At any time of year, it's necessary to remember those less fortunate and help out whenever and wherever we can.  We try to teach our daughter that the spirit of giving isn't just for the holidays. I know, though, that it's often easier said than done, and we can get caught up in our own busy lives.  The good news is that there are people out there who make helping others even easier for those of us who are good intentioned but occasionally short on follow through. And if you're a wine lover, it just became even easier!

Charity Case Foundation was formed in 2008 by Jayson Woodbridge.  The Foundation is devoted to raising funds through the sale of small-production, specially crafted wines to support local non-profit organizations and provide services to Napa-area children and families in need. All grapes and juice are donated by Napa vintners and all services are volunteered, from the wines, labels, bottles, corks and storage to shipping and marketing. You can read more about the Foundation and the organizations it supports by visiting www.charitycasewine.org.

This past Sunday night my family had a Do-Over Thanksgiving dinner to welcome my sister back from Washington DC. There were 12 of us for dinner (much smaller than our 40+ person Thanksgiving dinner a couple of weeks ago!). So we decided it was a perfect time to bring out the Charity Case Wines. Family, food, fun and giving thanks. The Charity Case Wine made for a great conversation, as I explained how it came about and their goal. 

We started with the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc. 100% Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc and fermented in new French oak, this was a nicely structured wine with aromas of apricot and lemon. It is full bodied with a nice, creamy finish from the French oak.  We all found it to be a very easy drinking wine and it paired perfectly with our appetizers.

We opened the 2008 Rose with dinner.  This went really well with the turkey (and the pumpkin pie!) and ended up being my favorite of the two. It was nicely complex with aromas of strawberries and a hint of lime. I tasted cranberries on the palate, as well as strawberry, and the finish had a bit of spicy white pepper, which I loved. The wine was great with our meal but I can also see it being a perfect summer wine.  Can't wait to drank more of this one.  

If you're looking for a wine to go with your holiday appetizers or meal or even just to reward yourself for braving the crowds at the mall, why not grab a bottle or three of Charity Case Wine. After all, you'll be doing a good deed and helping others while drinking wine. It doesn't get much better than that! 

I survived! Last night was my very first Vino Virtuoso wine tasting.  Thankfully, I hosted this one myself, in my own home, in front of my own friends (who were merciful!).  I was so nervous about doing ths, I felt like I used to before a big exam.  I spent a good part of the day wondering what the hell I was thinking when I signed up for this. Sure I love wine, but I hate talking in front of people and I am a horrible sales person.  Thankfully, in this instance, alcohol was not only allowed, it was required. Woot!

The evening was, I think, a big success.  After all, it was wine tasting with friends, what's not to love?  I overcame my nerves (with a little help from my friend, Vino) and ended up enjoying myself.  I'm sure I forgot half of what I meant to say but guess what? I'm the only one who knows that!!

The first wine of the evening was a 2009 Cantine Lunae Botini Vermentino from Italy.  I had never heard of Vermentino before, let alone tasted it.  This baby was the hit of the evening, even among those of us (ahem) who aren't big white wine drinkers. From grapes grown on a steep hillside in Liguria, this wine was medium bodied and very crisp.  It had notes of flowers and melon and minerals. There was even a hint of salt on the finish from the local sea breeze.  As one taster said, "This is the kind of wine that makes a sneak attack".  She's right! It's a very easy drinking wine with great flavor that keeps you drinking until suddenly - whooo - it hits ya!  I was really impressed with this wine.  If you ever come across a Vermentino, I encourage you to try it. 

Our last red of the night was a 2007 Pacific Estates Lustful Marriage Red Blend from Paso Robles. Talk about a nice end to the evening! This is an estate-grown blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Cabernet Franc.  Jammy fruit flavors were complimented by cinnamon, pepper and chocolate.  It had a nice, long finish. This one was amazing paired with dark chocolate and was the most popular red wine of the evening.

