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Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Paul Dolan Mendocino County Zinfandel 2013 (about $14 a bottle)






About the Wine:  I have never had much love for Mendocino wines.  They always struck me as sort of lifeless and unpleasant.  But recently I have found some that have proven me wrong and 2013 is a great vintage.  Let's see if Mr. Dolan can "Wow!" me.

About THIS Wine:  In the glass it is blood red.  Jammy blackberry comes through full throttle on the nose.  The palate is mighty juicy with good tannin in the finish  This wine has a very viscous, mouth-coating quality.  It doesn't linger as long as I would like, which is odd for how massive it is.

Drinking This Wine:  This is an after dinner wine.  It's too big to really compliment any food that I can think of.

Overall Impression:  Between the overbearing fruit and the lacking finish, this is a slightly ham-fisted effort.  As such it is a little over priced.

Monday, October 12, 2015

Parducci Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (about $12)






About the Wine:  This is a sustainably grown California Cabernet.  The world of organic/bio dynamic/sustainable is a weird one.  If a wine is made from organic grapes then the wine itself is not necessarily organic, nor would something sustainably or bio dynamically grown carry such a distinction.  Clouding the matter further is the fact that many producers, particularly in France, Spain, and Israel follow best practices without bothering with the cost of certification.  I have tried to explain this to many a glassy-eyed, sandal wearing customer as they searched for "organic" on the label. The results are seldom good.

About THIS Wine:  For the price, this is surprisingly Old World in style.  It really takes some time to open up.  As it does, it gives off notes of wood, sagebrush, and forest floor.  The palate is dry and tannic with red fruit coming through in the finish.

Drinking This Wine:  This is a classic dry Cab and as such it needs red meat.

Overall Impression:  This was a really nice surprise.  Most Cabs at this price range are either juicy fruit bombs or unbearably rustic.  This is nice, food-friendly wine.  It could easily go for $20, so at twelve it is an absolute steal.

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Gilgal Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 (about $15)






About the Wine:  Like California, Israel had an unusually cold year in 2011.  Also like California, Israel is hot enough to be marginal for wine grape growing, so a cold year is actually a boon for those who know how to take advantage of it.  Grapes grown in cold weather tend to produce more elegant, austere wine.  Hence the prestige of Burgundy.  No region in Israel compares to Burgundy, but this colder year did provide an opportunity for wine makers to show their talents.

About THIS Wine:  It is very dark red with a violet rim, fairly light for a hot climate Cab.  Tobacco and jammy raspberry are prominent on the nose.  The palate presents big fruit balance with firm, chalky tannins.  For all my rambling in the introduction "elegant" is not a term that would describe this wine, but it is fairly balanced.

Drinking This Wine:  It's drinkable by itself, but better with food.  Juicy hamburger is the pairing that comes to mind.

Overall Impression:  I think this would hold it's own with any California Cab at the same price range and so I must say it is good for the price.

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Bagordi Rioja Graciano 2009 (about $20)






About the Wine:  Graciano is one of the least used of the Rioja varietals.  It is especially rare as a single varietal.  The region is mostly know for Tempranillo and to a lesser extent, Garnacha.  Let's see how it does on its own.

About THIS Wine:  It is opaque in the glass with a dark, velvety purple rim.  The nose is musky with strong plum notes.  The palate has good fruit but the tannins are rock solid.  This needs age or food.

Drinking This Wine:  Drink with pork sausage or roast duck.  The wine needs food, for sure.

Overall Impression:  It's a fun find.  As a novelty, this wine is reasonable for the price.

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Spellbound Petite Sirah 2013 (about $14)






About the Wine: The Spellbound label vaulted to popularity when Robert Parker wrote a glowing review of their Chardonnay.  It was an oaky, buttery Chard.  It was good for the style, but I never really got what the hype was about.  I had heard good things about their Cab and seeing their Petite Sirah, long one of my favorite varietals, made me curious.

About THIS Wine:  The wine is opaque in the glass with a purple rim.  This will be no Old World style wine.  I'm expecting a New World fruit bomb.  The fruit is there, long and lingering right through the finish.  There is also some structure, though.  The winemakers seemed to have brought this rambunctious varietal to heel without sacrificing it's signature raspberry flavor.

Drinking This Wine:  I would have it with nothing heavier than a pork steak and even that might be pushing it.  It could compliment something with a bit of spice, may fajitas or something like that.

Overall Impression:  This wine is varietally correct, food friendly, and tasty.  At fourteen a bottle it is good for the price.

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Saporoia Rosso Di Montalcino 2012 (about $15)






About the Wine:  One of the fun things about studying wine is learning about the obscure, tucked away corners of the world where wine grows.  There are regions within regions and all but unknown regions that border some of the most famous.  Montalcino is a region is Tuscany, the same part of the world that gives us Chianti.  Brunello is the best known red from Montalcino, a wine that generally starts at around $40 per bottle and can age upwards of a decade.  Rosso Di Montalcino is sometimes called "Baby Brunello" because it is made from the same varietal, Sangiovese Grosso, but does not need to age nearly as long and is much cheaper.

About THIS Wine:  In the glass it is blood red with a lighter red rim.  Cherry and cedar notes are present on the nose.  The palate is full and savory with a bone dry, tannic finish.

Drinking This Wine:  Let it breath for an hour and then have it with something hearty.

Overall Impression:  This is not a bad bottle, though I would say a little less complex than I would have hoped for.  The wine is reasonable for the price.

Saturday, August 15, 2015

Fowles Are You Game Shiraz 2013 (about $17)






About the Wine:  Everything about this label puts the wine firmly into "I immediately regret this decision," territory when purchasing it.  Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your view, Aussie winemakers tend to give stupid labels to some really good wine.  I suppose if I wanted a classy label I should have bought a Rhone.

About THIS Wine:  Very dark, almost opaque purple in the glass with a violet rim.  The nose is tight.  This could have done with a little more age.  It does give up some nice dark berry fruit and some interesting notes of spice and forest floor.  The palate is big and plush.  It has a drier finish than I would have expected.  I suspect that this wine will drink best young, not just because it isn't meant to age, but also because its tannin structure keeps it from being overly sweet.

Drinking This Wine:  This isn't really a food wine.  More like something to sip on a cold night.

Overall Impression:  The wine is not bad, but it doesn't taste like seventeen dollars.  This wine is fine but it is overpriced.

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Oak Lane Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (about $11)






About The Wine:  South Africa's signature grape is the hybrid Pinotage, commonly known as "Pino what?"  The failure of that varietal to catch on in a big way means that the country might do better to invest in more widely know varietals like Cabernet and Shiraz.

About THIS Wine:  The center is dark and fades to a clear rim.  The nose is big.  There is baker's chocolate, green pepper, and an oily component that is hard to name.  Chocolate and green pepper are strong on the palate.  The tannins are pretty fierce.

Drinking This Wine:  Let it breath and then have it with steak.

