Chilean Syrah & Red Blends

This is the second part (long overdue) of our guinea pig tasting with a concentration on syrahs and red blends.

Syrahs


Falernia 2006 Syrah Reserva
Elqui Valley, Chile - $11.50
Dusty red fruit, blackberry, hints of barnyard. More rustic aromas and rougher all around initially. Light body. Green, herby aroma somewhere between green pepper and eucalyptus (hay, pot?) faded in/out quickly. Light tannins for just enough structure. Dominated by earthy and green notes.
Note: Elqui Valley is a cooler climate than Colchagua.


Montes Alpha 2007 Syrah
Colchagua Valley, Chile - $20
Sour cherry & leather aromas. Richer, deeper nose than Falernia with darker berry fruit. Smooth, grippy with tip of tongue spices. Dark chocolate joins sour cherry and dark berry flavors. Long finish. Syrupy, condensed aroma. Similar to Cousino-Macul (see below). As a whole, less fruit forward than California syrahs (a relief). Best on its own.

Nose: Montes
Flavor: Falernia (after drinking the heavier wines, Montes edged out the Falernia)
Finish: Montes
Wild card: Falernia
Favorite: Falernia

Blends


Seña 2005
Aconcagua Valley, Chile - $28.50
Blend of Cab Sauv (57%), Merlot (25%), Carmenere (9%), Cab Franc (6%) and Petit Verdot (3%).
Greener, more fruit forward than Montes. Bold with spicy, condensed port-like flavor. Long finish with lighter body. Bolder nose than flavors. Didn't care for the finish as the wine opened up, became bitter. This is a wine for drinking on its own or with food. You're able to continue drinking it after you finish a meal. Brainchild between Chadwick (Viña Errázuriz) and Robert Mondavi, hence the fruit forward approach. Produced by Viña Sena, imported by F. Wildman.


Cousiño-Macul 2007 Finis Terrae
Maipo Valley, Chile - $26
Blend of Cab Sauv (60%) and Malbec (40%)
Unfiltered. Softer nose with lots more everything. Complex! Spicy (cooking spices) with smoother mid-palate. More elegant than the Sena. CS focuses on the US export market. The Finis Terrae label, while tasty, is still not the top label available at CS.

Nose: Cousiño-Macul
Flavor: Cousiño-Macul
Finish: Cousiño-Macul
Wild card: doesn't matter
Favorite: Cousiño-Macul

Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon

All 100% Cabernet Sauvignon with about 14% alcohol, $15-22 range

(We are guinea pigs and have no qualms about it. We've been helping Brian's dad and step-mom taste, review and select the final wines that will be presented at an upcoming wine group event. It's hard work but we're up for the challenge.)

1. Santa Rita 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva estate grown D.O. Maipo Valley, Chile
First sip revealed juicy red fruit, green pepper (barely there) and a flatness/bitterness that resembled lead pencil. Light body, light tannins. Aroma was nothing outstanding, just expected red fruits. Not steak-ready, better with lighter meats. Priced at $10, this was wasn’t expected to stand up to the wines to follow. For the price, it makes a nice house red but don’t bring it to a BYOB.

2. Cousino-Macul Antiguas Reservas 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Maipo Valley, Chile
Better nose than #1. Great mouth feel. Stronger flavors, more body and tannins. Flavors of brambly red fruit and mocha with pleasant tongue-coating tannins. Lovely on its own, softens with food. Not a tannic monster. Lightly perfumed. Tartness develops as it opens: cranberry flavor, but mostly aroma. This wine was priced at the low end of the range and does well for a $15 bottle. Rated 90 points by Wine Advocate (Parker).

3. Lapostolle 2008 Cuvee Alexandre Cabernet Sauvignon Apalta Vineyard, Colchagua Valley, Chile
Softer aromas and flavors, cedar, red fruits (not brambly), light spice and finely integrated tannins. Really like the tannins in this wine! Better than #2. Subtle and elegant! Balanced, smooth and still powerful. Personality-wise , it is a blend of #2 and #4 (see below). Pleasant to sip on its own. The most expensive bottle of the group at $22 but really delivers. This is the second highest “level” for Casa Lapostolle; top tier wines in this approach $60-70. Normally rated 91-92 by Wine Spectator & Enthusiast, this vintage was in the high 80’s (2008 was not a “great” year).

