In search of a legend.

Vin De Constance.  The wine sought after by European aristocracy in the 18th and 19th century, enjoyed by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1815 during his exile to St. Helena, celebrated by authors Jane Austen and Charles Dickens, this drink is culitivated in the prized wine region of South Africa.  I mentioned this wine in a previous blog I wrote regarding my search for it, and by some strange twist of fate, came into possession of a bottle this past weekend.

The Sophisticated Savage!

Well, not so savage, more primitive, or Primitivo I should say.  Last night I found myself at the store before going home from work looking for something to drink with dinner.  I was preparing a steak goulash with roasted tomatoes, garlic, onion, and beef stock to be served over a bed of blanched cabbage.  More so I just wanted to try out the new wine and food pairing application I just downloaded on my iPhone.  According to my little electronic somonie, there were several wines for my paring I could choose. I decided a bold and powerful red wine was what I should go for, per my preference to full bodied reds.   A "Primitivo" was what I was on the hunt for.

You had me at Merlot!

The other night I had the opportunity to try Lindemans Bin 40 Merlot, Vintage 2008.  Actually it was a left over bottle from my sister's wedding reception.  This weekend I went to visit my parents in Bellingham Wa, and noticed that there was an open bottle of Merlot on the counter (I won't even begin to describe what my parents were using it for).  Be it far from me to pass up a tasting opportunity, as I know no food or drink prejudice and have the least experience with Merlots.  However, I did have some reservations as in the past I tended to associate a rather distasteful wine experience with Merlot.  I must say, I was surprised at what this inexpensive bottle of wine had to offer.  A bright bouquet with nice and easy tannins of light pepper, berries, and a perfect jammy sweetness.  This was certainly a wine with more body and viscosity, but certainly in a good way.  I am finding that I am more partial to a full bodied and rich red wine rather than something lighter like a Pinot Noir that is more delicate.
After tasting this wine, I decided to swing by Trade Joe's last night after work and grab a bottle for the week.  Total cost: $6.99.  Not too shabby if you are just getting into wine tasting and drinking with your meals, or for your heart health (Wink!).

Hooch du jour!

So lately I have been getting into drinking a bit of wine (Strictly for the purpose of reporting to you good people).

Wine just happens to be chalk full of all sorts of healthful stuff (Resveratrol, antioxidants, etc.). It also happens, in my opinion, to be a bit easier to put down, sometimes, than mixed drinks (full of sugar) or beer (a little heavy, but great after sweating in the sun or with Mexican food). And for all those beer drinking tough guys who shun wine, it has a higher alcohol content per glass than even that heavy dark stuff, sans the bloating!

A bit of wine advice from a novice who has been doing his research:

-Try out a lot of variety. Occasionally I indulge in a cigar and rarely smoke the same one twice unless I truly like that one. Same goes for wine.

-The sweet spot price wise for buying wine is between $9 and $29, but flexible. Currently I am looking for a particular South African wine, "Vin Di Constance", which last time I checked online to have a bottle shipped to me was around $75, so every now and then a splurge for a nice occasion seems acceptable. This wine was coveted by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who had 15 cases a year shipped to him during his exile to the island of St. Helena. If it is good enough for Napoleon, it's good enough for Chris!

OK, sorry for the departure, on to the wine...