2005 Hans Wirsching Iphöfer Kalb Silvaner Kabinett Trocken

I’ll be honest, I’ll grabbed this one because of the interesting bottle shape and also because it’s a Silvaner–one more checkmark off our Wine Century Club list.

Being a German wine, I assumed–even as a Kabinett–this would be, at least a little, sweet. Of course, sometimes we learn things the hard way—this is not a Kabinett, it’s a “Kabinett Trocken.” “Trocken” means dry and this one certainly is. My knowledge of the word “Trocken” was limited to “Trockenbeerenauslese” which is a sweet wine, but the Trocken is a reference to dry grapes (so overripe they’ve dried out).

Maybe a bit of white grapefruit on the palate and some grapes as well, perhaps a bit of melon, but overall I’d say lots and lots of minerals making this one bone dry. No real finish to speak of. Not our typical style of wine and not a wine I’d have again.

If you like dry, unoaked wine, this may be right up your alley. Give an offbeat varietal a shot and pick up a bottle. If a bit of sweetness is required for your white wine, then avoid this one.

2005 Niebaum-Coppola Sofia Blanc de Blancs

This is Francis Coppola’s winery’s sparkling wine named after his daughter Sofia. It comes wrapped in pink cellophane, a good marketing gimmick as it certainly stands out. The wine itself is pale gold, typical of Chardonnay based sparkling wines.

The nose has nothing but fruit, no yeast or anything of that sort.

The palate on this one is extremely simple—all we both get is grapes. Maybe there’s some apple, but this is a grapey wine. I always find that to be a bit refreshing, a wine that tastes like what it is. There’s really not a lot going on, no subtle flavors that I pick up, just a good, drinkable wine.

The finish on this one consists of one flavor whispering something inaudible to the other leaving it all up to interpretation even though all we want is a real resolution.

At $16. I’m not sure I can give this one a strong endorsement. If you find it on sale for $12ish, I’d say go for it. If you have something like an anniversary or birthday, it’s certainly an attractive package. This one also comes in cans which wouldn’t be half bad for a picnic.

2006 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau

The third Thursday of November is the day Beaujolais Nouveau comes out...a fruity wine that really shouldn’t be aged more than a few months, if that. Let’s be blunt–it’s a marketing thing more than a wine thing. This wine came out today and it’s “a big deal” because it’s “Beaujolais Nouveau day”....why is it a big deal? Well, the producer of Beaujolais Nouveau say it is....but I’m a sucker so you better believe I ran out and got me a couple bottles.

Beaujolais Nouveau are made with the Gamay grape using a process called carbonic maceration, which means the grape juice isn’t what ferments–the entire grapes themselves ferment and from what I understand, explode on their own.

This one is $8 and is the cheapest and probably most widely available Beaujolais out there.

The nose has some raspberry.

The palate is fruity with berries, black, rasp, and even a bit of blue. Simple, a bit acidic, and there’s even a bit of tannin–so this is surprisingly (but, and this is important–relatively) dry. This is really a good wine if you don’t like red wine but want to start learning a bit more and acquiring the taste. If you’re going to a party–say Thanksgiving dinner with the family–and want to bring something that will please everyone, you can’t go wrong.

When I’m making poached pears, I grab Beaujolais Nouveau because it’s so fruity and simple...this vintage is no different.

If you like fruity red wine—or if you don’t like red wine—go right ahead and drop $8 and pick up a bottle. Maybe it’ll help bring you over to the red wine lovers side. If you know red wine, then you know what this is...drink it with frozen pizza, Burger King, or a microwave burrito, and stop being such a goddamn snob and enjoy something simple.

2005 Ditka Da Coach Pinot Grigio

Thought I’m not a football guy, I am a huge fan of Bill Swerski. So, when I heard Ditka was putting his name on a series of wine, I didn’t hesitate picking one up. I figured a good place to start was a wine that’s tough to mess up, Pinot Grigio. Of course, it’s also the cheapest Ditka wine at $9. There’s a “Kick Ass Red” blend going for $40 and I think the others push the $20 line.

On the nose–well, it smells like Pinot Grigio. I’m not entirely sure what that means, but once you try a few Pinots, you know it—grapes, maybe some minerals, and a bit of citrus.

Lots of fruit, not a lot of acid–about what I’d expect at the price. The palate is mainly lemon...lots of lemon. There’s also some grapefruit, apple (think Golden Delicious) and I’ll even say a bit of citron. For all intensive purposes, there is no finish.

I’ll say this: this wine does not have any sort of “alcohol” taste, it’s incredibly smooth—the translation of that is that it’s dangerous wines—you can finish the bottle and not even notice it. It’s simple, easy drinking, and quality-wise what I’d expect from an under $8 wine you can find in any grocery store across the country.

My prediction: After Ditka wins a one on one brawl with a hurricane in Las Vegas, he will spend all of his money buying every vineyard on the planet and all the wine you know and love with be preceeded by “Ditka’s”—Ditka’s Silver Oak, Ditka’s Chateau Margaux, Ditka’s Mollydooker, etc.

The final verdict: I didn’t expect to have my socks blown off and I didn’t. It’s not the best Pinot Grigio, but no one claims it is. It’s decent and while I’d sayt the price may be a bit high, you’re buying a name, and if you’re going to pay for a name, it may as well be DIT KA.

2003 Li Veli Passamante Negroamaro

Negroamaro is a varietal from Italy that you don't see often for one reason or another. This is our third Negroamaro wine and it's fairly typical of what we've had before.

The nose reminds Fran of cherry cough syrup, alcohol and all. I do get alcohol on the nose, as well as some cherry (not cough syrup though), and a bit of earth.

Basically, if you like Chianti, buy this one. Fruity (cherry specifically), lighter bodied, smooth tannins, a bit of pepper, and plenty of acid--a great food wine, especially if you're having pasta with a red sauce or even pizza. Not the most complex thing in the world, but it's beautifully balanced and has just the right level of spice and fruit.

At $8, this is a steal. In fact, I doubt you can get a Chianti of this quality at that price. Strongly recommended.

