If you aren’t familiar with carménère, that’s ok. You’re probably not alone. For a varietal that has spent much of the latter part of the 20th century in obscurity, and often confused for Merlot, it’s making a nice comeback in some rather familiar places. To get you caught up on who is doing some nice […]
When you think of wine from Australia you probably think of Shiraz first, as well you should. Shiraz is Australia’s most planted variety, and it ranks second to France in shiraz/syrah in vines under cultivation. But I’d be willing to bet that when Australian wine gets mentioned, the last varietal that you think of is […]
I really want to like this wine. The overall look of the packaging is clean and simple but the blazoned red “181” on the black label is striking. I also like the choice of tapered meritage-glass for the bottle. It looks premium and very up-market. As I review the wine, I find myself taking a […]
It’s been close to 3 years since we’ve reviewed Twisted’s 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel. It represented a great value back then at it’s $6.99 price tag, but it didn’t get our nod for top zinfandel under $20. Recently, on one of my routine trips to one of my favorite wine shops, I ran across the […]
We’re back to another box today, or an Octavin to be more precise. This is a cabernet sauvignon from the Central Coast of California. When a wine is labeled as coming from the Central Coast, that usually means that the fruit came from a couple different sources because Central Coast is a broad region (or […]
As a guy who is into value wines, I’ve found that there are a few regions you can count on for consistent values. Chile and Spain are two regions that are on that list, but one that I don’t see enough of is Portugal. There are some incredible bargains to be found in Portuguese wines, […]
This weekend is the 21st Cincinnati International Wine Festival, and if you’re in the area I highly recommend checking it out. It’s your chance to sample hundreds of different wines, all in one place. They have tastings on Friday evening, Saturday afternoon and Saturday evening. If you want the bargain price, and the smaller crowds, […]
You know what they say about first impressions. That’s right, they’re very hard to change. And the Viña Don Royo red makes a really nice first impression, which I think benefited the wine as I reviewed it. Pop the cork on this vino tinto and it offers up a rich and robust nose, with ripe […]
We’ve recently reviewed Tercos’ Bonardo and were pleasantly surprised by what Tercos is doing with this little know variety. So here’s the more traditional offering from Tercos, their 2008 Malbec. For a little more information on this winery and some background on Tercos Malbec, check out our review of the 2007. With the 2008, Tercos […]
In the wine world, everything is relative. Case in point, I present to you Jacob’s Creek 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. The term “Reserve” is typically utilized for the best juice of the vintage, often seeing a little more time in the winemaker’s best oak. But one winemaker’s best juice is another winemaker’s jug wine. And […]
