Apothic Red 2009
Alright, I’m going back to a theme we had going last week… checking out new vintages of wines we’ve previously reviewed. Last year we checked out the 2008 Apothic Red and it was a very interesting wine, so we were glad to be able to revisit it with the 2009 vintage, which we like even more!
This wine is a blend of zinfandel, syrah and merlot, but there’s a strong influence from the winemaking (not just the grapes) that make this a tasty wine. Perhaps that’s why they subtitled this wine “Winemaker’s Blend.”
It has quite a bit of complexity on the nose, with aromas of nutmeg, vanilla, black cherry, blackberry and dark chocolate. The palate is brimming with ripe fruit flavors like black cherry, plum and a hint of strawberry toward the finish. A touch of vanilla also comes in on the finish. The mouth feel is fantastic, with tannins that are just enough to give a slight velvety texture to the wine and the acid is just enough to balance the sweetness of the fruit.
Although it appeared unbalanced at first, a bit of decanting was all it needed to shine. I expect another six months in the bottle will also help this wine come together. This is a very nice blend that won’t disappoint you.
Wine: Apothic Red Winemaker’s Blend
Variety: Red Blend
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 13.1%
Rating: 90
Price: $14.00
Find Apothic Red Winemaker’s Blend with Snooth
Disclosure: This wine was received as a sample.
I was offered to try this by the Ingles wine distributor, and I am so glad I did. My husband and I enjoyed this wine so much it reminded us of our favorite Port wine but on the lighter side. We loved it we found it to be delicious. Not to sweet or heavy just right! I’m glad I tried it. Thank you
Thanks for the comment, Lola. We always love to hear other people’s thoughts about the wines we review. Cheers!
Hi,
I have been trying to like wine for many years. My friends bring over bottles, try this, try that and I have yet to like wine. I was at Fresh Market and of course I will try any wine cause I want to like it. And guess what I loved it. Apothic Red was my first red wine I actually drank a whole glass and then yes the bottle. LOVE IT. So excited I couldnt wait to tell my friends and they are excited also to now finally drink red wine together. My question to you is, do you know of others with this same flavor that I might like to also try?
Thank you
Janelle
Janelle, I’m glad to hear this is a wine that has brought you into the red camp. As far as finding other similar wines, yes there are other wines with flavors resembling this one, but nothing exactly like it. This wine is a blend with zinfandel being the dominant grape, and the characteristics show a strong influence from the zinfandel… but that’s not all that’s in this one. The oak is also over the top in this wine. If you like this and want to find other wines you like, I’d suggest looking for other red wine blends that are zinfandel-dominant and heavy on the oak.
This is my favorite wine. It was recommended by the gentlemen that own my neighborhood wine store, and of which I’m a regular customer. It’s great paired with food, or if you are just relaxing and want to sip wine. I’m actually arranging for a case of it to keep in my wine cabinet. Excellent wine!
I fell in love with the 2008 vintage of this wine, and just last night purchased a case of the 2009. It’s slightly sweeter than last year, but i agree, I think i need to let the bottles sit for a few months, and it will be every bit as good as last year. Also, these were on sale at my local store, so the $8.10 per bottle price makes it all that much better!
I was offered this by a friend bartending at a local restaurant. My boyfriend does not like wine but he thoroughly enjoyed this one! I even went out on a limb and purchased several bottles (usually don’t purchase more than two) and have recommended it to multiple people since then.
I just got this red from my local Nuggets at around $10 and sad to say I’m not impressed at all. This wine is either 2 years too young to be drinkable, or the vintner doesn’t know what he’s doing. The aroma of this mix is very subdued, not a lot comes through. The color is extremely dark and matte. Once you taste this, the initial bad omen impressions come full circle: I do not recommend this wine. It is far too sweet, causing me to cringe. I’m sorry but this is not a $10 wine, I would value this at about $4. I normally do not post reviews like this, but my experience has left me extremely disappointed.
can you deliver to Australia?