Overall Impression:  This is a dry, steak wine.  At this price it would be hard to label as anything other than a good value.

Monday, August 10, 2015

TheARTof Monterey Syrah 2011 (about $15)






About the Wine:  I've seen Monterey as a hidden gem for a while.  2011 was a cold, damp year that produced wines that were more reserved than is common for California.  In a hedonistic grape like Syrah that may very well be a good thing.

About THIS Wine:  The color is about right, meaning dark as night with a purple rim.  The nose presents notes of chamomile, cooking spice, and bacon fat.  I'm not quite sure what to make of that.  The palate has good fruit, but that is overshadowed by the structure.  This may well be most tannic Syrah I have ever tasted.

Drinking This Wine:  This wine definitely needs food.  Steak or a big, juicy burger would work well.

Overall Impression:  It's a good bottle.  I'll say this wine is reasonable for the price.

Saturday, August 8, 2015

Pennywise Petite Sirah 2012 (about $11)






About the Wine:  I am not sure where in California the grapes that make this wine are from.  Based on the labeling, I'd say the winemaker wasn't sure either.  That's okay.  Maybe.  Sometimes winemakers source from many regions for the best quality.  Sometimes they buy in bulk and call it a day.

About THIS Wine:  Very dark in the glass with a purple rim.  It's about the right color for the varietal.  The nose has a smoky quality I would not have expected.  Dark fruit is also present but in a muted, almost Old World way.  The palate is full and fruity and satisfying.  There is a bit of tannin structure, but not enough to require aging or decanting.

Drinking This Wine:  This would be a good BBQ wine.  It's just a tad heavy for a sipping wine.

Overall Impression:  It's an eleven dollar wine and I didn't spit it out.  That makes is good for the price.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Cune Vina Real Crianza 2010 (about $17)



About the Wine:  Cune, or CVNE, is one of the best producers in the Rioja region of Spain.  Their better offerings can get into hundreds of dollars per bottle and the 2004 CVNE Imperial made wine of the year a few years back.  This is one of their entry level offerings.  The Crianza designation means that it does not have to be aged as long as Riservas and Gran Riservas do.

About THIS Wine:  It is opaque in the glass with a purple rim.  The nose is tight, as can be expected of such a young Rioja.  With a little patience notes of grilled, spiced meat come through.  The palate is bone dry with solid tannins.  This will benefit from breathing.

Drinking This Wine:  The traditional dish to have with Rioja is a sausage stew.  As I told my coworker, "This wine is cheap and it wants some sausage.  It's the your mom of wine."  It's hard being this classy.

Overall Impression:  I have always found amazing value in Spain and this is another one.  This wine is a good value.

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Alamos Malbec 2014 (about $9)




About the Wine:  This is one of the less obscure wines I've reviewed.  It's a Catena production. That family is essentially the Rothschilds of Argentinian wine.  It is easier to explain the obscure when you know the common.  Also, the price point speaks to me.

About THIS Wine:  The nose is dense and jammy.  That jammy fruit, especially red fruit, defines the palate.  But there is structure here and a surprisingly long finish.  The wine is neither as sweet nor as alcoholic as I had feared. 

Drinking This Wine:  I'm planning to have it with a roasted turkey leg and I expect it will be a good pairing.  Nothing too heavy, as it is not that big of a wine.

Overall Impression:  I have wines for twice the price that weren't half as good.  This Malbec is a steal.


Sunday, August 2, 2015

(About $12)

About the Wine:  I had never come across Nero Di Troia before and the price was right.  It was brought to Italy by survivors from the Trojan War (Troians) according to a legend that I just made up, literally just now.  If you want to read some actual research about the varietal, you can do that here.  The varietal seems to have a similar story as Sagrantino.  It has always had potential and a local following, but it takes a certain touch to make it at all accessible to the larger market.


About THIS Wine:  The wine is ruby red in the glass with an almost clear pink rim.  I must confess, I am a little disappointed.  I was expecting something black as night to go with the name.  The nose is dark and brooding.  It has some of the elements of a young  Nebbiolo, but has nice cherry notes to soften things up a bit.  The palate is very weighty and tannic but it has a freshness of fruit that balances things out.  While more approachable than something like a Nebbiolo of the same age, this is no fruity Barbera or even light Dolcetto.  It is a big wine.


Drinking This Wine:  Pork steak or a hearty sandwich would make a good paring.  There is something soft and casual about the wine that I would say makes it inappropriate for anything formal but great for a Tuesday night selection.


Overall Impression:  I am a sucker for obscure varietals that are inexpensive and drinkable.  This wine is a good value.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Donnie on the Spot Syrah NV (about $15)

About the Wine:  Syrah and its near relative Shiraz are successfully grown in the South of France, Spain, Italy, California, Australia, Chile, and Israel.  These hot climates bring out the grapes big, bold fruit.  This Syrah is from the Finger Lakes, probably the best growing region in New York and some say between the Atlantic and the Mississippi.  I've never had a cold climate Syrah before and I look forward to the experience.


About THIS Wine:  It's a fairly translucent red in the glass, much lighter than I'm used to for the varietal.  The nose is hearty and has the jammy fruit components a Syrah should, but it is not heady and massive as many of its hot climate counterparts are.  The palate is surprisingly complex and balanced.  It actually has many of the elements I would associate with California Pinot Noir, right down to the sour cherry finish.  This has more body than most, Pinots though.


Drinking This Wine:  It would pair well with a good pot roast.


Overall Impression:  The price is reasonable and I find no fault with the wine.  This one is good for the price.

Monday, July 27, 2015

Three Rings Shiraz 2013 (about $17)







About the Wine:  This is a Shiraz from Barossa, a region of Australia that, in my experience, often produces wines of great depth and concentration.  The best wines from this region have the richness and mineral notes that one might associate with something from the Northern Rhone.


About THIS Wine:  It is opaque in the glass with a dark red rim.  The nose is not overly generous, and I would not expect it to be from such a young red.  Smoke and red fruit notes do come through with time.  A strange and not entirely pleasant green note is strong on the palate.  It is not a flaw per se but it does not reflect the rich fruit experience that I look for in members of the Syrah family.  The fruit does come through on the finish, as does a fair amount of tannin and alcohol.  I didn't check the label before tasting.  This beast hits a 15.4% alcohol.


Drinking This Wine:  It's hard to pair something that alcoholic with food.  It might help clear up a sinus infection, though.


Overall Impression:  This is very bombastic wine with too much alcohol and too little fruit.  It's not a question of price.  It would be hard to recommend it at any price,

Red Silk Shiraz 2013 (about $17 per botte)

About the Wine:  Yesterday, I reviewed a Shiraz from Barossa, Australia and today, for comparison, I am reviewing one from McLaren Vale.  This is one is a relatively light wine at 15% alcohol.  That is insanely high for most traditional winemaking, but in a well made big wine can incorporate high alcohol.


