2008 Guy Saget Vouvray

A first review of a "Vouvray" on this blog-- I have been wanting to try this for quite some time.  This 2008 Guy Saget Vouvray was a decent wine.  Although nothing spectacular that hits it out of the ballpark; for the price and quality, I thought this was a good value.

Definitely aromas of apples, pears, and melons were present.  As the wine sits a bit, honey became more apparent. A completely dry wine, it is not.  Slightly sweet at taste, and well balanced; however the finish was slightly weak.  This one reminds me of a Sauvignon Blanc as it has some hints of citrus.  

Overall I am going to give this one 3.5 stars.  I purchased this one at the Wine Market Store in Ebisu Gardens.  A interesting find for me as the store clerk said they were out of all Vouvray's; however I managed to pick this one from their sale bin.  I paid Y1,500, where it was originally priced at Y1,890.

Summary: Medium-body, Chenin Blanc.  

Rating: 3.5 Stars
Purchase Cost: Y1,500 (Ebisu Gardens, Wine Market Store)

Other Japanese Retailers: Y1,680 (Rakuten website)

USA Retail Price: $9.95
Food:  Carnitas, and Mild Mexican soup

2010 Pacific Rim Riesling Columbia Valley

From the Washington State, USA this 2010 Riesling is fairly good.  At the nose it is full of passion fruits.  I can smell a hint of honey, mangoes, and apples.  The color is very nice too (nice yellow hue). 

First swirl-- much sweeter than I was expecting.  The wine has a very mild sparkling wine effect.  The second swirl was followed by a slight bitterness-- Perhaps the tannins are coming out a bit.  


Overall this is a good wine.  Although a bit sweeter than I was expecting the balance is okay.  I am going to rate this one 3.5 stars.  I purchased this bottle at the Ebisu Gardens, Wine Market shop.  When comparing it to other shops in Japan it is about market average, but  A bit pricey if you compare to the prices in the U.S.  That said, this Riesling is a nice one -- probably great during the summer time.  


Summary: Semi-Sweet and overall good Riesling.  Balance is good.  
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Purchase Cost: Y2,205 (Ebisu Gardens, Wine Market Store)
Other Japanese Retailers: Y2,205
USA Retail Price: $9.99
Food: Tofu Stir fry, Edamame beans, and salad

1999 Savennières Roche Aux Moines

My brother-in-law, who is quite the wine hobbyist/enthusiast, is in town visiting.  As such, I showed him my recent wine purchases which I obtained at the Ebisu Gardens, Wine Market Store and we picked the 1999 Savennières to swirl.  

I was anticipating a semi-sweet wine, but I was forewarned by my brother-in-law that this would be quite the opposite.  Situated in the Loire Valley, this Chenin Blanc was a full-body, dry wine.  The color was very beautiful -- golden yellow, crystal like hue.  Our first sniff had an apple aroma with some wool sweater scent.  The first swirl, indeed not sweet at all.  Quite dry, and had a wonderful full body texture.  We had this wine open for about another hour and the wine really developed.  More fruity (hint of Cantaloupes) towards the end and the heat index rose slightly.  


Overall, a great wine.  I'd recommend opening this one for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour.  A delicate, yet full body Chenin Blanc, this one is going to get 4 stars. 


For those who haven't visited the Wine Market in Ebisu Gardens, I would recommend a visit.  


Summary: Dry, full body Chenin Blanc
Rating: 4 Stars
Purchase Cost: Y3,150 (Ebisu Gardens, Wine Market Store)
Other Japanese Retailers: Y3,490
USA Retail Price: $22.95
Food: Cheese and Crackers (Parmesan and red cheddar)

2009 Simi Chardonnay

From Sonoma California, this wine has a very unique color.  Not as golden as I have seen some Chardonnay's, but it has a very brilliant, light yellow color tone--very nice.  The first sniff has a mixture of pears, and some type of tropical fruits.  The first whirl is quite nice -- slightly sweet yet has a slight almond taste.  Second sniff -- I am still leaning towards pears and some type of tropical fruit which I cannot pinpoint which type of fruit.  The second whirl has a slight smokey wood taste; however the sweetness is still present. The finish is very nice, very smooth and mild.


Overall I am going to give this one 3 stars.  I purchased this one at Costco for  Y1,590.  At another retailer here in Tokyo it is about Y2,400.  Yet again, Costco scores. I would recommend this wine for a casual summer party.   




Summary:  Good wine with a nice and unique color.  Slightly sweet; however the finish is delicate. 
Rating:  3 stars
Purchase Cost: Y1,590 (Costco)
Other Japanese Retailers: Y2,450 (Rakuten website)
USA Retail Price: $12.95
Food: NA

2010 Michele Chiarlo Anniversario Gavi

Another purchase from Costco Michele Chiarlo 2010 Anniversario Gavi was an interesting Italian white wine.  Fragrances of apricot and fresh pear were present.  The finish had a slight chestnut flavor; yet the entire body of the wine was fairly dry and crisp. 

