2005 Smoking Loon Pinot Noir

We had another wine from this label some time ago and I thought it was fine so I didn't hesitate to grab this one when I was on a streak of buying cheap Pinot Noir.

Funky, rotten raspberry on the nose.

Mild tannins, a touch of sweetness, a hint of oak, cherry, and carob. There's a nice acidic zing here that balances this out well.

Some oak comes through on the finish and some tannins start to come forward.

Not great, but for a $7 Pinot it's alright. I think, with the exception of the “Bistro Wine” previously reviewed, I'm going to stop buying cheap Pinot after I exhaust what's left in the wine fridge.

2005 Gabbiano Chianti Classico

Good ol' Gabbiano. A generally reliable producer of Chianti that I never hesitate picking up. This one ran me $10.

Earth and spice on the nose.

A nice Chianti – earthy, funky, some chocolate, a bit of cherry, some blackberry, and a nice balance of oak, all with a reasonable amount of acid. The regular Chianti from Gabbiano is light and zingy, this is a fairly bold wine, lots of funk and earthy notes.

I'm getting a big of cinnamon and spice on the finish that didn't really come through on the palate.

I consider Gabbiano a reliable brand – good, sometimes damn good, especially when you consider the pricepoint.

N/V Yellow Tail Sparkling Wine

I've been seeing this around and figured I might as well try it – on sale for $8, why not?

A bit of green apple on the nose.

The palate on this...oh man....I don't know if I've ever had a sparkling wine that I've been this repulsed by. This is excessively sweet and even worse, quite sour....sour, rotting green apples. If there are subtle nuances here I'm not about to take the time to taste them – I wouldn't even call this drinkable. It almost makes me wonder if this is a bad bottle – regular Yellow Tail isn't great, but I wouldn't even dream of comparing it to this.

Once it leaves the palate, the finish is nothing to really mention.

Never again....if you must buy a bottle of Yellow Tail, grab a bottle of the reserve Shiraz.

1998 Gattinara Vendemmia

This is a new one to us. I don't know what I paid for this but I do know it was on a clearance sale so it was heavily discounted – by at least 50% and based on where I put this on the rack, the retail must've been at least $35. I tried to do some research but couldn't find much info.

Dirt and barnyard on the nose.

Acidic and thensome at first open...this definitely needs some food to take the edge off. Other than that, it's quite pleasant, the tannins are mellow, nice cherry and berry flavors with a bit oak, some chocolatey hints, and a touch of sweet oak.

The acid continues on the finish with some nice earthy and berry flavors lingering.

This is very good but it's also very acidic, funky, and earthy - qualities that many people won't be into. Serve it with some hearty Italian faire and you'll be set.

2003 Evenus Zinfandel Port

I bought this a while back for about $10 (half bottle) at Trader Joe's. I've had some fake “Ports” before, but don't think I've ever had a Zinfandel Port before.

Chocolate and cherry on the nose.

Chocolate, cherry, and raspberry with plenty of dried fruit – raisin/prune, yet not much tannin. No depth or anything really interesting going on. After this has been open for a few days, some nuttiness is coming through, but it's really quite minor...honesty, it's not much further beyond a typical fruit bomb Zinfandel....lots of fruit, a touch of earthiness, and that's about it.

The finish fades fairly quickly...some alcohol lingers as well as some raisin, but nothing exciting.

Let's just call this a Late Harvest Zinfandel. $10 for a 375ml dessert wine isn't bad, but it's not great. There's some better “Port” coming out of Australia and for $10 you'd get a full bottle. If Ruby Port is too bold for you, maybe you'll take a shine to this, otherwise – skip it.

2005 St. James Winery Riesling

Another Missouri wine, don't recall the price, but under $10.

Peach on the nose.

The palate has plenty of stone fruit and just a bit of green apple and even a hint of grape...bordering on too sweet though there is enough acid to make it drinkable.

Stone fruit on the finish, subtlety peachy - white peach I'll say.

Even though I do tend to like my Rieslings a bit sweet, this one is close to being too sweet. It's not bad, if you like sweet and peachy Rieslings, this would be alright.

2004 Flourish Cabernet Sauvignon

I was at the local Albertson's owned grocery store and saw this line of wine – all organically grown from various parts of the world. I figured it was worth a shot because they had a sale – three bottles for $15 – regular price $11.99 each. While I doubt it's ever not on sale, I figured that's a severe enough discount to warrant grabbing a few.

Cherry and funk on the nose.

Cherry, strawberry, a bit of sweetness, and extremely mild tannin.

Strawberry – dare I saw of the Twizzler type – on the finish.

For $5 – why not? For $12 - I wouldn't have been happy. I suppose it works, it's on par with Yellow Tail – acceptable and perfectly good with simple fare like pizza or burgers.

