Cork Poppers Taste Summer Favorites!

Our Cork Popper gang gathered recently at hosts Roger and Merdith's to taste "Summer Wines." What kind of wine do you enjoy in the summer? Bring that!"

Our selection of wines!

Roger kicked things off with a mango mimosa. 

Cork Poppers: Where Do YOU Want to Be?

It's time for another Cork Poppers post! This time we met at my house and our theme was "Where in the World Would You Like to Be Right Now." That opened up a lot of options for wines from about every country you could imagine and we had a few -- New Zealand, Spain and Italy!

Holidays at Home: Cork Poppers Survival Plan!

The Cork Poppers, our wine tasting group, celebrated the holidays by making plans to survive the political chaos of 2025 and beyond with the theme of "Wines to Get Us Through." Judging by the tastings, we will at least be somewhat festive, if numb.

 

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.

Cork Poppers Sample the Wines of Spain

I haven't had a Cork Poppers post in months so I had been looking forward to our September gathering for weeks. Yes, September. Life happened but now I'm happy to update you with our autumn Corkie escapade!

When Kate chose "wines of Spain" as our theme, I was excited -- I love Spanish wine and plans for a potluck menu of Spanish-related foods and cheeses sounded delicious. 

Then I got on meds where I couldn't have red wine, cheese, sausage (like chorizo) or all the other good stuff! But I could still have loads of fun!

Cork Poppers -- Italian Wines Rock!

Barb and Mike were our hosts for Cork Poppers this month and the wines of Italy didn't disappoint!

 

We started out with Barb's homemade limoncello, which Bob poured.

"Quarant-whine!" The Cork Poppers are Back!

The morning of our Cork Popper reunion, with the theme "Quarant-wine," started with an ER trip for Rick and ended with us all tasting seven wines, enjoying a fabulous feast of appetizers and desserts and having a non-stop, "It's been 16 months since I've seen you!" catch up party!

Cork Poppers Sample Summer Wines

Summer may be past its peak but if you enjoy mostly white or rose wines, there will still be plenty to love in the Cork Poppers summer wine tasting choices. And better news still -- you'll even enjoy these in other seasons, too!

Our gathering was held in late August. Hosts Meredith and Roger live on Michigan's Grand River and we love the August tasting because it always includes Meredith's Frogmore Stew and a boat ride on the river with Roger.

Photo by Cheryl Rice

But that's a bit later. First the wines. (Accompanied by cheeses from Bob and Dick and Rick's bread!)

We started with a sparkling wine -- Frexinet Brut Cordon Negro. Bob told us this is the number one selling sparkling wine in the world. A cava from Spain, he said that this was the wine he and his late wife, Joan, called their anniversary wine, as it was the wine that was in their hotel room on their wedding night and an annual tradition for every year after that.

I think we all found it very tasty. And at $11.99, a good bargain!

Then it was on to a trio of three Sauvignon Blancs. This pleased me immensely, as I am definitely not a Chardonnay fan. All of these came from Down Under -- New Zealand and Australia.

Mike M. was first with a Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, 2018, from Marlborough New Zealand. It was a bit peppery and a tad too sweet for me but Bob called it pretty good. I thought it was a bit more like a Chardonnay, creamier.

We all agreed that it probably needed more chilling but at about $13 from Costco, it was a good wine for a summer night.

Roger was up next with Hewitson LuLu 2018 from the Adelaide Hills, Australia. I tought it had an excellent finish and I liked this one best, perhaps of the entire day. It was a little sharper and a little drier. Again, there was a positive consensus on this one.

And once again, the price was consistent -- $12.99 at Costco, so probably widely available.

Cheryl offered an Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2018 from Marlborough, New Zealand 2018. This was the best chilled of the three and it made a huge difference! Comments ranged from "Lovely!" to "I'm still smelling it." (I can't remember who said this but they were right -- it had a terrific aroma.)

Dick explained about BRIX, which is the sugar content in the grapes. The more sugar in the grapes, the higher the alcohol content in the wine will be (This wine had 21% BRIX and a 12.5% alcohol content). (I'm sorry -- I didn't get the price on this one.)

I brought Sofia Rose 2018, by Francis Coppola, Monterey County, California. The film director branched out into wine making as a negotiant -- that is, like Louis Jadot and some other names you might see on wine labels, they may have a vineyard, but they purchase their grapes for the winemaking process. Sofia is named for his daughter, also a film director. Coppola had said he would name no wine for his daughter until it was perfect.