2005 Stone’s Throw Riesling

Stone’s Throw is a Wisconsin based winery which gets their grapes from California–this Riesling, in particular, comes from Monterey County. This one retails for $17.

I get lots of peaches on this one, with some spice–think of a lighter peach pie filling. I’m also getting plenty of apricot. It is a bit flabby though, there’s not enough acid and it has a very strange structure (or lack of). It’s not really a bad wine, but it’s certainly not a $17 bottle.

I’d recommend giving some of Stone’s Throw’s wines a chance, especially if you’re in the area and can visit the winery (we have yet to, but plan on it) but I’m not sure that, at this price point, this one can be strongly recommended

2004 Mount Pleasant Norton

Towards the beginning of this blog we reviewed a white wine from Mount Pleasant negatively. A bit later, we reviewed a $25 Cabernet Sauvignon, and ultimately felt that while it was okay, it was not worth anywhere near the asking price. This is the only winery which we’re “members” of and I have to say that two mediocre wines in a row really shook my confidence.

So, here we are with a 2004 Norton. Norton is a varietal found in the Midwest and if you tour wineries in the area you’ll find a lot of terrible wine made from it. When we visited Mount Pleasant, we both agreed it was the best Norton we had, but also the most expensive at $35.

Norton’s typically are dark and this one is no exception. It’s dark purple, but looking at a full glass, it almost seems black.

The nose has lots of pepper, black fruit, and a touch of alcohol.

On the palate, this reminds me a bit of Syrah. Lots of pepper, licorice, and spice on the palate, but there’s also plenty of blackberry–to the point that I’d call it jammy. As soon as it hits the tongue, it seems to taste like blueberry but that changes to blackerry. It’s a nice but strange balance of strong jam and strong earth–a big wine for sure. I thought I was getting tobacco, but I think it’s more just smoke. The tannins are extremely smooth and silky, no burn or anything of that sort.

The finish is long–starting with prunes and fading away to raspberries.

I’m glad that my memory has held up....if this one was a disappointment, I probably would have quit our club membership. This is, hands down, the best Norton I’ve encountered. An excellent wine, regardless of region or varietal. Complex enough for the nerds, yet smooth enough for the friends-–highly recommended.

2003 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Erdener Treppchen Riesling Spätlese

French and German wine labels can be tricky–every time I think I know what everything means I realize I actually have no idea--so I’ve decided that when we drink them, I’m going to start breaking them down so eventually I know what the hell I’m doing.

2003 is the vintage.
Joh.. Jos. Christoffel Erben is the producer.
Erdener Treppchen is the vineyard.
Riesling is the grape.
Spätlese is the QmP (let’s simplify it as “sweetness level’) designation.

There you have it.

This one was $20 which is more than a typical day to day wine, but I had a hankering for a Riesling and this was the only thing I had handy.

This was described to me as a “wine drinker’s wine” and I’m going to agree. This punches you in the face with acid with a bit of sweetness to balance it out. Lots of time I talk about Rieslings that are sweet with enough acid to balance it–this is the opposite.

The nose has some grapefruit and something else, but I can’t put my finger on it–something non-fruit, which I’m still not good at detecting.

Fran gets pineapples on this with a touch of grapefruit on the finish. I completely disagree. To me, this is all grapefruit–-pink grapefruit, sweet and tart with some minerals for good measure. There’s some spice on this that reminds of Gewurtztraminer. As the finish lingers, I get notes of honey and pear....the finish on this wine is one of the longest I can remember having with a Riesling.
Spicy, acidic, sweet–pretty much all the best qualities I look for. I’d buy this again without hesitation.

N/V Domaine Chandon Blanc de Noir

I figured we'd open a bottle of sparkling wine to celebrate the new path the country is heading down.

Domaine Chandon is a producer of sparkling wine out of Napa. I wondered if it was the same Chandon as in Moet & Chandon, producer of Dom Perignon among others...and sure enough, it is. The Moet company opened the winery in 1973 making this the only French owned sparkling wine producer in the US.

As useless as that sounds, Moet & Chandon is a highly reputable company which suggests quality.

Anyway, this Blanc de Noirs is salmon in color. It's fruity and toasty, a touch of sweetness, but certainly not a sweet wine. To me, I taste a bit of blueberry which seems strange--Fran gets strawberry, but that's not what I'm getting...somewhere in between--huckleberry?

Actually, it hit me what this reminds me of....there's a soda company called Jones Soda. You can buy their stuff pretty much anywhere (in the midwest anyway) and one of their claims to fame is a Thanksgiving pack with a turkey flavored soda, a stuffing soda, brussel sprout soda...you get the idea. Jones Soda makes a flavor called Fufu Berry and this tastes like a mild version of that.

In fact, now that thought has come to mind I can't taste anything other than Fufu Berry in this. Bah.

2003 Casa Silva Coleccion Carmenère

Here we are getting ever closer to the wine century club with a Carmenère from Chile. Carmenère is actually a fairly interesting grape. It was originally found in Bordeaux but in 1867 insects (Phylloxera) infested all the vines and destroyed every grape and vine. Luckily, the grape was exported to South America in the 1850s, so it still exists. Chilean wine tends to be a good value, this one was $9.

The first thing that struck me with this wine was how dark it is. At a very deep purple, no light gets through this one at all. The nose has a hit of alcohol and cherries and not a whole lot else.

The palate is fruit bomb with a hit of alcohol. There’s some tannins to balance it out a bit but very little oak--this is for all intensive purposes, all fruit. Black fruit–plums, blackberries, cherries, and the like.

After this one opens some subtleties of spice and oak come through. A hint of herbal notes–mint for the most part–are present, but really only seemed to come through after being open for five hours. If I had to compare this to anything, I’d almost say a Zinfandel. Fruit, high alcohol, perfectly paired with pizza, grilled or roasted food, anything heav.

This is a fantastic wine, especially at the price. Highly recommended.

N/V Stone’s Throw Winery Field Blend Red

After having the Stone’s Throw White I had a good idea what to expect with this—light bodied, smooth drinking, somewhat simple, and acceptable.

