2/8/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

An extremely refined tempranillo. Perhaps too refined, smooth medium body & elegant.

2/8/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Quite tan straw color. Showing age. Cream butter into Caramel green apple on the nose. Buttered popcorn OTP with some acidity. Complex, but awkward and perhaps a bit thin. An interesting pickup.

1/25/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Garnet fading to light amber edges. Red fruit mixed with dry raisins and prunes. Not overdone, mellow age. Comparable more to a delicate merlot, but great value overall.

1/19/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Concentrated purple fushia color. raspberry puree on the nose. Extremely juicy and ripe ripe berry fruit on the pal., but controlled and balanced. Good notes of spice on the rather short finish. Well made and interesting.

1/8/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Showing an uncanny nose of gala apples now. Weak lime OTP.

Drink this now.

1/6/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Showing some silkiness now. Otherwise consistent.

11/25/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Fresh nose. Bright rose color, slight effervescence, light vegetal character with unripe nectarines, odd aftertaste funk.

1/6/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Pale pale golden. Fruit and citrus, dry. Ok for price.

1/1/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Classic textbook zin. Natural tinged ruby color. Notes of red fruit light spice. A steal at $14.

1/1/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Unsettlingly drinkable for a wine with such copious amounts if flavor. Recommended for the discerning and the unfamiliar

1/1/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Pure quite concentrated garnet and brick red to black center. Fragrant high end zin nose of red fruits and spice. Rich and full flavored with more red fruits, dry plums and touches of caramel. Really delicious.

1/1/2011 - cheersthanks wrote:

Bright orange red color. Faint yeasty nose. Awkward dryness. Rough overall. Ended mixing with soda as the mousse was virtually nonexistent. Went with an open mind regardless of packaging. Not worth it.

11/27/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Wonderfully overwhelming. Powerful controlled oak bomb of a zin. Toasted spices and prunes.

12/16/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

88+ bright red violet. Fresh red fruit, age balked with acid. A pleasant leathery touch. Like.

12/15/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Detroit wine truck tasting. Orange rose color. Balanced sweetness. Contemplative. Gorgeous and natural.

12/15/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Detroit Wine Truck Tasting. Slight and apparently natural cloudiness. An strong sharp acidity was present that was both incredibly interesting and somewhat awkward. The substantial uniqueness makes this incredibly difficult to rate. 90 for quality of winemaking 80 for drinkability. Would like to try again.

12/15/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Detroit Wine Truck Tasting. Intense muscat dessert wine nose, flavors of peaches and flowers. Sugar comparable to a Demi sec but without a hint of cloying artificiality.

12/14/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Lots of smokey vanilla oak with rustic red fruit, in that order. Would have liked to see that order reversed. Very elegant - perhaps too much so. Overall, well made.

12/14/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Not the knockout of 2007 vintage, for sure. Inky purple color, hint of dark fruit on the nose, smooth mouth feel with nice sign of barrel age.

12/12/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Juicy ripe and quite full bodied garnacha. Delicious and incredibly drinkable.

12/12/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Dyed purple color. Tight and alcohol on the nose. Touch of red cherry flavor with buckets of tannic bite and not much else.

12/10/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Watery and oxidized, sad.

12/10/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Perhaps rushed this one. Not up to previous vintages. Intense and dark, needs some airtime. Rustic with dried red fruits.

12/10/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

At any price, not worth it. Pucker that didn't blow off, cloudy, perfect cork so just a bad one

12/9/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

This delivers year after year. The extra barrel time does not overwhelm the fruit and acid of this wine. Fresh cream with vanilla, bright fruit. Well integrated with a silky mouth-feel and a long finish. Luxurious. My favorite Carneros Chardonnay.

11/29/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Concentrated deep violet. Light nose. Round and soft tannins without being watery and restrained on the pallet with blackberry and soft milk chocolate. Not overdone. Good value. $10.