Hi Albe. We don’t sell wine here, we just review it.
I just started to develop a taste for Reds and bought this on a whim – I must say what a pleasure. While I am sure I will encounter others that wont be as pleasurable – Reds like this may just make this Zin girl turn her back forever.
Hi Denabeth. Yes, you are a Zin girl, as this is a zinfandel blend. I’m glad you’re finding red wines that you like. Cheers to that!
I’ve had 4 bottles of this wine. Loved the first 3. Then, I opened a bottle for my friends who belong to several wine clubs. I raved about this wine, and, oh no, what a disappointment. Bland, no aroma. I was embarrassed. I have 9 more left. Hope they don’t disappoint.
Yikes! The dreaded bottle variation! Hopefully you just got one bad bottle.
Got turned on to this wine at little wine shop in Mount Dora, Florida (Maggie’s Attic)it’s now a standard in the wine rack. good California blend, found it a BJ’s wholesale club for $8.99 Enjoy!!
Being from India, I am not a huge fan of wine 🙂 I try it out this once in a while. On a recent trip to US, I was in a mood to drink a good wine. Hit a wine and spirit store in King of Prussia. Gosh the store was so huge and there were innumerable wines. I was lost on what to try. A lady who was also shopping there, suggested Apothic Red. Voila. What a good wine. Ever since I have been drinking this wine.
Thanks for the comment, Santhosh. It sounds like you’re becoming a wine fan. 😀
Great wine!! Bought this in washington state, yelm, wa! Wonderful blend… keep bring it into Safeway!! in Yelm!
I have been trying to find a red wine that my wife would like (not a red wine drinker). It is very smooth for a red wine and goes down easy – not too bitter. Will be buying a case of it. Trying to get off the beer.
I bought a bottle of this from WalMart. It has a nice smell but the taste is nothing like it smells. Almost like an artificial scent was added to nasty stuff.
Well, I must say that I have finally found a red wine which I love. My favorite wines has always been medium bodied whites, and a nice sparkling shiraz. For years I have been purchasing recommended bottles of red wines looking for one that was not too dry; most of the time, after a couple of sips, the bottle was poured down my kitchen sink…. Well, a couple of weeks ago I was in a lovely wine store, and explained to a worker that I was looking for a great red wine, which was not too dry, and not at all too sweet. He recommended Apothic Red, and I purchased it and tried it that week-end, and I LOVE IT!!!! I have now found MY favorite red wine.
Thanks for sharing, Nadine. I’m glad you found a red wine that works for you. Cheers!
we love this wine , my wife is a red wine drinker , we had friends round who we weren’t sure what they liked .
Everybody loved Apothic red , it is very drinkable , and has a great taste and is not too light or too heavy , nice blend .Glad we had several bottles [ good price too ]
I would leave a bad review just to keep the price of this wine from rising, but these guys know what they are doing. This is a fabulous blend. Not a lot of complexity, but nevertheless, a big bold taste, an unusually velvety mouth feel and a smooth finish.
I LOVE THIS WINE BEST EVER I TRY IT AND AM IN LOVE THANK YOU FOR THE NICE BLEND
I TOLD EVERYONE I KNOW EVERYONE NEEDS TO KNOW FRIENDS FAMILY COWORKERS THE WORLD IS THAT GOOD I LOVE it AND EVERYONE ELSE WOULD TOO!
not sweet not dry at all just rigth and very red and the smell of it it turns me on if you know what i mean
Wanted to love this one but I can’t handle the overpowering vanilla. To me it tastes like a vanilla ice cream soda with wine in it, it’s just too much. Cheers to everyone who loves it, but man, it’s not for everybody.
I love all the comments on this one. It sure has lots of fans, but I guess it’s still not for everyone.
This blend is by far, the best amongst several other wineries blends. Over the Holidays, we entertained several families and must I say my whole case was exhausted over a one week period. Compliment galore was the order of the day and I did “free” marketing for Apothic Red by gifting bottles to half a dozen out of town friends!!
