The Good Wine Guru » Red Wine

Dos Lomos Malbec 2010

George — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:00:06 +0000

Varietal: Malbec
Region: Mendoza – Argentina
Cost: $9

Winemaker’s Notes: Full-bodied and smooth with intense black fruit flavors and aromas. A good pairing with grilled foods including steaks.

My Review: I have this habit of picking up steaks and red wine whenever my wife is gone for the evening and I’m feeding myself. This past Thursday was just one of those nights and given the unseasonably warm weather we’ve been having here in Virginia I decided to take advantage of being able to use my grill and grabbed a steak at my local Fresh Market. While there I browsed the wine aisle to see if anything caught my eye and was recommended with a steak and decided on this bottle of 2010 Dos Lomos Malbec, in no small part because of the unique bottle shape.

The wine was fairly dark in the glass, with violet being the predominant color. On the nose I got dark fruit with just a touch of spice. In the mouth the wine was medium dry and medium/full-bodied with good notes of dark fruit. It paired well enough with the steak and baked potato that I cooked up, holding up well enough to the grilled flavors though not standing out either.

For the price it was a good value wine, and one I could see myself grabbing again when I was looking for an inexpensive table wine. It certainly wasn’t the best steak wine I’ve had in recent times, but it also wasn’t a terrible wine to sip on before, during, and after my dinner. If you’re looking for a big, bold steak wine pass on this one, but if you’re looking for a table wine that stands a chance against a big grilled steak and doesn’t cost a ton there’s certainly something to be said about the 2010 Dos Lomos Malbec.

Fisheye Shiraz 2010

George — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:00:28 +0000

Varietal: 100% Shiraz
Region: South Eastern Australia
Cost: $7 (SRP)

Winemaker’s Notes: Ripe blackberries and blueberries with spicy black pepper on the nose. Pairs well with BBQ baby back ribs with macaroni salad, jerk chicken with brown rice and black beans, or without any food at all.

My Review: It’s been unseasonably warm here in Virginia so I’ve been able to make use of my grill here at the end of January and start of February when it’s usually covered and forgotten until March. Because of that, my wife and I recently threw some chicken on the grill with some BBQ sauce basted on and decided to open up a bottle of Fisheye Shiraz that had been sent to me.

The wine was dark in the glass, with violet color throughout. On the nose I got berry and a hint of pepper right at the finish. In the mouth the wine was more complex than I would have expected, with a good mix of blackberry and blueberry flavors with a touch of spice and pepper and a fairly smooth finish. Paired with the BBQ chicken it went well with the food and was enjoyable to drink after the food was done as well.

Now, before I get too far let me be clear that this is by no means some transcendent wine. However, it’s pretty good for a budget table wine. It’s available in the Octavin Home Wine Bars and I’m giving serious consideration to picking one up to keep on the island counter in my kitchen for when I want that random glass of wine or for cooking with.

If you’re looking for a budget red that’s different than your usual value California Cabernet or Merlot and is surprisingly complex for the price you can do a lot worse than the Fisheye Shiraz. It won’t set the world on fire, but for parties and cookouts it’s a good option to put out, especially if you grab the Home Wine Bar size.

Gravelly Ford Pinot Noir 2009

George — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:50:47 +0000

Varietal: Pinot Noir
Region: California – USA
Cost: Approx $10

Winemaker’s Notes: Rich earthiness and bold robust flavors. Pairs well with full-flavored hearty meats, stews, and soups paired with rustic bread.

My Review: You ever have one of those moments when you see a bottle of wine on your rack and have absolutely no idea where it came from? I had that moment last night with my wife when we were trying to decide which bottle of wine to open up with some chili we had made for dinner. I had no memory of the wine being purchased, was confident it wasn’t a sample that had been sent to me, and didn’t remember anybody bringing it over during one of our holiday parties, and it wasn’t until I sat down to write this review that I realized where it came from – my wife and I did buy it at a local store that was offering a free tasting. This is what age does to you.

