This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf Goldschmidt Vineyards, one of the #MerlotMe event sponsors.
Complimentary wine was provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links.
However, all opinions expressed here are my own.
Procedure
*Disclosure: I received compensation for recipe development and generating social media traction. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organizer and sponsors of this event.
However, all opinions expressed here are my own.
When I got a text from one of my best friends to stop by for dinner on our way home from San Francisco this weekend, I texted back 'yes!' and that I would bring wine. She told me to just bring ourselves, but I had this bottle in my bag and we hadn't uncorked it.
I did some reading, when I received the bottle for #MerlotMe, because this was a completely new-to-me vintner. Nick and Yolyn Goldschmidt are based in Healdsburg. Though they are originally from New Zealand, they have traveled, lived, and made wine all around the world. They have designed their labels to showcase single varietals and single vineyards.
Nick's social media profile reads: "All Wines are 100% single variety, 100% single vintage, 100% single vineyard." I have to admit that that singularity is appealing to me. I feel as if I can really taste from where the wine comes when it's not blended at all.
And the Goldschmidts are keeping the business all in the family. They now have three other labels that are named for three of their five children - Chelsea Goldschmidt, Hilary Goldschmidt
and Katherine Goldschmidt. It was a bottle of a Chelsea Goldschmidt that I had tucked away.
And, after I watched a video of the Goldschmidts harvesting their fig tree, I knew it would be perfect with an appetizer that Jenn was making with her home-grown figs.
In the Glass
This Chelsea Merlot is from their Dry Creek Vineyard which is slightly cooler than the Alexander Valley Vineyard. They report that the soil composition encourages the vines to mature fully without exploding into high yields which produces powerful, concentrated grapes.
While this wine is powerful, it's also elegant. It's packed with ripe fruit and balanced with woody notes of pine and herbs and softened with chocolate on the nose. This is a richer, more full-bodied Merlot. And it paired well with Jenn's Chevre Crostini.
On the Plate
Jenn's Chevre Crostini matched the wine in its complexity and elegance. I love simple, flavorful bites! I had to move away from the platter...before I devoured them all.
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| photo courtesy Jenn Gonzalez |
Ingredients
baguette slices
blood orange olive oil
chevre
homemade fig jam (made with Japanese plum liqueur)
crisped sage leaves
blood orange olive oil
chevre
homemade fig jam (made with Japanese plum liqueur)
crisped sage leaves
Rub the baguette slices with olive oil and toast in the oven till desired crispness. Crisp the sage leaves and set aside. To assemble: spread chevre on the toast, top with a dollop of fig jam, and garnish with a sage leaf.
I have not heard of this winery either. Thanks for the info.
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