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Spencer Roloson Palaterra Napa Valley California 2005
$12.99

Source: SpencerRoloson.com

Recently I have really come to love the Spencer Roloson Palaterra 2005. According to the winemaker’s website, the Palaterra is a blend of of 59% Syrah, 24% Valdigue, 12% Petite Sirah, 4% Carignane modeled on wines from the Southern Rhone, Provence and the Languedoc.  The 115 year old Carignane vines and the 50 year old Valdigue vines give the wine gnarly old vine character, while the Syrah gives it plenty of fruit, texture and weight. A very original and enjoyable wine.

Altaïr Sideral Rapel Valley Chile 2003
$16.99 — 88 ST | 91 WA

The Altaïr Sideral Rapel Valley Chile 2003 is a gorgeous blend comprised of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 6% Shiraz.  This wine is big all around.  The color is an intense and opaque dark red.  On the nose there are aromas of charcoal, spice and cigar tobacco.  On the palate the wine has a lush and full feeling with nice tannins and a hint of oak.  The finish is long and complex.  Overall this is a well-integrated wine that is drinking very well right now — and one that I suspect would be quite amazing if you could manage to keep it around long enough to find out.

However, that could be difficult!  Indeed, after picking up a case of this wine at the local Pennsylvania Wine and Spirits store about a month ago, we’ve already gone through the first half a case!  And we have not been disappointed.  At $16.99 this wine is on the high end of what I like to spend for everyday drinking, but given the increasing difficulty of finding wines with a Robert Parker / Wine Advocate rating of 91 points under $20 I decided it was worth the splurge.  By comparison the best price I could find on Wine Access was $23.99 at Gary’s in Madison, NJ, a well-known discount wine merchant. 

Bodegas El Nido Clio 2003
$78.99 — 92 ST | 96 WA | 90 WS

Bodegas El Nido Clio 2003

The bad news is that the wine cellar is in desperate need of a multi-case infusion of wine. The good news is that lurking in the nooks and crannies are some forgotten gems.  Specifically, last night in my quest for something interesting, I rediscovered a stash of Bodegas El Nido Clio Jumilla Spain 2003.  As best I can recall, it has been at least 2 years since I last had a bottle of this fabulous wine.

As some of you may know, the Clio is the lower priced sibling of the Nido. Although the Nido has a release price of more than $130 a bottle, at its release the Clio usually runs between $35 and $40, and is typically rated only one or two points lower. In other words you get nearly all the bang for way less buck. And this is a wine that perenially wins high marks from Robert Parker and others.  For example, Robert Parker / Wine Advocate ratings for the 2002, 2004 and 2005 vintages have been 93, 97 and 95 points respectively.

No exception to this trend, the 2003 was rated a whopping 96 points. According to my records I paid about $35 a bottle several years ago (that was before life on a Ph.D. budget). Today, I found it in stock at Wine.com for $79 a bottle, and elsewhere for $99 to $119 a bottle.  It appears that “wine” may be the single best asset class I own in terms of five-year return on investment

Anyway, the wine is 70% Monastrell (61 year old vines) and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon (26 year old vines) and a huge 15.5% alcohol.  According to Robert Parker, the Clio spent 26 months in a combination of French and American oak.  The Clio 2003 has a deep, thick and intense purple color.  Aromas are of creme de cassis and licorice, along with some toasty/leathery notes. On the palate the wine was lush and opulent, very complex, and still full of fruit. This wine is a real mouthful. And the finish was easily over 30 seconds. The wine is drinking very, very well right now, and shows no signs of running out of life.

I plan on having another bottle tonight in celebration of Valentine’s Day.  Cheers!

Kaiken Ultra Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2006
$12.99 — 91 WA | 90 WS

Source: KaikenWines.com

This is my third post about the Kaiken Ultra Malbec 2003.  My other posts are here and here.

