So long story short, I bought a bottle of this online for a coworker and grabbed a second one for myself. She mentioned loving Baco Noir, and I figured I'd try it before giving her this in case it was terrible (she had the varietal, but not from this producer). I popped this open, poured a glass with the intent of just testing it, putting it away and analyzing it later. After the first sip I felt compelled to write.The nose is big – you don't need to swirl and the glass stinks – but in a strange, funky, earthy, sort of way – this almost smells like pure sassafras.
Weird – this is why you should try offbeat varietals – this is unlike just about any wine I've had. Funky, earthy, strawberry, raspberry, root beer, cola, fresh basil, even some mint with some tomacco (that's a tobacco/tomato hybrid). There's a hell of a lot going on here.
The finish fades rapidly with some cinnamon notes sticking around.
How is this? It's weird and fascinating. From an academic standpoint, this is phenomenal. From a “delicious” standpoint, I don't know. I do know that for a wine that's eight bones a bottle that this is once, twice, three times a bargain.
Wine: 9
Value: Shockingly great value - absolutely yes.