About THIS Wine:  In the glass it is dark to the point of being muddy.  Almost reminiscent of a Ruby Port.  The nose is tight, even after some time in the glass.  It does give up a curious onion note.  There is vegetable quality on the palate but it is not nearly as pronounced as the Barossa that I tasted for the last review.  It may just be a function of the vintage, though in this case I would say that either the region was less affected or the winemaker tamed it better.  The finish is quite tannic.  It's an odd thing to say about a $17 screw cap, but this might benefit from a little more age.


Drinking This Wine:  It'll take a steak with heavy sauce to tame this beast.  Shepherd's pie could also work.


Overall Impression:  This is an example of a massive New World wine done right and as such it is good for the price.

Monday, July 20, 2015

Michel-Schlumberger Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2012 (about $17)


About the Wine:  I first encountered this producer through their very forgettable Chardonnay.  It is always tempting to dismiss a producer when you dislike one of their wines.  That is often a mistake. A producer may change styles radically between varietals so it is often worth a second look.

About THIS Wine:  It is bright red in the glass, much lighter than I am used to from California, but something I might expect from a delicate Burgundy.  The nose presents good earth and black cherry notes.  All that and more is there on the palate.  The wine is not heavy, but it is rich, lingering, and satisfying.

Drinking This Wine:  Roasted port or turkey would make a good companion.

Overall Impression:  This drinks like Red Burgundy without the Burgundy price tag.  As such, it is a good value.

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Cantinia di Casteggio Barbera Oltrepo Pavese 2012 (about $11)


About the Wine:  Oltrepo Pavese is a wine region in Lombardy in the far north of Italy.  I do not believe I had heard of the DOC before I picked up this bottle, so I have no idea what to expect.  Wikipedia informs me that it is in the general vicinity of Franciacorta.  That region makes some of the best sparkling wine in the world outside of Champagne, so perhaps there is reason for optimism.

About THIS Wine:  In the glass it is a clear, ruby red.  The nose is reserved for a Barbera.  Strawberry jam notes do come through with time.  That rich strawberry defines the palate.  There is more tannin structure than I am used to from a Barbera.  It is not tannic per se, just tannic for the varietal.

Drinking This Wine:  This is another good barbecue wine.

Overall Impression:  It's a nice bottle and I would not have been upset if I had paid $15 for it.  It is good for the price.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Wild Oats Shiraz 2012 (about $12)



About the Wine:  The wines have Australia have never really captured my imagination.  That said, the Wine Spectator #2 of the top one hundred last year was a Shiraz from this same vintage.  It was at a very different price point, but it still gives me hope of finding something I've missed.

About THIS Wine:  It is almost opaque in the glass with a clear, dark red rim,  Dark fruit is heavy on the nose.  The palate is full and satisfying.  The tannin structure is solid but not gripping.  There is nice acidity and the finish stays with you.

Drinking This Wine:  This could be a sipper but it really wants to go with grilled meats.  Not a bad BBQ red.

Overall Impression:  I get lucky sometimes.  This is a really nice bottle for this price.  This wine is a good value.

Monday, July 13, 2015

Perdriel Coleccion Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 (about $13)



About the Wine:  Argentina is best known for its Malbecs.  Personal experience has been that Cabs from there are, at best, a hit and miss proposition.  Hopefully this is one of the hits.

About THIS Wine:  This one is blood red in the glass with a crimson rim.  French oak dominates the nose, but hints of fruit peek out.  The palate is bone dry with a solid tannin structure.

Drinking This Wine:  This is a real beast of a wine and it wants some food to go with it.  Steak would be good.

Overall Impression:  This is no South American fruit bomb.  This is a serious Cab.  It's not quite at the level of the greats Cabs of Napa, but it is on its way.  At this price, this wine is a steal.

Monday, July 6, 2015

Caliterra Edicion Limitada A 2012 (about $20)



About the Wine:  This is a blend of Malbec and Carmenere.  Technically that is a Bordeaux blend, though both of those varietals are have fallen out of favor in Bordeaux.  Some people remember relatives' birthdays.  I remember stuff like that.

About THIS Wine:  It is a very dense red in the glass with an almost neon rim.  The nose is big, even for a Chilean red.  There is a lot of fruit and spice jumping out of the glass.  The palate delivers what the nose promises.  This is a beast of wine in the best way.  There is good tannin structure.  The finish is a little short after the big palate.

Drinking This Wine:  This is a steak wine all day.

Overall Impression:  A good, lingering finish would elevate this wine to the next level.  Because it does not have it, I will say that the wine is reasonable for the price.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Cartlidge & Browne North Coast Pinot Noir 2011 (about $14)



About the Wine:  2011 was a cursed vintage for most of the world outside of South America.  Cold weather, hail, and unseasonable rain were the order of the day.  Oddly, the wines of California and Israel from that vintage have followings.  The colder weather meant the wines produced were not as ripe, not as jammy, and not as alcoholic as the wines from those hot climates usually are.  Many of the wines produced are more complex and elegant than their bigger siblings from more successful vintages.

About THIS Wine:  It is a clear, if slightly murky red with a copper rim.  The nose smells like blueberry pie.  Quite a bit of dark fruit is present on the palate, but the finish is a little flat.

Drinking This Wine:  Roasted dark meat would do well here.  I need a little more longevity on the palate for a sipping wine.

Overall Impression:  I can't recommend this for more than about ten dollars.  At fourteen it is overpriced.

Friday, July 3, 2015

Rhiannon 2013 (about $11)



About the Wine: I dimly recalled having tasted it early in my wine career and I have a nostalgia for those days. According to the back label the blend changes every year depending on what the maker feels is the best expression of the vintage.  There is no specific region listed on the label, so it is likely that the producer is using the best grapes they can source in a given vintage.  This year's blend is Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Barbera.  In many ways this represents the contrast between the winemaking style associated with Burgundy and that of California.  The Burgundians are so obsessed with terroir that every spit of land is measured against every other and they really focus on delivering the terroir in every vintage.  California just wants to make good wine every year.  That explanation probably summed up which way I lean.

About THIS Wine:  It is an opaque red in the glass with a narrow violet rim.  The nose is a bright wall of jammy fruit.  The palate is fruity but not over the top.  There is better tannin structure than I expected.  Sweet cherry and raspberry notes linger.

Drinking This Wine:  This is fine for quaffing.  It could be paired with lighter fare, maybe the appetizers before a meal.

Overall Impression:  My coworkers are Burgundy experts and enthusiasts.  I love sharing wines like these with them.  They hate me.  This is no twenty dollar bottle, but it is cheap and enjoyable.  As such, it is good for the price. 

