I know you wine lovers missed me, and it has been rough without my loving articles, (so watch my videos to catch up by visiting my Facebook page OR my lovely youtube page ) but I am here to say, BRING IT ON SUMMER!

It’s time to crack down and open up those wines that are calling our names. White wines, rose wines, and dare I say, the sweet wines. Whatever we crave from the hot hot Texas heat bearing down on us and slowly tanning (or frying us for those sun lovers) us in the process, we can bear it and say BRING IT ON!

Bring on the wide brim hats (you’ll be a hat lover by the end of this summer), shades (let’s protect those eyes my wine lovers), and prosecco with juice cubes 

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Mmmmmm…. #yourwinegirl says try this amazing #summercocktail with #prosecco and #pineappleblueberry #juicecubes ! Cheers! #yourwinegirltx #summerwine #proseccojuicecubes #winevideo #winenerd #drinkmorewine #bringitonsummer

A post shared by Yourwinegirl, Melanie (@yourwinegirltx) on May 29, 2017 at 7:12pm PDT

(I recommend pineapple juice with blueberries),  OR (I love this recipe→) refreshing white sangria, chardonnay ( I recommend the Ponzi 2013 Reserve Chardonnay. STAY TUNED FOR MY REVIEW!), or my personal favorite, (DRINK PINK!) ROSE!

So what will you drink to say BRING IT ON SUMMER!? Cast your Vote Now!!!!!

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And of course, STAY TUNED FOR MORE VIDEOS AND REVIEWS from the one and only, yourwinegirl. 

Cheers!

Drinking wine and painting a canvas at Bottle and Bottega! Yep, one of those locations where you can get drink as much as you want, and paint away at a blank canvas! Well, you need to try and actually paint the selected picture, so I would advise against over indulging on the vino. 

I recently had the pleasure of attending a class at their North Texas location in Flower Mound (one of two locations in Texas. Currently the only other location is in Plano), and I will admit, it was awesomely different from the other painting places I have been to.

How so you ask. Well I mean, check out the welcoming entrance!

I love the colors, the purple especially, and the window straight up tells you what “Bottega” actually means (which I had no idea either), along with a full sized event calendar of their 3 hour classes (some of the classes you can walk in and join in on. But be prepared to play catch up if needed! )

Walk inside to the friendly owner and the brightly colored walls,which really gives off the artistic welcoming vibe, not to mention the huge glass of corks (woo!) that lets you know you’re in the right place for wine lovers.

Walking through you see all the blank canvases that are just screaming “paint me! Paint me!”

with your own copy of the picture you’re going to paint at the top, (which I personally liked because sometimes it’s easier with your own copy instead of looking at just one copy that everyone in the class has to also look at) and then you can check out the back entrance

that opens up to a sidewalk connecting all the shops at Lakeside,

and a breath of fresh air.

Then comes a favorite part of mine, where you get to relax, socialize, and get in your painting mode as enjoy your happy hour while everyone shows up, as classes actually start a half hour later than stated on the calendar. (Nice right? In case you’re running late, then there’s no pressure!)

Now, wait! What about the wine I decided to bring, because Hello! that is one of the main draw ins.

Fetzer Quartz White Blend

Well, I did something different and decided to bring the one cup, actually 187ml cup (and it is reusable) of Fetzer Quartz White Blend. Yeah, you know you’ve seen it around before and thought, well that looks cool and weird, and yet totally picnic-y. Yep, admit it. Well, I bought one of each (there’s a red and a white blend, that is also available in your standard 750ml bottle as well for about $12) a while back for an incredibly good deal, and decided it would be perfect for the occasion. I mean come on! Plastic cup, great grippage, screw on lid, you can take it anywhere; it’s perfect!

I know I was a little excited about the convenience of the wine. To continue, the white blend of primarily chardonnay and riesling  was pretty good!

Light and pale color with white peach and melon aroma, it was very refreshing with a slight sweetness that actually complemented the half brownie half madeline bites ( I believe they’re called Duet Bites by Sugar Bowl Bakery. Only $5 at Tom Thumb! ) I was eating with my sister-in-law, that yes, are totally addictive. 

Perfect to Pair With: Chicken Alfredo and other chicken dishes, Salmon and other fish dishes, cheese plates, fruit plates, and of course, by itself!

Average Price: $4.99 – for the 187ml cup size!  Available at CVS, Walgreens, and some retail locations.

For the regular size bottle (750ml), $13.99. Available at Kroger, and other retail wine locations!

So after about six or seven of these wonderful bites, (because who can eat just one of those little sugary goodness things!) our awesome and very animated step by step painting instructor (who was just hilarious and totally great with working with all of us!), my painting turned out pretty good.

Yeah, that shortie on the left is me.

Okay I know, lots of pictures. But hey, I really want you guys to get a visual of how much fun this place is! Now what are you waiting for?! Reserve a seat for you and a friend here: Bottle & Bottega DFW- North Central

Cheers!

