What am I Thankful for?? Great wine!!!!

Had a couple good friends over on Saturday night for a turkey dinner; this was actually our annual traditional get together for Xmas dinner. A little earlier than normal this year due to scheduling conflicts. So early, in fact, we might as well have been celebrating US Thanksgiving instead of Xmas.

Anyway, to pair with the turkey, we popped open a bottle of 2011 Quails Gate Gewürztraminer. Great wine and an excellent pair with turkey, but I've reviewed that one at least twice before. Let's focus on the wines we opened before dinner, a couple brand new entries to the Quails' Gate library (new to me, anyway).

Firstly, we opened up this bad boy:


2008 Dijon Clone Pinot Noir

The nose is welcomed invitingly by cherries. On the palate, the berries really shine through, joined by just a hint of spice on the lingering finish. Tannins have smoothed out nicely but this probably could have aged for another 2-3 years and improved thusly. Even though, it was pretty damn good anyway. 90.

Here is an interesting article on what exactly the "Dijon Clone" is.

http://www.eatmagazine.ca/quails-gate-releases-2008-pinot-noir-dijon-clone/








Once that was over, we shifted gears a bit. We joined the Quails' Gate wine club this year (red only) and our first shipment came a few weeks ago. It consisted of this:

1 bottle 2011 Pinot Noir
1 bottle 2011 Fortified Vintage Foch
2 bottles 2011 Old Vines Reserve Foch

Trouble is, we don't like Foch.

Or at least we thought we didn't.


 


2011 Old Vines Reserve Foch

Single vineyard limited release wine, made in the style of Australian Shiraz.

Your nose may experience a hint of mocha or chocolate mingling with the berries. Jammy and gamey at the same time. Tannins are soft and ripe. This wine is great to drink now but would improve for a couple more years in the bottle. By far, and it's not even remotely close, the best Foch I have ever tried. 91.