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Some Thoughts on Wine Critics


Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how it's done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves.”- Brendan Behan
Vintners and retailers rely heavily on, but also curse the existence of wine critics.  A ninety or better rating from a well-regarded critic all but guarantees sales.  Though people keep saying his influence is on the wane, Robert Parker remains the go to for many people.  He revolutionized the business of wine criticism by introducing the hundred point scale.  He also changed the nature of wine criticism with his focus on what is in the glass rather than the reputation and history of the producer.
For all of his contributions, Parker has his detractors.  He favors a bold, full bodied style of wine.  His realm is that of hearty Cabernet Sauvignon and oaked Chardonnay.  I don’t know the man, but I suspect that the delicate nuance of a Chablis or a Chambolle Musigny would be lost on him.  At least that is what his rating history would indicate. 

Particularly passionate derision of Parker came a few years ago when Figeac, a house long known for producing Bordeaux in an austere, classic style, hired a wine consultant known for “Parkerizing” the Bordeaux wines he worked on.  The fact that Figeac or any other house that deemed the classic style more appropriate could switch back at any time seemed utterly lost on those who were upset by the development. 
Still, the concern of wine producers pandering to the taste of one critic is a valid one. Parker loves California Cabernet.  I love it, too.  But I don’t want everything to taste like Cali Cab.  Another issue is what the producers do to get their ratings.  Wines are seldom tasted blind for wine rating.  No matter how much a critic claims to focus on what is in the glass, the critic is aware of where the wine is from, who made it, and roughly what it will retail for.  One of the first wines I ever really liked was 90 point rated Merlot from Chile that sold for about $13 a bottle.  There are $100 bottles that have received the same rating from the same critic.  Either I got the deal of a lifetime or there is something funny with the numbers.

Most critics only rate wines that are submitted to them for rating.  (If any producer reading this wants to send me a mixed case of wine for review then by all means let me know.)  A critic who consistently rates a wine poorly will find himself running short of samples rather quickly.  And samples are by no means the extent of it.  It is not at all uncommon for wineries to host critics.  That means that a well-known critic can expect to be routinely sent on all expense paid vacations to wineries all over the world.  Guess what happens to those vacations when a critic fails to deliver a good rating?

Sometimes the influence is less direct.  At my first wine seminar the instructor told us to look at the advertising in wine magazines.  It is a shocking statistical anomaly that, of the many thousands of wineries in existence, the ones that get the best ratings in a given magazine tend to be the ones advertising in the same magazine.
Adding to the confusion in the fact that though most critics use a hundred point scale, there seems to be little agreement on what that actually means.  Many critics seem to rate on a 90-100 point scale.  It’s like they have never met a wine they did not like.  Others, especially critics who focus on Burgundy, give much more conservative ratings.  A 92 from Burghound is high praise while the same rating from Wine Advocate is unremarkable.

If I’m honest, it is hard to blame the critics for behaving the way they do.  If anyone wanted to fund this blog through advertisement and kick in some free wine in the deal it would be a hard offer to say no to.  Honesty is a luxury of obscurity, or of having a day job, depending on perspective.
So are wine critics really useless?

Yes.  Yes they are.  Unless you know how to read their reviews. There are two crucial cheats to making sense of it.  One is actually reading a review and not just looking at the score.  Many critics will include subtle digs at whatever they are reviewing, trusting that whoever has bought them or their editor off will be satisfied with the score and less concerned with the actual content of the review.  This is a good idea anyway.  If a wine is meant to age for thirty years then you would want to know that before you buy it to have with tonight’s dinner. 
It is also helpful to realize that, even for a professional, taste is personal.  Each critic has his or her own preferences and concept of what wine should taste like.   If you are going to follow the ratings then try to find someone whose tastes resemble yours.  There is a reason there so many different kinds of wine and so many critics with conflicting views.  As with finding a good bottle, finding a good critic is all about ignoring the crowd and finding what works for you.  And there is no shame in it if your tastes happen to follow the crowd.  But do keep an eye on who their advertisers are.

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Avalon CAB Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (about $11)



About the Wine:  My stepfather was a mechanic who worked on only one kind of car, and it was a kind that had not been made in years.  His philosophy was simple: no surprises.  He knew exactly what to expect from every vehicle he dealt with.  Avalon follows a similar philosophy.  They make only Cabernet Sauvignon.  CAB is their entry level offering.  Having seen many other producers try and fail to branch out, and also having seen the success of places like Burgundy and Barolo that limit their offerings, I have to say that this philosophy has its merits.

About THIS Wine:  In the glass it is ruby red.  It is lighter and clearer than I would expect from a California Cab.  The nose is very tight at first, which is actually a good sign for such a young Cabernet.  After some swirling, notes of oak and mushroom come through on the nose and contrast with a bright streak of cherry.  The palate is reserved, I would say elegant for a wine at this price.  It has a good but not bracing tannin structure and red licorice quality throughout.

Drinking This Wine:  It is subtle enough to be a sipping wine, which is unusual for a cab.  It would do well with spicy Italian sausage or a pork steak.

Overall Impression:  I'm impressed.  I was expending a budget fruit bomb and got something completely out its league in terms of it price.  This wine is a steal.


Friday, June 26, 2015

Tomaiolo Toscana 2010 (about $12)




About the Wine:  Tomaiolo is a fairly well known brand among those who cannot afford to drink things that aren't Tomaiolo.  I don't have anything against the brand, I have just never found their wines all that inspiring.  The lack of any geographical distinction more specific than Tuscany is not encouraging, but I've been pleasantly surprised before.

About THIS Wine:  The blend is mostly Sangiovese and it is a little darker than a Sangiovese should be, but it is a blend.  The nose is pretty subtle.  There is some red fruit and smoke there but nothing exactly leaps out.  The palate and finish are both very dry with stewed fruit, especially prune, dominant.

Drinking This Wine:  Spaghetti and red sauce or a something like a pork steak or maybe barbecue ribs would do well.  It definitely wants some food.

Overall Impression:  I was not blown away and I was not expecting to be.  The wine is essentially varietally correct and it is pleasant enough.  It is reasonable for the price.

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Baronie Coraldo Terre Siciliane 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon (about $12)






About the Wine:  The Mediterranean has become a new "it" place for value wine.  Greece and Sicily both have interesting native varietals.  They, along with Israel, have the kind of coastal influenced hot climate that has allowed California to produce accessible versions of international varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. 

About THIS Wine:  Stony and vegetable notes present on the nose.  The palate is dense, almost chewy with some heavy medicinal notes toward the finish.  The finish is very dry and tannic, which is not surprising for such a young Cab.  The label informs me that this was grown in the Southwest of Sicily.  I don't know that much about the climate there but I do know this shows some remarkable similarities to Cab from the Negev Desert in Israel.

Drinking This Wine:  If you're a vegetarian, then you will never find a paring for this wine.  Vegetarians are what drinkers of this wine eat.  It needs a big cut of juicy red meat. 

Overall Impression:  This is an interesting wine and it is damn good.  At this price it is an absolute steal.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Angeline Pinot Noir 2013 (about $12)



About the Wine:  I bought this without knowing much about the wine.   A customer had asked for it, so when I saw it at another wine shop I grabbed it.  The price point spoke to me as much as professional curiosity did.