It is going to be a fun Holiday Season so keep coming back for more articles and reviews about wine from a wine expert! As always if you need free wine advice don’t hesitate to contact me! Cheers!

Now onto the wine of this hot (didn’t it hit like 105°F yesterday?) summer hour! This wine comes from the same family as the Butter chardonnay, and I can definitely taste the family resemblance.  

Toast BRUT Sparkling

Non Vintage Toast California BRUT Sparkling

Watch the WINE REVIEW video i made about this Sparkling BRUT

Okay, so JaM cellars is seriously starting to become my favorite winery (still love you too Gruet)! First Butter, and now Toast, I swear it’s like this winery can do no wrong!

Bright and beautifully bubbled, this lightly golden wine has wonderful aromas of white peach, melon and buttery yeast from the first swirl in your glass. (Remember the best way to fully enjoy a glass of bubbly is to drink from a white wine or tulip glass. Yes, it does look like a tulip…it’s honestly better because it’s not quite as open as your white wine glass, so it preserves the bubbles better while still opening up the bubbly to it’s full potential! Mmmm).

Lingering you in, the white peach continues and meets with sweet pineapple and creamy nectarine as you take your first sip, and ends with a slight toastiness and a long, lingering sweet nutty finish. 

Absolutely amazing, this sparkling is unlike any bubbly I have tasted! I mean, I was absolutely blown away! Sweet here, creamy there, nutty there! But like many of you are probably thinking, how can this be a Brut???!?!? Brut means Brutally Dry.. yep, you heard me, it means even more dry than Extra Dry, which is what this bottle of Toast tastes more like, and what I know many of you freak out over when it comes to picking a bottle for making Sunday mimosas. (Hint: extra dry is slightly sweeter, so it’s better in general for making mimosas).

So how does JaM do it?! Turns out, they add a little touch at the end of their wine process.  

I know you’re dying to find out how bubbly is made, so here is a fun little summary!

Toast is made in the sparkling wine process called Méthode Champenoise. 

Also called the Traditional Method, and best method to make sparkling wine, this is how wine in Champagne, France is made. In a nutshell, when you make sparkling wine, there are four different methods as to how you ferment the wine. This can tell you the quality of the wine.

The traditional method is when the wine goes through a secondary fermentation in the same bottle. The secondary fermentation is how the bubbles are made… which is by adding another dose of sugar and yeast, also known as liqueur de triage, (remember sugar+yeast=alcohol) to the already made bottled wine and capping it (It’s almost like a bottle cap. No corks are used yet).. so that it can start another(secondary) fermentation process. When this happens carbon dioxide (bubbles) are trapped in the bottle, along with the yeast, that is now trapped and basically dies at the bottom of the bottle. (Ever heard of the term Sur Lie? It means aging on the yeast. It’s when winemakers leave the wine to age on this dead yeast to further influence the flavor of the wine to how they want it to taste. Which means, they can have a huge yeast impact, very little or any amount they prefer depending on how long they age it! Pretty cool actually. It can age like this for years!)

Entering the Remuage phase, while the wine ages on this yeast, in order to better help remove it eventually from the bottle (because well, not a lot of people like to drink dead yeast from their bottle of wine. And it could also impact the flavor later on in the wine if it did stay in the bottle, though there are some left with the yeast in it), the bottle is turned slowly via riddling. A person, or rumuer, will actually turn the bottle (riddle), which is neck down in a riddling rack (think of a coffee table with holes that hold the bottles by the neck at about a 30-45°angle) slightly every day so that the bottle is not agitated (remember all that carbonation is still in the bottle!) and the yeast makes its way to the top of the bottle.

Finally, after the yeast has sat for at least several months (usually a minimum requirement for sparklings) aging the wine, and is now at the top of the bottle, it is time to let it out in what is called the dégorgement phase. The cap is removed and the yeast sediment is blown out of the bottle from all the natural carbonation that has built up behind it!

Here is what makes Toast taste so sweet and different: right after all the sediment comes out from dégorgement, and before the official corking of the bottle, they add Muscat to the wine! (That sweet grape that Moscato is made from!) in what is called the Dosage phase. This is the final topping of the bottle as a liquid sweetener, liqueur d’expédition, and in this case, Muscat, is added and the cork is finally ending the process. Ta-da!

I know. Exciting stuff right?

So what are you waiting for?! You know it’s gonna be good. You know how it’s made. Grab some friends, make up a celebratory occasion, or have a legitimate reason, and pop a bottle open!

Perfect to Pair With: Cheese plates, chicken and pasta, seafood risotto, fresh strawberries and fruit, or just plainly chilled by itself!

Average Price: $24.99  (This has been my highest priced recommendation, and I am sticking to it! A great price for a sparkling wine in itself, you will love this bottle!) – Available at jamcellars.com, total wine, and other wine specialty shops. Or ask to have it brought it at your favorite wine retail location!

