13 November 2009

2008 Kung Fu Girl Riesling

This wine was a selection by the talented Angela Moon of Kirby Wines and Liquors for one of The Commercial Appeal's online tastings. You can read the transcript of that here, though I wasn't sipping the wine at the time--I just dropped in for a bit.

Three months later, I finally got around to trying the 2008 Kung Fu Girl from the Columbia Valley of Washington state. Pure Riesling, $13, 12.5% abv. Fruity but dry, with a green apple and pear aroma, green apple flavors, and a lemony finish. It is tart and acidic, but not mouth-puckering. It seems to be a popular choice for pairing with sushi, but with my own irreverence and as a nod to Hardy's upcoming challenge, I served this wine with a 3 piece and a biscuit from Popeyes and was thus inspired to compose a haiku:

Greasy fried dark meat
Fills up the autumn belly
Crisp wine invites nap


Check out the website for the full range of Charles Smith wines. They've got a great set of labels with that sort of punk poster/90s indie comic vibe to them. This one is a solid demonstration of the skilled use of negative space. The girl's clothing is only shown by the cuffs and collars, but any of us can easily "see" the rest of her robe. She has no eyes, but I can feel that glare.

4 comments:

Michael Hughes said...

I love this wine. Its from the Evergreen Vineyard which is very near the Columbia River. Beautiful acidity & a pronounced mandarin note.

Benito said...

Michael,

Glad to hear you like it--I thought it was a fun and tasty wine.

Cheers,
Benito

Unknown said...

I just reviewed this wine on my blog (vinegeek.com), as well. We had pretty similar notes. Good stuff. An easy wine to recommend to non-wine nerd friends, I think. Much easier to remember "Kung Fu" than "Domaine Zind Humbrecht"!

Cheers,
Jim

Benito said...

Jim,

Around here the supplies are dwindling though it's an obvious pick for Thanksgiving. Glad you enjoyed it, and I'll be checking out your site.

Cheers,
Benito