Le Dauphin De Guiraud 2005, Ac Sauternes, 2nd Wine Of Château Guiraud

Sauternes. Bordeaux.
In the glass golden color, clean, clear.
On the nose very strong aromas of honey, pear confiture. 
On the palate sweet, but with some acidity of pineapple. Some floral tones, sweet apricots, vanilla.
Very nice desert wine! Long finish with exotic fruit aromas.

White wines of Bordeaux.

Bordeaux is famous for its red blends. But not  only red wines are famous there!
Dry white wines are made  in many districts of the region, including a few wines from the predominantly red-wine Haut-Médoc area. But most of Bordeaux’s dry and semi-dry white wines come from the following three districts:

• Pessac-Léognan
• Graves
• Entre-Deux-Mers 
  
  
   
  
  
  White wine from the Graves region  is usually consumed young and will show fresh citrus and grassy flavors. Those white wines are made mostly from Sauvignon Blanc and Semillion.
  Some  producers favoring and others avoiding barrel fermentation and/or maturation.
   Wines made in Pessac-Leognan tend to be more expensive. The very best dry white wines of Pessac-Léognan contain about 50 percent of Sémillon
   Most of the wines labeled Entre-Deux-Mers are fresh, fruity, stainless steel fermented, and designed for immediate consumption.
  
  
  Most dry white Bordeaux can be enjoyed young, when their fruity, floral aromas are most concentrated. Of all the Sauvignon Blancs made in the world, White Bordeaux  is more citrus and floral vs. grassy and herbal. And the acidity is not very high.
  
  
  
  
  White Bordeaux is mostly made from:
  
  
  Sémillon, Sauvignon blanc and Muscadelle - Typical blends are usually 80% Sémillon, 20% Sauvignon blanc.
   Sauvignon Blanc is native to Bordeaux. 
  
  
  
  
  Sweet wines
  
  
  The sweet wine producing communes of Sauternes and Barsac are located in the southern part of the Graves district along the Garonne River.Humidity is so high, courtesy of mists produced when the small and cooler Ciron River meets the larger, warmer Garonne. These mists, however, are important for the way in which they encourage noble rot in the white grapes grown here—Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscadelle.
  The sweet wines produced here are noted for their high degree of concentration
  Facing Sauternes AOC, but on the other side of the Garonne River, sit the small AOCs of Loupiac and St. Croix-du-Mont. The wines here are produced in the same spirit as those of Sauternes, but are lighter, less concentrated, and less expensive. Given the high costs associated with the wines of Sauternes, they can make an excellent introduction to the sweet wines of Bordeaux.
  The sweet wines of Bordeaux can only be made with the unique partnership of botrytis. Botrytis is a fungus which  forms on grapes in the fall when cool, humid mornings are followed up by warm, dry afternoons and the grapes are overripen. This fungus sucking out all the liquids from the berries resulting  shriveled, concentrated, raisin-like clusters. This results in a more intense, concentrated final product.
   The secret to sweet Bordeaux wines is careful picking. Grapes are hand picked, pickers may come back more than 5 times selecting only botrytised clusters.
  
  
  Food pairing for White Bordeaux.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   (picture from Google)
  
  
  White Bordeaux is good with vegetable dishes, as well as sea food and fish pairing.
  We have to be careful pairing White Bordeaux with acidic foods that can overshadow the wine.
  
  
  Pairing for sweet bordeaux
  
  
  The younger sweet wines are more fresher and they are paired with scallops, salmon, poultry.
  Famous pairing for these sweet wines is foie gras.
   The older ( 5-10 years) sweet wines show more  honey, apricot, spice and almond flavors. In older wines the sweetness decreases as the nose of the wine is more subtle. These older vintages taste better with fruit-based pastry, almond cake, creme brulee.
  
  
  For my Sauternes
  

  Le Dauphin De Guiraud 2005, Ac Sauternes, 2nd Wine Of Château Guiraud
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  I made Pithivier
  
  
  
  Recipe
  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/almond-orange-pithiviers/#&panel1-1
  
  
  Sweet Bordeaux has to be served chilled!
  
  
  
  
  I hope You like our virtual travel and tasting!
  See you next time! 
  Cheers!
  
  
  
  

Bordeaux-right bank.

It's been a month! I hope everyone had a good summer!

We are going to continue our virtual travel and tasting in France. From the left bank on Garonne river we are going to the right bank which is on the Dordogne river. This area also called -The Libournais, named for this historic capital-Libourne.

The Libournais appellations

• Saint-Émilion AOC
• Montagne-Saint-Émilion AOC
• Saint-Georges-Saint-Émilion AOC
• Lussac-Saint-Émilion AOC
• Puisseguin-Saint-Émilion AOC
• Pomerol AOC
• Lalande-de-Pomerol AOC
• Fronsac AOC
• Canon-Fronsac AOC
• Côtes-de-Castillon AOC
• Premières-Côtes-de-Franc AOC

Merlot grape  dominate on this side of the river.
The soil of Bordeaux’s right bank is a limestone and clay, functioning like a sponge to hold water, making it the ideal soil to grow the softer side of early-ripening Merlot. With cooler soils, which simply aren‘t capable of ripening Cabernet Sauvignon on a regular basis, the earlier-ripening Merlot moves to the lead on the right bank, with Cabernet Franc and occasionally Malbec playing the major supporting roles. The Merlot-based wines of the Right Bank are generally more fruit forward and softer. Of course you can see Melot and Cabernet Sauvignon blends, but single varietal wines are popular here. Also those wines can be consumed much earlier than wines from the left bank.




 Grape Varietals:
 
Red - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec
White - Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon 


Another difference this side of the river is the size of the wine estates. The grand châteaux of the Left Bank are mostly large estates, whereas the Right Bank properties tend to be much smaller. It is more difficult to navigate through the many Château labels of the area.

For lighter and more acidic and fruitier wines food is a little lighter too-Chicken, rabbit, mushroom sauces, lamb, pork and duck.










I have a great example of the right bank wine








In the glass bright and deep purple.
On the nose intense red berries and vanilla aromas.
The wine is silky on the palate, fruity and acidic with firm tannins.

 And I'll pair it with the smoked duck. 

Château Hourbanon 2003, Ac Médoc, Cru Bourgeois

Well, it was time! This wine spent a few years in our cellar.
Ten years old, I think this wine is in its prime! So we opened it and decanted for at least an hour.
I actually reviewed this wine last year. I think after a year it just got better!
The wine became more softer, more balanced. More pronounced leather aromas, cedar, dried berries.
Aromas don't jump out of the glass, they flow gently opening up layer after layer, what this wine has to offer.
Finish is long and very pleasant.
 This wine is good by itself, but asking for meat. But not very heavy dish, not very complicated. Something like  simple piece of good prosciutto will do.

Ghost Pines Zinfandel 2011

Very smooth,filled with cooked berries aromas.
Dark red in the glass.
On the nose  fruit forward, rich aromas with  jammy notes.
On the palate medium bodied, thick, juicy, very pleasant. nicely balanced.
Great finish with dark fruit and green pepper notes.

I'm back!

Now I have to get my thoughts straight and get back to my projects.
Meanwhile, I'll show you some pics from the wild!:0)

Cheers!:0)

I was lost in time!

I was so busy with my work! And also my nephew was visiting. So I had to postpone all my projects.
I'll get back to my project very soon. After a couple of weeks, when I am back.
While I was entertaining my nephew, I was taking a lot of pictures. There are some of the pics I want to share.

Cheers!