Weird Bottle = Weird Wine

    "Where's your will to be weird?"

-Jim Morrison

     I have a thing for saving wine bottles. Not all of them of course, but ones that I can reuse for decorations or crafts. If I had a Pinterest, I think mine would consist mainly of wine, crafts, wedding decor, and knitting. Wait. Isn't that what almost every woman's Pinterest is comprised of?

    Needless to say, I sometimes take the aesthetic appeal of the wine bottle into consideration when I make a purchase. Bad idea. I recently went shopping and ended up purchasing wine, wool socks, and a rose plant; random, but I digress. The wine bottle (Italian Bottarro Red Table Wine) is what caught my attention- a perfect, vintage-looking, candle holder for my kitchen table. I was, well, inspired. The wine however, now that is a different story...

    Tasting notes: Not a favorite. In fact, I would give it a 2 or 3 out of 10. This wine was very young (despite the dust all over the bottle), very acidic, and had a terrible finish. I was not even able to finish my glass. I am assuming the nose was supposed to smell like red fruit, but I just got a whiff of rubbing alcohol. Maybe if it were bottled for another 2-5 years it would not taste so much like pure alcohol. I would probably not buy again...unless I need another candle holder.

     But there's good news! Even though the wine wasn't amazing, it appears that I may have made a good investment, considering I paid $8 and the empty bottle is being sold on Ebay for $11 + shipping. Oh, the things we do for unique wine bottles. I also have paired this wine with a great song, which is always good news.


Hue: Red
Tune:  Ungodly Fruit- Wax Tailor (because a wine this bad needs a good song).

When Wine Gives You Lemons...

Before I begin my pairing, I thought it would be fun to share an interesting medical finding, because, who doesn't want to hear that drinking wine is good for their health?

"Individuals with the habit of daily moderate wine consumption enjoy significant reductions in all-cause and particularly cardiovascular mortality when compared with individuals who abstain or who drink alcohol to excess" (German, 2000). 

This statement, along with the numerous other articles I have stumbled across, is music to my ears. Not only do I enjoy my 1/3 glass of wine almost every night because it is delicious, I drink it because of the multitude of health benefits associated with it (primarily red wine). Speaking of red wine, I feel that my journey since last February in hopes to become a regular red wine drinker have succeeded- I now grab the red bottle over the white 9 times out of 10. 

This news, along with the fun adventure of trying new flavors, has led me to my next wine, a 2011 Sauvignon Blanc (my favorite white). The wine's name is what grabbed my attention, mainly because I collect sea glass from every place I have visited near water. From France to Virginia Beach, I have a heaping pile of sea glass. To no surprise, the wine's name is Sea Glass and is produced out of Santa Barbara, CA. I was immediately intrigued and decided to purchase.

The taste of this was good- not great. For a Sauv. Blanc, it was somewhat harsh on the finish and a little too lemon-y. I like the citrus flavor the be an undertone but this was very pronounced. I found myself having to eat dinner along side this wine- definitely not one to sip on alone, at least for me. If acidity is your "thing" and you enjoy a tart finish, this wine is for you. 

What did I learn from this wine adventure? Definitely do not judge a book by its cover, or in this case, a wine by its label. 

Price: $10 (Sam's Club)
Tune: Sour Times by Portishead (this may be one of my BEST pairs of wine and a tune; I love Portishead. the vibe and melody of this song are perfect for this wine, not to mention the title is spot on).