About THIS Wine:  It presents a really lovely garnet color in the glass.  Dark fruit is abundant but not overbearing on the nose.  The palate is plush and satisfying but not heavy.  A note of blackberry jam lingers in the finish.

Drinking This Wine:  This is a good summer sipping wine.  It would also do well with roasted pork or turkey.  It's a little too big for chicken or fish.

Overall Impression:  This wine is a really nice find and I do recommend it.  At this price it is a good value.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Oak Ridge Vineyard OZV Old Zinfandel Vines 2012 (About $14)


About the Wine:  I reviewed the 2009 vintage of this a few years ago.  That was a difficult vintage in California but I liked the wine.  2012 is a critically acclaimed vintage but one that has never been a personal favorite.  California reds from that year have an extracted, cola quality that is not all that pleasant to someone looking for something that tastes like wine and not soda.

About THIS Wine:  The dreaded cola notes are definitely there on the nose.  But so is a fair amount of dark fruit.  The palate has a blend of cola and mocha qualities that linger in a decent finish.  It's a little sweeter than I would like for it be.  It is not unpleasant, but it does taste like an impending hangover.  The cola quality does recede a bit when the wine breaths.

Drinking This Wine:  You could serve this lightly chilled or even make a sangria out of it.  It's hard to really see it as a dinner wine.

Overall Impression:  As much I would love to love this wine, the winemaker just did not overcome the less desirable qualities of the vintage.  This wine should not top ten dollars and is therefore overpriced.

Saturday, June 13, 2015

Ninety Plus (90+) Old Vine Malbec Lot 23 2014 (bout $12)



About the Wine:  90+ is a concept brand that is essentially rebottlings of wines that have gotten ninety or better ratings.  They do not specify what vineyard the wine is from, nor who rated it.  It makes it an iffy proposition because there is no consistent style or wine making philosophy.  That said, if you're looking for a value then there are definitely worse ways to do it.  Wine prices tend to increase with their ratings.  I had forgotten it, but I actually rated their 2010 Malbec a few years ago here.

About THIS Wine:  It is nearly opaque in the glass with a dark purple rim.  Black fruit and spice are prominent on the nose.  It does not have the weight of a Syrah, but it has many of the same notes.  The palate is heavy with a firm, tannic finishing.  Malbec is not generally an aging grape, especially at this price, but this could do with a few more years.

Drinking This Wine:  After a little air it will make a good pairing with a lighter red meat dish.  Some kind of grilled beef without any heavy sauce would work.

Overall Impression:  Per the brand's promise, the wine delivers well above its price point.  This is a good value.

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Carmel Road Monterey Pinot Noir 2013 (about $20)

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About the Wine:  Monterey is not known for its wine, which is a bit of a shame.  The coastal climate tends to negate the heat of California and the wines are generally affordable.  I was actually surprised to see a Monterey wine at this price.  Maybe the secret is out.  If so, I would like to go on record that I liked Monterey before it was cool.

About THIS Wine:  It is ruby red and fairly clear in the glass.  The nose presents an earthy quality similar to the Pinots of Sonoma.  Fruit is present on the palate, but is tempered by the earthy character of the wine.  It has a nice, dry finish.  The elements are all there and they are all in balance.  It's a classy bottle.

Drinking This Wine:  I selected pork steak as a pairing because that's what I happen to have in my fridge tonight.  That is a happy accident.  The wine is a little too big for turkey, chicken, or fish, which are my other go to Pinot parings.  It is definitely a food wine.

Overall Impression:  I rarely say this about a bottle twenty or higher, but at $20 a bottle this a really good value.

Sunday, June 7, 2015

Peirano Estate Petite Sirah 2012 (About $16)



About the Wine:  2012 was a great vintage in California and I have always loved the Petite Sirahs of Lodi so it is hard to imagine that this will be a miss.  I do not really know the producer, so I did extensive research that consisted of reading the back of the bottle.  According to that, this winery is in its sixth generation within the same family and has been in business since 1895.  Perhaps this is another of Lodi's many hidden gems.

About THIS Wine:  It is dark as night in the glass with a dark purple rim.  Raisin and fig notes are prominent on the nose.  The palate is surprisingly reticent.  That is an unusual characteristic for the appellation.  After a few minutes, and no small amount of impatient swirling, the wine reveals a luxurious dark fruit palate with a fairly dry finish.

Drinking This Wine:  Normally, I consider Petite Sirah a quaffing wine but this one has some tannin and body that make it a promising paring with roasted ham or chicken.

Overall Impression:  I have always been a sucker for Lodi and this wine is no exception.  That said, it does present some surprisingly Old World characteristics that only raise my estimation of it.  And that is why I think it is an absolute steal for this price.

Monday, June 1, 2015

In Pursuit of Average


I recently had the pleasure of attending a Champagne dinner hosted by Veuve Clicquot.  That house is one of the oldest in Champagne.  Madame Clicquot was one of the early innovators credited with developing and marketing Champagne before the region rose to its current prominence.  Her influence was so great that the company still labels their best vintage cuvee after her nickname, “La Grande Dame.”  Their Yellow Label Champagne is probably the most popular Champagne in the U.S. and maybe the world.  Lovers of small productions, known as “Grower Champagnes” lament what they perceive as a decline in quality of the Veuve in favor of mass production as well as the way the large brands can push the smaller productions out of the market.

The fascination runs both ways.  The representative from Veuve was interested in the appeal of the smaller productions.  And they do have a distinct appeal.  Each small producer offers up their own style based on the grapes available, personal taste of the producer, and the limitations they face in terms of staffing and equipment.  The distinction extends beyond Champagne and into the wider wine world.  A vineyard can produce only so much wine.  After that a producer can choose to start making more labels, one for each source that the grapes came from.  That is what everyone complains about in regard to the producers of Burgundy.  Another option is to sort of pile all of the sourced grapes together into one bottling.  That is what everyone complains about in regard to California.  Just kidding.  There is a lot more to complain about in regard to both of those places.

It is a genuine quandary for a producer.  Single vineyard bottlings invariably leave one bottling in the group lot that just will not sell (there’s always one, just one if you’re lucky) and also puts the producer at risk of creating products that compete with each other.  The more generalized route makes it nearly impossible to produce a truly distinctive product.

Veuve Clicquot has taken an interesting approach.  Their outfit is perfectionist, but it is perfectionism in pursuit of consistency over time.   Instead of making the best non-vintage Brut in every batch they strive to make every batch taste like the one before and after.  They sacrifice the peaks to avoid the valleys.  The approach has clearly paid off for them.  I am personally a fan of Piper Heidsieck NV (which to be clear, is a mass market product in and of itself) but I have liked it substantially better in some cuvees than others.  The one I tasted most recently was very good and I am optimistic for future cuvees, but there is no way to really know until they are tasted.  Krug is either the best or the worst for this, depending on your view.  Their NV Bruts are awesome, but no two are the same and they don't really try to make them so.  

