This sauvignon blanc is from their “Limited Selection” line of wines, one of several lines they produce.   And it comes from Leyda Valley.

The nose is a nice blend of vegetal and tropical with aromas of cut grass, nettles, lime and mango.  The flavors are well balanced and similar to the aromas, plus a pronounced mineral characteristic.  You’ll also find lemon and green apple flavors in the fruit family plus a subtle green bean flavor underneath that which add even more complexity beyond the fruit and mineral flavors.  A citrus note lingers on the finish.  It’s a really nice sauvignon blanc, particularly for those who don’t want over-the-top tropical fruit flavors.

Wine: Montes Limited Selection
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 89
Price: $15.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• YumSugar
• ABC Wine Reviews
• Canadian Wine Guy
• Barrysentials Wine Blog

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

Undurraga is one of the largest producers in Chile.  They now have several brands of wine, one of which is T.H., which stands for Terroir Hunter.  These are wines meant to express a particular location, or “terroir,” and there are actually three different types of sauvignon blanc offered under the T.H. brand.  This one is from the Leyda sector of San Antonio, but they also have one from Casablanca and one from Lo Abarca.  I suppose it would be interesting to sample and compare all three, but alas I only have the one from Leyda to taste.

There’s pretty good intensity on the nose of this sauvignon blanc.  It has  “cooling” aromas to it, like green pepper, green bean and wet stones.  But there are also some wafts of citrus underneath all that.  The citrus really pops on the palate, which has plenty of lemon, grapefruit and a touch of mango.  It finishes with a cool lemon/lime flavor that has good length.

Wine: T.H. Leyda
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 87
Price: $16.00

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

If there is a particular Cono Sur wine that you want to check out, you do need to pay attention to the name as they have several different lines of wine.  This one is from their “Organic” line, which you can identify at a glance by the bicycle on the label.

It’s a little bit restrained on the nose, but very nice nonetheless.  There’s a wet stone aroma that is cool and calming, and it just makes me smile.  There’s also soft citrus and a little bit of vegetal aroma, but not much.  The acidity and mouth feel are spot on.  This one has a lot of green apple flavor and a little bit of lemon.  The apple lasts well into the finish.  Consistent with my general take on Cono Sur wine, I like this one a lot but it doesn’t totally blow me away.

Wine: Cono Sur Organic
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 86
Price: $13.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• Drinkhacker
• Under the Grape Tree

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

Those who know me, know that I’m always critical of myself.  I constantly question my performance at work, play, or whatever I do, which motivates me to study more, practice more and employ rigorous processes around everything that I do.  Some might consider this to be neurotic, but knowing about the Dunning-Kruger effect, I consider self doubt to be a good thing.

I mention all that to say that my self doubt also comes into play when I’m reviewing wines.  I spend a good 15-20 minutes per wine when I’m taking tasting notes to be sure that I’m doing justice to the wines.  And when I taste a really good or really bad one, I come back to try it again later to make sure that I wasn’t just having a fluke moment with my palate.  Yet, with all this self doubt I do have some validating moments that reassure me that I’m doing things right — or at least consistent with others — and reviewing this wine was one of those moments.

I first tasted this wine as a part of a blind tasting and it instantly stood out to me as an outstanding wine.  I ended up giving it 91 points. I shared it with some colleagues the next day, along with a few other wines, and I told them that this one was exceptional.  I didn’t even realize until a few moments ago, when I sat down to write up this post, that this wine was #28 on Wine Spectator’s top 100 list from last year.  They gave it a 92.  I’m glad to see that we’re aligned on this one and it does give me some validation to see that my rating is pretty consistent with one of the established “authorities” on wine.

The price of this wine might be toward the top end of the price range for bargain hunters, but it might be worth a few extra bucks if you’re into sauvignon blanc.

This wine screams “New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc” with intense grassy and tropical fruit aromas.  The acidity is outstanding, giving this wine a brightness on the tongue.  I know that may sound weird, but it’s the best way to describe it.  Pineapple, grapefruit, mango and melon flavors explode in your mouth and last for minutes on the finish.  The intensity and concentration from this wine is incredible.  This is an exceptional sauvignon blanc.

Wine: Brancott Reserve
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 91
Price: $19.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• From the Gutt
• Canadian Wine Guy
• Gabe’s View

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

But first, here’s the video of that bull “dancing” all over some spectators.

