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

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.

Read more

Dolce 2012 Review – A Sweet Late Harvest California Wine

Before I started to learn about wine, I was always enamored by the concept of dessert wine. Emphasis should be made on the word concept, if only because I could rarely afford to try any of the expensive bottles.

Dolce was one such dessert wine whose marketing spoke to me as a casual wine shopper. An epic name, liquid gold color, and dessert wine flavors? I wanted it.

So when I found a bottle on sale in a local liquor store, I had to pick it up to try right away.

Read more

Silkman Blackberry Vineyard Semillon 2015 Review

When we normally think of Semillon, we often think of the botrytized wine it produces in regions like Sauternes in France.

But this grape is also known to make some pretty stellar conventional dry white wines, especially from regions like Hunter Valley in Australia. Naturally, we had to pick up a bottle of Silkman's blackberry Vineyard Semillon to try just that and thought it made for a rather interesting glass!

Read more

Louis-Antoine Luyt Gordo Blanco NV Review – An Unusual Wine

If you are in the mood for an unusual wine that is fermented naturally and unfiltered, the Louis-Antoine Luyt Gordo Blanco from Chile is for you.

First off, this wine is a blend of Muscat of Alexandria, Torrontes, Semillon, and Chasselas- a pretty unique combination we've seen come out of South America. Second, the natural fermentation, skin on, and no filtering make for a very intriguing offering all around.

Read more