The Goulart Winery is a partnership between Mauricio Parodi and Erika Goulart. Mauricio Parodi is one of the most knowledgeable and accomplished agronomist in Mendoza and Erika Goulart, whose grandfather lead the overthrow of the Brazilian government in the 1932 Constitutional Revolution. Erika is a successful entrepreneur who with the help of Mauricio resurrected her grandfathers Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in Mendoza that were originally planted in 1915. It took six years to rehabilitate the vineyards back to the point of perfect balance that is necessary to produce high quality wine and after the enlightened hiring of Luis Barrund all the pieces were in place for a world-class winery. Goulart wines have been hard to find, especially in Pennsylvania, below I have posted the New Vintage releases for the United States so you can focus your search for the wines of this exceptional producer. You can visit www.fincalugildegoulart.com.ar or click the link to the left to visit Erika’s Facebook page for more information that also includes the releases for Europe, Asia and South America.
Tag Chardonnay
Second Label Value
Overture Photo Courtesy Opus One
CRU Photo Courtesy Vineyard 29
There is real value to be found inside the bottles of the second label offerings of famous wineries. These are very well-made wines by renowned wine makers that do not quite meet the high standards required for being sold under the flagship label of the winery. The November 2012 issue of Men’s Journal Magazine had an interesting article on this category of wines. Stoney Hill Winery is one of this country’s greatest white wine estates with their flagship label Stoney Hill Chardonnay costing $42 but the second label is SHV Chardonnay that can be yours for only $24. Opus One is well-known to everyone with the 2009 vintage selling for $225 but did you know that Overture is their second label and is only $80. You can buy a bottle of Vineyard 29 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon for $225 or go with the second label CRU Cabernet Sauvignon for $54. Great values can be found with some research and if you want to do some detective work who knows what wine secrets you will uncover. Here is an example of a great value that could be easily overlooked by the uninformed wine shopper. Boekenhoutsko is one of South Africa’s top producers and it’s flagship label sales for $45 but their secondary is called The Wolftrap 2010 and retails for $8. Second label wines are an affordable alternative to their big-name and highly touted first label counterparts and can competently fill the need when a well made wine at a reasonable price is the challenge presented to you.
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Wine Ice Cream
aldo’s ice cream (Photo credit: surekat)
This isn’t one of the old standards when it comes to ice cream flavors but surprisingly it is very good. We got the chance to enjoy this special treat on the lake shore in Geneva N.Y. Like any wine list we were offered the choice of red or white with red consisting of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Zinfandel while the white options were Chardonnay and Chablis. We tried the Cab, Merlot and Chardonnay and found them all very flavorful because the character of the wine was prominent in the taste palate of all the selected ice creams. These ice creams are made with real wine and have an alcohol content listed for each which makes them only available to persons of legal drinking age. I think it is funny that the possibility exists that someone could be carded when buying an ice cream cone. I look forward to my next trip down Rte 14 so I can try a big piece of grape pie and a wine slushie.
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Trip Around The Sun
I have just completed another trip around the Sun, so my wife and I decided to celebrate in our usual way by having dinner at an interesting new restaurant. This year we decided on the Out Of The Fire Café in Donegal, Pennsylvania. I will keep this review short and simple because we agreed that after dining there that it was the most exceptionally delicious meal from start to finish that we have ever eaten. We are comparing our meal to meals we have had at restaurants that were owned by Mario Batalli, Wolfgang Puck, Todd English, Emeril Lagasse and other celebrity chefs just to give you some point of reference on how good this meal was. I won’t bore you with my perception of the evening I will report it just as the BBC reports the news with just the facts. We began with the Seasonal Soup which was Crab Chowder that evening. The entrées were as follows per their menu description. My wife had Pan Seared Maine Monkfish with Carmelized Onions & Herb Polenta, Bristol Farms Cherry Tomatoes, Crooked Neck Summer Squash & Zucchini, Smoked Tomato Pesto and I had Orange & Fennel Crusted Chilean Sea Bass with Sweet Corn & Lump Crab Griddle Cakes, Grilled Scallions, Orange Section Salsa. This is how I would describe our dessert ” Strawberry Marscapone Parfitt, Marscapone Cheese Layered in Balsamic Vinegar Infused Strawberries with a Topping of Crumpled Thin Oatmeal Wafer. Out Of The Fire Café is a B.Y.O.B. establishment that has a $2 per person corkage fee. I have always avoided B.Y.O.B. places and I must tell you I was wrong in doing so. The atmosphere was festive and the bottle of Swedish Hill 2009 Reserve Chardonnay (Finger Lakes) we brought was excellent. I would recommend making reservations any time you plan on going because they are always crowded. Out Of The Fire Café 3784 State Rt 31 Donegal, Pa 15628. 724-593-4201 www.outofthefirecafe.com
Related articles
- Md. Allows Restaurant-Goers To Bring Their Own Wine; Law Takes Effect Sunday (baltimore.cbslocal.com)
- BYOB in B.C.: Diners now allowed to bring their own wine to certain restaurants (vancouversun.com)
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Wagner Vineyards
We are back on the road again and on our way to Wagner Vineyards where they have a winery, brewery, restaurant and gift shop. I would like to take this opportunity to advise you to be careful when tasting and driving and also ask you to be sure that you act in a responsible manner to ensure public safety because if you don’t the police around the Finger Lakes will. Wagner is probably the most commercially developed winery around the lakes and should be on your must see list. They produce an extensive variety of wines and if you are fortunate enough to have Bill serve you in the tasting room you will get to experience every one that your heart desires. I asked him for a good red for making Sangria and he suggested the Sunset Red then he gave me his favorite Sangria recipe. I tasted all of their Chardonnay and chose the dry 2011 Barrel Fermented. I didn’t taste at the brewery this trip but I remember that the last time I did their portions were the same as the wine room samples and let’s just say they were more than generous. The Ginny Lee Cafe has a trendy menu and we have had lunch on the deck overlooking the vineyards on several occasions. If you do decide to stop for lunch try one of their wraps, my favorite is the Tuscan. Wagner Vineyards is located at 9322 State Route 414 Lodi, New York.
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