In the glass, after spending some time in a decanter, the wine was a medium-light garnet color. It wasn’t super light, but I could still see the bottom of my glass with the wine in it. On the nose I got mostly cherry notes, though the wine didn’t have a big nose even after being allowed to open up in the decanter. In the mouth I got more of the cherry notes along with some cola on the finish and very subtle hint of effervescence. It paired well with the chili, the fruit flavor actually doing a good enough job with the chili, though I think something with a bit of spice might have been even better.

To sip on the wine after we were done eating was easy enough, and while the wine certainly didn’t blow me away, as budget Pinot Noir goes I’ve certainly had a lot worse. It didn’t set my world on fire, but if you happen across it and you’re in the market for a value Pinot Noir it’s definitely worth giving a second or third thought to.

Folatre Carmenere Reserve 2007

George — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:00:11 +0000

Varietal: Carmenere
Region: Chile – Curico Valley
Cost: $8

Winemaker’s Notes: Dark garnet color or great intensity with an aroma of generous ripe red fruit and merged peppers with toasted French oak. A silky, flavorful mouth feel, creamy with great volume. Firm tannins provide an enjoyable finish. Best paired with light hors d’oeuvres and pastas.

My Review: My wife and I are always on the lookout for inexpensive wines that may not excite or inspire us, but are easy to sip on and are more interesting than cheap merlot or cabernet sauvignon from California, Australia, or New Zealand. Chile has become a favored region to get affordable wines that mix it up ever so much. When a friend recently brought over a bottle of Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon that he had picked up and we enjoyed it we decided to pick some up at the store the next time we went. They were out of the Cab Sauv, but had a healthy supply of the Carmenere that we decided to give a try to.

On Sunday, while watching my 49ers lose to the Giants (frigging special teams!), we opened up the bottle of 2007 Folatre Carmenere Reserve. We had tried another bottle of it before, but there was something different about it this time. The wine is a nice deep red in the glass, and on the nose I got some fruit but a good amount of green peppers and brambles that I didn’t experience the first time we opened one of these bottles.

In the mouth I got more of the same that I got on the nose and a smoother finish than I remembered from my first try at the wine. Since we were watching football I had whipped up some buffalo chicken bites and while I wouldn’t call the pairing a revelation, it certainly wasn’t horrible.

I’m not going to sit here and say this is the best carmenere I’ve ever had – it’s not even the best one I’ve had in the last 6 months, but for an affordable wine you can do a lot worse and if nothing else it was a good bottle to drown my sorrows in while watching Kyle Williams give the game to the Giants.

Ruta 22 Malbec 2010

George — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:00:19 +0000

Varietal: 100% Malbec
Region: Patagonia, Argentina
Cost: $13 (SRP)

Winemaker’s Notes: A deep ruby-colored wine with rich, smooth blackberry flavors and vanilla aromas. Pairs well with red meats, cheeses, and pastas.

My Review: I’ve been a fan of Malbec for some time now, I’ve found it to be, on the whole, a nice inexpensive alternative to numerous other budget wines where you can get far better quality than your dollar would lead you to believe, especially coming out of South America, and it tends to pair well with the foods I like to eat. Because of that, I was pleased to receive a bottle of Malbec as a sample right at the end of the year, and my wife and I finally decided to pop the cork and give it a try last night.

When I usually think of budget Malbec I think of wines with good fruit notes, maybe a bit fruit forward, but with dark notes and some body that can hold up to bolder meals. The 2010 Ruta 22 Malbec exhibited most of those things, but it wasn’t nearly as fruit forward as I was expecting, and that’s not a complaint at all.

As I was pouring the wine into a decanter (my wife and I received a custom etched decanter from my wife’s brother for Christmas and have found ourselves using it for just about every bottle of red we open lately) I noticed a lot of purple notes slashing through the deep red of the wine. On the nose I got a bit of alcohol at first, in no small part because of the 14.5% alcohol content, but that eventually gave way to blackberry notes and a touch of spice.

In the mouth the wine had tons of fruit, but instead of being “fruit forward” there was a nice dryness to the finish that I wasn’t expecting but appreciated. Paired with some pasta with red sauce and meatballs it wasn’t terrible, but my wife and I suspect that it would have paired better had we not thrown crushed red pepper into the sauce. That being said, when sipping on the wine after we’d finished eating it was a nice easy sipping wine with a bit more character than your usual budget Malbec.

