Mini-reviews 94: Les Dauphins, Purato, Smith & Hook, Rodney Strong

Reviews of wines that don’t need their own post, but are worth noting for one reason or another. This month, four red wines you probably don’t want to buy.

• Les Dauphins Reserve Rouge 2015 ($10, sample, 14%): French grocery store-style red blend from the Rhone that is inoffensive — some red fruit and not annoying. But it doesn’t offer much to recommend it other than that.

• Purato Nero d’Avola Organico 2014 ($5, purchased, 13.5%): This Sicilian red offers $5 worth of value – a very, very simple wine with nero d’avola’s plum fruit. Too much acidity throws the balance off, but at this price that’s not necessarily a problem.

• Smith & Hook Proprietary Red Wine Blend 2013 ($19, sample, 14.5%) Not quite as over the top as I expected, with some sweet fruit (blueberry?) but also a decent amount of structure. This doesn’t mean it’s worth $19, though.

• Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma County 2014 ($20, sample, 13.5%): Disappointing, with what tastes like residual sugar, too much sweet fruit, and very little else. This is nothing more than just another grocery store wine, and I expect more from Rodney Strong for $20 than a smooth red wine.