And....I was right. For a $10 bottle of wine, you can do far worse. A mystery blend of grapes, I can’t pick any out....if I had to compare it to anything I’d say a very light Chianti. Nothing bold or firm like a Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz, this is far lighter. Fruit right away--cherries and blackberries-–though present, there's not much oak or spice, but there’s a bit of earth to give it some balance.

A simple red wine, fine for the price, and a good one for a simple meal or picnic. You can do better for your money if you’re looking for complexity and oak, but if you want a good wine you can enjoy without worry this is another fine one.

N/V Stone’s Throw Winery Field Blend White

Stone’s Throw is a winery in Door County, Wisconsin. Most of the wineries in the area focus on fruit wine, but this one gets their grapes shipped in from California and consider themselves to be a bit more serious.

The Field Blends are the cheapest wines they offer in red and white at $10 a pop. No varietal information, just a miscellaneous blend that is from a field not designated for one type of grape.

Basically, we have a very simple, easy drinking, and perfectly acceptable wine. Citrus notes, a bit of lemon and even some citron. A hint of acid to balance it out a bit, but not a whole lot....this is a fruity, sweet wine that’s perfect for a picnic or BBQ on a hot day.

If I had to compare this to a varietal, I’d say I pick up a hint of Pinot Grigio....sweet, quaffable, and good with salads, burgers, and the like.

If you want something you can just drink and enjoy without worrying about the subtle hints on the nose and such, this is a good wine to have.

2005 Monastrell Wrongo Dongo

Here we are with an $8 bottle of WANGO TANGO...oh wait...Wrongo Dongo...Nugent doesn't drink, that's right. I bought this one at World Market as it was a double whammy–-first, it was highly rated by Parker (or Wine Spectator...someone important) and second it knocked off another grape for our Wine Century Club application.

Fruity right off the bat, mild tannins, and a hint of spice. As far as I can tell, this wine has not seen oak and that’s very rarely a pro with red wine. There’s a harshness and burn on the finish that’s unappealing. The front and mid palate hit you with cherries, raspberries, and herbal notes. I get quite a bit of “green” on this–bell peppers, basil, strange flavors under the fruit. Fran feels it is comparable to Charles Shaw, I think that’s a low blow.

For an offbeat varietal, it’s interesting and worth giving a shot if you want something different and inexpensive.

2000 Iron Horse Classic Vintage Brut

Yesterday’s Veuve Clicquot gave me a big hankering for more sparkling wine and I thought it would be interesting to move over to California. Without thinking, I grabbed this $30 bottle which is way more than I’d casually spend but some recent eBay auctions went better than expected, so why not?

Though it’s good, yesterday’s really grabbed me and this one is just sort of there. I detect some slight yeast right off, lemon mid palate, and orange zest on the finish. Nice, small, constant bubbles, but I have to admit the citric acid is a bit stronger than I’d prefer.

Even at $30, this is acceptable. While some of the flavors don’t mesh quite as well as I’d like, it’s complex enough to make this a much stronger candidate then what we normally drink for sparklers. At this price, I get complexity–-some things I like, but aspects I don’t. A $10 bottle is a whole mess of “this is okay” but nothing really jumps out either way. I'd rather get hit with complexity I like, mind you...but this is still good.

Would I buy it again? Honestly, probably not. There's tons of sparklers out there for $30, many from Champagne, that I'd rather investigate first. I'll visit this one again in a few years perhaps, when I feel my palate is more refined.

N/V Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut

Frequently called “the yellow label,” Fran bought me this for my birthday. To be polite, I won’t look up the price, but if my memory serves me correctly I believe this is in the $40-50 range.

In previous sparkling wine reviews I keep mentioning how little I understand tasting these wines, but I have to say I’m slowly coming into my element. This is clearly an excellent wine.

I like this one...yeast right away and some nice toasty flavors towards the end of the palate, with pear, granny smith apple, and grape flavors abound. The bubbles are smooth and coat the mouth like foam more than anything else.

I like this a lot and would drink it several times a week, but I’d probably say that about any $40 bottle of wine. While I like trying new things, once a price point is hit I stay with strong recommendations from reliable sources or things I know....next time I need a Champagne I won’t hesitate going for this one if I can’t make it to the wine shop.

2003 A Mano Primitivo

Primitivo is the Italian version of Zinfandel....genetics tests have shown they are the same grape.

It’s a bit earthier than your standard California Zin...in fact, while it’s the same grape, it’s not like a Zin at all other than the alcohol level. There is plenty of berry fruit and there’s some funk (it’s Italian, after all) and oak. Spice and anise on the palate...anise is a far more common flavor than I think I ever realized before forcing myself to sit down and really think about wine. It’s a nicely acidic wine and would pair wonderfully with any Italian faire.

I paid $10 for this and I stand by it. It’s worth it for that price....it’s a smooth wine, well balanced, simple, food friendly, and the right price.

2003 Domaine Charvin Chateauneuf du Pape

I turned 27 today and to celebrate I decided to crack this one open.

We received this bottle last Christmas from my parents...knowing my parents I assumed this was a bottle we shouldn’t just open on a random evening.

This has been sitting in our brand spanking new decanter for four hours

The nose presents Fran with spice and cherries. I get alcohol and not a whole lot else.

Chateauneuf du Pape are sometimes described as funky and this fits the bill. The finish has a burn and I’m almost getting Port qualities. Tobacco, anise, spice, and lots of earth. A common term to describe these wines is “barnyard” which to those of you who have never visited a barnyard, is a nice term for manure. Believe it or not, that’s a good quality....it’s present in this wine and oddly, it’s not offensive. Fruit-wise, there is some cherries and strawberries, but my palate tells me this wine is all about the earth and funk.

I am modest enough to know when I’ve been bested. I know that this is good, there’s a depth here, a level of strange funkiness that, like an expensive Riesling, is desired by many in the wine world. It just doesn’t work for me. Not yet, anyway. A white wine that has hints of gasoline and a red that hints of manure....maybe I'll get it at some point, but for now I’m just not there.

