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I remember the first time I tasted a Soave in my wine class. I was expecting Riunite – a sweet fruity drink that would loosely be classified as wine. Boy, was I disappointed! My first taste – which went against every expectation I had – was tough. It was totally dry, dry as the Sahara dessert and therefore shocking to my palate.

Let me back up a step. Expectations are always a tricky thing. Sometimes, they become a self-fulfilling prophecy – you expect something to be bad, you make it bad in your mind by picking it apart. And vice versa, you expect something to be good, so you only see the upsides. But most of the time, expectations can mislead you. When someone hypes something to you and raises your expectations too high, you are bound to be disappointed. And again, vice versa, you hear only negative reviews of something, but then when you actually try it, it’s not so bad! My husband used to always tell me to spend about 20 percent of my time managing expectations. In order to get a job for example, you have to talk yourself up. But then when you actually get the job, you need to make sure people are going be realistic about what you can accomplish. So, walk the line of not being a complainer, but talk about the challenges, your problem solving strategies and so forth. Make sure people know what they are getting so then, they will be happy with the outcome!

Now, back to the shock to the palate. Soave is dry! Dry, dry, dry but also delicately floral with notes of peach and pear and a very refreshing, crisp, mineral-driven finish. In fact, it is one of the great wines of Italy. One would not necessarily know that because it is not as recognizable as Chianti or Prosecco. And furthermore, it is made from the terribly named Garganega (pronounced gar-GA-nega) grape. Sounds like mouthwash, but tastes sublime – it is fresh, lively and can pair with everything from white meats to shellfish.

wine photoSoave Classico is the heart of great wines made with the Garganega grape. It is in the extremely picturesque part of the Veneto that is just east of the gorgeous Lake Garda. The valleys are lush and beautiful dotted with castles and modern buildings alike. Rocca Sveva is made by the cooperative winery, the Cantina Di Soave, which having been established in 1898, is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year. They use high-technology to analyze soils and ensure the quality of the grapes supplied by their growers as well the latest techniques to ensure quality but make wines that are extremely traditional and hark back to their origins.

The Rocca Sveva Soave Classico 2016 is a wonderful, easy-to-drink, highly enjoyable wine. It’s beauty is in its simplicity. It doesn’t require any concentration to appreciate its depths like a white Burgundy might and it doesn’t lull you into a stupor like a big, high-alcohol, buttery Chardonnay might. In fact, at 12.5% alchohol, you can enjoy that second glass guilt free. And really prolong the enjoyment on a hot summer’s day. This wine has lovely notes of grapefruit and lemon zest with a hint of white peach on the nose. It has a nice, soft mouthfeel with some mineral notes and it leaves your palate with a fresh, dry snap.

Cheers! Seema

As 4th of July quickly approaches we’re getting more excited for all the upcoming celebrations.  We’re not sure about you, but we have a lot of great cookouts and parties posted on our calendar.  If you’re hosting a celebration you know it can fun, but also a lot of work!  We designed this cocktail with the hostess in mind… easy, refreshing and delicious!

Enjoy this month’s bonus cocktail – 

Mystic Summer Cocktails (28 of 38)

Ingredients:

  • 1.5 ounces of vodka (we love Titos or Grey Groose for this cocktail)
  • Fresh strawberries and blueberries
  • Soda water

Directions: Mix together and enjoy (easy, right?!)

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What is your go-to 4th of July cocktail?  We also found these tasty cocktails that certainly look tasty, but are nowhere as easy to mix-up.

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Cheers and happy 4th of July!

Last summer rosé and frosé (frozen rosé) was all the rage and we think it will only become more popular this summer. With new rosés coming out left and right, the options for tasting and creating cocktails is endless. This month we’re sharing a super simple recipe to make your own frosé at home.

