2006 Newhaven Sauvignon Blanc

Formal notes to come on this sauvignon blanc that we have drank many of over the past. Nothing super exciting to write home about, but it is still an enjoyable 83-85 point sauvignon blanc. Still enjoy the Kim Crawford more than this one for the money, but it is still a nice quaffer. Cheers!

CoolVines Tasting - Springing Into March

This was the first wine today in the CoolVines - Princeton tasting. On the nose, there was some apricot, melon, pear, and hints of gooseberry. No cat pee on the nose on this New Zealand surprisingly. On the palate, there were some hints of pear and guava, but surprisingly, I couldn't catch a whole lot else on the palate. The acidity was crisp, with a simple finish that was a bit on the tannic side, but what do you expect with such a young wine. All in all, this is an easy drinker, and would be nice on the deck during the summer. Not much complexity only warrant this wine 83 points, but for the money, it has a decent QPR.

This was the second wine today, unfortunately I was not all that impressed. The nose to me was very reminiscent of "Pal" bubble gum(call me crazy), and some hints of pineapple and pear. On the palate, this wine was very drinkable, but not all that complex to warrant a high score. There was some more pear on the palate, with some apricot, and maybe a hint of honey. Very short finish with subtle acidity make this wine a good summer sipper, but I wouldn't go out of my way to find it, but for the price, you really cannot go wrong. 80 points.

Even though today's wines weren't of the normal caliber that CoolVines has, they were great price point wine, and good values for those who may not consider themselves connoisseurs. For the money, you really cannot go wring with ether of these wines, and they will both make nice summer sippers. Kudos to Mark and the CoolVines gang. Cheers!

2006 Newhaven Sauvignon Blanc

We enjoyed this bottle on the bistro after a night out to dinner. Very similar notes to other Newhaven's we've drank, so I won't bore you with the details. See other notes on this wine for our thoughts. 85 points. Cheers!

2006 Newhaven Sauvignon Blanc

Another great Marlborough release that we have enjoyed many of times. This is a bottle worth keeping a few of in the fridge. Tonight we enjoyed this on the bistro, and for about $10, it's a great QPR! Nose of lemon, lime, and grapefruit, with more of the same on the palate. A crisp acidity yet short finish make this sauvignon blanc a pleasure to drink on a hot summer day!

2004 Fiddlehead Cellars Sauvignon Blanc Happy Canyon

Another outstanding release from Kathy Joseph and her team at Fiddlehead. They are turning out some of the tastiest wines, and great summer drinkers! Please keep them coming!

Tonight we enjoyed this at Tsukasa Japanese Restaurant in Bordentown, so feel free to check out their review. We frequent Tsukasa quite often and absolutely love this place!

Great nose of citrus, oak, and floral notes make this wine a pleasure to smell. On the palate, this wine is a little on the acidic side, but more hints of lemon, pear, grapefruit, and apricot. The acid seem to mellow out in the glass, and this wine drank wonderful. This is a wine that makes it hard to keep your glass full as it is just so tasty. Hard to believe that this is an '04 as it is still drinking well, and probably will for another 2 years or so. 90 points! Cheers

Tsukasa Japanese Restaurant - Bordentown, NJ

I know what you're saying, another review of Tsukasa? Don't these two ever eat anywhere else other than the same restaurants in Bordentown? Well, when it's such a great restaurant in a great little town, how can we stay away? Tsukasa was filled to capacity tonight, and again, we were lucky enough to grab the last table. We got a great table in the window where we could see the hustle and bustle of Crosswicks and Farnsworth Avenue, and we also ran into some friends in town, Joe & Jackie, as well as Rob & Wendye. And of course they too had a great meal! Tonight we started off with edamame. This is such a fun appetizer, and absolutely tasty. My dinner tonight also came with miso soup, and even though I am not a big fan of the miso, this was great, and I really loved the fresh green onion on top! YUM! Zelda opted for sushi tonight, and went for the shrimp tempura roll, California roll, and salmon avocado roll. As usual, these were rolled nice with generous portions of fish and vegetables. Everything was served nice and cold, and it came out very fast considering how busy the restaurant was! I went with the "Dinner Box," and what a great treat this was! First in the box were 3 shrimp Shumai. These were awesome, and very hot right out of the kitchen. Perfectly cooked with a nice hot temp. Also included was a piece of grilled salmon that was perfectly seasoned, a piece of steak teriyake that was to die for, and chicken teriyake that was also awesome. To top if off were 2 shrimp tempura, along with tempura vegetables, and as always, their tempura was fabulous. Add a side of steamed broccoli and carrots, and you have a gorgeous, large portioned dinner for $15.95. For the price, this is going to be hard to beat! Everything paired wonderfully with 2004 Fiddlehead Sauvignon Blanc Happy Canyon...so feel free to read the review for that as well when I get it up. All in all, another outstanding meal with great value and great service! Kudos to the family at Tsukasa!