Yellow Label is Yellow Label, always.  That may not make it valuable to a Champagne enthusiast but it does make it a beverage of choice for corporate gifts, business dinners, and people who want to grab their bottle and go rather than having a half hour conversation with a store clerk about which Champagne to buy.  It may not be everyone’s favorite, but it is the one that everyone can agree on.  It also bears mentioning that while many people have no idea what Burgundy or Bordeaux are, everyone seems to know Champagne.  That notoriety owes something to a uniform approach and Yellow Label is the embodiment of that.

If any purveyor of Grower Champagne wants to send me a few bottles to rate against the Yellow Label, please let me know.  Tasting Champagne is an onerous burden, but one I will assume for the greater good.

Ixsir Altitudes 2010 (About $16)



About the Wine: Lebanon has never gained much of a reputation as wine country.  The tiny nation's troubled history has made development difficult and it's one noted house, Chateau Musar, is so wildly inconsistent in style that it has struggled to develop a following.

About THIS Wine:  The wine is 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Caladoc, a varietal I have never heard of, 22% Syrah, an 17% Tempranillo.  The wine is very dark, almost black in the glass with a dark purple rim.  Wood, smoke, and dark fruit present on a very dense nose.  This is one of the driest wines I have ever tasted.  It is not bracingly tannic nor is it all that heavy.  It is just remarkably dry.  Upon doing a little reading, I discovered that Caladoc is a Malbec/Grenache hybrid that is noted for how dry it is.

Drinking This Wine:  It is definitely a food wine.  It's not big enough for steak but a hearty stew or even something like jambalaya could work if it's not too spicy.

Overall Impression:  It is a good, if esoteric wine.  Bordeaux in the same style go for a lot more, so I will say that this is good for the price.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Le Carignan de Maris 2012 (about $12)




About the Wine: Carignan is a relatively obscure varietal that does well in the Rhone region of France and also in Israel.  This wine is from the Cotes du Peyriac, a very obscure region in the far south of France.  Some of the best values in French wine come from the hinterlands of the south, so I am optimistic.

About THIS Wine:  Very dark in the glass, just about opaque.  There is a lot of dark fruit on the nose, especially blackberry.  The palate is full and chewy.  It is very hearty but not especially alcoholic.  The finish does not go on as long I would like.

Drinking This Wine:  Steak or a hearty stew would make a good companion.  This is a big wine and it needs big food.

Overall Impression:  For twelve bucks, it's hard to beat.  This wine is good for the price.

Friday, May 29, 2015

Le Redini 2010 (About $20)

About the Wine:  A fun fact about Italian wine is that there are something like 4,000 varietals actively cultivated there.  That means that is a practically infinite number of blends and combinations possible with native grapes, not even including whatever varietals are imported.  This wine is 90% Merlot and 10% Alicante.  It is an international wine with a regional accent.

About THIS Wine:  The bottles was actually substantially better the second night I had it open and tasted like it could have gone a little longer.  In the glass it is dark purple with a violet rim.  The nose is very smoky with a curious undercurrent of red fruit.  The palate is soft but not too soft with firm tannin in the finish.

Drinking This Wine:  This is not quite a steak wine but it definitely wants food.  I'm going to say pasta with meat sauce because it's hard to go wrong with that with an Italian red.

Overall Impression:  Wines of this style normally go for a lot more, at least $30.  So this is a good value.

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Some Thoughts On Zinfandel

Zinfandel is famous or infamous as the pink summer wine enjoyed by people who are not aficionados.  Thinking about it brings me back to my early days in wine, when an elderly, scraggly man walked into the shop where I worked and the following exchange occurred.
"Do you all have that White Zinfandel?"
"Yep.  Right here.  The big bottle is $10.99."
"Oh, good.  She can't get in the bed without it."
I am not really sure what he was babbling about, but I suspect it's horrible.  Despite its reputation as pink swill, Zinfandel is a red grape.  Most red wines get their color from contact with the grape skins, the maceration process.  Shorter contact makes lighter wine.  The Provence region of Southern France is known for making excellent dry rosé wines.  California Zinfandel is known for making rosé wines that are less dry and substantially less excellent.
Zinfandel has historically been something of a mystery.  The grapes tend to be higher in sugar than other red varietals and for a long time, no one really knew where it had originated, only that it was successful in California.  Genetic testing eventually proved that Zinfandel is a descendant of Primitivo, an Italian Red varietal known to produce semi sweet red wine.
Red Zinfandel wine has been a thing for as long as there has been Zinfandel but it never gained the popularity of the pink version.  What this says about the majority of consumers' tastes is almost depressing enough to make me drink White Zinfandel.
Seriously, those of us in the business find the product cringe worthy to a degree that is difficult to express here.
Red Zin has been a good introductory wine for those who are not ready to jump right into something like a big, dry Bordeaux Blend and who find Pinot Noir too weak.  The fact that the highest end Zinfadels don't usually top $100 and that they start at about $10 also helps its accessibility.
Yeast typically starts to die at the point in fermentation when the wine reaches 14% alcohol.  This has traditionally posed a problem for producers in hot climates trying to make dry wine.  One option was to harvest a little early.  The grapes would then have less sugar, thus make a drier wine.  Production from under ripe grapes can result in wine with green, unpleasant notes that don't go away and actually can get worse with bottle age.
Another solution has come with yeasts bred to survive in higher alcohol environments.  Now, still wine with alcohol contents upwards of 16% are not that uncommon.  Traditionalist tend to prefer more elegant wines with alcohol in the 12-13% range.  Upon seeing a 17% alcohol monster those drinkers are likely to quote Dr. Malcolm from Jurassic Park, " . . . but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn't stop to think if they should."
The new yeasts have allowed the creation of wine that is nearly as high in alcohol as some Ports and Sherries.  It is a big, rich style of Zinfandel for those who favor the style of wine that Parker used to describe as "Massive in the mouth," until he noticed everyone giggling at him for saying that.
In my own wine journey, Red Zinfandels have gone from entry point to guilty pleasure.  A wine snob is not supposed to like this style but sometimes the occasion calls for something huge, hearty and easy to drink.  A good Red Zin does not need decanting, does not need to be paired any particular meal (the wine is the meal), and is just generally not that cerebral of an experience.  It is a wine that is meant to be drunk rather tasted, enjoyed rather than analyzed.  In an odd way, it is the highest expression of New World wine.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Simplified Guide to Buying Wine

