2004 Casal dos Prazeres Douro Xara - Portugal, Douro (9/26/2006)Deep reddish color, with marroon tinge. Nose shows some violet that gives way to blackberry, smoke and light minerals. In the mouth the tannins are strong with a rich medium acidity. Dried out and showing only simple fruit the nose really ...

N.V. Cellar Cal Menescal Tarragona Vermouth - Spain, Catalunya, Tarragona (10/5/2006)Pours a deep brownish red with a medium intensity. The nose is intense and intoxicating inviting you to inhale deeply it reminds me of some bitter Italian after dinner treats that I’ve had in the past. Light wood notes come in and you get the [...] More info at www.catavino.net...

I have written about how good the wines being made at Pondalowie are, so I won't harp on about that.  This wine is a blend of  Cabernet, Shiraz and 20% Tempranillo and sees some time in american and french oak.  The addition of tempranillo to the classic aussie blend really works well if this wine is anything to go by. A nice nose of mulberry, a bit of cherry and toasty oak.  Medium bodied...

My first thought when I saw this new label was Johnny Cash's "I've Been Everywhere".  But what owner Jon Ruth meant to communicate was "casually and just for the pleasure".  The wine inside is a success viewed that way. Ramblin Red Cuvee One is 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Syrah, 22 ... , was responsible for putting together this blend.  Moser spent years in France making wine, including 2 years...

... and Carignan found in this South African red. The similarity from a varietal perspective is the use ... earthy, food friendly red. Fairview , “Goats do Roam” Red, Western Cape, South Africa 2004 ($10...

I had a look at the crianza style La Montesa a couple of months ago, this is its big brother.  A similar blend of the 4 Rioja grapes: Garnacha (40%), Tempranillo (35%), Mazuelo (15%) and Graciano (10%).  This time the oak is all french and the wine is more of a Reserva style.  I have said this before, but watch out for the 04, it looked great as a barrel sample in February. The wine started...

It's cup weekend here in Melbourne and you probably should be drinking something with bubbles in it, even if its before 11am on Monday morning. (for our international guests, there is a big horse race in Melbourne on Tuesday called the Melbourne Cup.  Its a good excuse to drink a ...

Watch this Episode! Wines tasted in this episode: Spreadsheet courtesy of Chris Stanisci 2003 Vincent Girardin Volnay Santenots 2000 Denis Mugneret Clos De Vougeot 2003 Michael Magnien Morey St Denis Chaffot 2003 Gouges Nuits St George Clos Porrets Watch today as Gary tackles four red burgundies. Tune in today and see what Gary thinks of these four, one of the great wines...

Torres make a number wines under their 'Gran' label, basically these are Reserva versions of their younger brothers. So, here we have Gran Coronas (I had a look at the 03 Coronas here ), a blend of 85% Canbernet and 15% Tempranillo that sees 12 months in french an eastern European oak, 30% of which ... is labeled as the broad D.O. Catalunya. A deep red core with purple at the edges and some great aromas...

... is simply “Cheap Red Wine”. Vintage? I couldn’t find it on the bottle. Although the bottle lacks...