Check it out –

MWS Frose (12 of 15)

Mystic Wine Shoppe Frosé Ingredients:

  • Bottle of rosé – we found the darker colored rosé worked well to hold its color
  • Juice of a lemon
  • Handful of rasperries
  • 1/2 cup sugar

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Prep:

  • Freeze your rosé for at least 6 hours – we used ice cube trays
  • Place sugar into a small saucepan and add half a cup of water. Heat and stir constantly until sugar dissolves. Add crushed  raspberries to the sugar/water mixture. Let it all sit for a couple of minutes in the freezer. Strain out the liquid and place to the side.

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Directions:

  • Mix together frozen rosé cubes, handful of ice, raspberry liquid and lemon juice
  • Blend to perfection and serve!

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This would be perfect for all your summer cookouts!  Next month we’re adding strawberries and vodka to take it up a notch!

Thanks for your support – Cheers,

Mystic Wine Shoppe

 

New to Mystic Wine Shoppe is the fancy and oh so drinkable, Pommery POP Rose Champagne 4-Pack. These fun champagne bottles make a lovely Mother’s Day gift as well as the perfect addition to any spring celebration. We love these little Pommery Pop bottles not just because they’re adorable, but they’re also delicious, bright and lively.

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Host a Mother’s Day Brunch with POP!

We think Pommery Pop Rose Champagne would make a killer addition to your Mother’s Day brunch… So, this month’s cocktail is more of a ‘make-your-own’ cocktail bar. Check it out and get some inspiration for your Mother’s Day gifts and celebrations.

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What you need:

  • Setting up a Pommery Pop Champagne Bar is really one of the easiest options you can offer your guests. Not only do you not have to make the drink, but guests can customize their drink the way they want it.
  • We purchased fresh juices (OJ and apple juice) and fresh fruit (strawberries and blackberries) to create a nice display for our guests to choose from. You can use whatever juice or fruit you would like at your bar!
  • Thinking about feeding your guests? We recommend some delicious baked french toast and/or quiche to go with the champagne bar.

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Feeling inspired for Mother’s Day?!  Enjoy your day and don’t forget to stop into Mystic Wine Shoppe to grab all your champagne, rose, beer and liquor needs.

Thanks for reading –

Mystic Wine Shoppe

We have all read the novels where a British matriarch insists on the family dressing formally for dinner and beginning the evening with a round of sherry.  Before I ever tried sherry, I always pictured it as a very sophisticated tipple that only the most refined people can enjoy. Then, in my youth, I was introduced to cream sherry, a sweet syrupy concoction that seemed likely to induce a headache when followed by wine at dinner.

It has only been in recent years that (here in the US), the entire range of sherry, from bone dry to sweet, has emerged from the dusty drawing rooms of the china tea set crowd to shine as an aperitif, but also as a wine that can be paired with food and mixed into cocktails.  It is a very versatile wine that while making one feel quite sophisticated and international, can still be enjoyed just for itself.

There are several types of sherry one can choose. The lightest and driest style is “Fino” from Jerez or sometimes, Xerez in Spain.  On the open, it has a nutty flavor – is it almonds?  pecans? and perhaps a bit of salty creaminess?  Then one gets a better sense of how it is made – in humid cellars with a mild mushroom note.  Then as one continues to contemplate what this is doing to your palate – you get an amazing, yeasty breadlike flavor all over that makes you want to take that next sip and experience it all over again.

Sherry is quintessentially a winemaker’s wine.  It is made from the Palomino Fino grape in the town of Jerez de la Frontera in Spain.  The British, reluctant to pronounce “jerez” simply called it Sherry.  The Palomino grape can withstand drought well – a boon in the arid land of southern Spain – and “produces a reliable crop of slightly low acid, low sugar grapes whose wine may oxidize easily – in short, perfect raw material for sherry.” (JancisRobinson.com)  Because it oxidizes so easily, fino sherry is produced in humid, hot cellars that are an ideal breeding ground for a type of mold called “flor.”  The flor creates a crust over the wine that imparts a wonderful, cheesy flavor while also protecting it from oxygen by creating a largely impermeable barrier over the liquid (if this barrier of flor is intentionally broken to create a more oxidized style, it is called “oloroso;” if it is unintentionally broken and then further aged, it is called “amontillado”).

