Malvasia

Henrys -Pinot

Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve ‘03

A dark ruby/purple color is accompanied by a big, sweet nose of smoked meats, black currant jam, chocolate, pain grille, and espresso roast. Rich, full-bodied, and deep, with silky tannin and loads of length and concentration.

This has received ratings of over 90 points which it really deserves.

Muscato Di Asti

Almost too light on the nose. Strong fruit tones including orange, grape juice and a hint of clove.

Very pleasant smell, and a good indicator of the taste to come.

This very low in Alcohol (5-7 %) and looks like a sparkling wine and a fantastic Dessert wine which I purchased at Trader Joe’s for $7.

Lindemans South Africa Chardonnay

The wine has a mix of  straw Melons and tropical aromas are enhanced by a hint of grapefruit and some sweet vanilla from the oak. Very attractive Chardonnay fruit flavors, tropical with slight citrus. Some creamy texture gives the impression of a fuller flavored wine but this wine has a lightness, which encourages the next mouthful to be taken.

I was really impressed by this South African Chardonnay and for $6-8 is definitely great a good deal.

Abbott’s Vineyard

Chardonnay Abbot's Vineyard St Clement Winery Napa

This Chardonnay has the signature  cantaloupe and honeydew melon aromas  which are complemented by notes of caramel, red apple and orange blossom. The palate follows through with a creamy texture and flavors of fresh melon, cloves and lemon custard. The wine finishes with a cleansing acidity, which makes it easy to pair with a variety of dishes.

This is a really good value wine for around $25 and nice to drink on cold on a hot summer day.

Two Hands Shiraz -Angel’s Share

This is another one of my favourite picks in Australian Shiraz.

It has an interesting name -Angel’s share – which refers to the small amounts of wine that evaporates from the oak barrel during the maturation process. Medieval wine makers assumed that Angels watched over the wines and they took their share.

Rated 92 – Big, bold and expressive, with some unexpected transparency to the black cherry, raspberry, red plum and Asian spice aromas and flavors, lingering on the open-textured finish. The aftertaste just keeps coming. They say it would hold good until 2015 but it was good in 2009 so I won’t be able to validate that. K&L offers this for around $30 and it is a really good buy (if available)

St Henri’s Shiraz

Chocolate and mocha aromas are woven with Christmas pudding spices, cinnamon/nutmeg and fig and prune. The primary notes of stewed, dark berry fruits are counter-balanced by secondary notes of demi-glace and roasting pan juices. The palate is seamless with St. Henri’s trademark, glossy and silky mouthfeel. Wild raspberry and loganberry fruits align with ‘finessed’ tannins and a refreshing acidity to aid palate tightness, inducing a continuum through (not across) the mid-palate.

This cost around $50 and really worth it.

Merlot

This a red wine is considered Along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, Merlot is one of the primary grapes in Bordeaux wine where it is the most widely planted grape. Merlot-based wines usually have medium body with hints of berry, plum, and currant. Its softness and “fleshiness”, combined with its earlier ripening, makes Merlot a popular grape for blending with the sterner, later-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon,

Sales of Merlotpopularity appears to be coming back after the fictional snob knocked it growth in popular movie Sidways.

Cabernet Sauvigon

The Dark Skinned corss betweencabernet franc and sauvignon blanc grapes is known as Cabernet Sauvigon for creatin full bodied red wines. This grape is varietal as as adaptable as Chardonnay and is grown in all regions with thick red skin.   This is one of the dominate Bordeaux grapes and have very high tannic tastes in youth and may require decades to mellow.