11/29/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Pale straw. Effervescent in a rustic manner. Maybe a touch of residual, but otherwise quite dry. Fresh and lively fruit flavors, drink well chilled.

11/26/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Not bad. Expected more for price.

11/11/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Surprisingly consistent with prior note. Drank on Halloween and noticed no change. Good tannic bite for a 100% Malbec.

11/11/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Definately a fantastic substitue for a rhone style Grenache. Expected a bit more for the price. Fairly silky dark cherry flavors. Medium to light bodied with spice and herbal notes. An odd balance of rustic and refined.

11/11/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

The most concentrated red brick hue I’ve ever seen in a wine. Fishy nose on opening that mellows to leather, smoke and spice. The bottle was finished within an hour or two of opening alcohol was present on the nose throughout. I Would like to see this after a few more hours of hang time. High alcohol was impressively controlled by the fruit and extraction of this wine. There is lots of potential for this to open up nicely. Interesting and unique.

11/11/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

A treat to catch this back on the shelves. Fresh and still drinking lovely with medium body and fresh red fruit. As good as any California proprietary blend at twice the price (this flys at $5-$6.)

11/11/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Notes of red cherry that are almost overcome by smoke. Very sexy. Light but defined spice notes. Silky texture and the perfect acidity. Worth it.

11/9/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Incredibly fresh and crisp. Great fun, absurd color, perfectly dry. Highly Reccomended.

10/27/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Definately a flaw. Top of cork had significant red, upon removing cork clear stoppage flaw up the side of cork

Overwhelming funk that did not blow off. Good structure was discerable even behind this. Shame. Looking forward to next bottle.

10/21/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Good things going on here. Crystalline pale Color. Floral perfumed nose and crisp on the pal. Delicate and refined, unripe white peach with a touch of wet stone. Still delicious on day 3! Interesting and exciting.

9/5/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

A great blend, used as a braise for lamb leg with garlic, rosemary and stock. Reserved a glass which showed a great flavor profile, balance, and elegance - but perhaps a bit underwhelming for $15.

8/19/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Perfect sugar handling, an elegant - and not alsace style - riesling.

9/14/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Lots of good things going on here. Bright fruit with muddled spices and earth. Medium length. A bit hot on opening but - likely due to the alcohol - is completely equally delicious into the third day.

8/12/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Refreshing but muddled fruit and floral flavors. Residual a bit too low. Somewhat unpleasant. Would not buy again.

9/29/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

84+ Extracted purple hue. Typical lower end Penfolds Shiraz - not nec. a bad thing. Extremely jammy fruit balanced against slightly lower alcohol content. Consistent.

10/4/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Terrific garnet and amber tinged color. Radiant. Delicious nose of clear raspberry with gobs of crushed currant. Silky mouthfeel. Somewhat medium bodied but a long finish of spice and caramelized sugar. Expected at the $40 price point. However, I've seen this more recently for just under $20, a steal.

9/10/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Consistent with prior note. Showed fairly well, but with significantly less complexity, into the second day.

9/5/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

No formal notes. Very balanced.

8/15/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

bright ruby. full on nose of dark fruit, oak, and vanilla. Intense and full bodied Merlot.

10/5/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Somewhat extracted violet hue, weak nose but complex body with red fruit, dark cocoa & burnt grass, defined but short finish.

10/1/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Tempted to overscore based on QPR - will restrain. Rustic, forward, drinking great right now. Dark red fruit, tobacco, earth. Somewhat undefined but surprising at such a young age. Unsurprisingly hot on corking but comes around quickly and shows well into the second day.

10/1/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Really like for price. 5.99 for a surprisingly full bodied fruit & herb balanced SB? IN.

9/15/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Serviceable if not a bit sour. Too light bodied for the varietal.

9/7/2010 - cheersthanks wrote:

Incredibly balanced for the price point. Great representation of the varietal for the price, also. Jammy with a touch of earth.