~$13US, 100% Cabernet Franc, Saumur, Loire Valley, France

Wine Blogging Wednesday 47 is upon us, and this month the theme is simply the letter ‘S’. Slim pickins in the Bestdrinkever HQ cellar - It was either this Saumur, a Spatburgunder (which just felt wrong), or a choice of Syrahs (too ordinary).  My daughter thought this one looked cool, especially the kitschy alligator-skin capsule that just screamed ‘drink me’.

The Saumur Rouge (Saumur also produces Blancs with Chenin Blanc) poured a deep magenta purple, and had an unmistakable pickled jalepeno pepper spice on the nose. There was something ‘twiggy’ or ‘leafy’ about this wine on the nose and palate - a crispy vegetal/earthiness that overwhelmed any fruit character. A big bolt of acidity and astringent tannins on the backend gave the wine an overall inaccessibility. Food pairing is a must - Just not sure what exactly…maybe rabbit or game with a mushroom ragout? Cheeses? Twigs?

While I routinely enjoy old-world old-school wines, and I prize acidity and earthiness quite a bit - this  didn’t really tickle me as much as I’d expected. Maybe more time in the bottle would help the mid-palate fatten up - but more time in the glass just made it skew more tart and thin. I respect the Chateau’s natural winemaking techniques, non-filtration, and low yields, but I’m just not feeling this particular bottle.

~$16US, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, Mendoza, Argentina

I’ve been on an Olde World tear lately, and wanted to see what I’d been missing. We fired up a big rib steak, some sweet potato fries and popped this Cabernet, crafted by Napa Valley guru Paul Hobbs in Mendoza.

Dang. This is a huge, juicy, polished and decadent wine. Pure pleasure. Berry assault - cherries, sweet ripe blueberries exploding. Mocha and vanilla, some spicy clove and cinnamon. Rich and ripe and bringing some alcoholic heat and more than a little oak. Nice touch of bitterness to keep this from getting cloying in the finish. The bottle must have had a hole in the bottom, it emptied so quickly. Simply delicious - this is a great value compared to what $40+ buys you in Napa, and is nothing Old World fans should be ashamed to try and enjoy.

~US$30, Grenache/Carignan/Cabernet Sauvignon, Priorat Spain

I love Priorat wines for stories and soul that goes into the wines as much as the actual liquid. From accounts and photos of the area, it’s a beautiful and dangerous other-worldly terrain that would seem unlikely to be producing much in the way of agriculture/viticulture. But in the past 20 years,a small group of producers (led by Alvaro Palacios, Daphne Glorian, and Rene Barbier) have proven that through insanely hard work - world-class wines from indigenous varieties can be coaxed from the schisty, terraced cliffs.

Les Terrasses is Palacios’ entry-level Priorat cuvee, comprised of Grenache and Carignan with a bit of Cabernet Sauvignon. Pop and poured - zingy acidity, red fruits, but tight and astringent - so I put it away for 2 days to see how it developed. Retasted and it put on wonderful complexity and weight. Bing cherry flavors melded with a deep, herbal spiciness - primarily lavender and thyme. Immediately comparable in flavors to a Chataueneuf-du-Pape, just lighter in body. The Cabernet brings some nice cedar and currant to the midpalate with an clean tannic lift. Signature Priorat wet-slate finish, which could be lengthier. Even after 2 days open it still had very dry tannins which mark this for pairings with fattier foods - it could make your gums a little too sticky on its own. There is clearly enough fruit here to carry this wine for another day or 2 in an open bottle, or probably till 2018+ in cellar.

Personally, this is a great value @ $30 - because it affords the ability to be played with over a week - and it’s just delicious and not mind-blowingly alcoholic or too fruity or oakey. This is a finessed wine that probably wont be revelatory to the wine-drinker buying Spanish wines in the $10-15 range - but for those who drink the pricier Rhones, Shiraz, and even certain Bordeaux, this wine will have you wondering why you’d want to spend 2x or 3x this price.

~$15US, Merlot/Cabernet Blend, Montravel (Eastern Bordeaux/ SW France)

Day 1: Too tight. Come back tomorrow.
Day 2: Fresh red cherries with secondary herbal, bramble, and leather notes.  Very refined on the palate - wonderfully  crisp acidity and fine but firm tannins. Refreshing and elegant. High-toned cherry fruits with a noticeable tartness reminding me of Sweet Tarts, without the candy-fied sweetness.  Overall finely balanced and super food friendly - the acidity and tannin structure could complement fattier beef cuts, and harmonize with more robust and tangy sauced white meats.  Ridiculous value - in a perfect world, wines like this should be restaurant house wines. Seek out.

 ~US$20, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Syrah and 25% Merlot

  Dark plum. Densely aromatic nose, with earthy currant, tobacco, cocoa, and black cherries.  Medium-full bodied presenting good structure in the palate - with Tuscany’s firm acidity and integrated tannins being proportionate and in balance - but the wine falls apart halfway through. It disintegrates into bitter green peppery flavors and a awkward oakiness as it moves towards the finish. Not terribly “clean” or pure. Despite the flaw, I can see it pairing well with a pasta bolognese or other rich meat sauces or braises. In sum, great aromas but a letdown on the palate. This may be way too young  - I could imagine the wine putting itself together a little more in the cellar, because from a winemaking standpoint, everything seemed right - except for the spike of bitterness. A decent cabernet blend for the price, but I probably wont be buying again - I’d rather be drinking one of Italy’s more interesting indigenous varieties (Barbera, Sangiovese, Corvina, Negroamaro, Primitivo, etc). 

