We bought the wines for the dinner blog from the vintage cellar as well! Afterwards, we went to the Kroger right next to the vintage cellar to buy our foods. We had plans to buy certain foods, but we ended up changing the Asian BBQ to the spring rolls because of ease of preparation and availability. For the wine and food pairings, we did White Zinfandel with Pulled Pork, Riesling with Spring Rolls, and Gewurztraminer with Dumplings. Specifically, the wines are a Canyon Road White Zinfandel from California with the vintage year of 2018. As for the second wine, it is a Weinhaus Max Ferd. Richter Mosel Riesling with the vintage year of 2018. The third wine is a Kaltern Gewürztraminer from Italy with the vintage year of 2018. All of the wine's vintage years are from 2018, and have now been consumed in February of 2020!
I was quite hungry that night, so I wanted food that would be somewhat on the easier side of preparation difficulty. For the food, we had Jack Daniel's Pulled Pork, Vegetable Spring Rolls, and Pork Dumplings from Kroger, which was next to the vintage cellar. The first dish we ate was the Pulled Pork, with the White Zinfandel for the wine. Onto the actual pairings & tastings, I'll start with my notes on the White Zinfandel. It was definitely fruity, I detected cherry upon tasting it. Another fruit that I detected was strawberries. These were the main two that I could sense, and I was pleased to read the label afterwards and see that it has hints of strawberry, cherry, and watermelon. I am definitely learning, along with my girlfriend and my friends who have shared the meal and wine with me. The smell was floral. Specifically, it smelled a bit like roses, but that might be due to the pink color of the White Zinfandel. Overall, the White Zinfandel is kind of like a mix between fruity and floral wines. With the pulled pork, the strawberry of the White Zinfandel comes out a lot more in the taste while eating the bbq pulled pork. The sweet flavors goes very well with each other, and aren't overpowering one another. It was a nice overall complement that added an extra layer of crisp fruitiness to the sweet and rich pulled pork.
For the next pairing, I had the Riesling with the Spring Rolls, which is pictured above. Sadly, I did not take as much photos as I would've liked of everything, but on to the wine tasting: Riesling is definitely my favorite out of the 8 wines I bought that entire night. I didn't notice it because my palette was getting worn out as the night progressed. However, once I tried it with a bit of a break, I realized its potential, and enjoyed it a lot (IT WAS INSANELY GOOD). As for my notes, I wrote that it was quite fruity, and I detected pineapple. While sweet, it was also a bit sour and acidic. To add to that, it was zesty and citrusy. Overall, it was super sweet, which I like currently, and I found that it taste sweeter than it smells. The Riesling was also slightly bubby. I ate it with the Spring Rolls, which came with a sweet and sour sauce. The Riesling and the Spring Rolls with the sauce were an amazingly sweet pairing that added a crunchiness with the Spring Rolls, which we oven baked. The combo didn't overpower the other, but rather created a delicious fusion. I would've enjoyed the food or the wine separately as well. The wine affected the sweetness and salt by making it sweeter, and that made my mouth water.
Onto the third pairing, I had Gewürztraminer with Pork Dumplings. The Gewürztraminer was SUPER floral. I have never smelled a wine that was more floral than this one. It was very rosey, but also it smelled like straight perfume. Definitely the most flowery smelling wine I have ever had. Several people found it hard to finish, due to its powerful effect on the nose. There was a very faint bubble feel. The wine was a very light yellow, with a gold tint. Because no one finished it, I have been sipping on it this afternoon, and finishing the wine. It definitely has a powerful effect on the mouth that is equivalent to a punch, but I have gotten more accustomed to it. As for the dumplings, we had them with soy sauce. I would say individually, the dumpling has a saltiness that leaves you wanting, and the Gewürztraminer fills that void. It adds a fullness that leaves you satisfied with the meal, I would say the Gewürztraminer is somewhat overpowering to the dumplings. However, the dumpling had a strong taste that allowed it to become a complement with the Gewürztraminer. The pork dumplings and the soy sauce made the Gewürztraminer overall less bitter.
Overall, my favorite wine and cheese pairing is, without a question, the Riesling and Spring Rolls. I just love the combination of flavors, and also the Riesling is just awesome. I really hope to get more Riesling, I'll definitely pick it up if I come across it.
For the next pairing, I had the Riesling with the Spring Rolls, which is pictured above. Sadly, I did not take as much photos as I would've liked of everything, but on to the wine tasting: Riesling is definitely my favorite out of the 8 wines I bought that entire night. I didn't notice it because my palette was getting worn out as the night progressed. However, once I tried it with a bit of a break, I realized its potential, and enjoyed it a lot (IT WAS INSANELY GOOD). As for my notes, I wrote that it was quite fruity, and I detected pineapple. While sweet, it was also a bit sour and acidic. To add to that, it was zesty and citrusy. Overall, it was super sweet, which I like currently, and I found that it taste sweeter than it smells. The Riesling was also slightly bubby. I ate it with the Spring Rolls, which came with a sweet and sour sauce. The Riesling and the Spring Rolls with the sauce were an amazingly sweet pairing that added a crunchiness with the Spring Rolls, which we oven baked. The combo didn't overpower the other, but rather created a delicious fusion. I would've enjoyed the food or the wine separately as well. The wine affected the sweetness and salt by making it sweeter, and that made my mouth water.
Onto the third pairing, I had Gewürztraminer with Pork Dumplings. The Gewürztraminer was SUPER floral. I have never smelled a wine that was more floral than this one. It was very rosey, but also it smelled like straight perfume. Definitely the most flowery smelling wine I have ever had. Several people found it hard to finish, due to its powerful effect on the nose. There was a very faint bubble feel. The wine was a very light yellow, with a gold tint. Because no one finished it, I have been sipping on it this afternoon, and finishing the wine. It definitely has a powerful effect on the mouth that is equivalent to a punch, but I have gotten more accustomed to it. As for the dumplings, we had them with soy sauce. I would say individually, the dumpling has a saltiness that leaves you wanting, and the Gewürztraminer fills that void. It adds a fullness that leaves you satisfied with the meal, I would say the Gewürztraminer is somewhat overpowering to the dumplings. However, the dumpling had a strong taste that allowed it to become a complement with the Gewürztraminer. The pork dumplings and the soy sauce made the Gewürztraminer overall less bitter.
Overall, my favorite wine and cheese pairing is, without a question, the Riesling and Spring Rolls. I just love the combination of flavors, and also the Riesling is just awesome. I really hope to get more Riesling, I'll definitely pick it up if I come across it.
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