For better or for worse, we drank the last bottle from our case many weeks ago.  However, over the holiday one of my relatives — and blog readers :) – had several bottles on hand and was happy to share the wealth.  I can now say with great confidence, this may be the finest bottle of wine produced in the 21st century for under $13.  Truly a wonderful wine for the money.

Over the holiday I took three wines, each of which cost $10 or less, to one of the family gatherings.  The wines included:

Arthur Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles California 2006 — $9.99

Nine x Nine Zinfandel Lodi California 2006 — $9.99

Bodega Norton Malbec Barrel Select Mendoza Argentina 2006 — $8.99

I had high hopes for all three, especially the Arthur Hills, as finding a decent California Cab for $10 has become almost impossible. Unfortunately, my search continues. The Arthur Hills was by far the worst of the three wines. It had a bizarre nose – think some combination of rotting organic matter and petrol. On the palate it was watery thin with flavors of strawberries — but of a decidedly artifical nature. At any rate, not what you want from a Cab. In short, this is one of the worst wines I can recall drinking in a long while. After a few sips, it went down the drain. It looks like the Gun Bun Cab gets to retain its title as the best California Cab under $15.

Next up was the Nine x Nine Zin. I was hoping for perhaps an alternative to Renwood or Dancing Bull. Certainly for $10 I had no expectations of Ridge… Alas, for me, this wine was also a disappointment. Mind you, it was not so visibly flawed as the Arthur Hills, but it was still just a bit beyond the borderline of acceptable. Of course, in wine as so many other things opinions vary; one of the other wine enthusiasts at the party thought it wasn’t so bad.

The third of the three turned out to be the best. The Norton Malbec was fragrant on the nose and full and lush in the mouth. It would benefit from a bit more grip on the palate and a little less ripenness, but overall, this was a drinkable wine. I have also recommended this wine to some friends who reported back that they enjoyed it very much. Although the Norton will never be mistaken for Kaiken, it is perfectly adequate for social gatherings and everyday drinking.

d’Arenberg The Footbolt Shiraz McLaren Vale Australia 2005
$14.99 – 89 WA | 89 ST 

And yet, despite the abundance of choices, finding any wines worth buying proved to be a real challenge.   Most of what they were peddling was either worthless swill or just simply too expensive for everyday enjoyment. Having 2,000 selections is of no benefit if the wines are not not worth drinking in the first place. 

After what felt like an hour in the store, I finally found one worth bringing home in quantity: d’Arenberg The Footbolt Shiraz McLaren Vale Australia 2005. The Footbolt is a consistently good offering (so too are many of the other bottlings from d’Arenberg). The 2005 vintage is no exception. And at $14.99, the Pennsylvania Wines and Spirits price is actually very, very competitve, on par with the best I can find on the internet. I picked up a case and a half, nearly cleaning them out. 

The Footbolt scores 89 points from both Robert Parker / Wine Advocate, and from Stephen Tanzer / International Wine Cellar.  After drinking the first bottle I can see why.  This wine has a beautiful nose, a lot on the palate and a decently long finish.  The Footbolt is clearly ready to drink now, but I suspect that it will taste like a $30 bottle of Shiraz if you give it about 12 to 18 months of cellaring. 

As for me, one case went onto the “everyday” shelf of our Eurocave, and the other half a case went onto one of the “save for later” shelves.  If the latter 6 bottles manage to last 12 or 18 months, I’ll let you know how it is holding up.  Also, if I get a chance, I plan to stop back and clean out any remaining bottles.

BTW — The producer is spelled d’Arenberg with an E, not d’Arenburg with an U.

Kaiken Ultra Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2006
$12.99 — 91 WA | 90 WS

Source: KaikenWines.com

Just a quick update on my earlier post. Over the last month I have served the Kaiken Ultra Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2006 to a wide variety of guests, and it never fails to elicit unsolicited raves. Several guests have even gone in search of it by the case.  This is a big wine with a lot on the nose and a long long finish.  Enjoy.