If you want to give this wine a try and can’t find it at your local store, just follow this link and you can have it shipped directly to you.

Girard Artistry 2008

George — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:00:30 +0000

Varietal: 59% Cabernet Sauvignon; 19% Cabernet Franc; 11% Malbec; 6% Merlot; 5% Petit Verdot
Region: Napa, California – USA
Cost: $40 (SRP)

Winemaker’s Notes: Rich garnet color goes perfectly with the holiday season and it’s aromas of toasted hazelnut and winter spices make this wine the perfect gift for anyone on your list.

My Review: Another of the bottles that I received just before the end of the year, and on an unseasonable warm day on Sunday (pushing 70 in Virginia? Really?) my wife and I decided to throw a couple of steaks on the grill and a bottle of red wine sounded like the perfect pairing.

While there are some violet streaks going through the wine, it was a nice deep red in the glass and I picked up aromas of spice and dark berry. In the mouth there was a ton of fruit, but it was by no means a “fruit bomb”. By that I mean there was plenty of body and depth to the wine that allowed the wine to present nuanced fruit flavors and have a bit of complexity and a medium-smooth finish.

Paired with some steaks, baked potatoes, and asparagus it was great. The body of the wine held up to the steak and the fruit flavors managed to go well with the veggies (potatoes are a vegetable dammit). What I really liked about the wine is that even with the body to hold up to the steak, the fruit flavors were dominant enough to make the wine enjoyable all by itself.

If the wine isn’t available near you and you want to give it a try, you can follow this link and have it shipped directly to you.

Table Wine: What’s It Mean To You?

George — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 20:48:41 +0000

Odds are pretty good that while in your wine shop you’ve seen wine labeled as table wine. What does that mean though? Is it a generic term or are there requirements? What’s a good use of table wines and how do you pick one out? Can things not labeled as “table wine” be used for the purpose?

What Is Table Wine?

Depending on where you live table wine can mean a lot of different things. Here in the United States it’s a wine made from grapes with a maximum alcohol by volume content of 14%. Other than that there’s not much that determines what is or isn’t a table wine and it’s somewhat left up to the vineyard or winery to determine whether or not they want to label their wine as a table wine.

In Europe the standards are a bit more stringent with different categories of table wine existing within the overall “table wine” genre.

Picking Out Table Wines

Regardless of the standards for what can or can’t be labeled as a “table wine”, for most of us it’s a wine that we keep around the house to go with everything from pizza and pasta to chicken and munchies. Be it red or white, for many of us a table wine is an inexpensive wine that we pick up at the store that won’t set the world on fire, won’t change the way you feel about a grape or varietal, but instead goes with a wide range of foods or no foods at all.

While only you can determine what your personal standard for a table wine is, it wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t at least share what I look for in a table wine for my wife and I. There’s not a particular grape that I look for, though I do find myself gravitating to pinot noir and malbec as of late for reds and sauvignon blanc for whites, especially those from Chile.

I don’t have a set price, and every person’s budget will dictate what’s an “affordable” wine for them, but I do attempt to keep it under $20 a bottle. Lately I’ve even found bottles at my local grocery store for under $10 that are enjoyable and are perfect for a Sunday afternoon while watching football on the couch.

It’s Your Choice

The only opinion that matters when it comes to picking out a table wine is your own. If you enjoy the bottle pick up several bottles of it, keep it around your house, and enjoy a glass or two with a quick dinner, after a hard day at work, or because…wine is awesome. The most important part is that even after you’ve found a table wine that you like, to be open to trying new ones since a little variety certainly never hurts.