Kate introduced me to this one and while I'm not a big fan of rose overall, I do like this one as it's light and very dry. There was good consensus on this, or as Mike M. put it, "I don't usually like rose but this is really good." (The chilling makes a huge difference!) Again, this is widely available. I found it at Meijer stores for $11.99 (on sale, so count on a bit more full price).

Remember -- the best tasting white wines and roses -- no matter what they are -- are best tasted and enjoyed cold, which makes them perfect for a summer sip.

Mike S. brought our last wine and the only red of the day, Josh Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 by Joseph Carr. And it smelled FABULOUS! And I thought it tasted delicious as well.

Josh wines are very dependable and very available nationwide. I didn't get the price on this one either, but it is in line with the others. It did make the red fans very happy!

 Photo by Cheryl Rice

One of the things we often mock in our group is the pretentiousness of the wine labels and how they might describe the ingredients (notes of kerosene, tobacco, black cherry and gooseberry -- yes, all of these have turned up on previous wine labels, and I can't tell what that should taste like!).

Photo by Cheryl Rice

Some labels also tell the stories of the vineyard or wine origin and we mock those, too. So Mike read his own version of the Josh story, based on the label, which I share below for your good grins. (The boat ride is to follow, below!)

The Josh B'Gosh Truth by Josh Himself as told to Michael M. Smith in a Vision
 (c. 2019 Michael Maurer Smith)

After a decade serving as a world-class sommelier followed by another decade as a wine indstry executive, I, Joseph Carr, was set on my way to form my own wine company. It was what I had to do to be surrounded by the grape 24/7. I just had to be where I could sample my stuff any time, in any amount, without interference -- without anyone telling me that Trump wines were really the best.

Influenced by the wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy, I began making wines under my own label--just the name Josh in a large but elegant script -- a slightly pretentious design intended to portray me as a man of excellent taste and reserve and not as someone you might encounter sitting on the curb taking sips from a bottle hidden in a paper bag.

Pursuing my winemaking philosophy, emphasizing balance, sophistication and approachability, and hinting at old world style, while expressive of California's best wine growing regions, I sought to craft Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot that would seem right at home on the sheves of Meijer and Cotco.

In 2007, I was sober enough to launch Josh Cellars, offering wines that represent the best of California: bold, rich, approachable, balanced and affordable, even by folks who can't afford to drive a Ferrari.

Sourced from across many great California wine growing regions, every vintage represents a labor of love, a commitment to quality, and my personal promise to make great wine that tastes so good I'll drink it myself -- lots and lots and lots of it -- and I hope you will, too.

Today I live alone with my one true friend, my dog Corkie. My wife ran off with some guy who invented wine-flavored vaping e-liquids. But I try not to think about that. And every so often I get a text from my daughter, Tempranillo, checking in to see if I have changed my will. Most days I split my time, when I am not sampling my wines, between watching my recorded collection of "Dancing with the Stars" and tweeting obscenities to Donald Trump.

I hope yu enjoy the fruits of my efforts and continue to buy Josh wines because it's really, really great wine at a reasonable price -- and by'gosh, I really, really need your money.

Finally, let me paraphrase Rick Steves, that pot-addled master of travel -- "Keep on drinking, 

and support public television and good cheap wine."

   After the tasting, our ride down the Grand River. Rick was clearly in his element...

...and with Captain Roger at the helm, it's always fun.

It was a perfect day and I was able to spot a turtle and ducks (actually spotted by Rick), a heron (actually spotted by Kate)...

...and this lovely egret.

I wish it had flown a little closer to the boat but it cuts a lovely figure in the sky.

Then back to land and after removing some weeds from the motor (those are Dick's legs, as he reached into the water to take care of that task)...

...we came in for dinner and to Meredith's lovely table.

Her party favors were a collection of note cards from their travels and they were lovely!

Our Frogmore stew was, as always, way too yummy for words, as was Barb's terrific salad.

As for Mike S's delicious brownies with salted caramel ice cream and caramel topping, they were gobbled down too fast for a photo, after which we called our former Popper, Pat, who now lives in Georgia.

All in all another great day on the river.

A note: Previous Cork Popper posts can be found on the menu tab above, with wines arranged by region or category. Please note that when it comes to wine, what YOU like is what matters, not what we like and that prices are likely to change in various areas and over time. Not all wines are available in all states or countries.

