Wine Sediments

By Lenn Thompson
LENNDEVOURS

After a shipping-related pit stop last week, the 50 in 50 train rolls on this week. Actually, we had to get off the train and hop on a plane to fly to Hawaii to visit Tedeschi Vineyards.

They do grow vinifera grapes at Tedeschi, including chenin blanc, cabernet and syrah. But what fun is that? This is Hawaii, after all.

Even though they couldn’t/wouldn’t ship me wine, Tim of Winecast helped me out and picked up a bottle of their Maui Blanc at a local shop in Minnesota. They can get Hawaiian wine in Minnesota but I can’t here in New York? Gotta love the three-tier system.

You may be asking yourself “What is Maui Blanc? Is it a grape variety native to Hawaii?”

No no silly reader…it’s just the name they use for their 100% pineapple wine. That’s right, wine made with fresh-from-the-field pineapples.

I expect that on this vinological tour of the United States I’ll encounter many a fruit wine, but I bet this is the lone pineapple vino. I’m not a fruit wine snob though, so I welcome all comers.

So how was it? Pretty good, actually.

The nose leaves no question about the fruit of origin — fresh pineapple jumps right up out of the glass. It’s a bit more restrained on the palate, which is soft and just barely off-dry. I expected more sweetness but was pleasantly surprised. The acidity is low, but this Hawaiian girl isn’t flabby in the least.

Perhaps the most interesting thing one could do with this wine is learn from it. As a young wine drinker, I remember saying to myself “how can Mr. Wine Critic say that he smells pineapple in that chardonnay?” This wine, tasted side-by-side with a pineapply chardonnay, would really drive that home.

What to eat with it? I can imagine chilling this one down until it’s icy and sipping it on the beach. But, I had it with some grilled pork tenderloin last night (you know, that whole pork and pineapple thing) and it was really quite good. Maybe serve it with your Easter ham next year!