2005 Cycles Gladiator Pinot Noir

I’ve heard that a decent Pinot Noir cannot be purchased for under $15. The A-Z Winery Pinot we reviewed a while back was excellent under that pricepoint....so I decided to go a bit further and pick up this $8 bottle.

Cherries and some spice on the nose.

This needed an hour or so to open up, A bit of cherries, berries, plums, spice, and oak on the palate...all are subtle, none overwhelm. This starts with a harsh alcoholic burn that fades away with time in the glass.

Overall...well, it’s not that bad, but it’s also not great. A decent table wine, appropriate for a day to day wine, some nice complexity and acid, but there is a harsh bite that makes it tough to flat out recommend. My other complaint is that I like my Pinot Noirs to have at least some earth and this has just about none. It’s okay, at $8 you can certainly do worse.

Cheap wine roundup--Sutter Home, Glen Ellen, Frontera

I was browsing the aisle at my local supermarket and found a bunch of these little bottles on sale–$1 each. I figured it would make an interesting post to go through these “lower end” wines and see what they’re like.

2005 Sutter Home White Zinfandel

Many wine people hate White Zinfandel on principle...they will say it’s not wine. Being literal minded–it’s fermented grape juice, so it’s wine. But here’s why we hate it: no acid, no complexity, no finish. It’s a Kool-Aid like product, just sweet—and I like sweet wine—but that’s all it has going for it. It’s ultimately bland and uninteresting. I’m not repulsed, but if all I want is sweetness with some mildly fruit flavor I’d get a Cherry 7-Up...do they make that stuff anymore?


2005 Sutter Home Pinot Grigio

Fran claims this and the White Zinfandel taste like vinegar. While I disagree I see where she’s coming from–sugar and alcohol are really the only things here. There’s a little bit of honeydew that one would expect, but really it’s watery and bland. A full bottle of this is $5--for $8 you can get Ecco Domani or Gabbiano which are light years ahead in quality.


2002 Sutter Home Cabernet Sauvignon

If you had $5 and needed a red wine and were at a grocery store...well, this is your option. The nose is all alcohol, with what seems like wood, but there’s none on the palate. No tannins, but a strawberry flavor that’s pleasant enough and comes out in Twizzler fashion on the finish. Inoffensive, better than anything Charles Shaw, but for a few dollars more you can do so much better.

When I talk about red wine with people who don’t like red wine, I actually will push things like this—many people who dislike the tannins and oak in red wine I think need a stepping stone and this would be a reasonable inexpensive place to begin your journey from White Zinfandel to Chateau Margaux.


N/V (?) Glen Ellen Cabernet Sauvignon

The second I took a sip I thought this was far ahead in quality of the Sutter Home but it really died mid-sip. The nose has some earth and wood, but mainly just has alcohol. On the palate, this starts off almost like a Cab should–a bit of spice, oak, and berry but just dissipates after two seconds. No finish. On the tongue, it’s not half bad honestly...lots of fruit and spice. There’s a sweetness in this that needs food to minimize it....almost reminiscent of cherry pie. ....this one does not taste so good it’ll bring a tear to your eye though, nor will it put a smile on your face ten miles wide. Think Bobbi Brown 2006 versus Bobbi Brown 1991–it’s not exactly what you want, but you’ll still drink it.


2005 Frontera Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot

Anyone who knows me and likes food knows that may favorite restaurant is Frontera Grill. How does the wine Frontera, which has no affiliation with the restaurant, compare?

The nose–oak.

The palate has some nice oak flavors with a bit of cherry....smooth tannins and a decent finish. Of these five wines this is the best hands down. The others relied on a sweetness to cover up the lack of complexity. This actually has something going on it...nice flavors, a finish, minimal sweetness...this isn’t bad. For a 187ml bottle at $1 this is perfectly acceptable.

2003 R Collection Cabernet Sauvignon

A few months ago I was at the local wine shop during a small tasting and a guy came up to me and said “how about you recommend a Shiraz to me for under $20.” I was taken aback to say the least. I don’t look like your typical wine guy and he didn’t look familiar to me, but I politely engaged him in conversation saying that while I don’t actively dislike Shiraz, I tend to avoid them because they’re not my style though I do enjoy them in blends. He asked what my style was and I said “Cabernets and Rhone blends mainly.” He asked me to make a suggestion of something I like for under $20.

Without hesitation I walked directly to the display of this wine and said it was one of my favorites.

At $18 this is just above my normal price range and I’ve had this bottle on the wine rack for quite a while...I’ve been saving it, I don’t know for what, but I was. Today I realized–what the hell am I saving this for? It’s not that expensive and it’s not difficult to find.

I poured the glass with a bit of fear–I gave this wine top recommendations, I haven’t had it in months, everytime I’m at the shop I think about how much I like it, I even gave my boss a bottle for her birthday telling her it was the best wine I’ve had...have I built this wine up so much that I’m going to be disappointed?

I stopped, and thought that whatever preconceptions I have going in, forget them as much as possible, and just try it.

On my first sip all the fears went away. This is, flat out, my favorite wine. This is the standard I hold other wines to. When I try a $50 bottle, I think how does it compare to R Collection’s Cabernet?

The nose has lots of oak, dirt, and spice. There’s little fruit on the nose, but I do get a suggestion of cherries.

The palate has oak, tobacco, cinnamon, anise, blackberries, cherries, spice, and earth...there’s even a bit of that cola flavor I love. On top of all that, the tannins are smooth and silky. A wonderful balance of earth and fruit. The finish has an interesting start of anise and then fades to strawberries.

This is it, if this bottle was $50 I’d buy it again.

2005 Santa Julia Torrontes

Inching closer to the Wine Century Club: A Torrontes from Argentina. I don’t recall the price, but it was under $10 for sure.

This wine is, I believe the scientific term is, “meh.” No nose, no real body, nothing really there. It’s inoffensive, which some may argue, makes it offensive. The nose has some citrus, I suppose. It’s mild. Grapefruit and grapes on the palate. No finish to speak of.

So this is where you need to think about cost/value ratio. Even if I paid $8 for this, it’s still $8 for 750ml.