85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petite Verdot, from a Magnum

A serious cabernet in a read-to-drink style. Deep purple/red. Black currant and blackberry nose; absolutely classic Napa cabernet. Juicy mouthfeel with a framework of fine but nicely perceptible tannins and acidity. Opened over time to deliver secondary spices; clove, cinnamon and rosemary. Thankfully no green flavors, and no oak monster.

A perfect steak wine, and exemplary in it’s flavor profile and character. Really fun to drink, reminding me of a more focused and linear Prisoner. And the larger format was sweet. Worth seeking out.

~$45US - Garnacha, Carignan, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah,  Priorat, Spain

Night 1: Sweet-tarts. Strong plum and raspberry fruit, black pepper and zippy acidity. Firm tannins. Very tight. Whisper of oak. Must revisit tomorrow.

Night 2: Still tight, but opened up very nicely over several more hours. Plenty of fruit, but much deeper and longer as the tannins smoothed out. Leather and herbal (basil?) aromas float in and out of focus. Sweet-tartness still a primary attribute. Definite chalky and gravelly flavors on the finish that are just delicious in contrast with the fruit and acidity. White pepper.

This is truly and elegant and subtle wine. It has a fascinating structure - a very focused and linear core of fresh fruit surrounded by a periphery of wild, darting flavors- chalk, leather, coffee, herbs, flowers, rhum agricole.

The components of the blend are so well integrated that it’s hard to tell where one’s contribution ends, and another’s begins. This is a family of 4 grapes; each speaking, but telling one story about their home vineyard. A triumph of place over style or variety.

~$22US, Haut-Medoc, Bordeaux, France

2005 in Bordeaux is apparently the-vintage-of-all-time-best-ever-cuz-its-got-the-cures-etc, according to those who know about that sort of thing. I don’t drink too much Bordeaux, so when I saw this, I figures I’d see what the hoopla was about before dropping dime on something bigger to keep for our wedding anniversaries. This is a left-bank Cru Bourgeois, I’m guessing primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, with tad of Merlot and Cab Franc as well. The shop said to give this plenty of air, so I did - it starting putting itself together with 4-5 hours of decanting. Funny thing - it was still improving @ the 8 hour point. Wow.

The color, deep garnet. A rich and opulent nose, with blackberries, red currant, some leather. A tiny bit of grass and earth present, but none of the bell-pepper notes that turn me off with cabernets. Just fantastic in the mouth; velvety, but medium-bodied - lighter than the nose let on. The palate transitioned from ripe black fruit and tobacco, towards a balanced acidity, all held together with fine but firm tannins. Great dry finish, with notes of glycerin and cedar. Masterfully oaked, just a hint of sweetness on the backend showing that this probably saw very little new wood.

Overall, this was a simply a delicious wine and a strong value @ 22 bucks. It offered great elegance for the price, and surprised me with the acidity and structure that make this super-red-meat-friendly. It did not overpower with any 1 aspect, and came together just right with air. This has enough fruit and structure to live a long life in the bottle. I’d love to forget about a bottle of this for 5-7 years and see what dimensions it takes one. Kudos winemaker, I think I could like Bordeaux after all.

Fontanafredda Barbera Briccotondo Piedmont 2006: Bright, fresh. Some interesting vegetal notes and sour cherry. Irony (bloody?) and sweet finish. Superb value.

Apex II Cabernet Columbia Valley 2004: Christmas spices, vanilla, currants. Oaked, but proportionate to the fruit. Very friendly, smooth, and full-bodied. Round, soft tannins.

Leviathan California Red 2005: Deep and brooding - black fruit and brambles, with some curry and dusty aromatics. Full-bodied and weighty, liqueur-like. Reminds me of The Prisoner, but with some deeper 2nd and 3rd tier aromatics and a slightly firmer stucture on the back-end. Decadent as all get-out.

All 3 wines were knock-out efforts with the Rib roast dinner - the Barbera being the surprise of the night, Apex being the easiest drinker, and Leviathan living up to expectations and the high bar of winemaker Andy Erickson.

~$27US  60% Grenache / 35% Carignan / 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, Priorat Spain

MAGENTA! Wicked color on this wine. Nose of fresh blueberries, smoked meats, and provincial herbs. Very chewey, deep-toned flavors of berries and herbs, which revealed the balancing acidity over time in the mouth. Then cabernet added a touch of tannic structure that was very well integrated. As it opened, it became softer and more liqueur-like, with some red-fruits coming into play. Very long finish, with stony and earthy notes.

This wine really offered the best of old and new world wine-styles - big and round fruit, with alluring wild herbal notes and an elegance to the overall presentation (no crazy oak, no crazy ABV, etc). Well done. A rebuy.