2005 Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon

This is our first attempt at a red wine in a box. I've read some fairly positive things about this so I figured I'd give it a shot. This three liter box was $14.99 – which means this is the equivalent of a S3.75 bottle.

Dirt and blackberry on the nose.

Smooth – blueberry, cherry, oak, just a slightest bit of anise and tobacco, and mild (but certainly present) tannins.

Blueberry mostly on the finish though I'm getting a bit of cinammon.

Simple and inoffensive – great for burgers or pizza.

2006 Lynfred Winery Pinot Grigio

When we closed on our condo, our mortgage broker gave us this bottle as a gift – a nice gesture though after I saw the cut he was getting after signing my name a hundred times, all I could think was: “yo goober, where's the Dom?”

I hate describing the nose on Pinot Grigio because it's distinct...it smells like Pinot Grigio.

I'm used to a touch of sweetness in Pinot Grigio but I'd call this one bone dry...to the point that if you gave it to me blind I'd guess it was some sort of PG blend with Sauvignon Blanc. Stone fruit of all sorts – white peach mainly, but a bit of nectarine. A lot of mineral qualities that I'm bad at describing – slate?

A short finish suggesting more of that slate.

This one runs for $17.50 which I think makes it one of the pricier Pinot Grigio's that we've had – I'm sure there are better bottles out there, but I can't argue with this one. If you like this varietal but wish you could find a drier than usual bottle I'd say give this one a go. Recommended.

2004 The Colonial Estate Explorateur Shiraz

I love the “end of bin” clearances....this one was $5 marked down from about $20. The capsule felt fine, so why not?

This smells something like a bag with half cherry and half black licorice.

First and foremost – give this one a good two hours in the decanter before enjoying...it's very tight at first but opens nicely. The palate actually has a bit of balance – fruity but enough oak and earth to really bring it together. So much Australian Shiraz is of the “fruit bomb” persuasion, it's nice to get something a bit more even.

A bit of aak and cherry come out on the finish with some peppery notes.

For $5 – are you kidding? Is it worth the $20+ some places are charging? I'm leaning towards yes actually, especially if you're looking for a somewhat more sedate Shiraz.

2005 Chateau Grand Montet Bordeaux

We were at a local wine shop and a bunch of labels of the 2005 Bordeaux were in. They had apparently recently had a tasting of the labels and the guy working suggested a few that went over well with the crowd. This was $8 and the cheapest one he recommended.

Earth and cherry on the nose.

Soon after opening, I found this a bit sweet honestly, mild/medium tannins, cherry, and somewhat earthy. As it opened, a lot more earth came through, oak, the fruit calmed down a bit and I found the bottle far more enjoyable.

Some oak and berry on the finish.

My first draft on this wine was negative – but after a few hours of airtime, I think I'm sold. I found it too fruity and a bit sweet at first, but as the earthiness comes out, this really is a nice wine. When I sit and really focus, it is a bit too fruity, but just for casual drinking – and for $8, I'm not drinking this for academic reasons – I think this works fine.

2006 Orleans Hills Cote Zero

This caught my eye – no sulfites added, completely organic, and a whopping $8.

A somewhat grapey nose with some earth.

This is strange....very acidic, somewhat grapey, no oak, little tannin, yet dry. It almost tastes like a white, but feels like a red. This is a Grenache, Syrah, Viognier blend, and it's just odd. I've never had a wine with mainstrem (ie, non-hybrid - like Chambourcin) grapes that tastes this “grapey.”

I tried it at cellar temperature – a slight chill, and I figured it would be interesting to put it on ice. The acid has calmed down a bit, but no real depth comes through that didn't before. Just grapes and some weird funk....no jam, no spice, nothing. It reminds me of an Illinois wine really.

Earth and grape on the finish.

It's weird. I can't say I like it. I suppose if you're die hard vegan, organic, and have sensitivities to sulfite this may be better than nothing, but I personally wouldn't recommend it otherwise.

2007 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau

I had actually decided to not partake in the BN craze this year, but I happened to be driving by a liquor store and decided I'd drop in to see if they had any. This was the only label they carried and it ran me about $10.

I don't know how else to describe the nose other than freshly removed gym socks.

The palate brings tart cherries, raspberries, licorice, and even a bit of barnyard....there's a bit of tannin and overall it's somewhat astringent – not enough to be offensive, but enough that food is pretty much in order.

Some of those tannic notes linger on the finish as well as a touch of blueberry that actually lasts for a while.

So many wine snobs bash this wine, but you need to accept it for what it is – a simple, easy quaff that's enjoyable for a bottle or two every late November. Personally, this one is good enough - and I've been very iffy about this producer - that I may hit up one of the bigger wine shops tomorrow and grab a few more bottles.

