It’s not often that I even consider repeating a wine and cheese pairing but there’s a first time for everything! During our 2019 trip to Costa Rica, we found a wine that we had been keeping our eye out for quite some time, https://wineandcheesefriday.com/stemmari-nero-davola-and-monterrey-cheese/. The Stemmari brand, from Siciliy, had been featured on #wininghourchat multiple times but I had never found their brand until that trip. Then this year I was back in the same liquor store and saw bottles of Stemmari Nero d’Avola on the shelf. Why not choose a new cheese to pair with this wine that we really enjoyed? It was settled, we’d be repeating a wine on #WineAndCheeseFriday!
After coming up with the idea for our “Savor the Flavor” entry in 2017, it’s become an annual tradition for WineAndCheeseFriday! Neil and I love to see the evolution of aromas and flavors over the life of a bottle of wine and this is our way to showcase them to all of you. Throughout the year, we actually earmarked a handful of wines that we thought would be perfect for this entry so without further ado, here you go.
When we arrived in San Carlos, CA, for Labor Day weekend, there was no question in anyone’s mind that we’d be enjoying lots of wine and cheese in the days to come. Our friend Kristy, a new mom, had been counting the days until we arrived since her wine drinking had been on hiatus during her "mommy to be" days. She planned a grand wine and cheese feast to start out the festivities with 4 cheeses and a bottle of rosé. Maria and Neil were ready! Such a delicious evening!
We came up with the idea for the Savor the Flavor entry at the end of 2017, https://wineandcheesefriday.com/savor-the-flavor/, to showcase some noteworthy wines from the year. We’ve decided to continue the tradition for 2018. One of the ways we were able to really Savor the Flavor this year was by using our Vacu Vin. Have you ever tried these? They are wine vacuums/pumps that suck the air out of the bottle in order to preserve them longer. We were able to keep one of the bottles for two weeks! Can’t say I was ever able to do that in the past.
When Neil and I drink wine, we do it for the total experience of the wine. We love to smell it, taste it and think about the flavors. There are days when Neil does ask me, “Can we just drink this one?", to which I say “No", but he puts up with me. This is a collection of wines that made a pretty significant impression on us, enough for us to extend our tasting over multiple days. Do you subscribe to the theory that wine that was opened yesterday can’t be good any more? Many folks will tell you that certain wines need to breathe for a couple days or at least will agree that the flavors will change. That’s what this entry is all about, the evolution of flavors. Maybe this will inspire you to “Savor the Flavor” too?
Maria and Neil started wineandcheesefriday.com to learn more about wine in 2014. We’ve visited wineries, and creameries across the world to learn as much as we can about these two wonderful delacacies. We❤️🍷&🧀
