St. Gabriel 2010 Riesling (Mosel)

Inside Cossettas Italian Market

Z and I did some late Christmas shopping today and ended up at Cossetta Alimentari on West 7th Street in St. Paul, MN. This is a wonderful Italian Market and Pizzeria. I heard from one of the employees that they will be adding a Pasticceria bar which will offer Pastries and Gelatos. We shopped there for a few last-minute gifts and a treat for ourselves.

Being that Z is not totally crazy about Proscuitto, a well-aged salted ham that tastes best sliced so thin that light can be seen through it which flavors complement melons, I had to pass on getting that.

Sliced Prosciutto that
I love served just like this.

The small treat we purchased was some diced Parmesan cheese. After we arrived home and put the groceries and other purchases away, Z opened the Parmesan. After having a couple of bites, I suggested a wine. Z agreed. After I consulted a Wine and Cheese paring website, Gourmet Sleuth, I resolved that either a Chardonnay or a Riesling would be appropriate.

I chose a bottle of 2010 St Gabriel Riesling (link is to the Wine Expert rating) from Germany's Mosel region in Germany. The back label boasts that the Mosel region is known for it's steep slopes and mineral-rich soils, then add it to the area's climate, give this wine a deliciously light, aromatic tickle with flavors of green apple and hints of lime citrus notes. The label goes on to say that this wine should be served with light meals, salads, spicy Asian cuisine or on its own. The screw top cap didn't deter me from purchasing this, nor deter me from opening it for a taste. The percentage of alcohol by volume is listed at 9.5%. Though the retail on a bottle of this is around $9, I had noted when I purchased this that we paid $6.75 on sale...a bargain, indeed, for such a pleasant wine!

The reason that I had purchased a couple of Riesling wines from different vintners, and parts of the world was to compare them to the 5 gallons of Riesling wine that I made and is currently aging in my cellar.  

 I measured the Specific Gravity at 1.010. This would be a sweet Riesling. I hoped it wouldn't be too sweet for the cheese and occasion.  The color is clear and pale pear in color. It has a light bouquet on the nose of lemons, pineapple, and a hint of earth. Though not unpleasant, my first observation on the tongue is that it felt of effervescence (small bubbles in the wine), as if not all of the gas was removed from this wine. There seems to be a good balance between the sweetness and the tannins. The taste brings out more of the pineapples than lemons, and leads one to taste a bit of pear, as well.

Overall this is a good wine that I would purchase again. I may even back-sweeten a gallon or two of the Riesling I made to imitate this style of Riesling.

If you have tasted this brand and year of wine please be a friend and comment below on your experience!!

Finished Apple Wine

Here is what I've finished this week:

A few of the labeled bottles.  Each label is slightly different. Per my fathers suggestion the the brand is "G. Antonio". Guess why.

The labels are completely in Italian text. Each bottle label have different sayings in Italian. My father helped me get the Italian correct.

Matthew Fox White Zinfandel

Price: $4.99
Producer: Matthew Fox Vineyards
Region: California
Varietal: White Zinfandel
Container Size: 750 ML

Wednesday night Z and I went to a liquor store to pick up some boxes that Z could use for work.  While we were there, we picked up some wine. One of the bottles was Matthew Fox White Zinfandel.

We opened it up Friday night and enjoyed it. Here is what we observed. Its color was a dark peach and it was very clear. The bouquet was like peaches, matching the beautiful color.

Even better, it tasted like it's wonderful bouquet, though we did find it a little on the sweet side. It's not a bad wine if someone is looking for a sweet wine. I thought it would be a good idea to measure the S.G.(Specific Gravity) so I can adjust the wine I was making not to be as sweet. I measured the S.G. at 1.012. 

Lucky Bottle Score

Z called me this afternoon as I was driving home from work.

She told me how she went to Walgreen's and then onto a garage sale where she bought a case of empty green bottles.

She said that these bottles had imprinting on the glass on the lower back and a cool design molded in the front of a face. She got a case of 24 of these.

I told her that I have some bottle cleaning to do.

When I pulled in I took the case of bottles out of her car and brought them into the house.

Looking at them in the light, I knew right away that these weren't wine bottles.

If I make some beer, could I reuse these?

Apple Wine

Last week I started a five gallon batch of apple wine.

Being that I pitched the yeast last Friday night, I though I started out too slow. By Saturday at 1:00 pm I saw no bubbling action and wasn't smelling any yeast odors like I had with my one gallon batches. I stirred it anyways. I thought it was because of the water that I used. I used 1 gallon of spring water and 4 gallons of purified water.

I didn't check it again until Sunday at 5:00 pm. There was a good amount of bubbles on the top of each bucket and had the tell tale or yeast. I should say that foam covered each bucket. I stirred it. Looks like the fermentation was well on it's way.




On Wednesday the S.G. reached 1.000 so I racked the wine into a carboy.

I'll definitely let you know about how it finishes.

Apple/Passion/Mango

Today I picked up 6 frozen cans of Old Orchard 100% Apple Passion Mango concentrate. Each one mixed with water makes 48 oz of juice. With coupon I paid 50c each.

I was wondering how it would taste as a wine and would like to try.

I was figuring on a starting S.G. of somewhere in the range of 1.085 to 1.090.

Would anyone have any advice or guidance for the recipe?

Wine Enthusiast 18-Bottle Stackable Rack

Yesterday we ordered the two of the Wine Enthusiast 18-Bottle Stack-able Rack. From Kohl's. With a 30% discount we couldn't resist.

These will be a nice addition for when I get to bottle more of my homemade wine. I have a perfect place for this in my cool basement.

Here is the link to the item at Kohl's:
Wine Enthusiast 18-Bottle Stackable Rack - Natural

My Sister-in-Laws parents used to make wine. They had offered at a my nephew's graduation party to give me three of glass carboys. All they wanted for them was a bottle or two of wine so, they can appreciate what I have made. I should be able to pick them up today!!