Cheapism’s Best Budget Wines

George — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:08:52 +0000

The holidays are upon us and if you’re anything like me you’re about to enter into a heady mix of family, friends, and other relatives for dinners, parties, and just to catch up. Times like these call for wine. Lots of wine. Thanksfully, Cheapism.com did some research to come up with a list of the best budget reds, whites, and sparkling wines that are perfect for this time of year. Here’s the list they came up with:

White

Jacob’s Creek Chardonnay
Dr. Loosen Red Slate Riesling
Château Ste. Michelle Sauvignon Blanc

Red

Chateau Ste. Michelle Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Meleni Chianti Borghi d’Elsa 2010
Dancing Bull Zinfandel
Mirassou Pinot Noir 2010

Sparkling Wine

Roederer Estate NV Brut
Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut NV
Freixenet Cordon Negro Extra Dry

All of the reds and white are $10 or under, and all of the sparkling wines are under $20. While we’d all love to put out the best wine available for every party we host and attend, sometimes having some affordable wines is the best option, especially when you’re hosting a party with dozens of people where your’e going to go through a lot of wine.

Montinore Estate Reserve Pinot Noir 2009

George — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 16:00:42 +0000

Varietal: 100% Pinot Noir
Region: Willamette Valley – Oregon – USA
Cost: $22

Winemaker’s Notes: The medium garnet color introduces a bright aroma of raspberry, cherry, and cedar with hints of pie spice, sandalwood, and dried cherry. On the palate it opens to ripe cherry, red and black raspberry, and mocha accents supported by a medium plus body and full, fine grained tannins. Pairs well with grilled meats, flavorful sauces, and rich farmhouse cheeses.

My Review: This wasn’t the first time I’d had the 2009 Montinore Estate Reserve Pinot Noir, no that would have been some weeks ago at my local Fleming’s Steakhouse & Wine Bar where Mike, our favorite bartender there, convinced my wife and I to give it a try during a visit there for happy hour. We liked it so much I went online and ordered half a case of it.

The wine is a beautiful light garnet color in the glass and on the nose I got notes of raspberry and cedar that were welcoming and just invite you to take a sip. On the palate cherry, raspberry and earth notes with a touch of spice on the nice smooth finish make this an incredibly easy wine to just sip on. In addition, the wine has been certified biodynamic and organic, so if you’re looking to try a wine that has less of an impact on the environment, this is a great one.

I didn’t pair this wine with food last night, but I did have a bottle opened at my parents’ house for Thanksgiving dinner and it went quickly, going well with the spread my Mom had prepared, especially the turkey. If you want to try this wine, and I highly recommend it, and can’t find it at your local store, you can follow this link and have it shipped directly to you…just like I did. http://www.winezap.com/search/searchResults.cfm?r=181364

Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

George — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:00:39 +0000

Varietal: 88% Cabernet Sauvignon; 5% Syrah; 3% Merlot; 2% Petit Verdot; 1% Malbec; 1% Cabernet Franc
Region: California – USA
Cost: $11 (SRP)

Winemaker’s Notes: The wine has a smooth texture and sweet, red fruit character that distinguishes California’s finest Cabernet Sauvignons, along with smoky oak, vanilla, and roasted nut accents to invigorate the palate and provide a lengthy finish. Enjoy with standing rib roasts, grilled steak, roast duck, spareribs, lasagna, or flavorful hard cheeses.

My Review: An evening where my wife was out and I was home alone with the dog to fend for myself on dinner usually only means one thing – steak, a baked potato, and a bottle of red wine to be enjoyed. There are worse ways to spend an evening. I’d been sitting on this sample until I could get around to cooking up a steak, and as tends to be the case, I’m glad I did.

There’s a line where a line goes from having good fruit to being a fruit bomb. Don’t ask me exactly where that line is, because I think that it’s different for every wine, but the 2010 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon did a good job of walking the line between fruity and fruit bomb.

On the nose I got dark fruit notes with a touch of roundness to it. In the mouth I got plenty of nice tart fruit, with raspberry and some blueberry being the most prevalent to me. The finish on the wine was surprisingly smooth, though with the extra varietals blended in that should come as less of a surprise than it was.

Paired with a ribeye I picked up at the local store it was a nice simple wine that didn’t try and do too much, but was more than adequate before, during, and after the meal. As value wines go, particularly for a California Cabernet, this is a good choice if you’re looking for something that’s easy to drink, and will make a good choice as a red wine option during the holiday party season thanks to the price.