• Basic info: VistAlba Corte B, Red Blend, Argentina – 2014
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $30 (local wine store)
• Look: dark ruby in color. No legs when chilled slightly, but more legs as it warms.
• Smell: Cherry and nutmeg
• Taste: Tart cherry, blackberry, jam. Bob thought this one had an herbal finish and we both agreed that it was a high alcohol wine.
• Conclusions: This was better than expected, but I might say that because after a glass, everything felt really good. It had a nice tart start, but a cleaner finish. This wine had a lot of body to it, but no bitter notes, which is unusual.
• Other notes: This was good, but not one that I’m going to seek out. It came in our local wine club, which is why we had it and I’m glad I did. I tend to like lower alcohol wines – I’m not a big fan of wines that I can’t contemplate a second glass of and this was one of those.
• From the bottle: No bottle notes, but from the wine store, ” Intense ruby red in color with violet hues. Subtle note of rose, pepper, ripe prunes. Tobacco and cinnamon notes appear due to its rest in oil barrels for 12 months. Sweet entrance, full body, velvety tannins and a finish that highlights dark and dense chocolate.” 15% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Chevalerie Bourgeois, Cabernet Franc, France – 2012
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $22 (Chamber Street Wines)
• Look: deep plum color with good legs
• Smell: blackberry jam and spice (don’t know what kind of spice, just spice)
• Taste: Slightly thin wine for the color. Stone fruit, blackberry jam. Very smooth back end.
• Conclusions: I liked this wine. I thought it was very drinkable. It was not my favorite wine ever, but it was good on it’s own or paired with food. Bob didn’t comment much on it, he liked it but wasn’t gaga over it.
• Other notes: This wine was a bit of a surprise to me. I generally remember Cab Francs as very heavy, very bitter and woody and this wine was none of those things. It had a thin structure and was very smooth. I may have to give Cab Francs another try.
• From the bottle:  No bottle notes, but from Chamber Street, ” The lovely 2012 Chevalerie shows vivid aromas of berry liqueurs, bitter chocolate, earth and brown spice. The palate is dense and supple with ripe blackberry, cocoa, earth and mineral flavors balanced by cool acidity.” 12.5% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info:Monte Bernardi Retromarcia Chianti Classico (Sangiovese) – 2014
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $19 (Chamber Street Wines)
• Look: Garnet, medium legs, slightly translucent
• Smell: wine (seriously, I could not discern anything specific and neither could Bob)
• Taste: Smooth, slightly thin, but well structured. Some hints of cherry initially with strawberry at the very back-end with a little bit of tartness.
• Conclusions: I loved this wine! I like Chianti in general, but this was something pretty special. I was tempted to just keep drinking it, but I stopped at two glasses so I could savor it more the next day. This was such a good chianti that Bob liked it (Bob doesn’t like chianti and tends to cringe when I pick one up) and that is unusual.
• Other notes: This is apparently an organic wine, which I don’t usually place a ton of emphasis on, but I really do wonder if the flavor of the grapes comes through more than it might in a traditionally farmed vineyard. I may have to find more of this one as it really hit all the right notes for me, and if Bob is willing to drink it (two days in a row as a matter of fact) than it might be worth a space or two in the wine fridge.
• From the bottle: The bottle is in Italian, so I have to go with the notes Chamber Street sent with the wine. “A fantastic Sangiovese, aged for about two years in neutral barrels. Nice earth, subtle leathery tannin and a long mineral finish make this Chianti Classico a great paring with any fall or winter feast.” 13.5% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Garon VDP Syrah, Rhone Valley France, 2015
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $23 (Chamber St. Wines)
• Look: Dark red in color almost a garnet color. Light legs. Medium alcohol.
• Smell: Petrol and mineral. (Bob got the mineral, and he agreed with the petrol, but he wasn’t sure about the nose until I said it.)
• Taste: Relatively smooth, semi-dry with a little mineral taste. Some berry on the finish. Bob got slate and fermented black raspberry.)
• Conclusions: This was drinkable. For a Syrah it wasn’t bad, but I don’t think this will change my mind about Syrah the way the Chien Blanc changed my mind about white wines in general. It was ok to drink with food, but it really needed the food. The second day it was better. Still not great, but better.
• Other notes: I wasn’t thrilled with this wine, but I didn’t dislike it either. It was fine and that is better than most Syrahs as far as I’m concerned.
• From the bottle: No bottle notes, but from Chamber St. Wines, “This junior Cote-Rotie shows lovely aromas of ripe blackberry and cherry with roast meat and floral note, with cocoa and herbs. The palate has a nice earthy texture with ripe berry fruits, chocolate and mineral flavors.” 12.5% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Rocca Felice, Nebbiolo D’Alba, Italy, 2014
• Type: red
• Price estimate: $17 (at Total Wine)
• Look: Ruby in color. Transluscent – not a lot of depth to the color. Some legs, probably light to medium alcohol.
• Smell: Wine. Some spice, but not discernible which to my nose. Bob called a mineral smell.
• Taste: Mineral. Thin mouth feel but not unpleasant. Dry with some tannin structure. Best guess of taste would be almost ripe plum.
• Conclusions: I liked this one better the second day. It was fine on the first day, but just ok. I was surprised at how thin the wine was, but it had a lot of character the next day. Definitely benefitted from opening a little. Second day, decided dark cherry hints in the taste and a more defined mineral smell.
