The Delas Saint Esprit Côtes du Rhône is a rather different Rhone blend. The wine is made up of 75% Syrah and 25% Grenache. Generally, Rhone blends are made up of Syrah and some of the typical whites from the region, such as Viognier, Roussanne or Marsanne. Still, this was suggested to us by a friend and was out of this world.

Color

Great color exhibiting bright red fruits like red currant and strawberry.

Nose

A playful nose, which sounds weird, but it basically means that it’s pleasing with a variety of smells. In this case, it’s pepper, black currant jam, cinnamon, and bright strawberry fruit rollups.

Taste

Again, the wine is playful and bright, exhibiting lots of varied flavors and textures. At once it’s like velvet, but then the tannins kick in and it takes on a whole new flavor. The fruit is delicious and very strong despite most vintages being rather young right now for under $20. We had the 2007. The spices kick in on the finish, leaving you with the sensation that you’ve just had a spiced berry pie of some sort.

With Food

Not for BBQ or tomatoes; too much smoke and acid that could overpower this baby. This wine has some varied and wacky flavors that should be underscored rather than bluntly matched. Try it with some sharp cheeses, nuts and berries. As a full meal wine, roasts would work well, especially some roasted game like mutton or antelope.

$9.99 from WineExchange.com!

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Altos De Luzon Jumilla

From a region about 200 miles south of Madrid (that’s Spain), comes the Altos De Luzon Jumilla red wine. This table wine is a blend of three varietals: Monastrell, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo (Spain’s flagship grape).

Spain is hot, and in many regions (particularly the wine-growing ones), the soil is chalky and unforgiving for grape vines. What this means is that vines need to struggle and fight all of their lives to produce fruit, and they don’t produce much of it. What they do produce, however, is more powerful, concentrated and flavorful.

Translation: Struggling Vine = Better Wine.

Bad News First

Nada. Unless, of course, you like your reds on the unfocused and hollow side.

Good News

Color: Dark, dark purple. Squid ink with some clouds. The concentration of flavors is definitely evident in the color. Keep away from light carpeting at all costs

Nose: Deep dark fruits: Raisins, prunes, dark stewed cherries with a bit of cinnamon and some clove.

Flavor: Cassis has arrived! This is a flavor we have not mentioned much (mostly because it rarely comes to mind). Cassis is basically blackcurrant, but with a bit more concentration of flavor and a touch of alcohol thrown in. The prunes have turned back to plums but the raisins remain. The tannins are firm but not pronounced, making the finish on this wine absolutely delectable. The spice is back as well, along with some toast and vanilla oak from the French and American barrels.

This wine was made with extreme skill and care.

With Food

Strong red foods and stinky cheeses. Paella would work well, as would a delicious rack of lamb. Pair it as you would a stiff Cabernet.

$11.99 at WineLibrary.com!

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2007 Chesnay Cotes Du Rhone

This one was a little weird, but we figured that at $6.98, a little bad news probably wouldn’t dissuade you from trying it.

Bad News First

Fizzy. We’ve come across this before: an effervescence to the wine that makes it smell…well, bad. This wine smells like it’s gone off, crapped out, adios. There is poop on the nose, which is normal for many French wines and generally is a good thing, but we wanted to let you all know ahead of time in case you don’t think you could get past that. The funk of this wine might be just a bit too overpowering for some of you.

Tip: If you can’t get past the funky fizziness, decant this sucker for about an hour. That should take care of any problems.

Good News

Color: Murky gemstone upon first exiting the bottle and hitting the glass, but no worries. A bright yet inky color.

Nose: Poop (sorry, but that’s what it is!). This scent is common in many French wines, so no worries. Light red fruits such as red currants and strawberries, some dark purple raisins, and a bit of spicy oak. By the way, it should be noted that along with our preference for vegetal red wines, we also like the manure-nosed wines as well (they typically taste much better than they smell).

Taste: Silky silky silky. Once the wine was out of the bottle for about an hour, the fizz and funk drifted off to reveal a great blend of fruit-forward, tannic beauty. Roll it around and let your tongue enjoy it. The finish was remarkable and lingered until the next sip. The red and purple fruits really mingle well; nothing off-balance at all.

