Cattail Creek Estates Winery, Gamay Noir, 2011, VQA

Winter is an annoying time. A is not in the mood for fun or summery wines because they make her bitter about this prolonged winter. But she also cannot survive on heavy reds alone. Enter the Cattail Creek Gamay Noir. This wine is atypical, in that it is ok to chill it. It is a lighter wine, both in colour and taste, and also is the right wine in taste and weight for light wine winter drinking. Not tropical enough to send A into a state of rage, but not heavy enough to emphasize the fact that winter is still here. At $15.95 it is on the edge of the "everyday" drinking budget, but is worth it for a unique taste. What did A think? Check it out!

A - As you can see in the picture, this is an incredibly light coloured red wine. When I was pouring it, it looked more like a rosé in colour. It has a light rose-coloured tint. It smells smoky and fruity, like raspberries, and has a bit of a vanilla-esque sweetness. It is also a very soft tasting wine. It tastes a bit like plums and rose petals (dusty, floral, and dry). It is definitely not an aggressive tasting wine, but it does have a bit of an alcohol aftertaste. I drank it with my turkey-for-two from the local butcher (a bacon-wrapped stuffed turkey breast from the local butcher). The meaty smokey-ness brought out the jammy sweetness of cherries and plums in this wine, and it cut the alcohol finish. I quite liked this wine with dinner. It is light but not delicate, so pairs well with heartier foods. It is also a bit woody, like a sweet cherry wood that is not overwhleming. While I liked this wine, it has a very distinct flavour that may not make it a crowd pleaser. The dry, slightly floral taste may be a turn off for those who like fruitier reds, but also those who like more chocolate-y or woody reds. The gamay is not always a popular grape, so serve this with a dinner, where its flavours would be better balanced and it would come across as more fruity, but not at a party where you are trying to please a lot of people. This was also good for sipping, both chilled and unchilled, and would make a good sangria base for all people.