RASHI JOYVIN - A Taste of Nostalgia

Do you remember your first wine?  I don’t mean Manischewitz or Kedem basic wines, but the step up.  For me it was Italian Rashi Joyvin White and Red.  Now I am Russian and Jewish so obviously it was perfectly acceptable to drink at family events before I was 21 and these wines were perfect for all the family and holiday celebrations.  The wines are low in alcohol, (only 6%) and are sweet.  I remember the first time I drank the Joyvin Red at Passover, it made me feel like such a grown up. 

Recently when deciding which wine to do a tasting of I caught sight of the Joyvin bottles and as nostalgia settled over me I decided to taste them.  Since my tasted changed in the last 15 years these wines are not typically what I drink anymore, but they were still very pleasant to taste.  For anyone who likes Moscato but gets tired of the bubbles the white one is perfect.  It has a very pleasant, light, fruity flavor.  The red is also very light with citrus and melon flavors.  I also love how the bottles look, they are skinny, extended with frosted glass.  These wines are perfect as starters, with dessert, ice cold on a hot summer day or when you don’t want to drink a high alcohol wine.    

Danue Passion Fruit Wine - My First Taste of a Fruit Wine

Recently I noticed that there is a new trend in wines, fruit wines.  I’ve seen apple wines, blackberry wines, peach, raspberry and pear wines.  I never tried any of them until last week when I did a tasting of a passion fruit wine.  Morad Winery Danue Passion Fruit Wine is an Israeli wine that is part of the fruit wine craze.  I’ve had passion fruit drinks before and they always tasted sweet, but this wine tasted more like a grapefruit.  That is good if you like grapefruit, unfortunately I don’t.  However, the store’s customers loved the taste of the wine and were buying it.  Passion fruit is rich in vitamin, especially vitamin A, so drinking this wine is probably good for your health.  Danue Passion Fruit Wine has aromatic floral scents and exotic taste. This wine is best enjoyed with salads, desserts, ice cream and enriches the taste of cocktails.  This is a perfect summer wine if you want to try something different.  

So although I was not crazy about this wine (only because I don’t like grapefruit) it did make me curious about other fruit wines.  Now I am on a mission to find and try more fruit wines.

Rum Jumbie Splash Flavored Rums - Perfect Summer Rums

I haven’t written anything in here lately because I haven’t tried any new wines or liquors that really inspired me.  Well that all changed last week when I did tastings of Rum Jumbie Splash Flavored Rums and fell in love with them.  These rums are a perfect for hot summer days, whenever you are laying around by a pool or relaxing in your backyard.  The rum comes in 4 delicious flavors, Mango, Coconut, Pineapple and Vanilla.  All four are sweet and do not taste like any other rum I have ever tasted before.  They should be drank really cold on ice.  They are also very good in a blender with crushed ice or as mixers for drinks.  The bottles have the company’s website on the back which has drink recipes. 

My favorite is the Mango.  It is full of fruity flavor, when I drank it my mouth exploded with flavor.  I also really liked the Coconut one, it tastes like a Pina Colada.  The Vanilla tastes like a French-vanilla ice cream and would be great on top of any ice cream.  I don’t like pineapples so I pleasantly surprised when I also enjoyed the Pineapple flavor. 

I can’t wait to try these rums this summer as mixers with different drinks.  So watch for Part II where I will review the drinks that are on the company’s website and anything else I decide to use them in.

Here’s a short description of the rums from the company’s website.

"Many years ago, hidden in the caves of a remote Caribbean Island was a well sought after Rum Recipe. It was safe there as the inhabitants feared entering the mysterious alcoves in belief that "Jumbies" or spirits were trapped inside. It was believed Jumbies would possess anyone who consumed Rum and would dance to the beat of congas all night long. Rum Jumbie Liqueur is made from that rediscovered recipe. By drinking this well sought after rum liqueur you may awaken the "Rum Jumbies" from years gone by. Rum Jumbie Splash is the ultimate blend of the finest Caribbean Rum infused with natural fruit flavors. Nurtured by the warmth of the Caribbean sun, only the best sugar cane rum is selected to create this harmonious tropical spirit."

The Wine Scoop: Herzog Chenin Blanc Late Harvest – A Sweet Wine fo...

