Category:Red wine

Wine review: Sonoma Vineyards Syrah 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

image

The Wine Curmudgeon had the fire department at the house last week. Fortunately, there was no need for hoses or axes. But the small electrical fire that required their presence was apparently caused by a power surge that fried the refrigerator ?s compressor.

Which meant I didn ?t have a refrigerator for three days (and the refrigerator-buying experience, and subsequent cost, is probably worth a post one of these days). Which meant I couldn ?t chill any white wine, and so spent 30 or 40 minutes digging through the wine closet to find red wine to drink over the weekend that matched my ?having to buy an unbudgeted refrigerator ? mood. I wanted cheap. I wanted uncomplicated. I wanted well done.

Which is how I stumbled on the Sonoma syrah (about $15). It had fruit (cherry and blackberry, maybe?), but it didn ?t have too much, as so many California syrahs do. The tannins and acid were balanced, and there was even a hint of Rhone-like darkness. The wine is a fine value for the price, and improved my disposition greatly.

Serve this any time your refrigerator goes out, or with red sauces, burgers and even roast chicken.

Wine of the week: Tamarí Malbec Reserva 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Tamari Malbec Reserva 2007: Not too jammy Knowing importers is as important as knowing producers (and probably worth a blog post of its own one of these days). After all, who can keep track of the thousands of foreign producers, many of whom are small and use another language?

So if you find a wine brought to the U.S. by a company like Kermit Lynch or Robert Kacher, it ?s almost certain to be well made and a fair price. After tasting the Tamari (about $13), I think you can add its importer, Terlato, to that list. The wine, from Argentina, is not especially tannic or harsh, and the dark berry fruit is fresh and lively. Best yet, it ?s not too jammy, as many malbecs at this price are. The Tamarai a step up from the Yellow + Blue, one of my favorite malbecs and a $10 Hall of Fame wine.

Serve this with any red sauce, meat loaf or hamburgers. It ?s even pleasant enough on its own, which I find to be less true of more and more red wines.

Wine of the week: French Maid Pinot Noir 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

French Maid Pinot Noir 2007 Reasons not to like this wine: First, the label, which makes the young woman on the Lulu B. wines look matronly. The Wine Curmudgeon has nothing against sex, but on a wine label? Second, it ?s cheap pinot noir from the Languedoc region of France, which means there ?s a decent chance it won ?t taste like pinot noir. (In fact, so many negociants are producing Languedoc pinots these days that the region has an identifiable style.) Third, I never trust cheap wine that says things about itself like ?richly textured palate ? and ?velvety tannins and well-integrated oak. ?

Which is why one should always taste the wine before one judges it, because the French Maid (about $12) is quality wine. It ?s fruity and berry-ish, but a little fresher and not as fruity or berry-ish as other pinot noirs from the Languedoc. Plus, it has a touch of pinot character that most cheap Languedoc and New World pinots don ?t have.

It ?s light enough to drink as a New Year ?s aperitif or with almost any sort of New Year ?s meal. It ?s also a fine barbecue wine as spring approaches, with everything from hamburgers to smoked chicken.

For more on inexpensive pinot noir:

Wine review: Dancing Bull Zinfandel 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

Label-Rancho_Zabaco_2007_California_Dancing_Bull_Zinfandel_750ml_-_New ? Dancing Bull Zinfandel 2009 review

Dancing Bull, when it debuted six or seven years ago, was solid, cheap, quality zinfandel. Then, as will happen with these things, the label (part of the Gallo empire) morphed into two: The more expensive Rancho Zabaco, which focused on zinfandel, and the less expensive Dancing Bull, which became a full line (chardonnay, merlot and the like) of ordinary grocery store stuff.

This was disappointing, since the Wine Curmudgeon appreciates zinfandel, and especially solid, cheap, quality zinfandel. But I ?m happy to report that the current vintage of Dancing Bull zinfandel (about $10) is almost what it used to be. The 2007 isn ?t quite as spicy or brambly as those first bottlings, but it does offer lots of berry fruit, subdued tannins, and, blessedly, relatively low alcohol. You can drink two glasses without the need for a field sobriety test.

Pair this with any hearty winter fare (braised short ribs and garlic mashed potatoes come to mind), as well as zinfandel ?s traditional partners ? spaghetti and meatballs and the like.

Wine of the week: Francis Coppola Alicante Bouschet 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

There are two reasons why the Wine Curmudgeon is writing about the Alicante. One is that it ?s quality wine. The other is that I get to tell my Francis Ford Coppola wine story.

This is a very fruity, almost cranberry-ish wine, dark in color and low in alcohol. It ?s quite fun to drink, which is not a way I usually describe wine. In this case, fun means you pour a little, drink it, pour a little, chat, pour a little more, eat a bite, pour a little more. The next thing you know, the bottle is empty.

At $15, it ?s not as inexpensive as it could be, given that the grapes are from Lodi and that alicante, an Italian grape not much known in the U.S., is not exactly cabernet sauvignon. But it ?s still a value, and would pair nicely with almost any holiday meal, as well as red sauces and pasta.

After the jump, my Coppola story:

Continue reading →

Wine review: Domaine Jaboulet-Vercherre Beaujolais-Villages 2007

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

image Is inexpensive Beaujolais more than the annual Nouveau release? The answer, thankfully, is yes.

I stumbled across this wine, sold by a reasonably well-known Burgundy negociant, while looking for red Burgundy. Since it was $11, I figured it work as a comparison with this year ?s Nouveau. There was no comparison.

The Jaboulet is typical entry level Beaujolais ? light, fruity (black cherries, perhaps?), low in alcohol and not much in the way of acid or tannins. As such, it ?s exactly the kind of wine to drink with dinner. But it was also a much more interesting wine, at more or less the same price, as this year ?s Nouveau, and didn ?t taste gimmicky. In fact, try a blind tasting, comparing this wine (or any Beaujolais-Villages) with the Nouveau. The difference is easy to spot, even for beginners.

Wine of the week: Osborne Solaz Cabernet-Tempranillo 2006

by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On

image There is a chance this isn ?t the world ?s most perfect cheap wine. But it ?s a very small chance. This Spanish red is $7, and it has body and structure that most $7 wines can only dream of. It has remarkable fruit; usually, cheap wine either has body or fruit, but rarely both.

What ?s even more impressive is that the Solaz is consistent from vintage to vintage, something else that you don ?t see in quality cheap wine. Most good inexpensive wines will have a four-, five-, or six-year run, and then fade from the scene like old ballplayers. That ?s what happened to two of my all-time favorites, Hogue ?s sauvignon blanc and a red blend from France, Jaja de Jau. Great wine, and then not great.

But not the Solaz. How good is it? Even Robert Parker agrees with me, and how often does that happen?

This should please the cabernet drinkers at Thanksgiving dinner. But save it for Saturday night when everyone has gone home and you ?re alone and worn out and you feel like take out pizza. Open the Solaz then, and marvel at how they do it.