2006 A to Z Oregon Rose

We've had some A to Z wines before...I really enjoyed their Pinot Noir we had a while back so I grabbed a bottle of this when I saw it for about $11.

Cherry and herbal notes on the nose.

Lots of acid on the palate, not a whole lot of sweetness - cherry, spice (cinnamon?), watermelon rind, and raspberry.

The finish lingers with lots of acid complimenting the herbal and raspberry notes.

A very nice rose in general and definitely a good one for the price.

2004 Fetzer Valley Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon

Here's another from Fetzer, $6 or so, that you can pick up at any grocery store.

Large amounts of cherry, tobacco, and oak on the nose.

Cherry, blueberry, plum, and oak on the palate. After a couple days in the fridge, this hasn't changed much – plum, cherry, and a bit of oak bringing some mildish tannin.

A fruity finish that brings out more sweetness than I get on the palate. After sitting in the fridge for a few days, I got a bit more tannin and oak on the finish, but still some sweetness.

Not terribly complex and a bit too fruity to be called balanced, but for the price it's fine.

2005 Voga Quattro Italia

This was $8 at Costco. We thought the Voga white was alright and I figured this was worth a shot – I seem to recall reading a good review of this one somewhere.

Chocolate and cherry on the nose.

A weird blend creates a weird wine – this one has Merlot, Cabernet, Shiraz and Pinot Noir. Little to no tannin, not much acid, berries – strawberry mainly – chocolate, and earth.

No real finish except for some mild oak notes and a slight bit of rotten strawberry that fade quickly.

$8 is a pretty good price for this bottle which I normally see for about $10 – but I still wouldn't recommend it. A bit more acid and a bit less may have given it some balance but without it, there's just not much here but flab.

N/V Aria Cava Brut

We had this at a restaurant not long ago and I enjoyed it enough to snag a bottle when I found it on sale for a mere $9.

A yeasty nose with some lemony notes.

The palate is light and crisp – nice acid, a bit of citrus fruit and a bit of a yeasty feel. The key flavor I'm getting is lime.

A lingering finish, with acid and lime.

At this price I have no gripes. Far better than any of the mass produced sparklers like Korbel out there, this is definitely worth a trip to a wine shop....a nice tasting wine though a bit simple. While I won't be grabbing this particular bottle again for a while, I wouldn't hesitate grabbing a few others in the Aria line to see what they have to offer.

2005 Sketch Book Mendocino County Pinot Noir

I don't remember much about this one....and a bit of poking around the internet shows I don't know where I bought this or what I paid, other than I hope I didn't pay more than $15.

Funk, cherry, and pepper on the nose.

A bit of cola, cherry, strawberry, earth, funk, a bit of chocolate, and smooth tannin. Nice depth, good acid, and really quite enjoyable all around.

Some oak comes out on the finish as well as a touch of tobacco, and some cherry.

If I knew where I bought this and I found it again for under $15 I'd cheerfully grab a few more bottles.

2006 Robert Mondavi Private Selection California Pinot Noir

The Mondavi wines we've had have been hit or miss, but I figured this was worth a shot for $9.

Earth and funk on the nose

Strawberry, earth, a bit of cherry, sweet oak, lots of acid which mellowed after a few hours, and a bit of chocolate. Not bad really.

Tannins show up on the finish and linger a bit with strawberry and wood.

Not bad for $9 really, let it breath for a while or sit on the rack for a few months (it's still a bit young, though I wouldn't call it ageworthy in any sense), but there's enough Pinot qualities that I wouldn't hesitate giving this one a mild recommendation.

N/V Founders Reserve Sandeman Porto

When Fran and I were looking to decorate our apartment with some posters, I stumbled across an array of (reproductions of) vintage posters of Sandeman Port. I liked the logo, but assumed the brand was long gone. As I was browsing a local shop, I saw a whole line of Sandeman Port and knew I had to grab a bottle. This was the priciest bottle at $16 for 750 ml.

Raisin and alcohol on the nose.

A bit of alcohol burn, rich tobacco, overripe plum (prune really), brown sugar....a solid Ruby style Port. After a few weeks of being open, the tobacco is beginning to take over – not terribly sweet, a nice bit of acid and some interesting earthy qualities – I'd enjoy this more if I had a cigar.

The finish brings some earthy notes and lingering burn from the alcohol.

Not bad. For an under $20 bottle of Port, you can do worse...but I still view Port as a splurge beverage since a bottle lasts so long you may as well drop some coin and stretch it out. If you're starting out with Port, buying for a dinner party, or simply not willing to pay a lot for a bottle but are desperate for “real” Port, then you can do worse....but I'd still save a few dollars and buy the Port-like Australian fortified wine made by Jonesy.