- Name: Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante
- Variety: Muscat Sparkling Wine
- Region: California
- Country: United States of America
- Year: Non Vintage
- Price: Regular Price $5.99
- Barefoot Website Review: Tastes and Delights, Black tie optional, Barefoot required! Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante is a deliciously sweet sparkling wine perfect for your next special occasion or just a night in with friends. Apricot and peachy flavors mix it up with a crisp acidity, finishing off with tasty tangerine. Perfect Partners, Keep it sweet with dessert or heat it up with a plate of something spicy. Enjoy with chocolate mousse, spicy tuna, or Kung Pao chicken. What do you enjoy Moscato Spumante with?
- My review: This wine was bought by my parents as as a celebratory drink for me taking the GRE and getting pretty good scores on it. For most of the sparkling wines that I have had the all taste around the same as I have not been able to taste the super expensive bottles so I am left with some more barefoot. On the nose this wine is hard to smell anything over the carbonation and bubbles that pop in your nostrils. There was not much of other smells since I had to remove my nose from the champagne flute beach of the burning feel. On the palate the wine is very refreshing and lively. Each sip had a ton of carbonation that wakes you up. There are not many flavors that I was able to detect, it tasted a lot like soda water which I do like. There was no alcoholic burn which was nice and there was a very slight citrus zest flavor that made it more acidic. There were also slight fruit notes but I could not detect what they were as the bubbles on my tongue kept distracting me. Overall a nice soda water wine that would taste better in a mimosa.
- Food Pairing: I had some chocolates with this wine but there was not much flavor change with them and it distracted from the chocolate taste.
- Name: Barefoot Sweet Red
- Variety: Red Blend
- Region: California
- Country: United States of America
- Year: Non Vintage
- Price: Regular Price $5.99
- Barefoot Website Review: Tastes and Delights, Chill out (no seriously, try this chilled) with the ripe, juicy flavors of raspberry, pomegranate and cherry in our Barefoot Sweet Red Blend. Sweet Red Blend is a delicious combination of Zinfandel, Pinot Noid, Barbera, Grenache and Petite Sirah. It's ripe and jammy with explosive flavors of raspberry, plum and cherry for a soft and smooth finish. Perfect Partner, Grilled Veggies. Marinated stakes. Gather up the family and friends for a BBQ. What do you enjoy Sweet Red Blend with?
- My review: This wine will always have a sweet spot with me as it was the first red wine that I ever had that I loved. This wine has a very sweet, but not too sweet taste that makes it very enjoyable to drink and yes it is really amazing cold. On the nose there is not much smell as it is a Barefoot wine, but I can detect notes of apricot, peach, raspberries as well as a lemon lime acidity. On the palate the wine has a familiar taste. It is so sweet you do lose track of the glasses you have had and pretty soon the bottle is empty and you are passed out on the beach surrounded by a flock of seagulls and you are feeling great. On the palate there are note of raspberry and blackberry along with peaches. There is a lot of floral taste on the midpalate which is followed up by a lot of sugar coating your tongue. This wine is as easy to drink as grape juice with a nicer kick that keeps you drinking. Although it will be ignored by the snobbier critics I believe that it is still worthy to keep a bottle of it on hand.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
- Name: Dona Sol Shiraz
- Variety: Petite Syrah and Symphony
- Region: California
- Country: United States of America
- Year: Non Vintage
- Price: Regular Price $6.95
- Vintage Cellar Review: Shiraz has a unique jammy fruit character that is well represented in the Sweet Red. Both on the nose and on the palate, jammy fruit, like strawberries, cherry pie and red licorice, entices the senses and pair well with cheeses and desserts.
- My review: This wine had a light ruby red color that was a bit too light that it almost looked as if it was red grape juice. On the nose there is not too many different notes to smell. All that I am able to detect is the smell of pepper along with a very sour smell. The wine just smells like carbonated water with pepper in it and did not make me excited to drink it. However on the palate the taste was much different than the smell. The wine was very juicy and sweet and had a large amount of fruit flavors in the combination. There were so many fruits combined in the wine that it was hard to pick out the individual flavors although they all blended together well. There was however a weird heat after taste from the wine that did not go along with the other flavors but made it so that it would go along well with food.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
- Name: Velvet Crush
- Variety: Blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah
- Region: California
- Country: United States of America
- Year: 2012
- Price: Regular Price $18 Sale Price $6.95
- Vintage Cellar Review: Velvety smooth texture just like its name. Soft tannins and lush dark fruit character. Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah bring backbone and character, while the Merlot balances out the blend for a soft, smooth texture.
