Posts Tagged ‘raspberry flavors’
Varietal: Garnacha
Region: Spain
Cost: $7.00 – $10.00
A bit of smokiness on the nose is balanced by berry aromas of blackberry and blueberry. Smooth flavors of spice, vanilla, and raspberry have a nice finish of subtle tannins that make this wine enjoyable by itself or with a variety of different meals from pizza to a perfectly cooked and seasoned steak.
Recommendation: Anybody that’s been visiting this site enough knows that I am falling more and more in love with Spanish wines. My wife wanted this wine if for no other reason than the bottle was interesting and at $10 it wouldn’t be a waste if the wine wasn’t that good. Fortunately we got an interesting bottle and a good wine.
The smokiness on the nose wasn’t overpowering, but was enough to mellow out the flavors of ripe berry and lead very nicely into the subtle tannins on the finish. Perfect with a pepperoni pizza after grocery shopping, this is a great wine for anybody looking to dip their toes in the Spanish wine pool. Definitely going to be a repeat buy.
Can’t find this wine at your local shop? Get it here.
Varietal: Claret (50% Merlot; 20% Touriga; 15% Cabernet Franc; 8% Chambourcin; 4% Petite Verdot; 2% Tannat; 1% Cabernet Sauvignon)
Region: Virginia – USA
Cost: $15
A medium-bodied wine of ruby/garnet coloring offering flavors of herb and berry, most notably raspberry. A slightly dry, tannic finish is reminscent of Chianti, but the overall smoothness of the wine allows it to be paired with a wide variety of foods.
Recommendation: My wife and I enjoyed this wine with a pair of steaks, and it was a great compliment to them. The wine didn’t overwhelm the meat, but the slightly dry finish was a great balance to the juiciness of the steaks. Even after the meal had been finished, I still enjoyed finishing the bottle by itself, a quality I find desirable in any wine I drink – being able to be enjoyed without food. What I liked best about this wine was that while the dryness on the finish worked great with juicy steaks, it wasn’t so dry as to require something like that, and would compliment a dryer meal as well. While I won’t go so far as to say that this is a substitute for Chianti if that’s where your tastes lie, this is a great blend to serve for guests when you’re not sure where their tastes lie. Definitely worth picking up, particularly at this price point.