One of the coolest aspects of making sherry is the way it is aged and blended.  The youngest wines are used to top up the newest barrels of what is known as the solera.  It is system by which the wines can be “fractionally blended,” meaning that some wine is new, some is old and these are blended in parts over the course of several years to create a wine of great consistency and relatively high average age.  The closest analogy is an escalator.  The young wine goes into the barrels on the top level, but only makes up about 50% of that barrel.  After a year or two, 50% of this wine is moved to the next level for further aging while 50% of the second level wine is moved to the third level and so on. Usually, there are about 5 to 8 levels on the escalator and each level has a higher and higher average age.  Some part of the wine in the last level will still be the very original wine you started with – whether that is 30 years or 50 years old.  It is like an extended family tree, with all the character and ructions of each vintage smoothed out to create a unique flavor profile.

Unfortunately, it is wine to be drunk in small quantities or blended into cocktails (see below for two fabulous recipes!).  We have enjoyed sherry as an aperitif with marcona almonds, fried calamari and avocado & shrimp salad.  But anything salty like olives, any seafood such as oysters, clams, mushrooms caps stuffed with crabmeat or mussels in white wine sauce and most anything fried, like corn fritters would pair beautifully with Fino.

Sherry Cocktail Recipes To Try:

The Sherry App:
1 1/2 ounces Aperol
3/4 ounce fino Sherry
1 ounce fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/4 ounce honey simple syrup

Directions: Combine in shaker with ice, shake and strain

The Rye Witch:
1 1/2 cups Kentucky rye whiskey
3 tablespoons Strega (herbal liqueur)
3 tablespoons Fino Sherry
2 tablespoons simple syrup
12 dashes orange bitters
12 orange twists

Directions:

  • Combine first 5 ingredients in a large pitcher. Add ice; stir for 15-20 seconds. Strain the mixture into 6 chilled coupe glasses.
  • Pinch an orange twist over each drink, then rub around rims of glasses to release oils from peel; discard peel.
    Garnish each with a fresh twist.

The angel on the label of this wine says it all – it is heavenly.  In more ways than one.  Not only is it absolutely, mouth-wateringly delicious, it is grown and made close to the clouds.  Alto Adige, Italy or more primly in Austria, Sudtirol, is a land of soaring mountains and lush green valleys divided by the Adige and Isarco rivers.

This is a rugged landscape that includes breathtaking vistas of little fairytale villages and dramatic snowy peaks that reach over 10,000 feet.  How do they grow vines in this amazing terrain that can also be cold and forbidding?  The answer is very carefully!  On small plots of land, lovingly tended by hundreds of farmers.  St. Michael-Eppan is a cooperative of 340 farmers who farm 380 hectares (939 acres) of land.  Large scale grape production would be impossible in this part of the southern Alps that are characterized by sometimes dizzying slopes.  In order to thrive, the vines are planted on south facing slopes to receive maximum sunlight and receive protection from the cold northerly winds howling down through the high mountains.  And because of the rugged terrain, the grapes must be hand-selected and harvested in small batches.

The Lahn Sauvignon Blanc from St. Michael-Eppan is the flagship wine of this wonderful producer.  Established in 1907 with 27 farmers originally, the winery has hewed to the highest standards of winemaking for over a century.  The limestone-gravel soils give the fruit lovely, floral aromas while aging on the lees and in oak barrels gives the wine a wonderful toasty, soft mouthfeel.  The natural character of the wine – apples, lemons, fresh cut hay – is preserved through careful handling resulting in a wine that is reminiscent of a very high quality Sancerre.  At only $16.99, given the amount of work that goes into the harvesting and winemaking, it is a huge bargain.

St. Michael Eppan John Sauvignon

My husband and I opened this wine after a very busy weekend over take out pizza.  To make it a bit more festive, after the pizza (potato & bacon and pepperoni & mushroom), we broke out a wonderful nutty aged Robusto Gouda, a nice, perfectly ripe Camembert and a borough-market Stilton with an arugula, blueberry and pine nut salad.  This wine stood up to all of it, despite being a cool-climate, relatively delicate white wine.  It was tangy enough to balance out the strong flavors of the pizza, yet fragrant and well structured enough to offset the richness of cheeses.  It was the perfect end to a hectic, exhausting weekend!

