The Royal Chenin Blanc

Name: The Royal Chenin Blanc
Variety: Chenin Blanc
Region: Coastal Region
Country: South Africa
Year: 2009
Price: $4.95 (on sale, normally $9.99)

Wine Review:
This wine is so vibrant, it’s aromas pretty much fly out of the glass- tropical fruits like pineapple, ruby red grapefruit, lime zest, guava, gooseberries (what is a gooseberry?  kind of like a fuzzy, tart little grape), and a crisp, tangy finish with notes of green apple and honeysuckle.  Fresh, lean, crisp, breezy and charming!  It hints more towards the French Vouvray style of Chenin Blanc than anything else, meaning that it is not over-the-top with it’s fruit characteristic, instead just offering them up gracefully.  You really can’t go wrong with this wine- it’s an amazing value and a perfect end-of-summer sipper that will go nicely with a porch swing and a sunset.  Or a backyard and the smell of cut grass. -A review from the wine snob wordpress (http://thewinesnob.wordpress.com/2010/09/17/royal-chenin-blanc-2009-south-africa/)

My review:
Smell - When I first smelled this wine, it smelled of tropical flavors. Really heavy grapefruit on the nose. It almost smelled tart, but it was very aromatic.

Taste - At first this wine was incredibly tart. I could also feel the dryness in my mouth. I got a little hint of tropical fruit in the taste.The finish was a little hot for me because I could feel the alcohol. The aftertaste was pretty short, not lasting long.

I tasted this wine with chicken cacciatore. I used it in the actual dish too. I think the flavors of the wine really added to the red peppers and onions in the dish. The red peppers seemed to explode with flavor because of the wine. The chicken cacciatore was served over rice, which did not pair so well with the wine (I've found that rice and wine don't always go very well together in my experiences, I'd like to explore that a little more). Overall, this wine was decent. For the price, it was a steal.