armagnac and Floc. Jean Marie Terraube and his wife run the winery and four diverse vineyards. They harvest Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah (for rosé), gros and petite Manseng in all four vineyards. Most of their production is sold from the winery. They are Designated "vigneron Independant".

The 2016 Euphorie de Rosé is a Cotes de Gascogne that's 100% Syrah and has an ABV of 12%.

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Wine Review: Domaine de Magnaut Equilibre de Manseng 2014

Thanks to Heavenly Spirits I'm reviewing five wines by Domaine de Magnaut out of Gascony, France. Starting with their Equilibre de Manseng 2014 then Euphorie de Rosé 2016, Les Hauts de Boilin 2014, Manseng Sec 2014, and Tannat 2014.

Paul Scott of Heavenly Spirits says: Domaine de Magnaut is a family owned winery in the Armagnac Tenareze region of Gascony. They also produce Armagnac and Floc. Jean Marie Terraube and his wife run the winery and four diverse vineyards. They harvest Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah (for rosé), gros and petite Manseng in all four vineyards. Most of their production is sold from the winery. They are Designated "vigneron Independant".

It's impossible to tell from the picture because of the tinted glass but the 2014 Equilibre de Manseng is actually a white wine. It's a Cotes de Gascogne that's 100% Gros Manseng; a white grape variety from southern France that produces high acidity and juicy fruit flavors. The final ABV is 12%.

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Wine Review: Veramar Vineyard D'ora 2017 Virginia Dessert Wine

Veramar Vineyard is part of the Bogati Wine Family and I've reviewed a bunch of wine by these guys. Just at the end of last month I reviewed their 2016 Malbec and 2017 Vidal Blanc. To learn more about Bogati and see my other reviews, check out the Virginia label for the blog.

I've got to make this review quick so let's get to it! The 2017 D'ora is a 14% ABV dessert wine made from Vidal Blanc; a hybrid grape made from the Vitis vinifera variety Ugni Blanc and another hybrid grape called Rayon d'Or. Harvest was pushed back as far as they could, sugar was increased where needed, and it did not see the development of any noble rot.

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Wine Review: Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

To read all about Matchbook check out my article A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company, and to see my other reviews of their wine then click here. But from today to next Thursday I've got four more reviews of their brand new stuff comin' at ya!

Right now I'm in the middle of a brand new series of Matchbook wine reviews. Their Matchbook Old Head Chardonnay 2016 was my wine pick of the month, then I tried their Tinto Rey Rosé 2017, then their Chasing Venus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017, and now I'm cleaning up with Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon 2016.

The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Petit Verdot, 5% Malbec, and 1% Tannat. While fermenting in small temperature controlled stainless steel tanks, they pumped the tanks over twice a day before being pressed. After that the wine saw fourteen months of aging in French, Hungarian, and American oak. The final ABV is 13.9%.

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Wine Review: Chasing Venus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Chasing Venus is Matchbook Wine Company's Sauvignon Blanc project. To read all about Matchbook check out my article A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company, and to see my other reviews of their wine then click here. Right now I'm at the very end of a brand new series of Matchbook wine reviews. Right now I'm in the middle of a brand new series of Matchbook wine reviews. Their Matchbook Old Head Chardonnay 2016 was my wine pick of the month, then I tried their Tinto Rey Rosé 2017, now I'm on their Chasing Venus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017, and next I'm cleaning up with Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon 2016.

Chasing Venus is named after the mission given to the astronomers that traveled with Captain Cook in 1769 to study Venus while he explored the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere, where he discovered New Zealand and Australia. By tracking where Venus was in the sky in these areas during different times, they were able to calculate how far away the Sun is from Earth for the very first time. SCIENCE! Aaaand also death, because Captain Cook wasn't a very nice guy to natives. But back then nobody would have funded such a science project if there weren't some conquering and gains of wealth involved.

The label used to produce a Sauvignon Blanc from both New Zealand's Marlborough and California's Russian River Valley, but now it appears to just be producing the Marlborough one. I reviewed the 2015 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc back in July of 2016, and now I'm about to review the 2017.

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Wine Review: Tinto Rey Rosé 2017

Tinto Rey is the label by Matchbook Wine Company (out of Dunnigan Hills, California) that focuses of Spanish varietals and Spanish style wines. I've done so many reviews of Matchbook's wines that it's ridiculous. To read all about Matchbook check out my article A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company, and to see my other reviews of their wine then click here.

But right now I'm in the middle of a brand new series of Matchbook wine reviews. Their Matchbook Old Head Chardonnay 2016 was my wine pick of the month, today I'm reviewing their Tinto Rey Rosé 2017, then next I'm on to Chasing Venus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017, and cleaning up with Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon 2016.

The really cool thing about this rosé is that they took 51% Tempranillo, 39% Tannat, and 10% Verdejo (a white grape) and crushed them all together and cold fermented them together like a field blend, instead of doing each one separately and blending at the end. So that means that it even spent some time in contact with the white skins and not just the red. So does that make it a pink and orange mutant wine? Hmmm. The final ABV is 13.5%.

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May Wine Pick: Matchbook Old Head Chardonnay 2016

MATCHBOOK IS BACK! I've done so many reviews of Matchbook's wines that it's ridiculous. To read all about Matchbook check out my article A Brief History of Matchbook Wine Company, and to see my other reviews of their wine then click here. But from today to next Thursday I've got four more reviews of their brand new stuff comin' at ya!

Matchbook is one of my bestest winery buddies so it's a good thing that they're also one of my most favorite wineries when it comes to great wine within the average consumer's budget. And this Chardonnay? For this site I've only reviewed the 2012 vintage and the 2015 vintage, but year in and year out it's one of my go-to recommendations for my customers. That's why the new 2016 vintage is my wine pick for the month of May.

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