The Dancing Bull Sauvignon Blanc is a California SB, and that’s as specific as the appellation gets.  That means that grapes for this wine were sourced from various regions in California, but most came from the Central Coast and Sonoma County.  Now, California isn’t typically my top pick for sauvignon blanc.  I’ve had a few from California that I’ve liked, but I’ve found that I generally have better luck with those from Chile or New Zealand.  So given that California isn’t my top pick for this variety and this is not an appellation specific wine, I wasn’t really expecting much from this wine, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Grapefruit, artichoke, green apple and tropical fruit aromas give this wine good character and complexity on the nose.  It has great acidity on the palate with refreshing citrus flavors like grapefruit and lime.  The finish is crisply acidic too, and there’s kind of a salty citrus aftertaste, like a margarita from a salted rim glass.  All told, this is a nice, tropical sauvignon blanc.

Wine: Dancing Bull
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 86
Price: $12.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• Cork’d
• Cellartracker

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

But this is where I get to make a point that it is important to note the vintage, because while the 2009 vintage of this wine is good, it’s not quite the mind-blowing experience that the 2008 was… OK, I might be going overboard with the “mind-blowing” language, but I’m a geek, I get excited about good wines.

Veramonte is a Chilean wine, and from the Casablanca Valley — where most of our favorite Chilean Sauvignon Blanc comes from.

Grapefruit, wet stones, melon and a touch of fresh cut grass give this Sauvignon Blanc refreshing aromas.  It’s super-citrusy on the palate with fresh squeezed grapefruit and lemon flavors that give you a slight pucker, but some melon flavors mellow it out. The mid-palate brings Granny Smith apple flavors that last into the finish where you’ll also get a reprise of lemon.  This is a mega-citrus example of Sauvignon Blanc and with that I’d recommend enjoying this with Tuna Tartare.  Yum.

Wine: Veramonte
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 86
Price: $11.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• About.com
• Serious Eats
• Cellartracker

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

Haras de Pirque made its first wines in the 2000 vintage, but the history of the property goes back a little further.  The owner, Eduardo A. Matte, purchased the estate in 1991, when it was just a thoroughbred horse farm.  He has since improved the horse farm and, obviously, launched the winery.  You may notice the horse images on their packaging, a reflection of the dual-mission of the estate — to breed exceptional horses and produce distinctive wines.

“Tangy, tangy, tangy” was the first thing I said when I smelled this wine.  But as I explore it further, I find that there’s quite a bit going on with this wine… quite a bit that I like.  Cool melon, flint and citrus aromas are most prevalent.  It has a touch of green to it, which smells somewhat like tomato leaf.  The palate is filled with lemon, melon and apple flavors.  The acidity is nice and crisp, nearly perfect.  This is a very good SB.

Wine: Haras de Pirque
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 13%
Rating: 88
Price: $12.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• Wino Magazine
• The Bottle Report
• My Wine Education

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

First of all, I love sangria.  Red sangria is actually the first wine drink I remember tasting when I was just 13 years old on a visit to Spain.  But I like both red sangria and white sangria.  I’ve made them both numerous times.  When I make sangria, I just use some inexpensive Spanish wine (usually grenache), fresh fruit, some brandy, triple sec, sugar and Sprite or just a club soda.  Here’s my sangria recipe, for the red version anyway.  So, I’m accustomed to mixing my own sangria rather than using a pre-made version, but I was curious how Reál Sangria would compare.

Reál Sangria White is labeled as being made with Spanish white wine and natural citrus flavors.  I’m not really sure what that means.  I would expect it to have natural citrus juices, but that’s not what it says.  The label also states that the alcohol level is 7 – 10%, which struck me as odd as I would expect a consistent production process to yield a consistent alcohol level.  I inquired with the PR rep about that, but didn’t get a reply.  It retails for $6.99 – $8.99 (depending on region) for a 750 ml bottle.

The aromas smell much more orange-like than wine-like, and it’s kind of an artificial orange too.  It reminds me a bit of Sunkist soda.  On the palate, it’s very sweet — which is to be expected from a wine in the 7 – 10% abv range.  And I don’t have a problem with sweet wines as long as that sweetness is well balanced with acidity.  But this drink is somewhat off-balance to me with a sugary sweetness that overpowers any other flavors.  The aftertaste is that of sugar-coated orange slices — you know, the candy ones.