2006 Silver Beach Sauvignon Blanc

Another good bottle and great QPR from Marlborough New Zealand, possible the new king of sauvignon blanc. Well, maybe not the king, but they are indeed making some great sauv blancs in this region!

Paired well once again with sushi at Tsukasa. Great light straw color in the glass, with hints of lemon, lime, passion fruit, grapefruit, and grass on the nose. Very fragrant wine, and the smells seem to really come out as the wine warms in the glass. On the palate, more of the same, with lots of grapefruit and lemon/lime. Slight acidity on the finish, but a pleasure to drink. Drink now!!! I don't see this wine getting any better in the bottle. Great summer wine, but then again, most of the Marlborough sauv blancs are at this point. Would purchase again in a heartbeat. Similar to other notes we've had from previous bottles. 87 points.

Tsukasa Japanese Restaurant - Bordentown, NJ

I know what you're thinking, these two eat at the same places all the time! Well, not entirely true, but with the heat, we didn't feel like going too far, and sushi was just thing thing to satisfy our cravings on a very hot Jersey night in June. It was the perfect night for a New Zealand sauvignon blanc blanc, and what better to pair it with than sushi! See the review above for the Silver Beach sauvignon blanc that we enjoyed very much with our sushi!

Only two other tables in the restaurant when we arrived, but for the most part, it seemed as all of Bordentown was pretty slow. We really love visiting Bordentown for dinner since it is so close by, and it is a pleasure to frequent the many different restaurants there. Especially the 3 different BYO's that we frequent the most.

As usual, the family at Tsukasa was friendly, with Mom in the back kitchen cooking, Dad rolling away at the sushi bar, and their son taking care of the front of house waiting tables. These people are so nice, and we really look forward to seeing their business grow. That being said, if you live in Bordenown, you really need to support the the best you can. B-Town needs this restaurant, and right now I really think that the town is supporting them which is great.

Tonight we started off with edamame which is was no surprise, and nothing out of the norm. They came out nice and hot, and came out in a bowl that was yet anoter generoud portion. Lightly sprinkled with sea salt, you just cannot taste this tasty treat. Who would have thought that soy beans would taste so good, and make for such a tasty treat!

We opted yet again for sushi, and I know, we really need to try some of their hot teriyaki or tempura dinners or combination boxes. Their sushi is just so hard to pass up!

We ordered the usuals again, so I won't bore you with the desciptions again, but we had two tempura rolls, a Philly roll, spicy tuna roll, salmon and avocado roll, and a California roll. As usual, the did not disappoint, with great, fresh fish and vegetables. What can we say, another great meal in Bordentown!

2006 Château Laulerie Bergerac Sec

This is a great $8 wine that we found at the Bottle Shop of Spring Lake one day when we stopped in and they had a tasting. For the price, this is an incredible summer sipper, and I really look forward to this out on the deck this summer. The blend is 50% semillion, and 50% sauvignon blanc, and the sauv blanc qualities really shine through. Lots of pear and green apple on the nose, with more pear, green apple, lemongrass, and grapefruit on the palate. The finish however almost has some buttery, chardonnay type nuances, which is very pleasant and intriguing. For the money, you cannot beat this wine, and again, it will make a great summer wine. For the price, back up the truck and start loading up the cases! 88-89 points! Cheers!

2004 Duckhorn Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

Happy 4th of July, and what better wine than a nice sauvignon blanc, made in the USA, on a warm 4th of July Day! A great example of a California sauv blanc showing a nice green hued straw color in the glass, with a big grassy nose filled with lemon and oak. Hints of pear, green apple, apricot, and oak on the palate make this wine worthy of 89 points. A solid wine, drink now! God Bless the USA! Cheers!