The Wine Scoop: Herzog Chenin Blanc Late Harvest – A Sweet Wine fo...: "I was going to let my husband write this post since it’s about him, but well he’s not a writer. For as long as I have known him he ..."

Herzog Chenin Blanc Late Harvest – A Sweet Wine for a Dry Wine Lover?

I was going to let my husband write this post since it’s about him, but well he’s not a writer.  

  

For as long as I have known him he has always preferred to drink dry wines.  When I was still drinking White Zinfandel he introduced me to Pinot Grigio.  His favorite wine now is a Pinot Noir.  So imagine my surprise when I brought home a bottle of Herzog Chenin Blanc Late Harvest from a tasting and he actually liked it.  Every time I come home from a tasting he asks me if I have anything new and interesting for him.  I told him no, just a sweet wine which I wasn’t a fan of.  He decided to try it anyway and then said that it was actually really good.  I was really surprised that he liked a sweet wine that I did not.  For those of you that like Chenin Blancs and white wines that are on the sweet side this is a good wine to try.

 “The grapes for this California wine were harvested from the Ehrhardt block of the Herzog Vineyard. This two acre block of Chenin Blanc grapes are unique for three reasons. First, it receives the utmost care and maintenance throughout the year, especially during harvest. Second, the grapes in this block were allowed to ripen to the fullest extent, thereby maximizing sweetness. And third, these grapes were harvested very late in the season to provide a uniquely luscious Late Harvest wine characteristic.

The wine is light gold with orange tints, full-bodied and generously sweet with good acidity to keep it lively. A fine effort, rich and generous with dried apricot and yellow peaches on first attack, those yielding to notes of mango and ginger, all overlaid with light hints of ginger and blanched almonds. Since the wine is naturally sweet it is best enjoyed with full flavored desserts, fresh fruit or as an aperitif.”    

Binyamina Liqueurs Make Sex and the City 2 Better

A few days ago my mom and I had a girl day.  We watched Sex and the City 2 while drinking fun cocktails.  The movie was really bad but the drinks were really good because I found some fun cocktail mixers in my mom’s house.   She had Binyamina Liqueurs which come in a few different flavors.  Since we were watching Sex and the City I started us of with Cosmopolitans using the Triple Sec liqueur.  Then we moved on to an Apple Martini using the Sour Apple liqueur, my mom really liked it but it was too sour for me.  We finished off with the Chocolate Martini using the Chocolate liqueur. 

Benyamina has some other flavors Banana, Lemoncello, Amaretto and Wishniak.  I really want to try the Wishniak, which is a cherry flavored liquor.

Here are the cocktail recopies I used that night.

Cosmopolitan
• 1 shot vodka
• 1/2 shot triple sec
• 1/2 shot cranberry juice
• 1/2 shot lime juice
Add ingredients to cocktail mixer, shake, then strain into a chilled martini glass.

Apple Martini
• 1 part vodka
• 1 part Sour Apple 
• 1 part apple juice

Chocolate Martini 
Ingredients: 
• 1.5 shots Vodka 
• 1.5 shots Chocolate Liqueur

Thanks to these drinks the end of the movie was great

Tacos with Wine

As this blog is ever evolving I’m going to write not just about drinking wines, but other uses for wine and about fun liquors and interesting mixed drinks.

Tonight for dinner I made tacos.  The recipe called for beer but I decided to mix things up and add red wine instead.  My husband who is a really good cook always tells me to use a wine that I drink when I cook, so I used Jeunesse.  The mix of the spicy hot sauce and the sweetness of the wine were a great combination.  My husband loved the tacos and said that I should make pasta with this sauce, just use less hot sauce.  He’s a big foodie and loves to experiment when he cooks so a compliment from him is big for me.  Next time I make tacos I’m going to experiment some more and use a drier wine.

For anyone interested here is my taco recipe, but if you have your own it’s fine just add wine to it.  I didn’t use measurements, just eyed everything.

1 Package of ground beef

Salt

Pepper

3Garlic cloves

1 Onion

Chili Powder

Cumin

Wine

Hot Sauce

Tomato Sauce

Heat a large nonstick skillet and add the beef to it, breaking it up.  Season meat with salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin.  Add chopped onion and garlic.  Cook for a few minutes, then add wine.  Add hot sauce and tomato sauce.  Throughout the whole time stir the meat with a spatula or a wooden spoon.  Cover the skillet and let it cook for 5 minutes over low heat.