We previously reviewed the Puerto Viejo Sauvignon Blanc, and their Chardonnay offering is just as awesome. Let’s rock:

Color

Beautiful, perfect gold. Just the right hue you are looking for to make your mouth water for that rich, juicy, somewhat-dry Chardonnay flavor.

Nose

Stiff lemon and green apple. You can actually smell the acid on this wine. For those of you who follow the site, you’ll remember that I love white wines with good acid, no matter what the varietal. I’ll have a review soon of a white varietal that had a strong acid nose, but ended up being absolutely acid-free, which is like smelling bacon as you wake up in the morning, but once you’re downstairs you find out it’s turkey bacon. Fail.

Taste

Great acid kick from the start. Now because I’m mentioning that first does not mean that the wine is too acidic. Far from it. The wine is structured. “Built like a brick shithouse” as my wife would say. You’ve got a textbook construction of flavors here, but each one is solid, rounded and pronounced just enough. Nothing wrong with following convention if you are confident that what you produce is good enough to make people think only in the moment, and not what came before. This wine is a classic. Great stone, apricot, some juicy green apple and even some white raspberry. There is something deliciously sour in the finish that you worry about for a moment, but then it’s gone, leaving you with an almond-satisfaction that puts a smile on your face.

With Food

As usual, shellfish, chicken, creamy pastas and CHEESE. Definitely a cheese wine. I should have said that first but I’m too lazy to go back and change it. Brie, camembert, even goat. Go crazy.

Where to Buy

$9.98 at FineWineHouse.com!

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Color

Nose

Taste

With Food

Where to Buy

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So let’s get into the Puerto Viejo Sauvignon Blanc:

COLOR: Near water, very light. Looks crisp from the get-go.

NOSE: Good acid even on the nose. Crispness continues along with some stinky brie and some great lime blossom. Lime blossom may sound a bit foofy, but I’ve recently been drinking lime blossom tea and the scent of this wine is a spitting image, so to speak.

TASTE: Lime jello, folks. Pure lime jello all around. This is an absolute first, and we are thrilled. To be more specific, my mother used to make this lime jello mold that consisted of half regular lime jello, the other half was like a creamy version of the lime jello. It was weird but delicious. It appeared for nearly every Sunday dinner and holiday.

Anyway, back to the wine. So the fruit is very forward here for a Sauvignon Blanc. Most of the time, with California or even French Sauv. Blancs, the fruit appears and is quickly taken over by a good dose of alcohol. This wine doesn’t suffer from that, despite it’s 13% ABV. Good crisp lime peel and acid appear in the mid-palate and it finishes off with a glorius almond flavor. Brilliant.

WITH FOOD: Lime-marinated chicken, fish, anything related to light Mexican food. That’s right, I said Mexican food. This would also work as a great opener to an evening dinner with shrimp cocktail. Just keep it away from the enchiladas, burritos, etc. Fish tacos would work, but I’m telling you, use lime with this bottle.

WHERE TO BUY: $7.99 at Vendome Wine & Spirits

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Hope everyone had a great weekend out at the BevMo 5¢ Wine Sale! Keeping with our vow to not give any negative reviews to ridiculous deals like the Montgras Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah Reserva 2007 let’s jump right into this ridiculously delicious red.

Good News: From the Colchagua Valley in Chile, the 2007 Montgras Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah is muscular but delicate. This is a Muhammad Ali of a wine. A slightly charcoal nose with little bit of lilac, if you can believe that. Charcoal and flowers, go figure. Take a deep breath and enjoy. Once it’s in your mouth, you will get a forward but delicate push of ripe red fruits stewed in port, then cooled and turned into a fruit rollup. Remember those? Cherry, strawberry and plums all mashed into a fruit rollup. The finish is clear with no heat from the alcohol and your tongue is left tingling from firm, satisfying tannins (they are the things that come from the grape skins that will make your tongue feel slightly dry). Absolutely made for BBQ.

With Food: We had this with some barbecued chicken, peppers, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes marinated in Char Siu BBQ sauce (ask for it at your nearest specialty store or even find it at Ross or Marshalls). I recommend any barbecued meat except for fish. Make sure the food isn’t too well-done, but charred enough on the outside. Trust me, you will be grateful for the extra char with this wine.

2 bottles for $17.04 at the BevMo 5¢ Wine Sale!

Once the sale is over, head to WineLibrary.com to get it for just $9.99!

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Have we got a treat for you…

Bad News First: We’re struggling to come up with something bad, but it’s just not happening. So let’s say that the……screw top, is bad. There. This seems to be happening more often here lately, but, once again, there is NOTHING wrong with a real Pinot Noir coming in at under $10. These will be rare on this site.

Now The Good: Besides the excellent flavor found in buying a bottle of Pinot Noir with a $10 bill and getting change back, we can start with the color. Ruby red with a slight cranberry-juice look. The immediate smell is of a cherry Blow Pop (remember those?) and roses mixed with a touch of leather. The taste is a well-balanced mix of floral scents (when you taste a wine, you are really still smelling it) and very ripe cherries. Smoke helps to balance it all out. The wine gives off the impression of being very alcoholic, but don’t worry, the heat is not overpowering in the least.

The Cantus Pinot Noir is made by Vina Indomita, a very technologically-advanced winery in the Casablanca Valley region of Chile. They source their grapes from two vineyards: one in Casablanca and the other in Maipo. Casablanca is in the very middle of the long, slender country, to the west of Santiago.

With Food: Hearty foods. Steaks, game, possibly the white meats depending on how they are prepared. A nice, hard, smelly cheese would also do very well.

$7.98 at WineLibrary.com

Visit the Vina Indomita site

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