N/V Cristalino Brut Rose

Check that out - "not affiliated with Roederer or Cristal." Did some jackass buy this thinking it was a tremendous deal only to get mocked by their wine snob friends? Who knows. New label, new vaguely Blade Runner looking font reminds me of a friend of mine who had eyes that glowed yellow, but after four years we had a falling out and I never heard from him again - weird, no?

A little bit of cherry and perhaps some lime on the nose.

Clean, crisp, almost cherry 7-Up like - actually this reminds me of that Cranberry Twist Sierra Mists, one of my favorite sodas out there. In fact, beyond that, I'm not getting much else. When you think about it, this wine is somewhat sweet, but it doesn't really hit the palate that way - be it acidic balance or more fruity than sweet, it all really comes together nicely. A dangerous wine - half the bottle disappeared in a matter of minutes.

The finish, of Cranberry Sierra Mist, actually lingers for a reasonable amount of time.

This wine is why scores are stupid. It's simple, it's one dimensional, and it's incredibly drinkable. There's nothing here worth looking at academically, but considering that a case will set you back eighty bucks, are we really going to complain about such things? Serve it at a party or pop open a bottle with jalapeno poppers.

Score: 86