- My review: This wine has a nice bright red color that is not too opaque but also quite clear. The wine's aroma is very pleasant and smells of blackberries and raspberries. I was very excited to try this wine as it smelled so nice and of berries. The smell however was very deceiving of the wine's actual taste. The initial taste of the wine is a very dry heat almost like a scotch or a whisky. It was hard to get past the burning in my mouth from this wine but there was a distinct pepper taste along with some light currants. With blends I expect for there to be some lightness from the different grapes but this wine was just very dry had to much alcohol in it for me to notice let alone appreciate any other flavors.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
- Name: Grand Cru
- Variety: Pinot Noir
- Region: California
- Country: United States of America
- Year: 2013
- Price: Regular Price $6.95
- Vintage Cellar Review: This ruby-colored wine has aromas of raspberry, cherry and a hint of vanilla. Flavors of cherry and plum lead to a soft velvety finish. This wine can be enjoyed by itself. It is also an excellent accompaniment with Brie, goat cheese and smoked salmon. Lamb shanks and pork tenderloins are a favorite main dishes to pair with this wine.
- My review: This wine is a very nice deep red color. On the nose there is a very strong pepper smell that hides most of the other notes. There is a slight aroma of black currant mixed with blackberries; in addition there is an earthy mud smell that lightens up the pepper aromas. On the palate the wine is not as dry as I thought it would be. The wine is actually quite juicy and had some spices mixed in with it. It is hard to pick out fruit flavors in the wine as there is a very strong pepper taste that coats the palate and blocks out most of the other flavors. This wine would be nice with many different dinner since it is dry but not too dry.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
- Name: Prime Brume
- Variety: Garganega
- Region: Soave
- Country: Italy
- Year: 2014
- Price: Regular Price $11 Sale Price $6.95
- Tasting.com Review: Pale color. Fruity, floral minerally inviting aromas of passion fruit, white grapefruit, spice poached pear, and papaya with a lean, racy, bone-dry medium body and smooth, complex, long lemon, passion fruit, raw hazelnut, and wet stones finish with no tannins and light oak. From the tantalizing nose full of exotic fruit, citrus and minerality thru to the long crisp finish, this soave can seamlessly go from cocktail hour thru to vibrantly flavored dishes. Score 91
- My review: This wine has a very strong fruit bouquet of red apples, juicy pears, and apricots. There is also a slight citrus smell to brighten the wine and make it have a not to sweet smell from oranges and lemons. On the palate the wine is deceived by the very fruity smell as it has a very strong sour taste. There are citrus notes of oranges and limes throughout the taste. There is also an odd flavor of rose water that clashes with the sour and citrus flavor instead of accenting it and making the drink fresher. This wine was not worthy of the Tasting.com score as is does not seem to know which direction it wants to go.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
- Name: Quintas Melgaco Blue
- Variety: Vinho Verde
- Region: Vinho Verde
- Country: Portugal
- Year: 2013
- Price: Regular Price $10 Sale Price $5.95
- Vintage Cellar Review: Refreshingly crisp white wine from Portugal - Vinho Verde is soft, light and refreshing, and is an uncompromising and ideal wine for everyday pleasure. Its bright color and pineapple aromas are followed by citrus notes. The palate is fresh. Vino Verde is an excellent accompaniment to fish and shell fish, white meats and salads.
- My review: On the nose there is a very light bouquet along with a refreshing acidity. There are fruit smells of apples oranges and peaches along with a very light floral aroma that is brought forward with a slight acidity. The initial taste of this wine is that it is very tart and sour. There is a very distinct lemon lime flavor. There is a slight carbonation in the wine as well that mixes with the lemon lime to make is have an almost Sprite flavor. Overall the taste of the wine is very citrusy and causes the finish on the wine to be puckering.
- Food Pairing: I did not have any food with this wine.