There are a few things most people don't seem to know about buying wine.  Allow me to enlighten you:
First and foremost, storage matters.  The ideal temperature to cellar wine is somewhere in the range of fifty to sixty degrees F.  That means that if you walk into a wine shop and it is eighty-five degrees in the store, any wine that has been on the shelf for more than a few weeks is likely to be totally F'd.  I honestly think that the reason a lot of people don't like wine is because they have had only wine that was improperly stored.  If wine has a natural cork, it is best to have it laying down to keep the cork moist.  That is not a concern for screw caps, glass corks, or synthetic corks.    It also takes some time for the cork to dry out, so it is not as immediate of a concern as the temperature.  A dried out cork allows air in faster, causing the wine to turn.  Finally, a lot of shops have bright fluorescent lights.  Ever notice that most wine bottles are tinted?  That's not entirely for looks.  Exposure to light ruins wine over time.  Wine cellars are in basements because they are naturally dark and cold.  I would not wish it on anyone to work in an environment like that all day, especially at retail wages, but it is amazing how many wine shops seem to go out of their way to ruin their product.
If you have to shop in a warm, bright store then the best workaround that I know of is to just ask what sells best.  Assuming the clerk doesn't lie to you, (which in some cases is optimistic, but there are definitely honest wine salesmen in the world) then you will get a wine that has not been sitting as long as the others.
There are too many styles and varietals of wine to get into here, but you can make some generalizations.  Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel are heavier, higher in alcohol, and usually sweeter than Pinot Noir, Tempranillo, or Sangiovese.  Chardonnay from California tends to be full bodied and buttery.  Sauvignon Blanc presents a lot of citrus.  Not all Rieslings are sweet, but the best sellers in this country typically are.  Wines from the Old World (read: Europe) are almost always lighter and more elegant than wines made from the same varietals in the New World.  If a wine merchant describes a wine from California as "Old World Style" or something like that then they are trying to express that, while the wine is from Cali, it was made in a way that was meant to retain some elegance. In this sense , elegant does not necessarily mean better.  A lot of people prefer massive New World style wines and that is fine.  The New World style is often better for drinking without food because the wine is so flavorful and filling.
If you buy something from the Old World the label with often give information about the wine.  But the information is conveyed in a way that you have to be in the know to understand.  Red Burgundy is usually 100% Pinot Noir and White Burgundy is usually 100% Chardonnay.  Rioja is typically a blend that can include Tempranillo and Garnacha, among other things.  If you don't know, ask the salesman.  If they don't know, and they depressingly frequently don't, then Google it.
Most wines have a statement of what year the wine was made.  Old World reds and some whites are meant for aging.  The New World does produce some age worthy wine, but they often drink well younger.  The West Coast of the United States is known for having consistent weather, but there are still some off years.  Most of the information you would need about vintages for a given region is no more than a Google search away.
Finally, wine labels contain alcohol percentages.  A wine that is 14% alcohol may get you lit slightly faster than one that is 12% but that is not the primary function of the label.  Pro tip: if you want to get lit, drink Vodka or Rum.  It's cheaper and it gets the job done faster.  Wines that are higher in alcohol tend to be heartier and more full bodied.  It is that New World style I was mentioning a moment ago.  14% or higher is a big wine.  Some wines at that range actually burn a little bit going down.  Most wine aficionados see that as a flaw, but many drinkers like it.  After all, if you don't want to taste alcohol why not just drink grape juice?  High alcohol wines that are made well often do not taste particularly alcoholic.  It's a matter of the skill and style of the wine maker.  With sweet wine the alcohol is often an indicator of how sweet the wine is.  Yeast converts alcohol to sugar.  So a Riesling at 14% alcohol is likely to be bone dry where one at 9% will be very sweet.
At the end of the day it is about exploration.  You have to try many different wines, preferably not all at one sitting, to get a sense of what suits your palate.  Finding a wine merchant you trust is immeasurably helpful, though it does sometimes mean spending a little extra to find that perfect, and perfectly kept bottle. And no matter what critics, merchants, or your annoying friend who went to Napa say, it is all about finding the wine that you love. Bon Chance!

Sunday, May 24, 2015

La Lecciaia Toscana Merlot 2009 (about $16)

About the Wine:  It has been decades now since certain wine entrepreneurs, there are debates about which family, looked at the ill-used land of the subregion of Tuscany known as Bolgheri and decided to plant Bordeaux varietals there.  Tuscany was best known for its Chianti, a Sangiovese based blend, and to a much lesser extent for Brunello di Montalcino, a wine made from 100% Sangiovese Grosso.  The soil of Bolgheri was not suited for Sangiovese but the Bordeaux varietals, primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, did thrive there and produced great wine, known as the Super Tuscans because they fell into no other other existing designation.  Many producers have sought to follow suit with Bordeaux varietals in other parts Tuscany.  The results have been mixed.

About THIS Wine:  It definitely smells like Merlot.  The ripeness of the vintage comes through in really plush notes on the nose.  It tastes like Merlot, too.  The front palate offers nice fruit, then closes in dry, soft tannin.  The finish lingers, but not in profound or inspiring way.

Drinking This Wine:  This is definitely a food wine.  Grilled meat, spaghetti and meat sauce, something hearty is the best choice for a paring.

Overall Impression:  The wine is not bad, but I find myself a little underwhelmed.  I would say that this wine is a bit overpriced.

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Penalolen Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 (About $16)

About the Wine:  This wine hails from the Maipo Valley in Central Chile.  I have always found the wines from there to be fruit forward, accessible, and just sort of delicious.  We'll see if this guy measures up.

About THIS Wine:  Currants, tobacco, and cedar are all present on the nose.  The palate has a playful quality.  It gives up a good amount of fruit but not enough to be a fruit bomb.  It has some wood notes and firm tannin, but it is not over oaky nor bracingly tannic.  The 14% alcohol does show in the finish, but not in the "burns going down" way.

Drinking This Wine:  Could be a sipping wine, but really wants some food.  Preferably food that had hooves.  This is really a steak wine.

Overall Impression: I have a lot worse and paid a lot more.  This is a good value for the price.

