Tuesday, September 07, 2010

Yes, I Bought It Because of the Label

Dachshunds. We have 'em. So does Jill, the owner of my local wine store domaineLA. So when I saw that she had a wine with a dachshund label in stock, I didn't care if it was red or white or good or bad--I had to have it. A This great photo of the label comes from the McDuff's Food and Wine Trail blog, where you can check out a review of the 2007 version of this wine.

Turns out the wine is red--made from Gamay grapes. And it turns out the wine is excellent--and represents excellent QPR, too, at $15. ($15, domaineLA) Not surprisingly, Jill includes it in her "wall of affordable deliciousness" at the store.

The 2009 Thierry Puzelat Le Telquel is a totally fun, totally raspberry wine. There is a hint of a spritz on the tongue at first, which I didn't think detracted at all from the pure raspberry aromas and flavors of this wine. There were some earthy, floral, and spice notes as well, but the fruit really is the star here. It is terrific served a bit cooler than you might serve other reds, which makes if perfect for drinking right now. I should note, however, that this would also be a great pick for Thanksgiving tables, too, given its affordability and Gamay's nack for pairing with a wide range of foods.

We had this wine with the the best barbecued chicken we've had this summer (or maybe ever): Mike Sheerin of Blackbird restaurant's Twice-Glazed Asian barbecued chicken. The glaze includes roasted garlic, soy, and toasted black peppercorns which makes for a spicy, flavorful chicken that coaxes the pepper and spice out of this wine and makes an excellent counterpoint for the raspberry fruit.

4 comments:

Portland Charcuterie Project said...

Like you.. I never buy the "critter" wines.. but having doxies for years, I too, would have bought that one in a second... I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for it.

Unknown said...

I make an impulsive buy once in a while based on pretty labels. You'd be surprised, though, most of they turn out to be some of the best wines I've tasted. Maybe you can judge a wine by its label?

cheeseblab said...

You say "bought it because of the label" as if that were unusual--heck, that's 90% of my purchases!

Dr. Debs said...

I suspect many of us buy based on the label--even if we are less likely to admit it than Cheeseblab. Of course, that's why I love Cheeseblab!(remember that wine I bought when we had your fab risotto? bought it because there was a guy in a ruff on the label!)