2001 Travaglini Gattinara

2001 Travaglini Gattinara

this was a nice wine, that delivered on the promise of an aromatic nose. plenty of cherries and raspberries both on the nose and on the palette. fairly high acidity and astringent tannins, however dispite this the wine is well balanced and has a smooth finish.

my biggest problem here was the lack of complexity. the 'spice' was sorely lacking - maybe a hit here and there, but honestly this was all red fruit and not much else. the body was also fairly light - not sure where they're getting 'full bodied' from on the label. i'm sure this wine could last a while due to the acidity and tannin, however there's not a whole lot of fruit and spice to mature. this is an enjoyable, fairly simple wine. it's a pass for the price though.

Tasting Tags: cherry fresh raspberry strawberry

2005 La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rouge

2005 La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rouge

did a 'seven dollar showdown' with this and a chapoutier cotes du rhone. made for an interesting comparison of two rhones of similar makeup that were quite different, especially on the nose.

the la vieille ferme was fruitier - had a definite big league chew thing going on. it's got some of that rhone stink to it, and some pepper on the finish... but it's got a good shot of black fruit to balance it out. good acidity - will be great w/ food. good QPR... recommended.

Tasting Tags: blackberry blueberry bubblegum dirt pepper

2005 Belleruche Cotes-du-Rhone M. Chapoutier

2005 Belleruche Cotes-du-Rhone M. Chapoutier

did a 'seven dollar showdown' with this and la vieille ferme. made for an interesting comparison of two rhones of similar makeup that were quite different, especially on the nose.

the chapoutier was much earthier, dirtier, with more muted fruit. it had decent acidity, but i wouldn't call it 'fresh' feeling. more leather. more stink.

this profile made for an interesting wine, especially for the price. will continue to keep a few bottles of this on hand at all times, as it's a good, solid wine.

(on a side note, the la vieille ferme was fruitier - big league chew with the dirt! - and a bit fresher. my wife liked this one more. both are good QPR, imo)

Tasting Tags: dirt leather spice

2005 Goats do Roam Rose

2005 Goats do Roam Rose

fairly straight forward rose here. a lot of apples in the mouth, kind of one dimensional, but it's not a bad dimension. the alcohol is a bit high, and you can taste it. if you get your nose right in the glass, you can feel the alcohol in your eyes.

got a bit better as it warmed up - the fruit came around a bit more, and it's enjoyable on the nose, but again nothing spectacular. a decent bottle at a decent price. i need to try more rose to see if i'd go back for another round or not.

Tasting Tags: apples

1998 Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett

1998 Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett

this one really blew me away. i had heard about older reislings having a petrol character, but never actually experienced it. until now.

it REEKS of oil/gasoline. i mean this smells like your grandfather's shed smelled like, with the old oil and gas mixed in with the metal and the grass from the yard. fantastic. tastes like pineapples, peaches and apricots in the mouth. really nice and round mouth feel, acidity and sweetness are perfectly balanced.

a great wine.

Tasting Tags: apricots oil peaches pineapple

2001 Aveleda Estremadura Tinto

2001 Aveleda Estremadura Tinto

I've been trying more and more Portugese wines in search of great values. Unfortunately this one did not pay off.

First, you've got to decant it. The initial smell of sulfur is overwhelming and really turned me off. After letting the glass get some air for about 10 minutes, the sulfur smell was gone. What was left was a fairly non-descript, average red wine. Nothing spectacular about the nose or the taste. Moderate acidity and tannin. Not really that terrible, but it surely didn't make me want another glass.

Hey for $6, you get what you get. But even at that price point I'm going to have to skip this one next time around.

Tasting Tags: sulfur

2003 Tiziano Chianti

2003 Tiziano Chianti

Date: 5/25/06
Location/Condition: Home, w/o Food
Producer: Tiziano
Region/Appelation: Chianti, Tuscany
Varietal: Sangiovese
Alcohol: 13.5%
Vintage: 2003
Price: $8 (US)

Colour depth/hue/clarity: medium/ruby/clear

Aroma: Fairly aromatic, red fruits, you can detect the acidity in the wine. Nice.

A dry red with a fairly light body. The body doesn't really line up with the aroma - it's stronger on the nose than in the mouth. There's a good swash of acidity here - which is good if you're eating - but the lack of fruit leaves things slightly out of balance on its own. Tannins are weak and slightly astringent - nothing out of line.

Overall I think this is a good wine for the price. It could use a bit more complexity in the mouth - it needs to back up all that aroma with flavor - but for an everyday workhorse food and drink wine, this is a good one for the price.