Let’s do the obnoxious comparison: If gas cost $8 per 750 ml, then one gallon of gas would be over $40. What’s the point of this comparison? Even cheap wine isn’t cheap, so you may as well pass up on the stuff that’s mediocre.

2004 Crios de Susana Balbo Syrah/Bonarda

I opened this bottle less than 48 hours ago because I needed some red wine for a recipe. So this has been open for almost two days before this wine was tasted for review.

Other than alcohol, all I get is pepper on the nose

Blackberry with spice, oak, and tobacco on the palate. Smooth tannins, well balanced oak and fruit. When I first opened the bottle I remember thinking it was somewhat harsh, but after a few days it definitely evened out and is quite good. At $10 this isn’t a bad deal.

2004 Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Riesling Qualitatswein

Yep, that’s right....that’s the bottle. Awesome, no? Every so often I get suckered in by fancy packaging and this is one of them. $10 at World Market and the bottle is 500 ml (versus your typical 750 ml bottle).

I get green apples on the nose

There’s a bit of sweetness in this one, but there’s enough acid to balance–exactly what I like. Green apples, honey, and pears on the palate. The finish is a big punch of Granny Smith apples and it lingers for a quite a while.

Cheap Rieslings out of Germany are pretty much right up my alley and this fits the bill nicely.

2005 The Stump Jump White Blend

This is a blend of Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Marsanne and Rousanne.

To me, I get a lot of the Sauvignon Blanc. I don't taste much Riesling and there are some unique tastes that I assume come from the Marsanne and Rousanne.

The nose is mild with tropical fruit with a bit of grapefruit cutting through.

The palate has grapefruit on it, of course...a bit of orange zest as well. It's a fairly dry wine and has plenty of acid so this is a food friendly wine.

My palate prefers a bit of sweetness somewhere in there, and though this has the sharp fruit, there's not a whole lot of sugar which is why though I don't hate it, this really isn't something I'd have again.

It's not bad, don't get me wrong...as a dry white that I'm not offended by, this is almost a ringing endorsement, I just am the type who has to really love something to stick with it.

2005 St. Gisbertus Eiswein

I was browsing the Sunday newspaper ads and casually looked at the flyer for Aldi which had a in bold letters: EISWINE: $9.99. It must be crap I assumed, seeing as the cheapest eiswines from Germany I’ve seen are more than double that.

But alas, I was driving by Aldi and felt intrigued...an Eiswein for $10? I was too intrigued not to give it a shot.

The nose shows lots of honey and something vaguely like pineapple upside down cake...not just pineapples, but pineapples with perhaps some caramel and added sugar.

The palate is pretty much nothing more than apples. This tastes like apple juice. There’s no real burst of complexity...after letting it linger on the palate for a while I get some pineapple and a bit of apricot on the finish.

I wouldn’t call it crap, but I wouldn’t call it a great quality eiswein. It’s drinkable, if you’ve never had German style dessert wine do not hesitate picking this up to get a general feel, this is the type of wine that’s just almost there...it’s not quite good enough to warrant buying again, especially since I’ve had some great late harvest wines within a few dollars of this one that are exponentially better.

2002 Jean Leon Terrasola Muscat/Parellada

The quest for 100 varietals continues with this blend of 87% Muscat and 13% Parellada. We’ve had tons of Muscats, a varietal we like and that typically has some sweetness in it, but the Parellada is a new one.

I opened this bottle knowing the varietals but not knowing anything else about it (I bought it a while ago and forgot where it was from), on my first sip I thought “hmm, tastes like Spain.” Sure enough....it’s from Spain.

What does “Spain” taste like? Typical words I’d use are funky, strange, and interesting.

The nose is mild, but I get honey.

Being mostly Muscat, this has a lot of those qualities but the Parellada clearly pumped something into it. This is fuller bodied than I’m used to, not terribly sweet, and has plenty of acid. I get a bit of honey on the palate, but it’s mostly orange and floral notes. There’s enough acid to make your mouth water for quite a while on the finish. There's something else that lingers, but I can't place it...floral, almost like chamomile.

It’s not bad, but it’s not something I’d buy again.

2004 Bonny Doon Big House Red

I continue my pursuit of the Wine Century Club with this blend of red wine. It’s got Carignane, Petite Sirah, Sangiovesse, Zinfandel, Barbera, Syrah, Malbec, and Montepulciano. They don’t disclose percentages, but I’d guess the earlier in the list, the higher the percentage.

The only grape in there I haven’t had in that lot is Montepulciano...but blends count, so I’ll check that one off the list.

You can find this bottle almost anywhere for under $10...catch a sale and you may get it for $7. If you see it on sale, I’d suggest you pick a bottle up.

We let this one open for a long time before drinking it.

We both get anise and alcohol on the nose and not much else.

Blackberry on the palate, with some nice smoke, spice, and wood. This blend is made of pretty much all unusual varietals and it gives it a unique quality. It’s a fuller bodied red wine that demands heavy foods...think grilled.

A tremendous value from a reputable winery...if something is made by Bonny Doon, I don’t hesitate picking it up.

2005 Hope Estate Hunter Valley Verdelho

Further working our way to the Wine Century club, I present you with a Verdelho made by Hope Estate in Australia.

Most of the unusual red wines we have are good, but I can't say there's a varietal of red wine we flat out do not like...Shiraz tend to be hit or miss, but a decent red varietal is a safe bet...whereas there's lots of white we don't like....the best Chardonnay out there, we'd probably hate...lots of Sauvignon Blancs we don't care for, there's a whole style of Riesling we dislike, etc....so I'm hesitant with a lot of these whites.

Fran gets florals notes on the nose, all I get is pineapple. The palate is somewhat like a Sauvignon Blanc...tropical fruit, grapefruit, lots of acid, not sweet, and it has a lemon-lime finish. I had two glasses over two nights and pitched the bottle.

It's interesting, but not something we'd try again I'd say. I'd hope that in our quest for 100 we find something unusual that really grabs us, but this one isn't doing it.

