It’s time for the “greatest wine hits” of the Bar Foundation’s Wine, Beer and Bourbon Tasting, which was back this year after a Covid-induced hiatus in 2020.  If you weren’t there, you missed tasting some fabulous wines, beers, bourbons and cocktails by Train Wreck Distillery, eating delicious food, and the chance to win many fabulous prizes! All proceeds are used for the Children’s Holiday Party (gifts and food will be delivered to the schools this year) for area children in need.

The sparkling wine was from Anima Mundi Winery Cami dels Xops 2020 in Alt Penedès, Catalonia, Spain.  The certified-organic Macabeu and Xarel-lo grapes of this pet-nat are hand-harvested, then wild yeast-fermented in stainless steel tanks and old French oak barrels, and then bottled before primary fermentation has completely finished (with about 20g/L residual sugar) in the méthode ancestral style with no filtering, no sulfur, nor any other additives. Pear, minerality. Pair with: sparkling wine goes with everything, but especially grilled vegetables, seafood and salty snacks. 11% ABV.  $22 from Super BuyRite in West Deptford.

The favorite white wine of the evening was the 2019 Pago del Vicario Blanco de Tempranillo from the Castillo – La Mancha region in Spain. This is a white wine made from free-run juice of Tempranillo (red) grapes and fermented in stainless steel. Aromas of white flowers and citrus notes. Well-balanced, bright acidity.  Pairs well with tapas (jamón, cod, potatoes). 14.2% ABV.  $9 from Super BuyRite in West Deptford, $12 from Wineworks in Marlton. Just a glass or two was left of this at the end of the night.

The orange wine was also a favorite of some. 2020 Dila-O Rkatsiteli-Mtsvane from Kakheti, Georgia. This organic, unfiltered wine made of 50% Rkatsiteli (Ra-ka-see-tell-ee) and 50% Mtsvane (Ma-svah-nay) spends one month in contact with the grape skins (this is what makes the wine “orange” in color), then is fermented in traditional large clay jars (qvevri) buried underground. Tannins are evident, but balanced by bright peach, apricot, orange and baking spice flavors. Pair with: salads, salmon, poultry. 13% ABV.  $15 at Super BuyRite in West Deptford.

The favorite red of the evening was the 2012 Wines of Ilyria Blatina produced by Citluk Winery. Some of you may remember this wine from the virtual wine tasting we had during lock-down. Blatina is a grape indigenous to the Hercegovina region. Blatina is a rare grape that only produces female flowers that only bloom for three days. In order for pollination to occur, it must be planted in the same vineyard with Merlot, Alicante Bouchet, or Trnjak. Not every year has a Blatina harvest, due to this three-day pollination window. Ruby color, with blueberries, plum, and vanilla on the nose; dark plum, blueberry, blackberry on the palate; and a little chocolate on the finish, with soft tannins. Pair with:  pizza, prosciutto and figs, parmesan cheese, anything eggplant.  13% ABV. $14 at Cork’n Bottle in Mt. Holly.  Also found in PA wine stores. You drank me out of this one.

The second most popular red was the 2017 Small Gully Mr. Black’s Little Book Shiraz from the Barossa Valley in South Australia. This is a blend of 61 year-old Shiraz grapes from vineyards in Northern Barossa Valley and vineyards in the Adelaide Plains. The fruit is picked, destemmed, crushed, and left to start fermenting without inoculation. The wine is pressed off gently into a barrel, where it goes through maloactic fermentation. Ripe blackberries, dark plums, and some black pepper on the finish. Pair with:  pasta in meat sauce, steak, lamb. 15% ABV!  $14 from Super BuyRite in West Deptford. You also drank me out of this.

No one guessed the secret wine.  It was a 2019 Poggio Scalette Chianti Classico from Tuscany, Italy, purchased from Wineworks in Marlton.

Thank you again to those who came out to support the Bar Foundation.  If you missed the party this year, please try to make it next year!  We raise a lot of money for the Children’s Holiday Party while having a blast.  Cheers!