The Thirsty Owl Vidal Blanc

The most difficult part of pairing wines, is not to pair them with food; but to pair them with the appropriate taster and environment; food comes last. For example, you do not pair the balls forward cab with a petite elderly woman at a black tie gala who has previously downed a serving of foie gras.

Sunday night I had a good friend over to educate me on the sensation called "blond Bond." I had not seen the most recent Bond installment, and apparently I was missing out. Jennifer presented me with the following problem: She has a delicate palette, loves sweet wines, and was in the process of consuming a vat of popcorn smothered in salt. This on top of a Bond movie? I felt I should be breaking out the lambic.

So as we sat down to watch our shoot'em up spectacle, I paired Thirsty Owl's Vidal Blanc with Jennifer. Why? Well let me count the ways: first, a vidal blanc is unassuming. It's flavors are full, but not overpowering, allowing it to hold its own against the salty popcorn as well as maintaining the sweetness Jennifer enjoys. And second, it's casual enough for a movie, and easy to drink.

The Thirsty Owl Wine Company of the Finger Lakes created a delicious example of this grape for $14. On the nose, the characteristic pineapple is accompanied by apricot, honey, and grass scents. The palette exhibits honey to begin, followed by strong peach, citrus, and green apple notes. The finished is wet, with moderate grapefruit. The wine imparts a nice acidity; making this wine not too sweet, not too acidic. Overall, a very enjoyable wine.

Oh, and Bond was very enjoyable too. Probably because of those blue eyes, but what do I know?

The Thirsty Owl Wine Company's Vidal Blanc: 3 out of 5