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Cork Poppers Go South of the Border!

It's time to go South of the Border with Cork Poppers and check out some wines from South America. (Actually, our theme included wines from Mexico but no one could find one!) We gathered at Bob's house with wine and food in hand for a delicious and tasty tasting day!

Our first wine was from Roger, a Lolea Frizzante White Sangria, No. 2. Comments ranged from "It smells great" to "I can see why this is a summer beach wine.

Many of us thought it was too sweet, though it was a sangria and super cold would indeed be tasty on a beach. I thought it was too sweet for just sipping a glass of wine but on a hot day at the lake, I'd like it! Anne called it "Very tasty" and Bob said "I think it is very good," but I think many of us agreed with Roger who said, "I was first attracted to the bottle." Cost: $15.99 at World Market.

Cheryl was next with a Gouguenheim Valle Escondido Torrontes 2016, a white wine from the Mendoza Valley in Argentina. This was a nice and quite dry white. Kate called it "The red wine drinker's white." Cheryl, our white wine fan, said she didn't "enjoy it as much as I hoped to." Cost: $16 at Vine and Brew, a local wine store.

At this time, hostess Heather, Bob's daughter, said, "I'm a cheap wine drinker" and then said, "I have to behave." Mike M. reassured her. "Only for about a half hour or so."

Bob was up next with a Long Country 2018 Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. This one the budget price of the day -- $5 at Meijer stores. Cheryl, Mike S. and I liked this one better than the white before us (at $16!). Barb and Kate liked the second wine better.

In any event, it makes for an excellent Neti pot and sinus cleaner, which I discovered when I was laughing so hard -- well, you get the idea.

Dick offered our first red -- Echeverria Family Wines' Gran Reserve Syrah 2014 from Chile. This group was named as Chile's Producer of the Year and the description described it as as "deep red with violet gleams." None of us knew what violet gleams were and in any event, most of us heard it as "violent greens," which was equaly confusing.

Rick said, "I might get addicted to it," and Bob added "Even if you don't like red, you'd like this." Heather said she liked "any wine you don't have to pay for" but Kate smelled "new cars and plastic" when she sipped it. It was a little light for me. $15 at the local Vine and Brew.

Kate was up next with Colome Vineyard Autentico Malbec 2017 from the Mendoza region of Argentina. Barb said, "It has a little barnyard in it," (referring to its earthy quality, not aroma). Kate and Barb agreed it had a gorgeous color and was very earthy with a lot of body. This one was $24.85 at Vine and Brew.

Around this time Barb realized that the towel Dick was using to pour looked like a Rorschach test and decided it was a man walking an English setter.

Clayton offered a Cantina Malbec 2016 from Argendina's Mendozea by Bodea y Vinedos Cardena. It's a high mountain wine and he found it at Meijer stores but I forgot to write down the price. Barb called it "soft" and I thought it more fruity than the one before. Clayton said it had notes of "leather and cinnamon" which Barb heard as "liver and cinnamon." Kate said that at this point, she was past intelligent comment.

This and the one before it were both malbecs. I thought the first one would be better with food, this one for just enjoying a glass of wine.

Barb and Mike offered up a Pirca 2015 Carmenere from Vina Marty in Chile. This was $10.

My notes say "Buy this now!" I thought it was very good and Kate said, "I love it! I love this!" It also smelled wonderful and I called it my favorite so far. And yes, it would be delish with a cheese toastie and a bag of Doritos.

Rick was last with Serie Riberas Gran Reserva Carmenere 2017 from Chile. This cost $20 at Tiffany wine shop in Kalamazoo.

This one was quite good too. Indeed, there was none left in the bottle as it was passed around after the first tasting. To be honest, I didn't really have a preference between this Carmenere and the one before -- they were slightly different but both good.

Well, after all that merriment, it was time to hang out and chat, and eventually move upstairs for dinner! Bob and Heather had made wonderful floral table decorations for our South of the Border theme!

I loved these!

And the food was to die for. There were tacos, beans, rice, two wonderful salads, a Topopo and a taco salad.

All this was topped off by Meredith's fabulous Mexican Chocolate Cake and tons of equally delicious conversation!

It was like being in a field of beautiful flowers with your friends taking all the time in the world to just enjoy one another's company.

Because really, that's what it's all about!

If you enjoy wine and want to check out some of the other Cork Popper tastings, check the tab on the menu at the top of this page. Wines are organized by category and theme.

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