Ottawa Women's Wine Club: VINO VIXENS!

Date : July 9, 2007 Host : Christina Wine #1: Yellow Tail Rosé Region: South Eastern Australia Vintage: 2006 Price: $10.95 Rating: tied for 1st place out of 4 Tasting Notes: strawberries, vanilla & spice – tart, not good on its own, tastes better with cheese Wine #2: Santa Carolina Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé Region: Chile Vintage: 2006 Price: $10.15 Rating: tied for 2nd place Tasting Notes: floral aromas, strawberry – smells like petroleum (was this Carmela??!!), hairspray; sour, strong; tart aftertaste; not good with food (tastes more acidic); tastes better with strawberries (yikes – how did this get 2nd place, we forgot the good comments!!) Wine #3: Pelee Island Winery – Chambourcin, Rosé Region: Ontario Vintage: 2005 Price: $10.45 Rating: tied for 1st place Tasting notes: fruit flavours – sweet, but not too sweet; smooth aftertaste, light & refreshing (that’s more like it!) Wine #4: Strewn Cabernet Rosé Region: Niagara Peninsula, Ontario Vintage: 2006 Price: $11.95 Rating: ti...

Date : June 18, 2007 Host : Shereen Wine #1: Jackson-Triggs Gewurztraminer Region: Ontario Price: $12.75 Rating: Highest rank – 1st place out of 4 Tasting notes: lychée, pear, melon – very good with spicy food; sweet & fresh with spice Wine #2: Bellingham The Maveric – Chenin Blanc Region: South Africa Vintage: 2005 Price: $20.95 Rating: One of the least favourite – 3rd or 4th place Tasting Notes: Honey & Citrus – tasted tingly/carbonated; not good with spicy food; good with goat cheese & fig jelly; smells like broccoli (!) Other: - Chenin Blancs are known for high acidity - Most widely planted grape variety in South Africa where it is known as Steen Wine #3: Cline Zinfandel (red) Region: California Price: $14.20 Rating: 2nd place Tasting notes: clove, blackberry – had a creamy taste; takes on the taste of the spicy food; light cherry flavour; overpowers cheese Wine #4: Sula Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Region: India Vintage: 2005 Price: $12.00 Rating: 3rd or 4th place Tasti...

"The Jacquie Challenge: A melange of Merlots…" Date : May 28, 2007 Attendees: Jacquie (host), Andrea, Tayisa, Carmela, Julie, Sara-Rose, Christina, Anna and Shereen. General notes : · Bread or even popcorn can cleanse one’s pallet, as do coffee beans; should drink merlots with strong cheeses; generally, a wine can be recognized by the shape of its bottle; Tetra packs last longer once opened.· http://www.winecountrygetaways.com/ Wine 1: Sawmill Creek, Barrel Select (Tetra-pack) Region: NiagaraVintage: n/a Price $10.95 (per litre) Rating: 3rd favourite Tasting notes: cannot compete with cheeses, bland, light ho-hum Wine 2: Likan (Tetra-pack) Region: Do Central Valley, Chili Vintage: 2005 Price $12.95 (per litre) Rating: 4/9 votes as favourite (second favourite) Tasting notes: Strong after-taste, too complex, spicy, nice with strong cheese, most aromatic, WWF wine Wine 3: Ducal, Merlot Tempranillo (Tetra-pack) Region: Castilla, Spain Vintage: 2004Price $11.95 (per litre) Rating...

May 9, 2007 – Andrea hosted the fourth Ottawa Women's Wine Club featuring CHILE Wine #1: Louis Felipe Edwards Sauvignon Blanc Region: Terraced Cassablanca Valley, Chile Vintage: 2005 Price: $15 approx Rating: 7/10 Tasting Notes: good, but not a sipping wine – Caramel taste, strong, undefined aftertaste Wine #2: Santa Alicia Carménère (red) Region: Maipo Valley, Chile Vintage: 2005 Price: $12 Rating: 9 Tasting Notes: Gold medal well deserved! (Julie); Delicious – with and without food. Great with chocolate (Andrea) Bottle says “Bold, ripe delicious with tiers of rich plum, chocolate and black cherry” mmmmm Wine #3: Errazuriz Estate (Cabernet Sauvignon red) Region: Valle de Aconcagua, Chile Vintage: 2006 Price: $12 Rating: 7.5/10 Tasting Notes: Full bodied, strong (14.5%!), dry; serve with steak or hard cheese “firm tannins” – Anna, “yummy”. “youza” - Carm Enjoyed with : Caramelized apples, gouda cheese and empanadas (great) Company : Tayisa, SR, Andrea, Julie, Christina, Jacquie, Ca...

April 24, 2007 – Tayisa and SR hosted the third Ottawa Women's Wine Club featuring wines from FRANCE Wine #1: Pierre Sparr Riesling Region: Alsace, France Vintage: 2005 Price: $14 Rating: 6/10 Tasting Notes: Hints of apple, easy to drink but lacked SOUL – a cooking wine! Wine #2: Dopff & Irion Gewurztraminer (2) (white wine) Region: Vin D’Alsace, France Vintage: 2005 Price: $16 Rating: 4/10 for those who prefer dry and 8/10 for those who like sweeter wines Tasting Notes: Too strong to be a sweet wine, tasted a bit thick; rosewater; “I love it” – SR; good for fruit & cheese Wine #3: Irius, Dry Riesling Region: Niagara on the Lake Vintage: 2004 Price: $14 Rating: 7/10 Tasting Notes: Caramel, Canada better than France! Wine #4: Pelee Island Gewurztraminer Region:, Kingsville Ontario Vintage: 2005 Price: $10 Rating: 8 Tasting Notes: Apple – didn’t smell as good as it tasted Enjoyed with : Cheese fondue with bread, apples, grapes & pears Company : Tayisa, SR, Andrea, Julie, ...

April 3, 2007 - Anna hosted the second Ottawa Women's Wine Club featuring wines from Australia and New Zealand and wonderful appetizers! Wine #1: Cat’s pee on a Gooseberry Bush (White wine, Sauvignon Blanc) Region: Auckland, New Zealand Vintage: 2006 Price: $14.95 Rating: 9/10 Tasting Notes: Orange notes, tingly and light, easy on the palate and refreshing (was Julie in the mood for white or what??!) ps - don’t mix with olives! (Julie says) I would definitely buy this again! Wine #2: Lindeman’s Cawarra (Red wine - Shiraz) Region: South Eastern Australia Vintage: 2006 Price: $13 Rating: 8/10 paired with food, 6/10 alone (this is a highly technical rating system we have set up here!) Tasting Notes: would never serve this alone – but great paired with strong-flavored foods; spicy, strong; “burned my nostrils (this must have been from Julie!); hint of cinnamon; “really enjoy this” (Andrea I think!) Enjoyed with: Greek-style bruschetta; baguette with white beans, arugula & prosciutt...