• Other notes: This bottle was a Bob pick. It is not often that he picks wine out, but every now and then he does. One of the other Italian bottles we had recently he also picked, and this one was definitely better. If getting again, decant on the first day and let it come up to room temperature.
• From the bottle: “Wine made from Nebbiolo grapes. Ruby red color. The bouquet recalls violets and the taste is dry.” 13.5% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Robert Hall, Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles, California, 2014.
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $22 (at local wine store)
• Look: Deep garnet color with a lot of legs. Probably higher alcohol content. (Bob called it purple)
• Smell: Earth, mineral with a tiny bit of jam if you really search for it. Bob said mineral and spice.
• Taste: Bob’s taste description: medium tannin structure. Dry. Bold taste with some definite mineral notes. I had a harder time describing this one – I got rocky and mineral. No fruit until it warmed up and opened up, then there was some definite cherry notes in the wine.
• Conclusions: This would be great with food, either a lasagna or steak if you want to eat meat. I would call this exactly what I would expect from a Cabernet Sauvignon and probably a very classic example of a California Cabernet.
• Other notes: I’m still not sure how I feel about this one. It got better as it opened up, but I really could not do more than one glass of it. The overt mineral taste is hard for me to really enjoy, but it is a wine I think I appreciate.
• From the bottle: “A full bodied wine with a core of black currant and hints of cedar and spice.” 14.5% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Rumor Viticultores, Castilla y Leon Protocolo Zero Tinto Wine, 2014. Spanish Table wine
• Type: red
• Price estimate: $19 (Chamber Street Wines)
• Look: Dark red to purple. Good legs and a lot of them.
• Smell: Wood, sawdust, sour cherry.
• Taste: Petrol, mineral. Aftertaste of dark fruit. High alcohol – slight burn in back of the throat/ Some cherry and a high tannin. Hot.
• Conclusions: Very complex wine, very old world smell. Extremely strong wine.
• Other notes: On the first day, I could not drink this wine. I generally like big wines likes zinfandels, but this was something else. The overwhelming taste of alcohol and mineral just didn’t taste good. The second day, it was smoother and the alcohol taste had dissipated somewhat. It also had some notes of chocolate and coffee in it, but it still isn’t a wine I would drink without a meal.
• From the bottle: No notes on the bottle, but from the wine store, “exotic and aromatic, with heady scent of rose, raspberry and stewed strawberry fruit share the stage with honeyed flowers, deep mineral earth and fine tannins. This wine continues to open for days, taking on rich chocolate-raspberry, blackberry liqueur, tobacco and earth with tart skins of black cherry and cranberry and crunchy berry seeds.” 15% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Wellington Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County, CA, 2008.
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: No clue. We had this one for a few years and just got around to opening it.
• Look: Very dark red with tinges of brown at the edges. Opaque. Legs were bubbly, but very present.
• Smell: Blackberry and blueberry with mineral.
• Taste: Mineral taste up front. I said very little tannin, Bob called medium to high tannin. Dark fruit with a coffee aftertaste.
• Conclusions: Ok at best. We drank a glass each, but neither of us had a desire to go back for a second glass or even pour a glass the next day. I think the wine had oxidized a little and while it wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t good either.
• Other notes: We ended up getting this bottle a few years ago either from Woot or an online wine club that we tried (and didn’t keep). We had a few bottles of it and I really didn’t like it the first time I tried it, which is why this bottle sat in the house for so long. We decided to try it again, and while it was better than I remember, I still don’t care for it.
• From the bottle: No tasting notes on the bottle and the winery doesn’t have notes for this year anymore. 13.7% alcohol by volume.

• Basic info: Garzon Tannat Reserve, Uruguay, 2015.
• Type: Red
• Price estimate: $20 (from local wine store)
• Look: Deep, inky ruby color that sticks to the glass. Significant legs, probably high alcohol wine.
• Smell: Dark cherry fuit.
• Taste: Bitter on first sip. High tannin structure. Dark stone fruit, mineral and forest floor/leather.
• Conclusions: This is a wine I had to taste over two days to really assess. The first day, it was super strong and all I really got was bitter. The second day was better, with the fruit coming trough more, but I still didn’t care for it. This might be the textbook definition of a “big, bold” wine and I can see lots of people liking it, but I’m not really one of them. With some decanting, I can drink it with food, but it is not one that I’m going to have a full glass of, much less a second glass.
• Other notes: I think I’ve mentioned before that we belong to two wine clubs, one from Oregon where we get six bottles every six months, and one local wine club that is two bottles each month. This one of of the local wine club wines. I’m glad I tried it and it isn’t something I would ever pick up on my own, but I didn’t really like it. I found it bitter (but then again, I find broccoli bitter too) and thick. It paired ok with food and it was the first time I tried this varietal (or even heard of it) so that was something. When I did a little research, it turns out this varietal is known for the tannin structure – it is where the grape gets it’s name. If you like high tannin wines, you might like this, but this one was not for me.
• From the bottle: No tasting notes on the bottle, but from the wine store, “A juicy full bodied wine. Rich purple in color with very fresh aromas reminiscent of red and black fruits. A strong impression on the mouth with tannins and mineralogy that transform into a wine with great local soil identity.” 14.5% alcohol by volume.

Yes, that is Leia on the table. She hasn’t been feeling well lately and I don’t have the heart to kick her off unless we are eating. Poor kitty. But she does make the picture much more interesting.