Prior to Texas rejoining the "Sucky Wine Shipping State Club", I placed an order from Cinderella Wine for the 2007 Casa Marin Vineyard Riesling. I'm holding out hope that I will eventually be able to order wine from out of state retailers in the future, but it looks like this will be my last CW order for a while. I'm sure glad I posted that last order.
The Casa Marin Riesling is a dry Chilean Riesling and comes in at 13.5% alcohol. I got this bottle for about $16, but normal retail on it is $28.
The nose on this wine is big-time petrol and minerality. Petrol is one of those descriptors that can seem a little off-putting for newer wine drinkers, but I really enjoy a little of this aroma in a Riesling. I also am getting some lemon/lime aromas. The flavor offers more of that minerality, along with a nice limey acidity. I also pick up just a tad of smoke and some more petrol. This wine is really crisp and dry, and has some nice acidity to it.
If you are like me and prefer a nice dry white to a sweet one, this is exactly how you like your Rieslings. This is a wine that works great as a sipping wine, or with food. I could just see myself sitting out on the patio in the summer with a glass of this wine. I will definitely look for the Casa Marin Riesling again in the future and I would certainly recommend it, especially if you can find it for somewhere in the $16-$20 range.
Legend – Skip it
Meh
Worth a Try
Give it a Go
Run Get Some
Haha I remember having a Riesling like this once. I got the first glass, and I said “Hmm, smells a bit like petroleum,” which led to looks of disgust. It’s actually similar to the reactions I get when I say I detect tobacco in a red, but this one was met with a lot more disbelief.
Anyways, moral of the almost entirely tangential story is that petrol done right is a fantastic quality in wine. I’m surprised you got those notes so early in the wine’s life. Doesn’t that kind of quality usually come to the forefront in more mature wines?
Yeah, kind of surprised me too. 2007 is pretty young to be experiencing this characteristic on it, but it was definitely there. The mineral and petrol were the more prominent aromas that I picked up on this wine. I’ve got another bottle of this that I’m excited about opening after it has aged a bit. Should be interesting to see how it develops.
I know its a desired characteristic in Riesling, but I’m not really a petroleum fan – when it comes to wine – Looks like you scored a great deal on this wine, though!
Yeah, fantastic deal on it. I probably wouldn’t have paid over $20 for it, as I rarely pay more than $20 for a white, but I’m glad I snagged it when I saw it.
I can understand why someone wouldn’t dig the petrol, but I enjoyed it.