4. Marques de Casa Concha 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon D.O. Puente Alto, Chile
Amazing nose, very strong. Similar to Lapostolle initially but bolder, more tannins, and a little more heat (less balanced, alcohol). Medium tannins. More like a CA Cab (out of the 4) but still not as tannic. Better suited for steak and heavier meats. Lots of personality. A portion of their Puente vineyard is sourced for the higher tier Don Melchor; Casa Concha is the third highest tier in the Concha y Tora line-up. Price varies by a few dollars if you shop around: $17 at Costco, $20 other retailers. Rated 90 points by Wine Advocate (Parker) and 91 points by Wine Spectator.

The results:
-No one liked the Santa Rita against the others but fine on its own. Not fair to compare.
- Cousino-Macul isn’t bad but wasn’t anyone’s favorite; in third position.
- The ladies preferred Lapostolle. The guys liked it as an alternative to the bolder Marques.
- For lamb/steak dinners, go with the Marques de Casa Concha. It’s heavier in body and style.

Pour me some of that "Steve" wine...

Our buddy Steve loves a good Zin. So much so that I've started calling (red) Zinfandel "Steve" - partly in honor, partly in jest. While I was at Moore Bros. Saturday, I made sure to pick up a bottle. We opened it last night. Yes, Steve was in attendance. It was a hit because the contents disappeared pretty quickly.


Three 2007 Old Vines Zinfandel - California, $18

What I sampled I liked: great berry aromas, full body, decently long finish, fruit-forward flavors, spice (but nothing nearly as spicy as Wilson's Tori) and easy drinking. A buy again. Produced by Cline (Matt Cline). Shhhh.

We also opened a great wine from last October's Finger Lakes trip: Ravines 2008 Sauvignon Blanc. Perfect with guacamole!

Terrain at Styer's birthday dinner

Brian and I dined at Terrain last night for my real birthday dinner. Uncorked a wine from our 2008 California trip: Arista 2006 Longbow Pinot Noir. We were so relieved it was better than we remembered and had yet to peak. After our first sip, we just sat there with eyes closed savoring it and the memory of the trip.

Our second bottle should be beautiful in about six months.

Birthday dinner

Sampled at Dom. Hudson on 9/27/10 at a true "wine with friends" dinner.

Praxis Pinot Noir Monterrey, CA 08
Great nose. Lots of rich berry. Smoky nose. Slow start but stronger mid-palate pulls through to long finish. Bittersweet chocolate flavors barely there. Reserved fruit. Strong aroma was my favorite part of this wine, best of the three here. 7 of 10

Le Cadeau "Red Label" Pinot Noir willamette valley, OR '07
More delicate nose. Restrained. Odd bitter mid-palate but not unpleasant. Fades slowly. Better with food. 5 of 10, 6 of 10 with food

Daniel Rion Bourgogne, Burgundy, FR '08
Vegetal, sweet nose. More vegetal and definitely more tannic than the le cadeau. Sour cherry flavor. Light body. Probably too light for food; nuances disappear.

Food:
1st: Polenta with shirred egg and truffle oil
2nd: Wild mushroom risotto
Dessert: Poached peaches (plus fourth drink - a lovely tawny port)

The unofficial drink of Dewey

Orange Crush (because you know you want one)
Fill pint glass with ice.
1 part Vodka
1 part Triple Sec
Fill up 3/4 full with Sprite (or lemon-lime beverage of your choice)
Top with juice of 1 freshly squeezed orange.
Shake or stir.

Be prepared. Buy a crate of oranges in advance. You're going to need it.

- Brian

Hot hot heat calls for white, crisp wine

Poured myself a big glass of Ravines Dry Riesling moments after getting home. Less steely than I remembered. Absolutely fine on its own. Waiting on the sweet potato fries to finish baking and then all will be good. Or at least better than it was before the wine happened.