In addition to the Gun Bun Cab, we had two other noteworthy wines this past weekend.

Kaiken Ultra Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2006
$12.99 — 91 WA | 90 WS

Source: KaikenWines.com

First, the Kaiken Ultra Malbec Mendoza Argentina 2006 ($12.99).  A-ma-zing.  Robert Parker rated this wine 91 points.  Loads of fruit and a long long finish.  At $13 this wine is a screaming value.

“The 2006 Ultra Malbec was aged for 12 months in French oak. The oak influence is apparent in the attractive perfume which also has notes of violets, black cherry and a hint of chocolate. This is followed by a structured wine that will benefit from 2-3 years of additional bottle age. The fruit is mouth-filling and has good depth and the firm finish lasts for more than 45 seconds.”  Source: KaikenWines.com

In addition to the 91 points from Robert Parker, the Kaiken Ultra Malbec also scored 90 points from Wine Spectator.  Visit the Kaiken Wines website for more reviews.

Second, our neighbors Wes and Michelle brought over the Frei Brothers Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Alexander Valley 2005.  This was another outstanding wine.  Everything you expect from a California Cabernet.

Gundlach Bundschu Cabernet Sauvignon Block 13 Sonoma County California 2005
$12.99

Gun Bun Cabernet Sauvignon Block 13

We had the Gun Bun Cabernet Sauvignon Block 13 over the weekend.  Wow!  This is the best California Cabernet for under $15 I can recall having in a long while.

BTW, next time you are touring Napa or Sonoma, I highly recommend that you include Gundlach Bundschu on your wine tasting itinerary.  The setting is idyllic and the people are decidedly inviting.  When we lived in Cali in the late 1990s they hosted a summer Shakespeare festival on an open air stage.  People would bring blankets and picnic lunches and drink lots of Gun Bun wine.

A couple of weeks ago I picked up a few mixed cases of wine at the local wine and spirits store.  While we’ve not made our way through all of my selections yet, below I provide some quick picks and pans.

First, the Mas Donis still stands out as one of the gems in the bunch.

From Italy we enjoyed L’Oca Ciuca Toscana The Drunken Goose 2005 ($8.99) — 40% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot, 30% Shiraz / Syrah, and the Vitiano Falesco Rosso 2005 ($11.99) — equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese.  The Vitiano should be widely available and cost about $8 for those of you not living in a monopoly wine state like Pennsylvania.

From France I can recommend the Chateau de la Tuilerie Attrape Coeur Vin de Pays D’Oc 2003 ($9.99) — 60% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon.  Wine Spectator gave it 89 points.

There are ocassions which call for a wine that is inexpensive but not visibly flawed.  For example, when you’ve already gone through one too many good bottles, but the night is not quite over…  I picked up the Lindeman’s Bin 50 Shiraz Australia 2007 ($6.99) for such an ocassion and was pleasantly surprised.  Keep in mind, we probably already had one too many.

From South Africa, we’ve had several vintages of the Goats do Roam Red over the years.  The 2006 ($9.99) is a solid offering.  I’ve actually served close to a case of this one in the last 2 months. 

Perhaps my favorite was the Mapema Primera Zona Mendoza Argentina 2002 ($19.99).  A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec and 20% Merlot, this wine is basically an Argentinean Bordeaux.  Overall, this is a very complex wine with a long, long finish.  My wife and guests raved.

There were also several disappointments in the batch, including the Meridian Chardonnay Santa Barbara County 2006 (too much oak, too little fruit), the Piping Shrike Shiraz Barossa Valley 2006 (the Lindeman’s was better for less than half the price), and most of all, the Green Point Shiraz 2005.  Robert Parker gave the Green Point 90 points.  However, I have now served this wine 3 or 4 different times over the course of several months and found it to be a repeated disappointment.  Perhaps it needs more time in the cellar.  That’s where my remaining bottle will stay for a while.