2004 Colonia Las Libres Bonarda

The next few wines will feature strange varietals because I recently discovered something called "The Wine Century Club"....to join, you have to have tried at least 100 different grape varietals. Looking at the list, we've had 63 and being a tad bit OCD, getting at least 37 done by the end of the year is a serious goal I intend to meet.

The good news is that since these varietals are unpopular, they tend to be less expensive. The bad news is they're lack of popularity makes them somewhat difficult to come by.

Right now it's not too difficult hunting down strange varietals but I'm sure once we get to 95 we'll hit a huge brick wall.

So, here we are...a $6 Bonarda from Argentina made by Colonia Las Liebre.

After a few sips, this just tasted strange to me...so I picked up the bottle and there it was: "unoaked red wine." Most red wine we drink is aged in oak, so this tasted a little off, but now that makes sense. And now that I understand what it is, I can judge it accordingly rather than "this is odd."

On the nose, we both get strawberries...almost Twizzler like.

So here's the funny thing...I seem to taste a bit of oak in this one. Since it's a unique varietal, it's something I never had before and I just can't place my finger on it. It reminds me of Grenache in a way. Plenty of earth with some berries and some smoke. I taste what I'd generically call "black fruit" (think plums, black grapes). But even without oak it's still get some body to it.

An excellent wine for $6, if you're in the mood for a new varietal this may be worth your time.

2003 Pepi Sangiovesse

We didn't feel like cooking, so we opted to go for pizza for dinner. I browsed the aisle looking for something interesting and this Sangiovesse caught my eye. Well Pepi drink with pizza as well as Pepsi does?

This one is darker than I'd expect from a Sangiovesse.

Raspberries and strawberries on the nose.

Cherries, raspberries, earth, and spice on the palate. Tannins are mild and smooth making this an easy drinking wine though I do find it to be heavier than a typical Chianti.

2005 Terrazas de los Andes Malbec

I felt like something a bit different than the big named reds so I grabbed a Malbec from Argentina. I picked this up for $10.

Lots of oak on the nose and not much else. Mild tannins, plenty of earth, some spice, a little berry fruit, and a bit of tobacco on the palate. The finish lingers with raspberries. It's a smooth wine, it's light-medium bodied, and quite easy drinking.

This is pretty much the ideal wine to bring to a dinner party or serve to guests...the price is right, the wine is excellent, not too complex, and not too heavy so it can pair with almost anything. This wine is certainly case worthy....I look forward to moving into a larger place where we can stock up on wine like this.

2004 A-Z Oregon Pinot Noir

I was in the mood for a Pinot Noir so I headed straight to the under $15 section and picked this one up just at the edge of price range at $14.99.

Not a whole lot on the nose.

Pepper, herbs, mint, eucalyptis, and earth on the palate with a bit of raspberry. If you like earthy Pinot Noirs this is for you. It's a fairly easy drinking wine, light bodied, and enjoyable by itself.

If you want to give an earthy Pinot Noir a shot, this is a good one to try, it's excellent and the price is right. If you prefer fruit bombs, this is not the one for you.

Update

So we went a while without posting, but our wine drinking did not stop....just some computer issues that are now resolved.

There's a few more updates I have to put up. Unfortunately, we weren't as diligent with our tasting notes in the downtime but I reckon that quick phrases here and there are better than nothing.

2005 Chateau Lamothe de Haux

I was at a wine shop today and realized that Fran and I really have never had a white Bordeaux before. We've tried a few at tastings, but nothing I can remember. So I picked up this bottle for $13 to give it a shot.

Orange zest and grapefruit on the nose.

Grassy and mineral notes with loads of grapefruit on the palate. It's quite acidic, my mouth waters for a long while after drinking and it is a dry wine---drier than I normally look for, but I still enjoy it. This is a fantastic wine...one that has sold me on White Bordeauxs. I look forward to trying more.

2003 Cotes du Rhone E. Guigal

This is one of our favorites. It's $11 generally, but I've seen it for under $10 which is a steal.

We'll start off with the negative--this wine has almost no nose...I get earth and that's about it. Fran gets some hints of berries, but can't place it.

A little bit of spice, anise, and earth mix with blackberries on the palate. The tannins are smooth and this is an easy drinking, fairly simple wine.

But the interesting thing about it is how stronger it gets as it opens. When you first pour it, it's excellent--smooth and balanced. Let it sit for an hour or two and all of a sudden the tannins firm up, the herbs become stronger, and the anise kicks in. There's still some berries, but plenty of earth shows up well into the evening.

Everything blends together nicely and this will basically go with anything....we're having it with veggie burgers and fries and I find it to be a winning combination. This is another one of those wines that makes me said we don't live in a larger place...if we had a basement or room for a wine fridge, I'd gladly pick this up by the case.

2004 Ironstone Symphony Obsession

The Symphony grape is a cross between Muscat of Alexandria and Grenache Gris.

While I realize this is a unique grape varietal, it's extremely close to your typical Muscat. Sweet, fruity, with a bit of acid to round it out. A generally inexpensive wine that's usually quite consistent--I don't recall ever having a bad Muscat.

The nose is mainly tropical fruit, apples, and grapes.

Lots of tropical fruit, pineapple, and grapes on the palate and it even has a hint of spice. It's sweet, but not cloyingly so, and acidic enough to be balanced.

I found this on sale for $6 and it's certainly a good deal. If you enjoy Muscats in their various forms, or even sweet German style wines, this would be something to look into. This would be perfect with any sort of spicy faire--anything like Thai, Mexican, or Indian food would compliment it well.

N/V Jonesy Old Tawny Port

Very dark...almost black coming out of the bottle.

On the palate: raisins, walnuts, some vanilla. No alcohol burn, no harshness, this is smooth yet complex. Nutty, long finish.

This is an impressive Port which I consider my "house dessert wine." It's rare that I don't have a bottle at hand. It's a shocking value: at around $10, the price is absurd. Buy this by the case, let it sit in the cellar, and drink at your leisure. It's got a screwcap so I would resist letting it sit for decades, but the complexity suggests it would last for quite a while.

A great wine at a groing grabbingly good deal. Buy it and thank me later.

