2003 Mas de la Barben syrah blend from Languedoc. This was a bit of a disappointment. I expected better from this wine. I could tell straight away when I poured it in the glass that it would not live up to expectations. It had a red brick color that was a little on the light side. The nose was vegetative with spice and a strange chemical component. Someone described insecticide for this wine and I think it does remind me of an ant spry we used to use. It was funky on the palate as well with barnyard and leather flavors. It had a good acidity and a pretty nice up front attack but the good flavors disappeared rather quickly leaving you with the taste like licking a saddle. Certainly an unusual wine. It is just ok. I don’t think I would buy it again.
Languedoc
A Grand Cru
I don’t often drink grand crus but this one came as a good deal from Wine Library. For $20 I think I got a good bargain. This was a very nice wine. As you can see from the back label, it is composed of 80% merlot, 10% cabernet sauvignon, and 10% cabernet franc; a classical Bordeaux blend if I’ve ever seen one.
First of all I was blown away by the color. You can see below it was a deep, rich, dark, purple/red color. You definitely could not see through it. On the nose I was presented with earthy musty notes mingling with ripe red cherries. Solid tannins, big fruit and hints of smoke greeted you on the palate. It also had a slight greenness to it. After a couple hours in the decanter the wine opened up beautifully.
Here is a cocktail you can do with this wine, and For creating the best cocktails as home, see Mixstik.
ETHIOPIAN COCKTAIL
The character of this distinctive Ethiopian coffee comes through divinely in this finely wrought sweet citrus cocktail.
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- capsule of Master Origin EthiopiaGrand Cru
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- 100 ml of pink grapefruit juice
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- tablespoons of crushed ice
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- ice cubes
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- 10 ml elder flower syrup
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- 20 ml of grapefruit syrup
- grapefruit slice
Spanish Tempranillo
2004 Campo Viejo Crianza tempranillo from Rioja.
Light in color with an interesting nose of rusty nails and red plums. The prune fruits come through a little bit on the palate along with a nice acidity and light red fruits. Nothing serious here but a decent quaff for the price. 82 points.
A great QPR zin
I found a very nice value for under $10. I’ve had Kenwood before and it has always been a pretty ok wine. But this 2005 zinfandel really kicked it for the $9 I dropped for it. It was solid and interesting and quite tasty. Even the color was dark almost inky purple. It was black cherries for days and days on the nose combining with hints of purple plums and spices. Those flavors came through in the mouth as well. Black cherry mixing with spicy apple pie and plums. It was quite smooth with soft tannins. The fruit was pretty big but not over the top. It didn’t reach that thick jammy stage. It was quite balanced and a very good value. I’d even serve this one to guests. I think it’s good drinking now. I’m not sure how long it will last. Probably not more than a few years.
Wow, I could have had a Vigna Traverso!
Seriously, this wine was like drinking your vegetables, which I love very much. This is the 2005 Vigna Traverso Refosco from the Colli Orientali del Friuli appellation of Italy. This DOC is in the province of Udine in the north east corner of Italy. Basically on the back of the boot rim. Red wines only account for about 35% of the wine production in this DOC and the main grape is typically merlot. But this one, obviously, is produced from the refosco grape. This is a deep violet colored grape with slight bitterness and powerful tannins. It is also know as the terlan or terlano grape and eastern France it goes by the name mondeuse.
I just fell in love with this wine. It was the first time I’ve had this grape or any wine from this region, for that matter. It has the characteristic deep purple color. The nose was earthy and bright with hints of red cherries, twizzlers and a bit of forest floor. It really pleased me on the palate. Talk about old world! It was nicely balanced with fruit and vegetables. Think hints of raw green peppers blended with a can of V8 and some red cherry juice shaken on top. Very intriguing and delicious. It certainly had solid tannins but they weren’t overpowering in any way. It was really well balanced. I would say it will last at least another 6-8 years.
