Tasting - Weinkeller Erbach Flonheimer Adelberg Sylvaner 2010

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Name: Weinkeller Erbach Flonheimer Adelberg Sylvaner
Variety: Sylvaner
Region: Rheinhessen
Country: Germany
Year: 2010
Price: Regular - $18, Sale - $4.95

Shop/wine critic/winery review:
    “The fruity, mouthwatering wine has a nice acidity-sugar balance and comes from the so called 'Rheinhessen-Switzerland', the heartland of Rheinhessen. It has a floral bouquet and is full of lemon zest, hint of passion fruit, and smells like yellow fruit, lemon-grass and green tea, all wrapped around a pleasant creaminess and a semi-dry profile. The finish is zippy and refreshing. Perfect for party on the deck as it comes in a liter bottle!”

My Review: 
    This wine presents a pleasant gold color and a sweet fruity scent. The wine is sweet, smooth, and just a bit tart, presenting some lemony flavors. This wine is quite pleasant and memorable from its flavor, to its price, to its tartrate crystals. It's a pleasant and refreshing wine, and I consider it an 81/100.

Tasting - Montebuena Rioja 2010

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Name: Montebuena Rioja
Variety: Rioja (100% Tempranillo grapes)
Region: Rioja
Country: Spain
Year: 2010
Price: $8.95

Shop/wine critic/winery review:
    "(100% Tempranillo, raised entirely in American oak): Vivid ruby. Ripe cherry and blackcurrant on the nose and in the mouth. Pliant and seamless in texture, with good heft and back-end energy. Finishes smooth and sweet, with fine-grained tannins providing shape and grip. Still on the young side but this wine drinks very well with an hour or so of decanting; it's an excellent value for Rioja."
- Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar (September 2012), 90 pts

My Review:
     This wine presented a dark scarlet color and a mild almost unnoticeable scent. The flavor was mild and smooth and presented hints of a cherry-like flavor. The finish was sweet and smooth and was overall quite pleasant if not incredibly noticeable. I liked this wine, but I'd rate it at a 78/100 because it was very pleasant but not particularly remarkable. 

Tasting - Delaroche Cotes du Rhone 2011

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Name: Delaroche Cotes du Rhone
Variety: Cotes du Rhone
Region: Rhone Valley
Country: France
Year: 2011
Price: $8.95

Shop/wine critic/winery review:
   "This semi-opaque ruby, custom cuvée of 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache and 10% Mourvedre is made specifically for Fran Kysela. It exhibits very fresh, ripe dark red fruit with very good palate weight and depth and ends with rich fruit notes. Made from organically grown grapes. Incredible value!"
- I-WineReview (December 2013), 90 pts.

My Review:
     This wine presents a dark almost garnet color and a rich tart scent. The flavor is rich and almost buttery with a sharp aftertaste. This wine was pleasant, but again not incredibly memorable to me, so I would give this wine a 70/100.

Tasting - Maipe Torrontes 2013

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Name: Maipe Torrontes
Variety: Torrontes
Region: Mendoza
Country: Argentina
Year: 2013
Price: $7.95

Shop/wine critic/winery review:
    Spring-like nose of fresh white peaches, pears, green apple, green melon and hints of jasmine and rose petals. On the palate, it has a beautiful structure and acidity along with fruit flavors and plenty of body.  Well balanced, this wine displays a pleasant freshness with citrus notes and a long finish. Best enjoyed in its youth either by itself, or as a wonderful partner with smoked meats, mild to medium strong cheeses, seafood and a great partner for spicy food as well.

My Review:
    This wine was the biggest and most pleasant surprise for me at this wine tasting. The wine presented a pale gold color and a strong floral scent with a fruity back end. The taste presented a strong floral flavor with a fruity aftertaste. The wine is quite pleasant, and that's why this wine was such a pleasant surprise. I'm working on developing my taste for wine, but I have a taste for other things including beer. I can't stand IPAs because of the strong floral taste, but I really enjoyed this wine. Overall, I'd give it an 80/100, this is mostly because it was surprisingly very good and memorable, but I don't think I have a developed enough palette to rate a wine much higher than this unless it really blows me away.

Tasting - Cortenova Pinot Grigio 2012

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Name: Cortenova Pinot Grigio
Variety: Pinot Grigio
Region: Venezie
Country: Italy
Year: 2012
Price: $7.95

Shop/wine critic/winery review:
      Brilliant straw color with emerald reflections. Fresh and floral bouquet with a hint of pears, apricots and bananas. Fresh and inviting with bright fruit and an easy drinking style with a pleasing hint of almonds in the finish. Pairs well with seafood dishes, risottos with scampi,spaghetti with clams, sole in white wine. Perfect also as an aperitif.

My Review:
    This wine had a mild gold color and presented a sharp fruity scent. The flavor was mild, smooth, and pleasant predominated by a fruity mildly pear flavor. Overall, I thought the wine was pleasant but generally unmemorable. I would put it at about a 75/100. It's good, and I could enjoy it with a dinner, but it's generally unremarkable, so I figure a 75 suits it pretty well.