Cork Poppers Taste Whites and Rose

After too long a break, our Cork Poppers wine tasting group gathered for yet another sampling of wines. Those of you who have followed our tastings for a long while may recall that most in our group are fans of red. But Cheryl and Meredith (to a lesser extent), are all for the whites! So when Cheryl and Dick hosted, it came as no surprise that our theme was "White and Rose." And even for us red fans, it was a surprisingly tasty tasting!

As you might guess by now (if you've not followed us forever), our Corkies are just real-life people who like wine. Some know a little more than others technically but the main thing is we enjoy trying new things and more or less getting away from the shelf at the grocery store and most of the "name brand" wines and seeing what an array of wines are available at different price points. (And yes, we also have enjoyed wines you get at the grocery store that are available pretty much anywhere.) We don't take ourselves too seriously but we always depart having had a lot of fun and usually adding another potential wine or two to our personal favorites list.

This time our happy gang was down two members, as member Mike was having open heart surgery as we sipped, and of course Barb was with him. But Bob brought his daughter Heather, a delightful addition to the group. 

We tasted seven wines, starting with Chateau Ste. Michelle Sauvignon Blanc 2022, provided by Dick and Cheryl.

This comes from Washington's Columbia Valley and Dick described it as being very good with vegetables, seafood and by the pool."

"This is something I would drink," Cheryl said. And I had to agree with her. It was crisp and fresh and I could see myself enjoying it on a hot summer evening at the lake. Dick paid $9.99 for it on sale at our local Meijer store (retail would be several dollars more.)

Next, Roger offered Mich Mash (White wine, 2020) from Chateau Grand Traverse.

Described as "white wine" Roger said "It has all the same stuff in it!" Cheryl declared, "I love it!" Kate, on the other hand, grimaced with a look that prompted Anne to say "Look at your face!" Clearly not a winner with her!

I thought it was OK (I am not a fan of Michigan wines overall, but they do whites better than reds). 

Roger, who once brought seven wines from Minnesota to tasting, all of which were pretty wretched (sorry, Minnesota readers -- maybe he just didn't select well!) has never lived that moment down. But today someone reminded him, after seeing Kate's face, "And it's not even from Minnesota!" 

I think he paid about $18 for it -- and I would not. Online it is $10. And I don't think I'd do that, either. But I drank my share!

Our third wine was from Heather -- Avaline, a white organic wine created for (or by?) the actor Cameron Diaz. Apparently, Diaz couldn't find a good organic wine she enjoyed so came up with this one. It has no added sugar. Heather paid $14.99 for it.

"It's almost like fruit juice," Heather said, while Meredith said "It's OK." Cheryl, on the other hand, loved it. "Do you have anymore of this because I love it. Don't give Kate any more!" (Kate, however, said "I like this!")

Apparently, the wine was designed for pre-post-menopausal women (most women of an age fall into one of those categories) who can't drink wine with sugar. Apparently, Diaz, tired on not having a wine she could drink, invented one of her own.

The bottle says it "Pairs with fresh cut flowers, which of course brought one of our intrepid members to ask "Who drinks wine with fresh cut flowers?" (and to which Rick replied, "The horses do.") I don't know about the horses and wine but it's a fun image. 

Then Clayton had to add, "If the wine is by Cameron Diaz, it has good legs!" (And we were only on the third wine.)

Next was my offering, Oyster Bay's Sauvignon Blanc 2023 from New Zealand's Marloborough region.

This one seemed to go over pretty well. "I like this one," Clayton said. "I love it!" Cheryl pronounced. Bob, too, said he enjoyed it and wines from Oyster Bay.

Kate said it "tastes good!" and Bob agreed. I agree, too! I found it fresh and crisp, not too sweet (I do not like sweet wines!) and something I would gladly get again to sip or serve. I paid $11.99 for it at our local grocery.

Clayton was next, offering up Sheep Thrills Pinot Grigio from Italy.

 This was the only wine I tasted that I threw into the sink. (That said, it was my favorite label.) Cheryl didn't like it either. Kate noticed it had more of a mineral bite to it, which Clayton said was called "stone." 

"This was my least favorite, " Cheryl said. "Sorry, Clayton," I said, feeling a bit bad at chucking mine in the sink. "That's OK, he said, I'd rather have a cheap red."

I didn't get a price on this one. But it really didn't matter!

Bob was last with Spier Chenin Blanc 2022 from South Africa.

I called this one "very good" and Roger said "I would buy this! He paid "$15 for it and I would, too.

Where are the Roses, you might ask? We had one -- House Wine Rose Bubbles, a sparkling wine. (I'm showing both sides of the bottle here.)

 

This reminded me of a festive Prosecco and I'm always up for a festive Prosecco! It has no artificial sweeteners and is gluten free.

"Good choice, Kate," Meredith said. I noted that it had a little bite to it but it wasn't too sweet. It felt very festive. We also noted the fun bottle. "Who would buy something like this on the shelf?" Kate asked. ("You did!" someone said.) At $15.99 (on sale, retail $18.79) it was a good buy.

At this point, we drank a toast to the recovery of our Corkie Mike, who was at that moment in open heart surgery. 

I would be remiss not to mention the food table, much of which you can see here. It included a marvelous Asian ramen-chicken salad, cole slaw, fruit salad, crostini, cheese straw buttons, Rick's baguettes, cheeses and meats and stuffed bell peppers. Unbelievably, the absent Barb dropped off pulled pork and buns for sandwiches.

For dessert, Heather made to-die-for chocolate chunk and caramel cookies. I wish I had a photo but they disappeared too quickly! I did Madeleines with lemon glaze. This was what was left.

Meet this week's tasters!

 Cheryl and Dick; Jeanie and Rick; Meredith and Roger, Mike and Kate, Anne and Clayton, Bob. Heather is not pictured here. (Photos of couples by Cheryl Rice except for Jeanie/Rick and Bob)

For some of our past Cork Popper posts, organized by category (white, red, German, Italian, French, etc.) check out the tab on the menu bar at the top of this page!

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