2004 Cheyanna Red Wine

This is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Syrah, and Merlot.

Blackberry notes on the nose but really not much there on the nose.

Black pepper, anise, cherry, and blackberry on the palate. Fran gets tobacco notes, but to me it's just oak and spice. In spite of the spicy notes, the tannins are nice and smooth. This is an excellent wine, smooth enough to just enjoy, but complex enough to think about.

This is a repeat buy for us...we've had this wine several times which means it's a great wine and a value ($13 or so). I'll be buying it again without question and seriously wish I had more space to store wine becuase this is case-worthy.

2005 Naia

Grapefruit and some floral hints on the nose.

Grapefruit, lemon zest, and loads of minerals on the palate. This reminds me a lot of a Sauvignon Blanc....a varietal you won't read much about here since neither one us particularly care for it.

We had this at a wine tasting and quite frankly I'm a bit shocked we bought it. It's not our typical style and it didn't win me over. It's certainly not bad, and if you like the grapefruit mineral punch of Sauvignon Blanc, this would probably be worthy of your wine rack.

2004 Two Brothers Big Tattoo White

Big Tattoo White...hey...I have tattoos, maybe I should try it? Yep, that's the mentality, and for $8 I stand by it.



Peaches and orange zest. Sweet, but not cloying, and plenty of acid to balance it out. This is an excellent summer wine...which is why we cracked it open before winter arrives. This is a bargain and strongly recommended.

2004 Clos Du Bois Pinot Noir Sonoma County

This bottle retails for $18 but I found it on sale for $13.

All that I get is blackberry on the nose.

The palate has some spice and cherries as well as blackberries. There’s a fair amount of oak to give it a nice backbone. It’s smooth, and while it’s very light in color has some weight behind it. Well worth the original asking price of $18 and on sale for under $15 this is a must buy.. Clos Du Bois is a well known and respected producer of wine and for good reason. This is an excellent wine, appropriately priced, and worthy of repurchase.

2002 Clarendon Hills Old Vines Grenache, Blewitt Springs Vineyard

I decided to open a special occasion wine due to some bad news coming down the pipe. This retails at about $50 a bottle.

I get plenty of wood and anise on the nose with some miscellaneous black fruit. Plums maybe.

This a nice full bodied Grenache. Incredibly smooth, loads of fruit, wood, and anise just blend together perfectly. The tannins are firm yet silky. The fruit is mainly raspberry (ripe, rich, farmer’s market quality raspberries that were picked only hours before you ate them) with a hint of black cherry. The oak is smokey, and there’s a lot of smooth anise. There's even a suggestion of Cherry Coke. Fran gets dark chocolate on the finish, all I get is anise and it lasts for well over a minute.

Perfectly balanced, incredibly smooth, an extremely long finish...this is phenomenal. When you consider the quality, the price tag is no shock.

2003 Mount Pleasant Cabernet Sauvignon

Earlier in this blog we reviewed a white wine from Mount Pleasant negatively, and in that review I said I was looking forward to opening up one of their reds so they’re consistently good.

So, here we are. The 2003 Cabernet Sauvingon which retails at $25.99.

Even after a two hours in the decanter, the wine was still a bit tight, so it needs a lot of time to open up.

On the nose I get a hit of alcohol with oak. There’s also some cherries.

The palate is not unlike the nose: oak and cherries. The tannins are mild but there’s quite a bit of acid which makes it a little sharp. It’s a good wine, but it’s very simple–other than the cherries and oak there’s nothing really going on in the glass. At $25 bottle, I generally expect some more complexity than this.

My only gripe is the price. It’s a good bottle of wine, firm enough to stand up to hearty food but smooth enough to enjoy a glass alone.

2005 Cederberg Bukettraube

Bukettraube is an somewhat unusual varietal the pretty much only comes out of South Africa. At $15 a bottle, it came with a strong recommendation, so I decided to pick up a bottle and give it a shot.

Fran and I both sipped our wines at about the same time and our reaction were pretty much the same—we wrinkled our brows and both let out a “huh.”

This tastes like a funky blend...a bit Gewurtztraminer, a bit Sauvignon Blanc, a bit Riesling, and perhaps a hint of Chardonnay.

There’s plenty of interesting spicy flavors going on, a fair amount of tropical fruit (pineapple, apricots), lots of grapefruit, and just a bit of cream on the finish, a bit of sweetness and a lot of acid...it’s unusual but more in the combination rather than the individual flavors.

If you’re a fan of whites, especially the non-oaked varietals, I’d say this is worth a shot

2004 Essensia Orange Muscat

On the palate I get peaches and pineapple with a bit of apricot. The nose has oranges and there’s a bit of it on the palate, but it’s in the background. The varietal is “Orange Muscat” so it’s not like orange flavor was added, the grape naturally has some citrus flavors to it.

It’s surprisingly acidic and isn’t overwhelmingly sweet. If you don’t care for that teeth rotting sensation that sometimes accompanies dessert wines, this may be worth trying since it’s reasonably balanced.

The finish is very long with peaches, a bit of spice, and a hint of oak (think peach pie). Brandy was added to this and unfortunately it brings a slightly unpleasant burn on the finish. It is mild enough that I won't be dumping the bottle, but it’s certainly flawed and with the amount of dessert wines out there I won’t be picking it up again.

2003 (?) Karma Vista, Stone Temple Pinot Noir

Karma Vista Vineyards is a winery in Southwest Michigan. Many of their wines are named after the varietal, but some named after songs and bands (for example: Pink Side of the Moon, Starry Starry White).

A couple friends of ours, Jen and Joe visited there and brought us back a bottle of Stone Temple Pinot (thanks guys!). I think it’s a reference to Stone Temple Pilots? A wine referencing STP seems strange coming from a place which references Pink Floyd and Don McClean. Fran asked me to come up with another pun on Pinot if I’m so smart...going to “no” route gives dozens of easy ones: “Pinot More Lies”–Iron Maiden. “Pinot More” or “Pinot Values”--Black Flag. “Pinot Voices in the Sky”–Motorhead. “Pinotbody Knows Anything”–Anthrax.

