This 100% Petit Verdot, simply named “R” was nice, with subtle notes of blackberry and oak. It was dark purple in color, medium/full bodied and $25. With a hearty, rich pasta dish it went down like a nice Chianti, a great, red table wine. It is cellared and bottled by
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Nightfall Petite Sirah 2011
This Hermit’s Blend, Petite Sirah from Nightfall Cellars was good, full bodied, with a nice deep reddish/dark purple color and in the $15 range. It was a bit tannic, had a bite to it at first and needed to open up a bit (we had one glass and finished the
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Rodney Strong Estate Zinfandel – 2012
This Rodney Strong Knotty Vines Zin was better than expected. Although light on the nose, it was medium-full bodied, soft tannins and smooth.
The best part for me was the finish, lingering with raspberry, cherry and spice. For the $25 and under price range, we really enjoyed it.
According to their website,
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Camins del Priorat
This Spanish red blend of 60% Carinena, 30% Garnacha, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Syrah not only has a lovely label, it’s also elegant tasting. Deep ruby color, medium-full body, with notes of blackberry and licorice, Camins del Priorat delivers quality for the under $25 range.
This wine from Alvaro Palacios
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Haras 2011 Carmenere
We took a chance on this Haras Carmenere in the $10 range. It was a bit sharp on the nose (sort of lackluster) and tart with the first sip. The deep, ruby red color was lovely, with a medium body and hints of tobacco and pepper.
Not a fruit forward wine
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Schild Estate – GMS 2010 Blend
Schild Estate’s 2010 Old Bush Vine – Grenache (55%) Mourvedre (25%) Shiraz (20%) pure Barossa was: Good! For the $15 price range, we very much enjoyed this blend. Definite ripe cherry aroma, a bit spicy/acidic at first… but opened nicely and balanced out, decanting in it’s own glass. A little
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Campus Oaks 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon
This 2009 Cab from Gnekow (pronounced “nee-ko”) Family Winery had a dark red, rusty garnet color, medium to full bodied with hints of blackberry (basically, it tasted like a CA Cabernet, but not quite as green).
As you will see on the picture we took, this bottle had formed quite a
