2/21/2013 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

Don't think this wine deserves the 3 Glasses rating by the Italian Wine Magazine, but it was OK. For a price of $9 per bottle, I like it for everyday drinking.

12/19/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I was told that Costco sometimes get terrific deals on good wines for private labeling purposes, so I bought a bottle of this to try. While I am not a fan of this wine, I must admit that I have had worst wines. I guess the price is right at $5.99 a bottle.

12/12/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

A nice white. I am not a white wine drinker, but I bought some of this for giving as gifts and serving white to guests who like white wine.

9/28/2009 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I like this wine, especially for its QPR.

12/12/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I bought a case of this; I don't know what prompted me to do that. This wine is OK, but not outstanding. And the price is a little high for my taste.

1/29/2010 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I was introduced to this wine and vintage in Jan 2010. I loved it, but a little bit pricey at $100 per bottle.

7/24/2008 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

One of my favorites, but I am partial to Super Tuscans.

10/19/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

Rated at 99 points by that Italian wine expert, Luca Maroni, who supposedly is a really tough rater. But I felt it only rated 93 points at best. But it is a nice wine, especially for the price.

10/15/2008 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I bought six bottles even before it was named WOTY in 2008. I immediately opened and drank the first bottle upon receipt and was a little disappointed since I thought it was a little harsh, high in acid, and high in tannins. I drank another bottle in 2010 and it was better, and a third bottle in 2011 and it was still a little better. I think I will cellar my last three bottle for consumption in about 2 years.

12/12/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

Just took delivery of this wine. Have not tried it yet. Will post a tasting note and personal rating when I open the first bottle.

9/27/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I have a friend who has always told me that Gnarly Head is a great everyday drinking wine. So I have tried a couple of bottles of the cab over the last couple of years and did not especially like it. But then I tried this Authentic Red from Costco and found it to be outstanding for the price. So this is a real keeper.

12/11/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I agree with RP's rating. This is an excellent wine.

11/22/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

Drank a couple of bottles on Thanksgiving. For $30 a bottle, I thought that was a very good wine. Very hearty, good, color and nose, etc. etc.

5/1/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I thought this was a great Sangiovese, especially for the price of $10 per bottle. I think this is a great everyday drinking wine. Even my son and DIL agrees with me and between us we have probably already bought 5 cases from Costco and will buy more next week.

12/11/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I thought this was a pretty bad wine -- harsh, acidic, and very high in tannins. I bought a case and drank one bottle, and gave away three bottles -- all three recipients of the wine thought it was bad too. I returned the other bottles for store credit.

8/11/2011 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I bought two bottle of this one from BevMo when I was wandering around their store one day. I asked the gal what "very good" wine should I buy for a nice dinner with a good friend of mine and this was recommended to me. Pretty stupid of me for believing anybody from BevMo and buying from them, but WTH, maybe I was drunk or something. I do like this wine somewhat, but not at $200 a bottle. I think I have much better cabs in my cellar.

11/29/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I like this cab. I drank this bottle right after we consumed the 2007 Dunn Howell Mountain cab with steaks. We were still eating the steaks when I opened this bottle. So maybe my rating is skewed from drinking the Dunn cab? But I liked this wine, especially for the price of $30.

11/29/2012 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I now have consumed two bottle of this vintage from my two case purchase a few months ago. Both of these bottles were great and I, and those that drank it with me, had it with red meat -- steaks specifically. I would agree with RP's rating on this one. I think this one is great, especially for the price.

6/6/2012 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

WW of BevMo rated this wine as a 93. I was pleasantly surprised to say that I would rate it at 92 points, since I normally think that WW over-rates the wines that BevMo sells. But I got this at their five cents sale price for effectively $10 per bottle. I got a case and have been enjoying this cheap zin for a while now.

5/17/2011 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I just had to add my own opinion here. I bought six bottles about 4 years (??) ago and drank one. I did not especially like it and thought that it's WOTY rating was based on the price/value ratio. So I just cellared the other five bottles--open one this year and I don't think it got much better. What was the WS rater thinking when they rated this wine as the WOTY? Very disappointed, but I guess we cannot really be upset due to the price (at that time).

5/17/2011 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I got my case order a couple of weeks ago and opened a bottle for dinner with a friend who also likes great reds. I was pleasantly surprised with the nose, color, depth, and taste of this wine--I thought it would be a little to young. But it was terrific and shows much promise of getting better with a little age. I would agree with the ratings of the expert raters!

4/4/2011 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I received my shipment on Friday, 4/1/11, and opened a bottle on Saturday. I was pleasantly surprised at both the taste, color, and smell of this young wine. I expected it to be a little brash and young, but it was well balanced and very, very nice. I did not have to let it breathe long, just an hour or so and I would agree with the WS rating of 96 points. I should have ordered more.

2/18/2011 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

WE #5 Wine of 2010, rated by them at 96 points. Opened a bottle last night from the recent case that I purchased. To be expected, it was a little young, but did not have any indication of being highly tannic or acidic. In fact, it was very nice and comparable to any good $50 - $75 bottle of cab. I could tell that with a little more time, it would be a great wine, and like the experts have said, it will probably be best after 2014. But it lived up to its rating and I think it is very drinkable now. But right now, I would only rate it at 91 points. It is now 12/12 and I have consumed most of my bottles, and it has not changed much, so I will cellar my last two bottles for at least two more years before consuming them. But in retrospect, I do not think that this is a $44 bottle of wine; maybe $20 at best.

7/14/2010 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

Like the others said, it take a little time for this wine to breathe. But after a while, it is pretty darn good. Great with steaks and red meat. Have had two bottle already and have experienced the same thing both times. Don't just pop the cork and drink it. Give it about 2 hours to breathe first.

5/4/2010 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I would agree that this wine is very good considering the price. The WS rating of 93 must be heavily weighted on the pricing. But if this wine is cellared for a couple of years, it would be better. My first impression upon opening one bottle last night was good and I enjoyed it. I will probably cellar about 8 bottles from the case I bought.

4/16/2010 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I thought this one was pretty good; better than the 06 Las
Rocas Garnacha and much better than the 07.

3/4/2010 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I was disappointed in this wine. Despite letting it breathe for about two hours, it was still a little harsh and tannic. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. Perhaps part of the problem was that I normally do not like Shiraz wines anyway.

2/25/2010 - ManjuDaddy wrote:

I bought a few bottles of this vintage since I bought a case of, and liked, the Casa Lapostelle Clos Alpata 2005. The first bottle I opened was disappointing since I thought it tasted a little harsh. I drank two glasses and recorked the bottle and drank the rest a few days later. It tasted much better then. Since then, I have opened these bottles and let them stand for a day and then drink them. The breathing time really makes a huge different with this wine. For the price I paid for these bottles, this "trick" makes the wine a very good buy.

2/19/2010 - ManjuDaddy Likes this wine:

I bought a couple of cases in Dec 2008 and opened one immediately. At that time, this vintage was a little harsh and I would agree with most tasting notes of the others. But I opened another bottle on 1/20/10 and this time it was excellent! I guess some more age helps. I have now consumed most of what I bought and have only a few bottles left in my cellar. This is pretty good stuff.