I have to admit I get a little nervous before I taste some of these white wines that I am unfamiliar with. I got a burned on Gewürztraminer a month back and so I have set my expectations low on the unusual white varietals. To lay it out there, I have a hard time enjoying sweet wines and highly floral wines. I could combat this anxiety by researching the varietals before I taste but I truly enjoy going into a tasting completely blind. So this is the sacrifice I make…hah…first world problems!
So, not only did I survive this Soave, I discovered that it is now in my top favorite white wines! The concept of tasting the wine without knowing anything about it makes it challenging for pairing, so typically I try to align white wines with traditional white wine pairings (chicken, pasta, seafood, etc.) and red wines similarly. For this tasting, I chose to pair with a traditional white wine activity – the pool. So I filled my Brumate Winesulator and headed to the Great Wolf Lodge pool for a relaxing tasting while supervising the baby at the splash pad!
The color of this Soave was a pale yellow and I was instantly relieved when I smelled it: high citrus, grapefruit and green apple! For the split second that the wine cross my palate I thought Sauvignon Blanc, then a quick conflicting thought of Chardonnay and then the finish was so much softer that a Chardonnay that I must have looked like a maniac by the side of the pool by the faces I was making. It had the tartness of a Sauv Blanc, the body of a Chard but a brevity in the taste that I can’t compare to any other wine. OCCASIONALLY, I will google a wine’s official tasting notes after going through all steps of the tasting (look, smell, taste, think) if I’m still baffled by a subtlety. In this case, I just couldn’t figure out what made the aftertaste almost non-existent. In my research, it appears as if there is a commonality among Soave’s that have a “salty” attribute – potentially from the Soave region in which it is grown – that causes saliva to flood your mouth and overcome the flavors of the wines. Hmmm…I’ll take that explanation for now. I’m still looking for more.
I purchased this 2017 Pra Soave Classico Otto wine for $13.85, though prices vary by location from $15-18. As I discuss price, I would like to emphasize that the membership I have with my wine distributor provides access to discount prices on wines which then carry over in the Grape Juice Mom 52 Weeks of Wine shipments! By purchasing a monthly wine box, you are receiving exceptional wines at even better prices!