Overall the 2010 Gavi is easy to drink.  I am not that familiar with Italian wines; however Gavi is a white grape I believe from the Piemonte region (Upper NW corner of Italy).  I am going to give this one 3 Stars and given the price of Y875 I would recommend this for a good, everyday table wine.  


Summary: Crisp white wine with a good balance.  Apricot/pears; very fragrant.  
Rating:  3 Stars
Purchase Cost: Y875 (Costco)
Other Japanese Retailers: I could not find this particular wine at any other Japanese retailer
USA Retail Price: $12.95
Food: NA

2009 Robert Mondavi Chardonnay Private Selection

From Central Coast (California) this Robert Mondavi Chardonnay  was good.  I bought two bottles of this one and I actually enjoyed the first one more than the second one, which I opened tonight. Comparing the two, the first one had a rich buttery flavor with a strong almond finish (I believe is a Chardonnay characteristic).


Tonight it was quite different.  The initial aroma reminded me of pineapples; however the taste was not as buttery, nor did it have a strong almond finish like the previous bottle (a bit of lemon/citrus flavor tonight).  I decided to let this one open for about 45 minutes to see if it changed at all and the nutty/almond flavor did come out a bit more, but the acidy was still quite strong.  Overall, it is still a decent bottle of wine. 


I am going to rate tonight's bottle 2.5 stars; however had it been the flavor and texture like the first bottle I think I would give it 3 stars.  Costco is the place to buy this one as Rakuten is selling for Y2,200 (huge mark up)! 


Summary: Good Chardonnay. Please read the review above as I had two samples of this wine.  I enjoyed the first bottle better.
Rating:  2.5 Stars (Second Tasting)
Purchase Cost: Y1,050 (Costco)
Other Japanese Retailers: Y2,205 (Rakuten website) 
USA Retail Price: $11.00
Food: Cream pasta

2009 Jaffelin Macon-Villages

Tucked away in southern Burgundy, I believe this vineyard uses a Chardonnay grape.  Overall very pleased with the acidity and flavor (This wine had some similarities to a Sauvignon Blanc).  It is dry; however has a hint of cantaloupe or honey dew flavor.  After letting the wine open for about 30 minutes the flavor of the wine improved. 


Priced at Y980 at Costco, I am going to rate this one with 3 stars.  A good value and everyday table wine.


Summary: Good acidity and nice balance.   The wine is dry; with some citrus flavors.   A hint of cantaloupe aroma.
Rating: 3 Stars
Purchase Cost: Y980 (Costco)
Other Japanese Retailers: Could not find another retailer 
USA Retail Price: $16.99
Food: Japanese vegetable Nabe (hot pot)

2008 "Napa Station" Sauvignon Blanc

Monday's are usually never fun-- In fact and sadly enough, I don't even remember the last Monday I have really enjoyed. However, today is different. Today, I am very proud to announce a "Happy Monday!"
Why? Well, being that today is a Monday and secondly because it is the first official wine review on this blog; I can now say that today is a very "Happy Monday."

 In retrospect, I probably should have picked a better wine, like some fancy 2005 Bordeaux to kick off this blog, but like I said I am just an ordinary wine drinker that happens to live in Tokyo.
So here I begin the first wine review and I must say that tonight's dinner meal did not make choosing wine easy. The dinner theme tonight was Thai food. As starters I had some homemade Tom Kai Gai soup (which is basically a coconut based soup flavored with chicken stock, lemongrass, and lime) followed by a spicy Thai green curry with some fragrant Thai rice (again coconut base; however with a ginger and lemongrass overlay). How in the world do you pair wine with this food? Well, I honestly have no idea, so I chose a Sauvignon Blanc.

This evening's choice is a 2008 "Napa Station" Sauvignon Blanc. This wine had a citrus smell (grapefruit) with some accent of apricot or tropical fruit, where the color tone had a crisp, shiny golden hue. The first sip had the classic Sauvignon Blanc taste, but lacked a serious "punch" if you know what I mean. The overall balance seemed okay (good acidity), but the depth to the wine was medium at best. I wouldn't say it was a a great bottle, but it was a good weekday table wine. Unfortunately, the Thai food was a mistake because after eating the curry I basically lost all my taste buds -- not good for conducting an inaugural wine review. Anyhow.

Overall and out of 5 stars, (5 being amazing, 0 being something equivalent to Listerine mouthwash) I would give this 2 and 1/2 stars. Price had an influence on this rating because I did not think the price matched the overall value. This bottle was purchased from the Kawasaki Costco store at Y1,298. If this were maybe Y900-Y1,000 range then I would have rated this with 3 to 3.5 stars.

Summary: Okay Sauvignon Blanc (nice color), but lacked great depth
Rating: 2 and 1/2 stars
Purchase Cost: Y1,298 (Vendor-- Kawasaki Costco)
Other Japanese Retailers: I could not find
USA Retail Price: Around $14.95
Food: Thai Curry and Tom Kai Gai Soup (would not recommend)