Savoie is not a wine region I have been able to study much of, but with its proximity next to the Alps and bordering with Switzerland, my expectation was for crisp, high-acid wines all the same. Domaine Labbe's Vin de Savoie Abymes highlights the lesser grown Jacquere grape and hits exactly that in this high-acid but flavorful bottle! Domaine Labbe Abymes Showcases the Jacquere Grape This Jacquere was pale lemon in color with medium aroma of yellow apple, pear, honeysuckle, cream, toast, wet stone, and melon. On the palate, it was dry with high acidity, medium alcohol, and medium(+) body, fl ..read more

For wine fans, you likely are familiar with Sauvignon Blanc- the popular grape grown all over the world known for its high acid and lovely flavors. But have you tried the rarer Sauvignon Gris- a pink skinned mutation of the popular grape? Truly, these are a bit harder to come by, and we were fortunate enough to find a bottle of Eric Chevalier's Fie Gris from the Loire Valley and what a find this one was! We honestly would not be upset if more wineries planted this alongside their Sauvignon Blanc holdings! A Beautiful Sauvignon Gris from the Loire This Sauvignon Gris was pale gold in color wi ..read more

I have to admit, my experience with Trentodoc sparkling wines has been fairly limited. My first time I think I ever had one was on my WSET Diploma D4 exam, and since then, well, that was it. Truly, it was a region of sparkling wines that I knew very little about! So when I had the opportunity to try some sample bottles provided courtesy of Trentodoc, I was quite excited to learn more about their traditional method wines from the region. Up first? Monfort's Le General Dallemagne Extra Brut from 2015. With 60 months of lees and a few more years of time in bottle on top, this was one stellar bot ..read more

Normally when we think of Rieslings from the Mosel, our first thoughts are of the low ABV, often semi-sweet wines that are, well, lovely. But it is also not a safe assumption to think that all Mosel wines are sweet. Some, like Keonard Kreusch's Mosel Riesling, may be dry or, in this case, have just a little perceptible residual sugar to push it into the off-dry territory. We can really get into a bottle like this one! A Touch of Sugar and Minerality in Leonard Kreusch Riesling This Mosel Riesling was pale lemon in color with medium aromas of lemon, lime, pear, peach, petrol, wet stone, and g ..read more

Italy is one of those countries we go back to again and again in our quest to try new grapes, and the red grape, Susumaniello, from Puglia was high on our list. Masseria Li Veli's Susumaniello was an interesting and complex red on the aromas that, admittedly, was a bit less complex on the palate than we would prefer. That said, if you are a fan of Cabernet, this one will be right up your alley! Susumaniello is an Interesting Red from Southern Italy This southern Italian red was medium ruby in color with medium aromas of black cherry, leather, tobacco, cedar, clove, cinnamon, dried leaves, bl ..read more

Whenever we have dessert Muscats, they're often quite young, fresh, and vibrant. Yalumba in Australia makes one that is a bit different as it comes with a great deal of age on it (at least 10 years, per the label). While this bottle itself is non-vintage such that we do not know its exact age, what it does come with is an impressive complexity of flavors that age provides. Paired with a robust dessert, like miso cheesecake, and we enjoyed the bottle even more. Yalumba Antique is a Robust, Aged Muscat This fortified muscat from Australia was medium brown in color with medium aromas of candied ..read more

As our quest here at The Grape Pursuit is to try every grape varietal in the world, whenever we find a bottle with a new-to-us grape, we pick it up immediately. This was the case of Zorah Voski from Armenia with an equal blend of two new grapes to us- Voskeat and Garandmak. After opening this bottle, we appreciated just how complex the blend was, with aromas and flavors that reminded us a lot like a Champagne (minus bubbles). This one was a real treat we hope to try again in the future! Voskeat and Garandmak Blend is a Treat This Armenian white blend was medium gold in color with medium ..read more

During our dry January, we decided to try some non-alcoholic wines to see what they were like. We quickly realized that sparkling NA wine was among our favorite, as the characteristics of the bubbles and, often, added sugar to offset the lack of alcohol, works nicely for the style. To put it bluntly, sparkling wine is sometimes sweet, so added sugar works. Noughty makes an interesting sparkling Chardonnay that, while well made, reminded us a bit more like a sparkling cider than it did a sparkling wine. Noughty NA Chardonnay Tastes Cider-Like This non-alcoholic sparkling wine was pale lemon i ..read more

When it comes to wine books, we have many favorites from books for those with passive interests in wine all the way to those who want atlas-level tomes with great detail. But if you are studying wine, particularly in structured programs that have exams, these book are often not the best as the programs want you to stick to the source materials as best as possible. In these situations, 3rd party resources are often frowned upon since they can differ from official material drastically. During my WSET studies, one book in particular jumped out as being incredibly helpful- Amble Wine's Explore Wi ..read more

When we think of producers of high-quality Rieslings, our minds often go to cool climates like the Mosel in Germany or the Finger Lakes in Upstate New York. But just because some cooler climate regions are famous for their Riesling doesn't mean this grape can't grow in warmer spots. On the contrary, it thrives all over! California-based Arista, known for some stellar Pinot Noir, has one Riesling from the Anderson Valley that we were hesitant about but fell in love with after the first sip. If you prefer your Riesling ripe and with a robust intensity, this one is for you. Arista Offers an Inte ..read more