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Celene Amethyste Brut Blanc de Noirs NV Review – A Great Price

In my studies for WSET Diploma, I knew I had to get my hands of a Blanc de Noirs style of wine to try.

This style of sparkling is white wine made from black grapes (hence the term “white of black”) and, in my shopping experience at least, is slightly harder to come by over the more popular (and highly prized) Blanc de Blanc style.

So not only was it a treat finding Celene's Amethyste Brut, it was also a treat to try a Cremant from Bordeaux made from Cabernet Franc and Merlot. But the real kicker was that this bottle was also on sale for about $12, which made it an absolute steal!

When we had a layover in Istanbul, with no connecting flight after returning stateside, we knew we had to do a little duty-free shopping.

Thankfully, Turkey has a lot of unique and indigenous grapes that we could pick up in duty-free, and Kavaklidere's Bogazkere was one such bottle. As this was a new-to-us grape, it certainly did not last very long in our cellar. We opened it up to enjoy with a steak and added it to our ever-growing grape list.

When attending a conference in eastern Washington, I was fortunate enough to be able to sample many wineries near Tri-Cities at events before, during, and after the convention.

One such winery was Fidelitas, whose high-end Cabs and Merlots (plus other varietals) are shining examples of the quality of what the region produces.

I, sadly, did not pick up any bottles during my visit to this winery, but after the conference had ended one of the hosts snuck me a couple of bottles leftover from one of the evening parties. Not being one to say no to excellent wine for free, and this is how I ended up with a Fidelitas Merlot 2018 in my suitcase for the trip home.

Naturally, I had to open it shortly after returning.

I have a love/hate relationship with Sauvignon Blanc (and blends) from France. On average I really enjoy the grape, but to get the intensity and complexity I generally prefer out of French wines it almost always feels like you have to start out at $40/bottle (if not more) to get to a quality point that other locales can provide for half the price.

This is not exclusive to Sauvignon Blanc. In all honesty, it is simply France knowing how to get the most for their wines abroad. But that being said, it seems especially true with all the Sauvignon Blancs we've tried.

The Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon blend from Chateau Picque Caillou from Pessac-Leognan was not much different. While this one was much more complex for its price point than we originally expected, we also weren't quite sure about the sell price in the USA.

I can't remember the last time we opened a light red. So it took us a minute to get used to Anthony Road's Cabernet Franc and Lemberger blend.

As it turns out, while we generally prefer fuller-bodied reds in just about every situation possible, this one really hit all the right notes for us with these two classic red grapes from the Finger Lakes!

When I decided to sign up for WSET Diploma, I knew I'd have to go sparkling heavy when in the D4 module.

As I have the least experience with all things bubbles, this meant finding new styles of wines to try outright (although not necessarily new grapes per our quest).

So early on in this module, I decided to go for Jean-Baptiste Adam Brute Rose- a Cremant d'Alsace made in the traditional method with a little bit of skin contact from my favorite region in France!

It was every bit what I hoped for.

When we first started thinking about joining wine clubs, our thoughts immediately turned to those horrible wine of the month club infomercials we saw on TV growing up. The thought of joining a program where we relied on a nameless person to pick bottles for us was, well, unsettling to say the least.

Thankfully, wine subscriptions have come a long way over the years with the launching of many themed wine clubs, sommelier-led clubs (ones who put their name on the product!), and even wine subscriptions becoming available direct from your favorite winery.

As we've been using these services to help build our wine cellar (and find new grapes for our quest to try every grape varietal in the world), we thought we'd put together a list of some of the best wine subscriptions that you may want to consider!

Disclaimers: Wine club rules vary from state-to-state, country-to-country. As such, you must confirm if you can receive wine shipments to your locality before joining any program. Likewise, if any promotion codes are offered within this article, note that some states prohibit discounting of alcohol as well. If any offer codes are no longer valid, please contact us so we can update accordingly as offers change regularly- sometimes without us being aware of it.

We first discovered the Portuguese white grape, Avesso, as part of a wine club we were receiving bottles from. This grape, typically grown in Vinho Verde, really delighted us with a nice complexity of flavor while still having many of the characteristics we love in a refreshing Vinho Verde.

So when we got a chance to try a bottle from Quinta do Ferro, we were really excited to see if it held up to our expectations.

Thankfully, it did!

As far as bubbles are concerned, I've never really been that fond of Prosecco. The cheaper bottles I've had access to have been rather simple, and more often than not are used as a base for mimosas more than anything.

So when I saw Tenuta di Collalbrigo Prosecco DOCG in the store, I knew I had to pick it up to help study for my WSET D4 sparkling wine exam.

If any bottle can help convert me to Prosecco, it has to be one from a DOCG region, right? As it turns out, it did!

Whenever we visit Boundary Breaks, one of our favorite Finger Lakes wineries, we always love to see what new bottle of Riesling they have available.

In a recent trip, we stumbled upon their #356 Dry Bubbly bottle which was made via CO2 injection of an otherwise still wine (so not via the Champagne method like we're used to drinking).

It was a hit for us, we bought a bottle to enjoy at home, and popped it open for this review!

Celene Amethyste Brut Blanc de Noirs NV Review – A Great Price

Kavaklidere Prestige Bogazkere 2018 Review – Light Turkish Red

Fidelitas Merlot 2018 Review – A Solid Red from Washington

Chateau Picque Caillou Pessac-Leognan 2020 Review – Acidic French White

Anthony Road Cabernet Franc and Lemberger 2016 Review

Jean-Baptiste Adam Brute Rose NV – Traditional Method Rose

5 of the Best Wine Clubs to Consider Joining

Quinta do Ferro Avesso 2020 Review – Vinho Verde Gem

Tenuta di Collalbrigo Prosecco Superiore DOCG NV – Sippable Bubbles

Boundary Breaks #356 Dry Bubbly 2019 Review – Bubbles and Petrol