Caz
Member #30,199 signed up 3/25/2007 and last accessed 10/30/2012
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2004 Bodegas Castaño Yecla Solanera Viñas Viejas
12/20/2007 - Caz wrote: 86 Points
Grape(s): 65% Monastrell, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Tintorera
Alcohol: 14.5%
Acidity: crisp
Tannin – medium / astringent tannins
Price: $15.99
Rating: Personal = 86
Aromas – Moderate; red cherry, plum, tobacco, strange earth meets soy sauce, smoke
Color – Dark color, purple with ruby edges
Flavor – Dry, full -bodied. Moderate. Blackberry, cherry, cranberry, chalk, anise, bitter coffee/toffee
Finish: Short to Medium
Notes: Had high expectations for this Monastrell after coming off a bottle of the Hecula (same producer) and seeing the accolades from WA which gave it 92 pts. 92 pts and under $16 bucks… worth trying. Nose was red cherry, blackberry action, smoky tobacco leaf and a strange earth/dirt meets soy sauce. Mouth feel was smooth and coated the tongue with chalky tannins and nice acidity. Taste was a cherry followed by darker blackberry flavors. Mid-palate I did not get much except seemed to move to a blend of bitter coffee and toffee. The rather abrupt finish was chalky with mouth drying tannins and fairly crisp acidity. Also, a bit of anise and a bitter/tart after taste. The fruit seem to drop off at the mid-palate for me. With the crisp acidity I would consider this more a food wine than a sipping wine. Decent bottle of wine, but for me this was no where near a 92 point wine. I went back to this wine over 3 days trying to see if I missed something.... I didn't.
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2004 Bodegas Castaño Monastrell Yecla Hécula
12/20/2007 - Caz wrote: 90 Points
Grape(s): 100% Monastrell
Alcohol: 14.5%
Acidity: smooth
Tannin – medium / hard tannins
Price: $12.99
Rating: Personal = 90; Wine Advocate = 91 points; International Wine Cellar = 90 points; Gary Vaynerchuk = 89 points
Aromas – Aromatic; black and red cherries, black currant, floral violets and lavender, slight smoky wood
Color –deep color, purple with ruby edges
Flavor – Dry, full -bodied. Moderate to intense. Dark fruit, chocolate, coffee bean, pepper, mineral (granite or slate), anise
Finish: Medium to long
Notes: An absolute steal of a wine for under $13. Monastrell has become one of my favorite grapes and this reminds me why. Wonderfully aromatic with black and red cherries, black currant and subtle floral scents. Went back and caught a smoky wood aroma. Flavors were deep and mouth filling. Dark fruit. The mouth feel was weighty with firm tannin structure. Nicely rounded with a smooth acidity. Shows both new world and old world styles, so it will be hard to find anyone who won’t admire this wine. Mid palate turned to a milk chocolate and a roasted coffee bean with the fruit backing them nicely. Nice slate mineral component, anise and pepper on the finish. There's complexity to the wine with layers of flavors rarely experienced at this price point. Highly recommend this wine. Enjoyed this wine by itself, more than I did with food. Gives us wine drinkers on a limited budget some hope!! Such an amazing QPR that I "may" have bumped the score a point... sue me! Do yourself a favor, find this bottle!
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2005 Bodegas Olivares Jumilla Panarroz
12/20/2007 - Caz wrote: 85 Points
Grape(s): 48% Monastrell, 32% Grenache and 20% syrah
Alcohol: 14.0%
Acidity: lively / tart
Price: $7.99
Rating: Personal = 85+ points
Aromas – Moderate; hot asphalt, plastic, little dish soap, cherry, floral
Color – Dark. Ruby
Tannin – hard / astringent tannins
Flavor – Medium bodied. Dry. Moderate intensity. Cherry, plum, semi-sweet dark chocolate, bitter coffee grinds, lots of black pepper, some heat
Finish – medium
My Notes: Interesting wine and ratings seem to vary quite a bit. For under $8 and some places under $7 bucks it was a must try wine. Nose was … well…. Industrial. Predominate aroma was hot asphalt, plastic, a little dish soap and somewhere I think there was fruit? Cherry. Also, after 1 hour I started getting a floral component to the wine. Lavender perhaps. On the palate, the fruit was very subtle cherry. The mid-palate was mocha with plum flavors. The wine has a fair amount of acidity making it almost tart. Mouth feel was moderately weighted and balanced with the astringent tannins, mouth drying. The wine for me picked up the pace on the finish, where it seemed to morph between chocolate, coffee grinds, good amount of black pepper and a little heat on the finish. Personally, this saved the wine for me. Decent pop and pour, everyday inexpensive wine. More a food wine, especially with the acidity level and drying tannins in this wine. Also, no oak was used for those oak intolerant folks out there. Very solid QPR. Note WA gave the 2006 vintage 90 points.
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