Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling 2009 - $6

David: Pale gold in color. Nose of white peach, apple, lime and chalk. Medium bodied. Immediately sweet but with decent acidity to balance. Honeyed apple flavor dominant. Decent structure. Sweetness wins out in the end. Not overly complex but quite pleasant and a good value.
Score 3.8/5

Bran Caia Tre 2007 - $18

A Super Tuscan blend of Sangiovese, Merlot and Cabernet.

David: Crimson in color. Nose of dark fruit, oak, cocoa. A little bit of stink. Medium to full bodied, smooth texture and medium to low acidity with big black cherry fruit. Round tannins and pretty good balance and layering. A little on the mellow side but overall, quite tasty.
Score: 4.0/5

Black Swan Shiraz 2008 - $7

David: Color reddish purple. Nose of black cherry, vanilla oak flavors. Good acidity. Good cherry and plum fruit. Pleasant finish. This wine will be a solid competitor to Yellow Tail in the cheap supermarket shiraz category. Not extraordinary by any means but not too shabby either. A good pizza wine for the money.
Score: 3.7/5

Domaine de la Solitude Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2007 - $43

Blend of 55% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 15% Mourvedre, aged 80% in tank and 20% in small barrels.

"This classic Domaine, owned by the Lancon family, dates back to 1535. The first member of the family came from Italy in 1264 to serve the Pope in Avignon. Over the centuries, the Lancons had two Bishops and even one Pope in their family. The three hats on the label refer to this. "

David: Dark, inky purple in color. Nose has some rose petal but seems dominated by the syrah; burnt rubber, a little gaminess with some dry herbs. Medium acidity, full bodied. Generous, concentrated dark fruit but not a fruit bomb. Quite dry and well balanced between fruit and earthiness. Some syrah spiciness on the back end. Powerful tannins stay rounded and are never abrupt. Finish is long with black liquorish.
Score 4.3/5

Dancing Bull Cabernet 2007 - $9

David: Color is light crimson. Nose of black current and black cherry with cocoa, smoke and vanilla is pleasant enough. Medium bodied with medium to low acidity. Quite fruity, maybe a little on the fake fruit (e.g. twizlers) side. Has quite a bit of residual sweetness which I find not too pleasing given the lack of tannins and insufficient structure overall. But overall, it is a decent pizza wine though it is not hard to fine better ones for the price.
Score: 3.5/5

Chateau Ste. Michelle Syrah 2006 - $9

David: Purple in color. Nose, its best feature, of smoked meats, black current and earth. Full bodied and chewy, medium acidity. Good fruit. Not much for spice or tannins and finish is subdued but decent. Pretty good value but not too exciting.
Score: 3.8/5

Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel 2007 - $11

David: Beautiful dark red/purple color with highlights of magenta. Nose is black cherry fruit, burnt rubber, vanilla and nutmeg. Huge body which coats the tongue with medium to low acidity. Big time dark cherry, plum fruit with syrupy sweetness and big alcohol but it never gets too hot, especially on the back end where it can be annoying. Overall quite delicious. Not the most complex wine but I can't imagine anyone not liking it. Just a yummy, versatile food wine. Bogle scores again.
Score 4.2/5

Jessica: Delicious drinkable. Yum. Fruity, sweet like candy. But not over the top. Some subtle smoky tobacco and nutmeg lies behind the fruit, which is tart cherry. Simply delicious.
Score: 4.4/5

David: Tried this again, same vintage, and it was very different. Lighter colored, lighter bodied, less concentrated and overall worse. Would have given this as 3.8. I will average and call it 4.0 but should try it again to see what is going on.

Bogle Pinot Noir 2008 - $13

David: Color is red/purple and fairly dark for pinot. Complex nose of cherry, violets, herbs, smoke, inner tube with (perhaps a bit too much) vanilla. Medium to full bodied. Red raspberry fruit in quite acidic on the palate. A good mix of earthy and fruity. A little spice on the finish. Let this one breath at least an hour or even more as air seems to bring out mint and pine forest in the nose. Bogle continues to deliver nice wines that are low priced and widely available.
Score: 4.0/5

Jessica. No comment.
Score: 3.9/5

Vina Gormaz Tempranillo - 2009 - $9

100% Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero, 50 year old vines. Unoaked.

David: Dark purple in color. Has that distinctive Tempranillo nose; mountain berry mixed with stinkiness. Loamy soil and blackberry. Full bodied, medium acidity, concentrated ripe fruit followed by a little spiciness. Silky and mild tannins. Finish is quite long and nice. A good value.
Score: 4.0/5

Jessica: Good.
Score 3.9.

Campo Viejo Crianza 2006 - $11

David: A Crianza from Rioja. Tempranillo.

We tried the Campo Viejo Reserva before which is aged longer and cost $1 more. Color is dark crimson. Nose is red fruit but deeply bathed in a little too much vanilla scented oak. Maybe a little mintiness. Medium to full bodied with a silky texture. Lucious, sour cherry fruit on the palate with strong acidity that seems to mellow out a little with some air. Somewhat less complex overall than the Reserva which is probably worth the extra buck.
Score: 3.8/5

Jessica: No comment. Gulp. Gulp.
Score: 4.1/5

Indaba Chenin Blanc 2009 - $8

A chenin blanc from South Africa.

David: Light yellow in color. Nose of tropical fruit, honey, a little chalky minerality. Medium to full bodied. High acidity keeps it well structured despite the heavy fruit and a little residual sweetness. Nice dry finish. A very nice white wine and a great value at only 8 bucks. Went nice with four cheese ravioli in light olive oil.
Score: 4.0