Jean-Lous Trocard Crémant de Bordeaux NV

Apparently talking about my best friend, Kye, never gets old for me (because, and I can’t stress this enough, he is awesome and has always been there for me when I needed him, even when we weren’t exactly on speaking terms). Thanks to him, when I was first really starting to get into wine, we were invited into a study group that really did me a lot of good. The first meeting had me a bit skeptical based on the number of people who showed up, but as time went on it dwindled down to just six or so of us who were really focused on furthering our knowledge rather than just showing up for the free-ish booze. I still miss it sometimes, mostly because it forced me to study (mainly so I didn’t come across as a complete idiot to these people who were way more knowledgeable than me) and with my Certified Specialist of Wine exam coming up on the 30^th of this month, I could use a little coercion as far as studying goes.

I hadn’t really thought about the group too much since we all got too busy to keep up with it over a year ago until I realized my store had a Crémant de Bordeaux randomly hidden among its selection of sparkling wine, Jean-Louis Trocard to be exact. I remembered, during an evening spent studying Bordeaux, Laura, the fantastic Advanced Sommelier of the group (and one of the people I credit the most with helping me pass my certified), telling us that Crémants are made in Bordeaux, but hard to find (at least in San Antonio). She told us if we ever found one to definitely pick it up for the group, and seeing this on the shelf made me nostalgic for nights spent blind tasting and studying. For those who don’t know the term Crémant is used to refer to French sparkling wine made using the méthode champenoise and not from the Champagne region.

Since I don’t drink bubbly super often it took me a little while to pick up a bottle for Kye and me to share, but we were both very glad when I finally did. The blend is mostly Semillon with some Sauvignon Blanc, pale gold in color with notes of green apple, lime zest and wet rocks on the nose. The palate is dry and crisp with flavors of golden pear, citrus and a hint of lemongrass. There’s a little bit of funk halfway through (which I personally enjoy), but the bright acidity at the end leaves a refreshing, lingering mouthfeel. It’s very affordable and incredibly enjoyable.

The Ned Sauvignon Blanc 2015

I recently had a discussion with my dad about “epiphany wines” (aka the bottle or glass that first really opened your eyes up to the awesomeness that is wine). His was Gundlach Bundschu’s Gewurztraminer that he tried based on a sommelier’s recommendation at a restaurant. It just so happened that I carried that wine at my store so he got to try it again for the first time in forever. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite live up to his expectations all these years later, but that’s not super surprising.

I didn’t have an epiphany wine so much as I had an epiphany varietal, Sauvignon Blanc, specifically from New Zealand. I’ve mentioned the time I was down from Denton and my parents and I had a blind tasting with three different bottles of NZ Sauvignon Blanc before. What I didn’t mention is that I got back to Denton and made my friend accompany me on a trip to find a bottle of Drylands Sauv Blanc (my favorite from that evening). Thanks to Denton being a dry county there weren’t a whole lot of wine shops to choose from so we wound up driving to Dallas too. Unfortunately nowhere had it or had even heard of it so I think we picked up a bottle of Bitch Grenache (yes, just because I thought the label was hilarious) and some other New Zealand wine. It was actually a pretty fun time despite not finding the particular wine we were looking for.

Several years later I spotted Drylands at a store in San Antonio and of course had to get a bottle of it. Just like my dad with Gundlach Bundschu, I was disappointed. It just lacked the complexity I’d come to expect from that varietal and was rather bland. While it didn’t live up to my memory of it, it still wasn’t a bad bottle of wine, it’s just that by then I’d had better.

One of those better bottles is The Ned Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. Unlike many NZ Sauv Blancs it’s not so in your face with grapefruit, which can get old rather quick. That’s actually why I stopped drinking or buying this varietal for quite some time (until Kye introduced me to the awesomeness that is Sancerre). It’s a medium-bodied wine that has notes of green pepper, wet grass and gooseberries on the nose. The palate is more fruit forward with lemon peel, passionfruit, and crisp green apple, and of course, a bit of grapefruit. Nicely balanced with sharp acidity and a long-ish finish. This is a super refreshing wine that is lovely by itself or paired with a wide range of dishes. While Kim Crawford and Drylands will always have a special place in my heart, this Sauvignon Blanc beats them not only in price, but also in taste.

Weegmüller Von Gelben Fels Riesling Trocken 2012

So obviously some stuff happened recently that set me on a rather blah path. While it's never fun to feel terrible about things that are happening in your life, it also helps to know that you can get through them relatively unscathed, mostly thanks to the fact that you're fairly used to shit like that happening, but also because of awesome people in your life. My best friend/roommate was a rock during that time (because he is awesome and the best guy ever) and the night after things really went to hell he got me dinner from one of my favorite restaurants in town (Thai Dee) to try and cheer me up.

Since he was providing dinner that night, I figured the least I could do was treat us to a bottle of wine I’d been eyeing for a while: Weegmüller Von Gelben Fels Riesling Trocken 2012. I’d been off the day the distributor came by to taste us on it, but my coworker told me it was delicious and his favorite out of all the wines they'd brought. Since he’d taken my advice on several wine suggestions in the past I decided to trust his suggestion and was very glad I did. It was hands down one of the best Rieslings both Kye and I had drunk in a while (and it paired perfectly with our spicy Thai food).

This winery has been in family hands for 11 generations, producing wine since 1685. It is also one of the few German wineries owned and run exclusively by women. According to the blurb on the importer’s webtsite Stefanie Weegmüller was the first female winemaker in Germany and that’s pretty damn cool. It's from Pfalz in Germany and reminded me of why I usually love the wines that come from that region. Dry and light-bodied with crisp minerality and just a bit of petrol. The fruit notes of white peach, golden pear and red apple on the palate balanced beautifully with the acidity. I know my tasting notes don’t do this wine the justice that it deserves, but trust me when I say this was one of the best white wines I’ve had in quite some time.*

*https://traubenhaus.com/producers/weegmueller