Dinner Blog Post 1 - Italian

My friends and I (top right) at our lovely dinner


 My friends and I are all taking Geography of Wine. We came together to have three types of wine with a three-course dinner this past week and had a ton of fun tasting and sipping. 








Course 1: We had Bruschetta with crunchy warm baguette toast topped with balsamic vinaigrette dressing. The dominant flavors in my opinion were acidic tomato and balsamic. We all agreed that the acid in the wine matched up with the acid in the tomato. I also thought that the tomato and toast made the white Barefoot Sauvignon blanc much less sweet. 


Course 1: Bruschetta 








Course 2: Our next course was Creamy Penne alla Vodka. This was made with thick Rigatoni and additional garlic and parmesan cheese. While it was very filling and delicious, it did not pair well with the Rose delightfully sweet barefoot wine that we got because it was too sweet and ended up overpowering the cheese. 


Course 2: Penne Alla Vodka 





Course 3: The dessert we enjoyed after our dinner was Chocolate Fudge Brownies. We paired this with sparkling red wine called Red Dream which went very well with this dessert. It even tasted as if we were eating a brownie with berries in it. 

Course 3: Chocolate Fudge Brownies










Wine #1:

Name: Sauvignon blanc

Variety: Sauvignon blanc

Region: California

Country: USA

Year: Not Specified

Price: $6.99

Label Description: "Barefoot Sauvignon Blanc is our driest white wine, bursting with fruit flavors of fresh pear and crisp citrus. Pack a picnic basket, find a sunny spot, and uncork!"

We chose this wine because we wanted to have a variety of types and to try a drier wine with something as juicy as Bruschetta.

My review of this wine on its own: Upon first swirl and sniff, it is giving a dry, acid smell. It has a prominent aftertaste. When sipping it, the slightly hot alcohol taste bounces around in your mouth. It has a citrus flavor and is light-bodied.

Wine 1: Sauvignon blanc














Wine 2




  Wine 2: 

Name: Rose Delightfully Sweet Barefoot

Variety: Grenache Moscato blend

Region: California

Country: USA

Year: Not Specified

Price: $6.99

Label Description: "Barefoot Rosé offers vibrant fruit aromas and flavors, bright acidity, ample mid-palate weight, and a delightfully sweet, smooth finish."

We chose this wine because we wanted to have a rose in order to have a bit of a bridge between the white and red wines. 

My review of this wine on its own:  This second wine felt bouncing. I tasted notes of cherry, raspberry, watermelon, sweet citrus, and specifically grapefruit. I would have preferred to drink this wine on its own because it was too sweet to have with the penne pasta. 


Wine 3

Name: Red Dream by Rinaldi

Variety: Filtrato Dolce

Region: Ricaldone

Country: Italy 

Year: Not Specified 

Price:$19.99

Label Description: "The non-vintage Rinaldi Red Dream, which comes from 100% Malvasia Nera, has about 7% alcohol, so it is slightly more potent than its two siblings. Gorgeously fresh and frothy, with loads of cherry, honeysuckle, spice box, and spring flowers, this is an exciting party wine that is brilliantly packaged, and I doubt a person can be found who would dislike it. However, these wines are meant to be drunk in their exuberant youth, so this one as well as the following two efforts should be consumed over the next 6-12 months."

We chose this wine because it was recommended to my friend, Giuliana, by a sales associate at the Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg, VA. It was also the first sparkling red wine that anyone of my friends at this dinner had tasted which was very interesting.

My review of this wine on its own: This sparkling tastes very close to cranberry juice. You can make out notes of cherry, plum, and blackberry. This lighter-bodied wine bounces around but also fizzes well. It is the perfect dessert wine. It is from Italy and makes me want to travel there to taste more. It paired extremely well with the brownie dessert because of how light-bodied it is. 

Wine 3

Wine 3 

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