It’s best served on ice, and/or used as a mixer (i.e. add a bunch of fresh fruit or fruit juice to it).  On its own, this isn’t really my cup of tea, due to the fact that I can’t really taste anything wine-like in it.  I prefer my sangria to have more wine flavors along with fresh citrus and other fruits.

Given that this didn’t strike my fancy, I asked my wife, Robyn, to give it a shot.  She loves sangria — even more than I do — although we both generally prefer red versus white.  Her review: “It’s pretty good on ice, with a salty snack… if you’re desperate.”  She then finished the bottle.

I guess she was desperate.

Disclosure: This product was received as a sample.

A few months back I decided to fill out an application for the Wine Century Club, a group that you can become a member of after you’ve tasted 100 different grape varieties.  I sat down with the application and picked my brain for which varieties I’ve tasted.  It was easy to come up with about 60, but then I was stuck.  Just past half way I found myself left with more tasting to do.  Since then I’ve worked my way up to about 80, but it’s tough for someone focused on everyday wines to come across 100 different varieties.  But I’ll get there soon.

Given this Wine Century challenge, I’m always excited when I come across a wine with unique grape varieties in it and thanks to Big House Red I was able to check off two more: tannat and sagrantino.  And if you’re just starting your Wine Century adventure you could be 13% done with one sip of Big House Red.  That’s right, there are a whopping 13 different grape varieties in this wine and the Wine Century Club does allow wines in blends to be counted.  Well, that’s true in most cases but there is one exception, the 2005 Giribaldi Cento Uve Lange DOC which has a staggering 152 grape varieties in one bottle and has been ruled as a non-qualifying wine for initial membership.  So, my quest continues.

The 2008 Big House Red is a blend of 23% syrah, 14% petite sirah, 9% grenache, 9% montepulciano, 6% mourvedre, 6% sangiovese, 6% aglianico, 6% tannat, 5% nero d’avola, 4% sagrantino, 3% touriga, 3% barbera and 3% petite verdot.  The wine was barrel aged in mostly French and American neutral oak.

This wine is available as either a bottled wine or a bag-in-box, but we only tasted the boxed version.  And it’s no ordinary box, rather it’s an “Octavin Home Wine Bar” which is branded name for an octagon-shaped box.  It looks a little nicer than a regular square box, but to my eyes it functions the same as any other bag-in-box packaging.

The artwork on the label is a little campy / cartoony, which doesn’t set the mood I usually want with a wine, but the juice inside is what really counts.

The complexity on the nose of this wine is outstanding, but not surprising with all the different grapes that go into it.  It has mostly raspberry and cherry aromas, but also some cola, leather and black pepper.  The palate is bursting with plum, cranberry, red raspberry and black cherry flavors with some spicy pepper kicking in on the finish.  The acidity is nearly perfect and smooth tannins give it a nice mouth feel.

It’s not what I would call an elegant wine, but more of a fruit bomb.  But it’s still enjoyable as a fruit bomb.  This would be a good wine to enjoy with burgers off the grill.

Wine: Big House Red
Variety: Red Blend
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 85
Price: $21.99 for 3L (equivalent to $5.50 per bottle)

Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• The Wine Cask Blog
• The CorkHead
• Norcal Wingman
• West Virginia Gazette
• Wine Chicks Guide to Inexpensive Wines
• DrinkHacker

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.

As the story goes, in 2006 a veteran winemaker worked alongside his protégé Boyd Morrison to explore old world winemaking traditions and in so doing realized a wine with a new world style.  Morrison used that inspiration to create Apothic Red.  The wine is a blend of zinfandel, Syrah and Merlot.

This is a dark colored wine with aromas that also smell… well…  dark—like chocolate, black pepper and salami.  Underneath those earthy aromas there are some sweet cola and berry aromas too.  It has a full mouth feel that’s bursting with ripe cherry and cola flavors.  It takes on a vanilla characteristic on the finish, and that sticks with you for some time.  This is not your run-of-the-mill, average cheap wine.  It’s different.  It’s interesting.  But be warned, it is a little bit on the sweet side for a red.  It’s not a sweet wine, just sweeter (if that makes sense).  Still, if you like to explore different wines, this one is worth a shot.

Wine: Apothic Red Winemaker’s Blend
Variety: Red Blend
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.1%
Rating: 85
Price: $14.00

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Here’s what others thought of the this wine:

• Las Vegas Review-Journal
• Wine at Five?
• Taylor Eason
• At First Glass

Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.