vee-on-YAY!

I love wine.  The smell, the taste, the way it lingers on your tongue.  And it’s no secret that I am a red wine girl.  I always have been, which I owe entirely to one set of host parents that I had when I was an exchange student to The Netherlands.  Every year they would plan a pilgrimage to the Riojas region of Spain to stock up the cellars!  For the longest time, I shunned anything having to do with wine wine.  Or even rose’.  My brief encounters with them tended to be with either cloyingly sweet whites and white zinfandels or over-oaked chardonnays.  Don’t get me wrong, if you like ’em, by all means enjoy them, but for me they were in direct contrast to the richness and full-bodied flavors of Riojas wines.

Then I started working at a wine shop, expanding my wine knowledge, and discovering the joys and delights of pairing wine with food.  However, one of these discoveries is that–much to my dismay–sometimes red wine just wasn’t appropriate and thus began my quest for delicious whites. So, I stepped out of my comfort zone and just started drinking (rough task, but someone’s gotta do it!).

What I discovered is a vast wealth of very much over-looked white wine grapes living the shadows of Riesling and Chardonnay, such as Gewurztraminer, Chenin Blanc, Vino Verde, and my favorite: Viognier (pronounced vee-on-yay).  I really enjoy it because it’s dry, fruity, and crisp, without the minerally taste that I find in Sauvignon Blanc.

The other day I was browsing for a nice crisp wine to make my risotto and perhaps enjoy with my ceviche (you know, as an alternative to Shiner Bock) and I found this

I have discovered that I am rather partial to French wines and it was about $12, so it came home with me!  It has a very peachy bouquet (which endears me to it already!) and tastes very light and crisp with a clean finish (which is why I am partial to French whites!).  It was definitely $12 well spent!