VinoDuo is Lisa & Gary. Engaged in Sonoma. Honeymooned in Napa. Vacationed in
Temecula (CA), Woodinville (WA), and other off the beaten path wine regions. We’ve married our love of wine with our passion for travel, visiting lesser-known wine regions throughout the United
States. We’ve got strong opinions about the pros and cons of each wine region and this is our forum for airing and sharing them.
Random Late Winter Tastings/Part 1/ Puerto Rico
Work and play took VinoDuo on the road in February and March, with week-long stops in Puerto Rico (vacation) and Half Moon Bay, CA (work for Lisa, a bit of both for Gary.) While Puerto Rico is better known for its rum, we managed to find a few wine selections we're happy to recommend (and a few that we hope to never taste again!) California is, of course, wine central. Our stay at The Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay presented an overflow of pricey but excellent tastes.
We'll start with Puerto Rico...
Stop 1 — El Conquistador Resort, Fajardo, PR
This sprawling, 1,000-room resort on Puerto Rico's Atlantic coast is not typical vacation fare for us. We tend to gravitate towards either small hotels or private home rentals. But the price was right and after a difficult few months, we thought a resort where someone is at your beck and call made sense. The resort is spectacularly set, high on a cliff overlooking the ocean, with Vieques and Culebra in the near distance. Our home base at the Marina gave us a birds-eye view of the water and some lovely mini-yachts.
On our first night, we sat on the deck listening to Arturo Sandoval and Frank Morgan on our iPod, warm breezes gently...oh, wait, is Gary wearing a heavy sweatshirt? What's up with that? Poor guy was chilly. Anyway, bundled up, we listened to jazz, munched on Carr's water crackers and Laughing Cow cheese (yup, all the little shop had) and shared a bottle of Norton Malbec 2007. Lisa was grooving on the romantic setting, Gary on the fact that one of the yachts had LED lighting.
We've had the Norton a few times before and considered it an Old Reliable. Lisa deemed this bottle "perfect." Gary, however, said it tasted like soured cherries. Might have been the chill in the air that turned him grumpy.
Later that week we bought a bottle of Santa Julia Torrontes 2006, aka nectar of the gods. A knock-out aroma with hints of fresh peaches and honeysuckle and a juicy, bright flavor. Soft edges, not too sweet, with a clean finish. We drank it like Kool Aid (we weren't driving or operating heavy machinery, so what the heck?) and, at $7 a bottle, it would go in my lunchbox thermos every day. Delightful, uncomplicated...the ultimate deck wine. If you're looking for subtle, this is not your wine. If you're looking for a wine to pair with Szechuan spicy chicken, this IS your wine!. (NOTE: Torrontes is yet another fabulous grape from Argentina...the most planted white in the Mendoza region.)
Stop 2 — El Convento, Old San Juan, PR
San Juan is one of our favorite cities. Great for walking, shopping, eating, and water-gazing, all with a Latin vibe and a largely English-speaking population (at least those who cater to tourists.) Old San Juan boasts all of the city's attributes with the added advantage of knock-out architecture and history. We've spent days just wandering the narrow streets, deciding which pastel color we'll paint our stucco townhouse once we move there. (it's a great place to dream, obviously.)
Our three nighs at the El Convento brought us smack in the middle of the old city, in a spectacularly renovated old convent that now hosts far-from-sacred touristas. We didn't eat at the hotel, but the lovely patio bar Cana beckoned for dessert. The hotel's web site says that Cana is "hip and upscale" and attracts a "sharply dressed crowd." So what were we doing there? Guava cheesecake, baby. An absolute killer dessert. Lisa and Gary split a slice and ordered two distinctly different wines to complement it.
Gary ordered the Joffre + Hijas Grand Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 (Argentina) was inky black with a nose oozing leather, tobacco, and cassis. The taste...powerful. "Blew me away...wow!" was Gary's academic assessment. While the Cab would clearly benefit from a pairing with a great rib-eye steak rather than a sweet dessert, its clarity and balance shone through. Lisa deemed it an "unCab Cab," which for her is a compliment.
Lisa washed down the guava cheesecake with with a La Flor Malbec Rosé 2008 (Argentina.) This pomegranite colored rosé was bright, crisp, and a pleasure to drink. It lacks the earthiness and character of a typical Malbec, but brings robust berry flavors and a touch of peach. Lisa called it "fun in a glass."
Four wines, three raves. Not bad for a week on a rum-drenched island. Next up...Half Moon Bay.
We'll start with Puerto Rico...
Stop 1 — El Conquistador Resort, Fajardo, PR
This sprawling, 1,000-room resort on Puerto Rico's Atlantic coast is not typical vacation fare for us. We tend to gravitate towards either small hotels or private home rentals. But the price was right and after a difficult few months, we thought a resort where someone is at your beck and call made sense. The resort is spectacularly set, high on a cliff overlooking the ocean, with Vieques and Culebra in the near distance. Our home base at the Marina gave us a birds-eye view of the water and some lovely mini-yachts.
On our first night, we sat on the deck listening to Arturo Sandoval and Frank Morgan on our iPod, warm breezes gently...oh, wait, is Gary wearing a heavy sweatshirt? What's up with that? Poor guy was chilly. Anyway, bundled up, we listened to jazz, munched on Carr's water crackers and Laughing Cow cheese (yup, all the little shop had) and shared a bottle of Norton Malbec 2007. Lisa was grooving on the romantic setting, Gary on the fact that one of the yachts had LED lighting.
We've had the Norton a few times before and considered it an Old Reliable. Lisa deemed this bottle "perfect." Gary, however, said it tasted like soured cherries. Might have been the chill in the air that turned him grumpy.
Stop 2 — El Convento, Old San Juan, PR
San Juan is one of our favorite cities. Great for walking, shopping, eating, and water-gazing, all with a Latin vibe and a largely English-speaking population (at least those who cater to tourists.) Old San Juan boasts all of the city's attributes with the added advantage of knock-out architecture and history. We've spent days just wandering the narrow streets, deciding which pastel color we'll paint our stucco townhouse once we move there. (it's a great place to dream, obviously.)
Our three nighs at the El Convento brought us smack in the middle of the old city, in a spectacularly renovated old convent that now hosts far-from-sacred touristas. We didn't eat at the hotel, but the lovely patio bar Cana beckoned for dessert. The hotel's web site says that Cana is "hip and upscale" and attracts a "sharply dressed crowd." So what were we doing there? Guava cheesecake, baby. An absolute killer dessert. Lisa and Gary split a slice and ordered two distinctly different wines to complement it.
Gary ordered the Joffre + Hijas Grand Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 (Argentina) was inky black with a nose oozing leather, tobacco, and cassis. The taste...powerful. "Blew me away...wow!" was Gary's academic assessment. While the Cab would clearly benefit from a pairing with a great rib-eye steak rather than a sweet dessert, its clarity and balance shone through. Lisa deemed it an "unCab Cab," which for her is a compliment.
Lisa washed down the guava cheesecake with with a La Flor Malbec Rosé 2008 (Argentina.) This pomegranite colored rosé was bright, crisp, and a pleasure to drink. It lacks the earthiness and character of a typical Malbec, but brings robust berry flavors and a touch of peach. Lisa called it "fun in a glass."
Four wines, three raves. Not bad for a week on a rum-drenched island. Next up...Half Moon Bay.
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