This past weekend famed winemaker Hugh Hamilton led a delicious wine tasting with his wife, Pam, at Mystic Wine Shoppe. The Hamilton family has been beyond kind with us; sharing their time, passion and wines with us and our customers over the years. We continue to be grateful for their friendship and look forward to working with them in the future. Hugh Hamilton Wines will ALWAYS have a spot at Mystic Wine Shoppe!

Check out our gallery of photos below.

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Remember – you can join us every Saturday for wine tastings and every Friday for beer tastings.

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reisling

What is Riesling? Riesling is one of the great white wines of the world. Riesling is named after the German white grape varietal of the same name. Although it grows in many countries, the best and 60% of the world’s total production comes from Germany, while the Niagara Peninsular in Canada also produces world class Riesling.

What Does Riesling Taste Like? The many flavors of Riesling include apple, pear, quince, apricot, peach and nectarine. A fine minerality and a balanced acidity are important components of this wine. Styles vary from bone dry to dessert style. Usually, the drier styles favor the apple and pear flavors while the sweeter tend more towards apricot and nectarine.

What Makes Riesling Special? The vineyard locations are very important to the quality of the Riesling grape. The grapes have to fight against short growing seasons, shorter daylight and much cooler temperatures than most other grapes. Because of this, the best vineyard sites are those with southern exposure on the steep banks of the Rhine and Mosel rivers. These banks are quite steep, contain deposits of slate under the topsoil and need to be harvested by hand. The grapes benefit from both direct sunlight and light reflected off of the river. The slate underneath is heated by this combination and adds additional warmth to the grape vines. The coolness of the northern latitude helps to provide the racy acidity for which these wines are known.

Common Styles.

  1. Trocken which is very dry.
  2. Halbtrocken is a medium dry wine.
  3. Kabinett implies wine of normal ripeness.
  4. Spatlese is a wine whose grapes were picked late so that the grapes are riper than normal thus providing a sweeter style wine.
  5. Auslese a wine made from late picked grapes selected by the ripest bunches making for a sweet wine.
  6. Beerenauslese comes from individually selected late harvest grapes. Higher quality and much sweeter than the others. A dessert wine.
  7. Trockenbeerenauslese is the ultimate dessert wine. The grapes stay on the vine until they shrivel like raisins. They are loaded with sugar and flavors.
  8. Eiswein made from grapes that freeze on the vine then are picked and pressed immediately. Very intense flavors.

*Typically, the sweeter the wines, the lower the alcohol content. Most German wines vary between 8-10% alcohol, while a typical French wine is around 12-13%.

How Long Will the Wine Last? Once opened, the wine drinks well for a couple of days then loses most of its flavor rapidly. The sweetest wines will keep longer as the sugar acts as a preservative.

Food Pairings: Freshwater fish and fresh seafood pair very well with Rieslings; a particularly good match is Salmon. Also, foods such as Thai, Indian and Chinese go very well with Riesling.

Stop into Mystic Wine Shoppe and let our team help you pick out the perfect Riesling for your special occasion!

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IMG_8547Who’s ready for an easy to drink (no mixing necessary) margarita? If your hand is raised up high, we can guarantee, you’re not alone! We have discovered a local hand-made margarita that is to-die-for!

The owner of Rustic Spirits (from Boston) pours his heart and soul into every batch of his tasty Margarita drink; making every batch by hand.

This is not your typical pre-mixed margarita drink! It’s very smooth with  just the right amount of tart and tequila. We are lovers of margaritas, often opting to mix our own cocktails, but this bottle tasted just as if we had done just that. Highly recommended to all our margarita lovers!

Plus, this makes a great house warming gift!

 

From the Columbia Valley Wine Region comes The Huntsman Cabernet from Ross Andrew Winery.  Our marketing consultant, Taylor, has labeled this her favorite go-to red wine, and with smooth flavors of vanilla, raspberries and plums, why wouldn’t it be.

WineWithMiles Mystic Wine Shoppe

“This wine is dangerously delicious! It’s the perfect addition to any meal… no matter if it’s lunch, dinner or breakfast (just kidding) this easy-to-drink red wine is perfect for any occasion.  My dog even loved it!” – Taylor

 

Mystic Wine Shoppe

From the winery: The Huntsman Cabernet Sauvignon is our answer to packing as much Cabernet Sauvignon into an everyday wine while maintaining just enough softness to make it match with everything or nothing. Ringing in at 96% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Petit Verdot.

Pick-up a bottle at Mystic Wine Shoppe!