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Thoughts On En Primeur 2014

Today we're changing things up.  Instead of writing about inexpensive wine, I'll be writing about the finest of the fine wines, Bordeaux.  For those who don't know, Bordeaux is one of the most prestigious, perhaps the most prestigious wine growing region in the world.  It's so valuable that some people trade it as a commodity.  The acronym SWAG: silver, wine, art, and gold is used to describe the leading alternative investments.  Essentially what rich people do with their money other than invest in real estate, stocks, and congressmen. 
The En Primeur system is one where merchants and wine critics taste wine that has not even been bottled yet.  The critics give their impressions of the wine and merchants try to sell it.  The sales is part of the futures market.  Customers buy wine that has not arrived yet to secure their allocations, as some things sell out before they ever reach American shores.  Buying early has traditionally been a way to get the best price on the product.  It's good for the merchants because it reduces the risk involved in bringing in large allotments of said product.  The merits of any system that involve judging a wine meant to age for decades before it is even bottled are certainly worth a healthy dose of skepticism.  In fairness, critics do routinely retaste and rerate the wines later on.  Though I do not recall any critic coming out and saying, "I was wrong about that wine I rated 95.  It is absolute plonk."  A critic who did so who likely not be invited back, thereby missing his annual French vacation.
There is a running joke that in Bordeaux they have the vintage of the century every five years.  Part of the mystique of Bordeaux, Burgundy, really anywhere in France that makes great wines is that the weather there is very unpredictable from year to year.  The Bordelaise can go for years at a time without cooperative weather and that hurts the potential of their wine in off years.  When they do have a great vintage, which works out to be about every five years more or less, they and the fans of their wine are jubilant.  And they should be.  A mediocre vintage in Bordeaux makes better wine than most of the world can make in the best of years.  A great Bordeaux vintage makes wine that is transcendent.  Wine from the best vintages can age and improve for decades.  My first really old bottle was a 1970 Mouton Rothschild.  It was one of the best things I have ever tasted, even though it was a few years past its primed.
2009 and 2010 saw a rare occurrence of back to back "vintages of the century."  2009 was a hot year that lent itself to a fruit forward style of wine.  The wines are great but many traditionalists complain that the vintage is in a style more like that of the New World.  That make it very accessible for those who are not necessarily aficionados.  2010 was a much more classic year.  The two vintages showed everything Bordeaux has to offer.  It blew the doors off Bordeaux in terms of demand and pricing.
The Chinese market had already started to show interest in wine as an investment opportunity.  That interest exploded, as did the prices of Bordeaux wine.  Prices spiked to insane levels.  Investors all over the world wanted a piece of the action. 
Bordeaux's winning streak ended in 2011, a year that brought terrible weather and wines of a much lower quality than the previous two vintages.  It did not bring lower prices.  This happened again in 2012 and again in 2013.  The Bordelaise simply refused to price their products according to quality.  The market did not immediately abandon them, though many collectors and merchants did grumble about unfair pricing.  While all of that was going on, some less than scrupulous individuals began to notice that it is not all that hard to make a wine label.  Forgery is a problem in any collectible market and fine wine is no exception.  The highly publicized case of Rudy Kurniawan showed that the problem was worse than most had guessed.  The man produced so many forgeries by so many different methods (sometimes refilling valuable bottles of wine with cheaper wine, sometimes buying older, less expensive wine from the same region and vintage as more valuable wine and forging new labels) that it was actually kind of impressive.  His operation produced an indeterminate number of very good fakes.  It believed that he had accomplices because, and this cannot be stated enough, the sheer volume of fine wine he forged seems to be beyond the capacity.
Going forward, many wineries are now employing methods to make fraud more difficult and any auction house worth dealing with has enacted stronger fraud detection measures.  That is a whole study in and of itself.  Unfortunately, many collectors had already been duped.  The realization that their fine wine cellars were, potentially, filled with worthless fakes turned many an investor off to the fine wine market.
Around this time, the Chinese government started to crack down on corruption.  French wine was seen as part of the culture of corruption there and fell out of fashion
This odd constellation of factors meant that the wine markets essentially collapsed.  A case of 2009 Lafite Rothschild sold for $18000 in 2013 could be had for as little as $12000 earlier this year.  Some retailers began to dump inventory, selling high end wine well below cost rather than wait for buyers to cough up yesteryear's premiums.  Prices seemed to be in free fall.
It did not help that the Bordeaux craze had changed the way people collect wine.  It was no longer a long term investment.  It had become something people expected to flip in a few years.  When the craze died down, those buyers were left with a lot of product that was not hard to get and that would not rapidly increase in value.  The fact that very few people were actually drinking the stuff did not help anything either.  If there is the same amount of something in the world this year as there was last then the value probably will not increase.
2014 brought hope.  It was a good, though not great year in Bordeaux that had the promise to produce affordable wine that would not need to be cellared indefinitely to be drinkable.  The pressure to moderate pricing was strong.  The Western market wouldn't stand for inflated prices anymore and the Chinese were no longer buying like they used to.
Robert Parker, the world's most influential wine critic, announced well ahead of time that he would not be attending En Primeur.  It is difficult to explain the scope of Parker's influence in Bordeaux.  As an up and coming wine critic decades ago, Parker instituted a 100 point rating scale for wine and that scale has become the industry standard.  He emphatically declared that he cared only about what is in the glass, not the prestige or history of the producer.  This was a huge blow to a number of wineries that had been essentially coasting on their prestige.  He also likes big, bold, fruit forward wines of the California style.  Many traditionalists have complained about the Parkerization of Bordeaux as wine makers scramble to adjust their style to meet Parker's tastes.  Parker appointed the wine critic Neil Martin to go to En Primeur in his place.  I don't have any strong opinion about Martin, and that's the problem.  I am sure Martin is a competent wine critic but he does not have the legendary status of Parker.  I don't know that Parker's absence hurt En Primeur, but it surely did not help.
The wines were released with more reasonable pricing than in the past and there were some real success stories.  It is a great time to buy Bordeaux.  Wine from houses like Beychevelle, Smith Haut Lafite, and even Cos d'Estournel can be had at the best prices we have seen in years.  But the thrill is gone.  Lafit Rothschild, one of the most sought after wines, has released only tiny allocations.  It is, I suppose a good marketing tool, creating a lot of scarcity for their brand.  But it has had a cooling effect on Bordeaux as a whole.  Some of the other great houses, namely Cheval Blanc, Petrus, and Le Pin have yet to release, but the allocations are likely to be small and prices high.
Had the the top Chateaux released a little more quickly and a little more cheaply there might have been some real enthusiasm and urgency.  But they didn't.  The slow allocations, the lack of celebrity, and the ambitious pricing of certain houses has left the En Primeur campaign stuck.  The vintage that should have heralded Bordeaux's grand return has largely been greeted with disppointed head shakes and shrugs from potential buyers.
This is, of course, not the end. Bordeaux has been through tough times before.  A string of bad vintages in the 1970s left the region on the ropes and it did recover.  The Bordelaise are a stubborn lot, but they have staying power that few can match and I have no doubt that, between their unparalleled expertise, excellent terroir, and that sheer cussedness peculiar to the French, they will find their way back.  When they do, I will be glad that I put away some 2014s for long-term aging.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Hussonet Cabernet Sauvignon Gran Reserva 2010 (about $15)

About the Wine: Old World wine loyalists are often quick to point out that in places like Italy and Spain a wine can only be labeled as Riserva or Reserva if it meets strict requirements of whatever region it is produced in.  South American wineries have an unfortunate reputation for being willing to slap the Reserva label on anything.  What makes it more confusing is that some South American producers of $15 Reservas actually do have $10 wines that don't carry the label.  As with everything else, it comes down to what's in the glass.

About THIS Wine:  Green pepper is entirely dominant on the nose.  The prominence of the pepper on the nose made me fear some severe flaw, but the palate is fine.  It is tight, almost austere with fairly firm tannins.  With some time it does open up into some very modest dark fruit.  The finish does not go on as long as I would like.  

Drinking This Wine:  This is and can only be a steak wine.

Overall Impression:  Not bad, though a bit one dimensional.  I would have to say that this is fair for the price for those who prefer dry, Old World style wines.  If you are looking for a fruit foward New World wine, look elsewhere.