Cheers my wine lovers!

http://www.nataliemaclean.com/blog/wpcontent/uploads/2013/04/Wineorexia.jpg

Also, if you are looking for more don’t forget to watch the WINE LESSON video I made!

Simple Truth Organic California Red Wine

Hello my wine lovers!! It’s been a hop skip and a jump since our last encounter, but I have a new wine to share with you all!

As you can tell from the video and title of this post, I found out that Kroger (yes, the grocery store that keeps expanding their stores… Yep, they have everything now in their stores! I actually bought an awesome dress at one location, and they have shoes too!!) now has their own wine, besides everything else!
Okay, honestly, my first thought, Kroger is trying to measure up to Costco and their Kirkland brand wines. However, after trying this discovery, I do not think Costco will have a problem with Kroger.

Simple Truth Organic California Red Wine

Okay, so just warning you guys up front, this might be the first wine tasting review that I am about to share where I honestly did not really care for the wine. Stating that, let us move on to the wine and explain why.

I bought this on a whim when I explored my favorite Kroger location in Mansfield, TX. (I am a Tom Thumb girl, but just can’t help this store! It’s awesome!) I saw this wine, and was blown away at the price (hello super super Inexpensive!) and the temptation of trying an organic wine from the brand that already makes so many great products (haven’t had a bad simple truth organic product before). Because I am yourwinegirl, I had to jump at the chance and give you guys a review.

This red wine is a light and very fruit forward. Lovely red cherry color, you can smell the blackberries as soon as you pour the wine. You can taste the lightness of the wine as you take a sip (because there are no added sulfites… yes, majority of wines add a little more sulfites to the wine as a preservative so the wine does not spoil, and to give it a little more flavor…this wine tastes very fresh and light), and then a raspberry jam takes over your tongue.
Here is where I got a little disappointed. The raspberry jam just ends. No lingering finish. Nothing more than a quick hit in the mouth of raspberry jam, and then nothing. There is no substance.
However, after letting the wine sit for about twenty minutes, it did open up a little bit more, and had a little bit of a finish, but not much.
Honestly, after the jamminess left my tongue, I did not like it.
The next day (after we used our wine saver and sucked the oxygen out to help keep it fresh… yes, I actually have these things. They work well, but honestly, if you’re going to finish the wine the next day, there’s not really a need for it. But hey, whatever floats your boat!), the wine really was not good. It was done.

Here is a quick wine lesson on why the wine did not last the night.
Sulfites are a natural product of making wine. They help prevent oxidation in the wine (wine + oxygen = bad), prevent further fermentation, and act as a natural preservative for shelf life of the wine. As stated earlier, majority of your wines add sulfites on top of the naturally occurring sulfites in order to help preserve the wine and add a little more flavor, and sometimes to even preserve that red color of red wines.
Many people (I hear this on a daily basis), think that sulfites are the reason for their headaches/allergies with wine.. especially red wine, and I am here to tell you that you are pretty much wrong.
Now I must state that there is a very small percentage of the population that is allergic to sulfites, and they usually have asthma. Since no one wants an asthma attack, by law (at least in the U.S.), vineyards have to report “Contains Sulfites” when they add sulfites to the wine, on the bottle.
Here is the kicker: Organic wines and wine before adding sulfites contain anywhere from 10-40PPM (parts per million) of sulfites. When sulfites are added, it jumps up to about 50PPM, which really can not do much damage, as compared to some foods, like prepackaged foods and dried fruits, that can contain up to 1,000PPM or more (which honestly, who wants that much preservative??); AND Red Wine has LESS sulfites than White Wine! 


That is right. For all those out there that think red wine has more sulfites and that is why you get headaches and are allergic, here is your eye opening fact: White wine has more sulfites added to them because they have less color. Red wine has naturally more occurring sulfites in them due to the hardier, tougher, black colored grape skin, which gives the wine it’s color and natural sulfite derivative, which the white grape does not have.
Sweet white wine, hello my Moscato drinkers, has even more sulfites so a secondary fermentation does not happen from the excess sugar in the wine.

(If you want to read more about sulfites, check out these awesome articles:
– The Bottom Line on Sulfites in Wine
– Sulfites: Separating Fact from Fiction )

A lot of cool wine info right?!?!

Because this simple truth wine is 100% certified organic and “contains no detectable sulfites,” (No added sulfites. Remember that’s really what it means.) this is why the wine more than likely tasted fresh, but went bad quickly and did not taste good in the long run for me.

All in all, if you want an easy, basically cheap wine for the night, this wine will do the trick!

Perfect to Pair with: Spaghetti Squash, light chicken dishes, salad.

Average Price: $4.99!! (Hello Super CHEAP!)

Cheers my wine lovers!

 Fifty Shades of Grey White Silk