Chateau Grand Traverse Gamay Noir 2008

Reserve Gamay Noir

Old Mission Peninsula

Cgtwines.com

Traverse City, Michigan, USA

On the back of the bottle they describe the wine as, ‘aromatic and fruity with distinct tart cherry, red plum and black pepper flavors.’

I have to agree with what they have written here - The nose is aromatic, fruity and I am going to add spice to bouquet.  The tart cherry, red plum and a fine grind black pepper shows through on the flavor profile.  The appearance is a shiny crimson color.  The mouthfeel seems thin at times and I feel like something is missing with each sip.  Maybe I am picking up a watery edge that is interfering with the structure of the wine and that is making wine seem uninteresting.

Let me come back to this bottle in a day or two.

Two days later:

That watery edge seems to be gone.  Today, the flavors are melding together.  Besides the tart cherry, red plum and fine grind black pepper I am going to add cedar today.  There is a little cedar spice mixing in with the black pepper spice.  There is a lingering earthy and cedar tone on the palate.  Two days ago there was nothing on the aftertaste but, sheer boredom dancing alone on my tongue.   

This wine needs time to breath after opening. 

  

A Wine Review: Colio CEV Gamay Noir 2008

12.1% abv
$15.75 Canadian
Harrow, Ontario, Canada
Colio Estate Vineyards
Coliowinery.com
My Strength Rating: 4

Here is the description on the bottle, “Scents of dark cherry, cedar spice, and strawberry pie foretell the dark cherry, cranberry and pomegranate finish.”

The Gamay pours a pretty ruby color. This wine has one tasty bouquet. I get the dark cherry and spice. I don’t know about the strawberry pie but, this wine has a very tasty berry presence. The aroma is much better than I expected from the light appearance.

The taste does follow the nose. There is a very pleasing dark cherry and red berry flavor that dominates the profile. I also pick up that cedar spice on the taste and I notice it more on the nose now as the wine opens up. And, as a cigar guy I like that cedar note. The other spices on the palate remind me of a mixture of fine grind green, white, and pink peppercorns. I could agree with sweet cedar on the taste, but, to me it is lacking the woody character. That is why I am calling it the pepper mill mixture that I described. The acidity and tannins are low.

This wine would be nice with a salad dish, turkey or a portabella mushroom cap.

This is a must buy in my book.