If someone names a wine referencing Motorhead, I’m buying it by the case. When I retire, I just may buy a vineyard and name it Chateau Lemmy.

Back to the wine:

There’s no year on the label, but they don’t do a non-vintage Pinot. I’m guessing it’s 2003 since there’s a “tasting sheet” on the web that cites 2003.

This is probably the lightest red wines I’ve ever seen. A lot of Beaujolais, in fact–and this is no joke–I’ve seen rose darker than this.

The nose is earthy–a good sign for Pinot Noir–and an unexpected one for such a light wine. Fran gets cherries and anise.

The palate on this is one is really interesting. As the color suggests, it’s light...extremely light. However, it’s got quite a few, albeit subtle, things going on. I taste a little bit of oak, I get a bit of earth, and a bit of raspberries. It’s a nicely balanced, but extremely light wine.

Pairing this would be a problem. A wine so light and delicate if you serve this with anything it will be overwhelmed. The other big problem is that a wine this light, with 12% alcohol can be dangerous...proceed with caution but enjoy.

NV Marshall Field's Vivid Sparkling Rose

It’s ironic, no? A New York sparkling wine is our fond farewell to the Chicago institution Marshall Field’s after being taken over by those New York bastards.

This is a sparkling rose, according to the bottle, from New York.

What’s it like? Sparkling White Zinfandel if I had to compare it to anything.

Lots of wine people scoff at White Zin. I’m one of those people who feels that White Zinfandel is what it is. It’s alcoholic Kool-Aid. It’s not terrible, but it’s certainly not wine...more wine cooler than anything.

I get strawberries in this one, it’s sweet, but not overwhelmingly so and there’s no acid. I pretty much just described White Zinfandel to you. Inoffensive, sweet enough, and fruity. It is what it is...don't buy this expecting a quality wine, buy it realizing it's essentially "adult Cherry 7-Up."

2003 Marquis Philips Cabernet Sauvignon

With the previous bottle not lasting more than a single glass, we decided to go for something relatively safe. Our local wine shop had this on sale for $10, compared to their normal price of $16.

I get tomatoes on the nose as well as herbs, oak, and olives. It’s pretty funky honestly...I believe the term people use is “green.” These are actually new smells to me, so I was concerned.

No worries, as the Aussies say, as this is excellent. Exceptionally smooth with quite a bit of jam, lots of fruit– blueberries, cherries, and plums. Tannins are silky. Oak and spice are in the background, but this is more of a fruit bomb than anything. I keep trying to taste those funky flavors, and all I can pick up is some subtle herbs.

Even at $16 this would’ve been worth it. An excellent, bold New World Cabernet that would go nicely with big food....eggplant dishes, pastas with heavy sauces, and so forth.

N/V Marshall Field's Cabernet Sauvignon

There is no year on this bottle, so I can only assume it’s non-vintage, which is interesting. I’ve never seen a non-vintage California Cabernet.

On the nose I don’t get much fruit but there is quite a bit of cinnamon and perhaps a trace of blackberry.

The color of this wine is strange...it’s dark red but I get a lot of brown tones in it.

On the palate there’s some spice, berry fruit, and smooth tannins. However, there’s a lot of acid, in fact....we’re both having Charles Shaw flashbacks. The overwhelming acid is making this wine taste quite sour and I’m at a point where I feel life is way too short to drink crap....down the drain you go.

I would not buy this again, nor would I recommend you buy it unless you want a souvenir...and if you want a souvenir, why aren’t you buying a box of Frango mints?

2005 Marshall Field's Pinot Grigio

Forgive me for being smug, but when I first poured a glass of this wine I remarked to Fran “I think they may have replaced the wine in this bottle with water.”

There’s nothing going on here. It’s pretty eye opening in a way...if there's one thing I can say about this it's that I've never had wine like this before. I've had my share of cheap Pinot Grigio but nothing like this (and at $10, this is pricier than respectable low end producers like Ecco Domani and Gabbiano).

On the nose–-grapes. Just grapes. Many Illinois wineries make wine out of a Niagra grapes that tastes pretty much just like alcoholic grape juice–-no acid, no definition, no complexity, just grapes and sugar: this smells like that.

On the palate, unlike Niagra, it’s not terribly sweet. There is some fruitiness (in the form of grapes), very low acid (if any), and other than grapes, the only flavor I get is alcohol.

The bottle says “Fabulous with Fried Foods,” I wonder if the person who wrote that is the creator of “Hi and Lois” because they are making me laugh.

Instead of buying a bottle of this, I will give you a recipe to make a very similar tasting drink: Take 16 ounces of water, one ounce vodka, and one half ounce white grape juice. Shake with ice, strain, and serve in a wine glass.

N/V Brut Sparkling Wine Marshall Field's

September 9, 2006 will mark a sad day for Chicago history. The New York bastards at Macy’s are renaming our beloved Marshall Field’s. I have fond memories of visiting the store with my grandma, dining in the Walnut Room, eating so many Frango mints I was ready to puke, and seeing the window displays at Christmas. When Fran and I got married Marshall Field was one of the two stores we bothered registering. When I go gift shopping, Field’s is my first stop...whether I have something in mind or not. After I clear out our store’s stock of Frontera Grill salsas I will officially be a Nordstrom’s man. It’s a dark day, friends...

To celebrate the end of an era in Chicago, I present to you Marshall Field’s wine weekend. (Yes, I am well aware that by buying this wine I gave money to those Macy’s bastards, and no I don’t really think anything I bought today will be better than decent, but it’s worth a shot).

We start a bottle of “Brut”...a sparkling wine, believe it or not. It's a private label and all I know about it is made by "KDM Global Partners" and it's from California. This is an 187ml bottle, which is just over a glass of wine. According to the bottle it’s: “amazing with...absolutely everything!” Is it?

Well, it’s alright. Yeasty, dry, and pear flavors make it a decent sparkling wine. Very simple, crisp, it’s not bad but it’s certainly not amazing, nor is it great, nor is it exactly what I’d call “good”...but it’s drinkable, and that’s really all I expected. Not much else to say about it really.