It sounds like you have some lucky friends and family. 🙂
This wine teeters at earning all the bad adjectives about wine but ends up just right. It is light but not thin. Neither sweet nor dry. And it could never be characterized as over alcoholed not only because it weights in at 13 percent but also because its OVER THE TOP oak (you can practically taste the barrel) steps in on the finish and never allows any alcohol to show.
What more can you ask for in a $10 bottle of wine? It is inexpensive but not cheap, something you will find yourself drinking again and again with no shame.
I have been buying a different bottle of wine every few weeks for the last 4 years. In all the time I’ve bought different wine, Apothic Red is the best wine I’ve had, period. It’s not by a little. This is the best wine I’ve ever tasted. I still try other wines to try them, but keep coming back to this one every 3rd bottle or so just because it’s the ‘benchmark’ by which I now measure other wines. Nothing before or since tasting this wine compares. I’ll put it this way. The 2nd best wine I’ve tasted is also a ‘blend’ called “House Wine” in a black & white label and I rate that a ’90’. All other wines are ’85’ and lower. Apothic Red is ‘100’. THE benchmark wine for me right now.
Wow, tspence. It sounds like you really love this wine!
Tim, do you have any updated recommendations for something similar to the Apothic ’09? We got absolutely hooked on this variety but we’re not so hot on the 2010 blend.
– Pete
You’re not the first person to comment to me about the Apothic 2010 being disappointing. I haven’t had an opportunity to taste it yet.
You might try the Gnarly Head Authentic Red. It’s another zinfandel blend, although it’s a little more fruit-forward than the 09 Apothic. But it’s worth a try.
Another one you might like is the 2009 Concannon Conservancy Crimson and Clover. It’s a petite sirah blend, so a little different, but it has a nice balance of fruit and spice.
Hello Tim !
A son retour de Montréal, mi-février,notre fils nous a rapporté une bouteille d’Apothic red 2010.Nous avons goûté et aimé ce délicieux vin fruité et velouté. nous avons essayé de faire durer le plaisir le plus longtemps possible en le dégustant en apéritif chaque jour, mais voilà, la bouteille est vide à présent!
Nous habitons dans la région parisienne et aimerions savoir s’il est possible de se procurer ce délicieux breuvage en France.Nous espérons une réponse positive sinon nous serons contraints d’attendre un prochain voyage. Merci
Tim, being a recent and avid fan of your website, I’ve really come to trust your judgment on wine. In my social circle (and age group) it’s hard enough to explain why I’m sipping an Italian red while my friends are twisting off the cap to American piss-water beer, let alone trying to decipher the intracacies of an inexpensive bottle of wine.
That being said, I’m really hoping that there was a huge swing between the 2009 and 2010 to justify my disappointment. I’ve been hearing so much about Apothic Red from different sources. After reading your review for the 2009 and seeing the 2010 in the grocery store for $9, I had to buy it. The result was utter disappointment. This wine lacked any kind of character or complexity, whatsoever. I get that wine is an extended form of grape juice but this really tasted like someone added gin to a bottle of grape juice. I detected slight vanilla and faint oak, but this changed very little after decanting for an hour. As much as I want to say that I detected plum and cherry on the palate, it was more the California effect than anything. I’m hoping that I’m not judging this on the simple fact that this was a very sweet California red blend.
This was a very forgettable bottle of wine but I’m just ooing to chalk this up to a bad experience and go on letting you guide me towards some great buys.
Thanks for your guidance, Tim.
Hi rlackey. Yes, we’ve heard from a number of people who were disappointed in the 2010 Apothic Red. Although I’ve not personally tasted it yet. There was a jump in quality from 2008 to 2009, so it wouldn’t be surprising to find a shit in the opposite direction in 2010. And so, we move on to something else 🙂
‘…it would not be surprising to find a “WHAT?” …in the opposite direction!!