At the end of the day, I had a great time, and so did my friends. Let's see if I have this right: I get to learn more about wine; I get to get out of the house and talk to adults; I get to share my love of wine with others, AND I am expected to drink while doing it?  Yeah, color me excited about this new venture.  

Cheers to Vino Virtuoso and my friends who made it such a great evening. And here's to my next tasting!

Ah, the holidays are upon us. This past weekend we had a houseful of 7-year-old girls.  There was much squealing, giggling and singing of Christmas carols, and surprisingly little whining! The girls did some crafts, decorated (and subsequently ate) a bunch of cookies, watched "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", and generally had a fun time.  They went home happy (hopefully that wasn't JUST the sugar buzz they were riding!).

As nice as it was, it was tiring for us grownups! The volume level alone was enough to drive the dog into hiding and give me a headache.  Once the girls went home, I self-medicated with a glass of 2008 St-Jean-Des-Graves Blanc.  Now, I can hear those of you who know me saying, "Whaaat?"  I know! Although the experiment is still in the infancy stages, I have vowed to expand my horizons and see if I can't find some white wines that I enjoy.  One of my first attempts - the 2008 St-Jean-Des-Graves - was a resounding success.  This is a great value at $14 a bottle.  90% Sauvignon Blanc and 10% semillon, this is a crisp, refreshing wine that also has some personality. It was slightly minerally on the palate, with notes of grapefruit, and - hold on to your hats - I liked it! Best of all, now I'm actually excited to discover more white wines that I enjoy.

We ended the evening with a bottle of 2005 Chateau Pedesclaux Pauillac.  At $40 a bottle, this is the splurge part of the evening. The nice folks at K&L Wines helped me pick this one out.  This is a fifth growth Pauillac. Apparently, it was ranked in the top three in a blind tasting of all major 2005 classified growths, along with Mouton Rothschild and Pichon Baron, and above the other first growths. So really, based on that, it was a bargain, right? Anyway, I took the advice of the salesman and decanted the wine in the afternoon.  When first opened, it had a very intense aroma and was very earthy and minerally on the palate. When we sat down to drink it later, it had opened up and rounded out nicely. It was rich and sweet, with intense black fruit.  As the evening went on, it  tasted strongly of cherry cola.  The one surprise to me was that it had a pretty short finish.  I did enjoy this wine and look forward to trying it again in a couple of years. I'm also even more interested in trying some other Pauillacs now to compare (pocketbook permitting!).

All in all, I'd say that it was a very successful evening of armchair (or should that be wine glass?) travel in Bordeaux.  A votre santé!

I love Wednesdays. The Wine Wednesday meme on Twitter never fails to make me smile.  It's also been the source of some great wine knowledge and wonderful new friends.  Not that any one day is better than another for wine - let's not discriminate after all! - but Wine Wednesday really brings people together, as wine tends to do in real life.

Jason and I implemented a no-wine-on-weeknights policy a while back.  (Please don't make me turn in my wino card!)  We both get up at 5:30a.m. and, in addition, are trying to watch our waistlines.  So we decided that, mostly, we'd abstain on school nights.  This has worked pretty well and, thankfully, neither of us needs much persuading if the other is in the mood for some vino on a particular night.  But let me tell you, sharing a bottle of wine before bed and then getting up to hit the treadmill at 5:30a.m. can be just a bit brutal!

Anyway, last night, to celebrate my birthday, we had a bottle of Hogue Cellars Reserve 2005 Merlot.  We bought a few bottles of this from Cellar Thief (more on them later, what a great company) and I didn't remember the first bottle being as good as the one we drank last night.  The '05 Reserve Merlot was rated 90 points by Wine Spectator and was the perfect thing for a very cold evening.  It had the expected black cherry and raspberry fruit, along with some oak and pepper.  It was rich and well balanced with supple tannin structure.  I really liked this wine and am thinking we might need to look for more of it! Highly recommended.

And because we imbibed last night (and paid the piper this morning!), I'm thinking our Wine Wednesday celebration will be non-alcoholic this week! Maybe. Cheers!