Prost!

Seema

St. Patties Day isn’t just about chugging Guinness, it’s about enjoying delicious creamy cocktails too.  We wanted to give boring iced coffee a spin and create something unique, drinkable and fun. Behold the Green & Dreamy Iced Coffee Cocktail!  This cocktail is beyond easy to make and boy is it good!

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Ingredients:

  • The Irishman Irish Cream – We love this award-winning Irish Cream Liqueur for this tasty cocktail
  • Milk (just a splash)
  • Coffee ice cubes (prep in advance)
  • Green food coloring

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Directions:

  • Prep coffee ice cubes ahead of time by freezing the coffee of your choice into an ice cube tray
  • Once cubes are frozen place 5-6 into cocktail shaker
  • Pour 4 oz of The Irishman Irish Cream into the shaker
  • Add a splash, or more, of milk
  • Add in 4-5 drops of green food coloring and shake all together
  • Pour into a festive glass cup and enjoy!!!
  • We topped off our drink with a few more drops of food coloring to make it more festive looking.

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This drink was absolutely devine! You can pick-up all your liquer needs at Mystic Wine Shoppe.

We hope you enjoy it this month and remember to drink safely on St. Patties Day!

Thanks for reading!

 

We know that Valentine’s Day can be a tad bit stressful. From not knowing if flowers, candy, or champagne are the right gift to knowing if you should plan for a night-in or a night-out, there are a lot of decisions to make. We can’t help you with all the details, but we can help you find a great bottle of champagne or sparkling wine to cheers your loved one to. Check out our recommendations (below) that will impress any valentine out there.

We also have great gift baskets for sale too!

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  • Gruet Brut Rosé: A beautiful garnet in color, this Rose NV has a delicate, fine mousse and rich, fruit flavors. This full-bodied sparkler starts with floral and berry aromas which introduce flavors of cherry. raspberry and wild strawberry, finishing delicately with zesty acidity.
  • Francis Coppola Sofia Blanc de Blancs: Fruity and refreshing, Sofia Blanc de Blancs is a rare blend of Pinot Blanc, Muscat, and Riesling. Mellow flavors of apples and pears are topped by a hint of citrus and honeysuckle. Elegant in character, this wine is lightly textured and vibrant through the finish.
  • Royal Provence RivaRose: A gorgeous bottle of Provence rosé with a fine and elegant sparkle. The nose offers up a fresh, soft scent of strawberry, raspberry and a little cherry. The mousse is mouth filling and fine. Flavors of red berries and a little spice. Delicious and refreshing.
  • Flama D’Or brut: Fresh and pleasant. Well balanced, good structure and well integrated carbonic elements. Pleasant aftertaste of medium intensity, where the aromas of nose and mouth are repeated harmoniously.
  • Li Veli PRIMEROSE: Bright pink with salmon and raspberry reflex; fruity bouquet, with delicate red fruit and flower notes; in the mouth it is balanced, pleasant and full, with a fresh acidity. Fruity aftertaste.

Looking to make Valentine’s Day extra special with a certain little question? Pick-up an extra special bottle to celebrate with –

  • Cristal Brut: White peach and acacia blossom aromas accent the flavors of poached apple, gingersnap biscuit, pastry cream and spun honey in this harmonious Champagne. The satinlike mousse caresses the palate, while firm, focusing acidity drives the lasting finish. Drink now through 2030.
  • Dom Perignon: Dom Perignon only creates vintage wines; it is an absolute commitment. Only the best grapes of the most exceptional years are used, making each vintage distinct. It is the perfect embodiment of the Power of Creation – an act of creation that elevates the mind and enlightens the world.

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Stop by our Champagne Tasting on Feb. 13th and try a few of these delicious champagnes. Thanks for reading!