Haha, a “shift” … typo
Actually, I am finding the 2010 Apothic Red to be a fun, smooth and slightly sweet fruit forward wine with a hint of smoke and oak, among other flavors. I have had about 4-5 bottles and have found all of them to be drinkable and good right out of the bottle. Easy, easy drinking.
Hm m m, I read some of the negative comments above. I am now wondering if the batches are varying….
Still, I absolutely think it’s worth a try. I was very pleasantly surprised!
For the price, I think it is a steal.
Hey Angus, thanks for sharing your perspective. It certainly is possible that there is some bottle variance.
I LOVE THIS WINE. I have been drinking Hendricks for the last two months. I began to get bored with it. So, after a restaurant visit where the server introduced me to Apothic Red, I have been hooked, my friend. It is velvety smooth like none other. The ultimate smooth is experienced after you decanter the bottle for 10 to 20 minutes. Enjoy, my friends. ENJOY!
Dear Sir,
Today I’ve found your site. Reading comments on my favorite red wine (Apothic red blend), I came across the following:
“Hello Tim !
A son retour de Montréal, mi-février, notre fils nous a rapporté une bouteille d’Apothic red blend 2010. Nous avons goûté et aimé ce délicieux vin fruité et velouté. Nous avons essayé de faire durer le plaisir le plus longtemps possible en le dégustant en apéritif chaque jour, mais voilà, la bouteille est vide à présent!
Nous habitons dans la région parisienne et aimerions savoir s’il est possible de se procurer ce délicieux breuvage en France. Nous espérons une réponse positive sinon nous serons contraints d’attendre un prochain voyage. Merci.”
Not being sure if this comment from these French visitors to Canada has been passed on, today I copied it and send to Apothec people who were kind enough to asnwer the French comments and IN FRECH AT THAT!!! Is there any possibility that you could somehow pass on the response of the Apothec rep to that French couple? Do you have their e-mail or to their son who introduced them to the Apothic red wine in Canada? It would be a super nice surprise to them! Here is a response to them:
Merci de nous contacter. Nous sommes ravis que vous apprécierez notre Apothic ® Rouge.
Nous nous efforçons de créer une grande variété de produits pour satisfaire les goûts variés de nos consommateurs. Compliments comme la vôtre sont toujours très agréable à entendre. Nous ne manquerons pas de transmettre vos commentaires sur nos vignerons.
Malheureusement, ce vin n’est pas distribué en dehors des États-Unis à cette époque. À l’heure actuelle, nous ne sommes vendus par des détaillants et non autorisés à vendre directement aux consommateurs. Nous sommes tellement désolé de vous décevoir
Nous espérons que vous continuerez à profiter de nos excellents produits depuis de nombreuses années à venir.
Sincèrement
Apothic ®
Tammy Adcock
Spécialiste, Centre d’information des consommateurs
ID # Case: 743867
I am happy to report that the 2010 vintage is just as good. Can’t go wrong with this wine.
With all of the good reviews, I feel like I am missing something. I just purchased a bottle of the 2011 blend this evening, and in all honesty, I’m not exactly pleased. I couldn’t even finish one glass. To me, it tasted sour, not like any of the other wines I’ve tried. It was just not enjoyable by itself. I am however going to give it a try with food and see how it is then. I’m not trying to discourage anyone from trying this wine, I’m guessing everyone’s taste buds are different, and in my case, of in a distant land compared to the majority of reviews.
Hey Lianna. The thing you may be missing is an earlier vintage. We’ve heard mixed reviews on the latest vintage.
This red blend was okayish. Was wondering if you had a chance to check out a very fine similar blend The Culprit. Even my fiance who hates the smell of all red wines found this one pleasant on the nose. It is fruity, plenty of vanilla flavor and has a very nice finish.
I have not come across the Culprit yet, but I will keep an eye out for it. It sounds yummy! Thanks for the tip. Got any others?
Normally I don’t venture into red blends. Dreaming Tree “Crush” is good too, but 2010 The Culprit blows that one away too.