2006 Shane Wine Cellar Syrah, Jemrose Vineyard, Bennett Valley - Infanticide, I thought, but I had to try… Obscene purple magenta inky tones. Blackberries, raspberries, orange zest and white pepper nose. Big, chewy fruit with proportionate oak and tannin structure. Fantastic pepperiness, spice (clove?) and typicity. The fruit is ripe, but not to the extant that it obliterates the uniqueness of the vineyard and vintage. If I am gunna be a stickler, I’d enjoy a  touch more acidity and more neutral oak character - but by the time the finish kicks in and pulls everything together with such effortless length, I don’t care. Obviously crafted with keen attention and passion, and I can’t wait to see how it (and it’s sisters) evolve over the next few years.

NB - Don’t be afraid to try this now if you are sitting on it - I actually enjoyed the wine more right after I popped it vs 3 hours of decanting. The air-time integrated the fruit, spice notes, oak and tannins - but the intensity and freshness of the initial fruit attack (while a bit monolithic) was most exciting to me.

2005 Orsolani Erbaluce Di Caluso Rustia, Piedmont Italy - The wine of the weekend. Straw gold. Mysterious nose; grassy, some lime, chalk-dust, and after some time in the decanter - tropical notes, honey, lemon and ginger. High-toned, almost austere in its acidity at first (pleasant) but over time the wine put on more and more weight and developed a sweet softness (with mango and coconut) in the midpalate that balanced the wine perfectly. Fascinating transformation on the palate - it started out like a Loire Sauvignon Blanc, moved through a fuller, sweeter, Viognier-like heft and finishes with a mineral-driven dry-riesling slatiness. Rare and confounding, I must find more. Perfect partner to seafood with adventurous sauces.

Diseño Malbec, Mendoza Argentina 2006 - Opulent fruit-driven wine with a decent backend structure and mild spiciness. Juicy and ripe black fruits, plus some tobacco and cinnamon - but with a detracting fakey-oakey vanilla flavor and mild acidity.

Overall - Tasty and not bad wine at all, but “International” in style - having little to show for the Malbec grape or anything particularly unique to the Mendoza region. However, I would probably grab for this before a Shiraz in the under $10 category from a sheer value standpoint.

~$15US   40% Malbec, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 20% Syrah, Mendoza, Argentina

This didn’t live up to the hype (Michel Rolland at the helm here, the controversial Bordeaux-magician), at least to my palate. Initially, a mix of black fruits backed by overt wood and rough-as-sandpaper tannins.  After hours of decanting and tasting, the fruit faded but the oak and tannins remained. There seemed to be good potential on the initial tastes, but after time, the wine became more disjointed, awkward, and stiff. Perhaps it will age more gracefully in bottle than it did in the decanter, but for me, this is a major pass.

~$15-20US 100% Malbec, Mendoza, Argentina
Color: Rich Purple
Nose: Wild berries, sage, shawarma spice, sumac
Palate: Explosive and powerful, tremendous balance of big fruit and clean acidity, sweetness and meatiness (lamb?).
Finish: Apple cider tartness, medium length, grape Lik-M-Aid

Wow - this is one exciting wine. Stylistically fruit forward, but the fruit was surrounded by a baroque assortment of spices, herbs, and second- and third-tier aromatics. A dichotomy - sweet and tart, candied and earthy, familiar and exotic. No tannins to speak of  - the acid playing a much more important role in the framework and overall structure - making this a  versatile food-wine. I’d love to try it alongside middle-eastern fair.