Now that the wineries are opening up in California, more people are starting to plan their visits to wine country. Unfortunately, I don’t feel comfortable enough to go wine tasting yet even with all of the social distancing measures in place, but luckily, a lot of wineries are offering at-home tasting experiences. I had such a fun time leading my dad and his wife through a fun little wine pairing from home!
The one I ordered is a tasting kit offered by Dutton Estate Winery. This tasting kit came with two delicious chocolate bars separated into five different flavored pieces to pair with five mini bottles of wine: Chardonnay, Kylie’s Fumé Blanc, Berry Block Pinot Noir, La Familia Pinot Noir, and My Father’s Syrah. Something happened with shipping and I didn’t receive the Chardonnay, but Elizabeth reached out to me and offered a partial refund. A+ for customer service!
The first pairing was supposed to be the Chardonnay and the apple chocolate. Because the Chardonnay was missing, we skipped the chocolate and went straight to pairing number two. The second pairing was the Kylie’s Fumé Blanc paired with the apricot chocolate. The Fumé Blanc was incredible. So many tropical fruity notes, a zesty, bright acidity, and was silky smooth on the finish. This was my favorite wine out of the four I tried from this kit. The chocolate paired surprisingly well with the wine. The apricots in the chocolate brought out more of the stone fruit flavors in the wine.
Next we tried the Berry Block Pinot Noir. This Pinot was paired with the almond chocolate. To be honest, this was my least favorite of the wines. It was a little bland in my opinion and nothing was making it stand out against the rest. I think with a couple of years of aging, this wine could reach it’s full flavor potential, but it wasn’t doing much for me. I will say that it paired beautifully with the chocolate, so it might actually be one of those wines you just need to pair with food.
After the Berry Block Pinot Noir, we poured the La Familia Pinot Noir. This wine had particular notes of concentrated dark berries and had some hints of cracked peppercorn. It was super tasty with an incredible, velvety finish that lingered long on the palate. The La Familia Pinot was paired with the cranberry chocolate. I think the chocolate and the wine were spectacular by themselves; however, I don’t think they complemented each other that well. I actually think the chocolate from the third pairing could do a little “switcharoo” with the chocolate from this pairing, in my opinion.
Lastly, we opened the My Father’s Syrah. I will preface this by saying I don’t typically gravitate towards Syrah because it’s a little too bold for me. I was a little nervous to try this one, but I actually really liked it! This Syrah is jam-packed (pun intended) with flavors of ripe blackberry, raspberry, and cherry. It wasn’t too peppery as I normally expect from Syrahs. It was paired with the espresso chocolate and it was fantastic! In the ratings, the Syrah came in second place for me.
All in all, this was a fun little experience to try at home. Even though most wineries are now open, if you’re still a little too nervous to visit, tastings like these are a great way to get a small taste of wine country from the comfort and safety of your own home.
