Weekly Wine Update No. 3

• Another week has come and gone, and it's time to let you know how we're doing on our #TO100wines challenge! With a hanging head, I ashamedly admit I only contributed two wines this week. I am, dare I say it, a wine challenge slacker. Thankfully, Alex and Kate were dedicated to the cause, keeping us on track. Here's the rundown:

  Wine Enthusiast Magazine Top 100 Wines Under $15

  Alex tried two and, well, pretty much greatly disliked them both, so please save your hard-earned cash and skip these at the wine shop:
  Geyser Peak 2012 Sauvignon Blanc (score of 61)
  Hermann Moser 2012 Per Due Grüner Veltliner (score of 52)

  The non-WE wines were another story. It's crazy how fun and liberating it is to visit a restaurant or wine bar and ask the server or bartender to give you whichever wine they think is best (under $15 of course). It's like Russian roulette, but with wine. Wayyyyy safer and more fun.

  Kate visited Miller's Field in the Dellagio, granted, not usually a huge wine locale, and tried the Five Rivers Pinot Noir, which she enjoyed. Her exact words: "For a sports bar wine, this was surprisingly good."

  At Funky Monkey Wine Company in downtown Orlando, which obviously is a wine locale (duh, Diana), her awesome server, Anoop, suggested the Simple Life Pinot Noir, which was deeeelicious. It's hard to find in stores, but if you visit Funky Monkey on a Monday you can sip this delightful wine while enjoying half-off sushi. Double win!

  At the other end of the spectrum, she also tried the NV La Gioiosa et Amorosa 'Goioso' Moscato, which was "fantastic." She elaborated on to say "It's a sparkling muscato, so it's sweet, but with those delightful bubbles it's not an overwhelming sweetness."

  Like I said, I slacked this week. I visited my Sunday Funday favorite, Dexter's of Thornton Park; however, on this occasion I chose an evening visit. My server suggested the Neil Ellis Left Bank Red Blend from South Africa, and it did not disappoint. It might be a little strong for some, but if you looove red wine, it's pretty much a given you'll like this. I'd rather have a Pinot Noir, but this would do in a pinch.

  A potentially new favorite spot of mine is KASA Tapas and Raw Bar, which just opened, ohhhh, hmmmm, about five minutes ago. We had a delightful TodaysOrlando.com team lunch, where I enjoyed the rather lovely Gascon Malbec, perhaps one of the easiest-to-drink malbecs of all time. When in doubt for a red to drink, you can easily drink this one. Alex joined me in the $15-under wine-sampling festivities and ordered the Snap Dragon Riesling. There's no way to summarize her adorable description, so you're getting it word-for-word: "It tasted smooth, but it only lingered in my mouth for about six seconds. It smelled sweet and floral, but it was extremely subtle. Despite having a subtle smell and taste, I still thoroughly enjoyed it (probably because it was a Riesling). In the end, I'd give it 3.5 out of 5 wine glasses, 7 out of 10 stars ... either works."

  So our grand total is 25 wines sampled, 75 to go, 5.5 weeks to get it done. Eek! Check back next week for update No. 4! Happy wining! #TO100wines