With Food

Lamb, steak and even duck would work with this. Just a little salt and pepper on any one of them would pair well. We wouldnt hit up the cheese with this one, though. Just didn’t quite work for us.

$6.98 at WineLibrary.com! A screaming deal!

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You’re Recommending a Non-Chardonnay Kendall-Jackson?

Indeed we are. Kendall Jackson Chardonnay is how a lot of people first started drinking that was higher quality than the jug wines or White Zinfandels they were used to. Kendall Jackson still makes a killing with their Chardonnay in every vintage, and is one of the best-selling Chardonnays in history. They practically mailed samples of the stuff to suburban homes back in the nineties as a requirement to drink. So because of this, we feel like we don’t really have to say anything. To us, it would be like recommending gasoline for your car.

Therefore, without further or do, we bring you the Kendall Jackson Meritage 2003. This is a plush blended wine (“Meritage” means “Blend”) in the Bordeaux style. Remember, a Bordeaux wine can only consist of the following five grape varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Frank, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot. The Kendall Jackson Meritage contains three out of the five: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

Bad News First

The wine tastes fake. That’s as bluntly as we can put it. Kendall Jackson has been around for so long and has to bottle such large amounts of their wine to get them into thousands of grocery stores, that some of their wines taste “rushed.”

There were flavors in this juice at some point in time, but we’re guessing that they ran out of time and so had to fake a few tastes to make the wine more tasty, palatable and pleasing to the public. One such method would be to over-oak the wine, as this certainly is. If you are not into the super-California-style wines or vanilla oak elements in red wine, stay away.

Basically, there are better, hearty red wines available for less money. the Hahn Syrah for one.

Good News

Color: Rich, red garnet. The color is pleasing and makes you want to get to drinking.

Nose: Very dark cherries and oaken vanilla. The oak really does bash you right in the face here. You might also pick up hints of earth; wet earth. Rainy mornings on a redwood deck.

Taste: We have the oak again, and man oh man is it in the front. It dominates every other flavor, turning this wine into a bowl of vanilla ice cream topped off with some cedar chips and some vanilla extract. Did we mention vanilla? The deep, dark cherries complete themselves from nose to taste here, it’s virtually the only fruit you will get, depending on what you might be eating. Weak tannins, so there is the slightest hint of dryness, but given the varietals blended here, there should be much much more. So if you are into New World styles, and especially California New World, you might want to give this a whirl.

With Food

Strong cheeses or fruit, perhaps red berries or cherries. Normally, blends such as these work well with red meats or even red sauces, but given the weak structure and tannins, it just won’t hold up. Take it easy with this one.

Only $12 at Winerz.com! (Yes, we know it is slightly cheaper on other sites, but this one looked like they could actually ship it to you rather than tying it to a pigeon and hoping for the best. We’re always looking out for you.)

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Please Light the Fireworks BEFORE Drinking These

Since today is the 4th of July, we here at Wine Welfare decided to just give you a barrage of great deals still available at the BevMo 5¢ Wine Sale!

So without further or do, here are 2 great whites (we know that it’s most likely warm, wherever you are) and 2 great reds (we know you also may be barbecuing). So go pick up these great wines!

Whites First

Mezzacorona Chardonnay 2006 – $9.04 for 2!:

Creamy, with a bit of apple crumble and vanilla ice cream, but not nearly as filling. Medium-bodied, and just dry enough to make you want another glass. Enjoy it with grilled chicken or fish, only slightly chilled.

Query Sauvignon Blanc 2008 – $15.04 for 2!:

Limes, kool-aid and Fruit Loops with milk on the nose really helps with these hot summer days. Very unlikely scents for a California Sauvignon Blanc, which tend to be pretty bland and over oaked. Nice grass on the finish and extremely refreshing. Fish or chicken will work, but enjoy it by itself too. Chill it a bit more than the Chardonnay.

Now The Reds

Challis Lane Cabernet 2007 – $8.04 for 2!:

A wine deal list just doesn’t seem complete without another mention of Challis Lane. We reviewed their Sauvignon Blanc last week and found it an astounding wine for the price. The Cabernet is no different. Stiff, leathery nose accompanied by wonderful red fruits like cherries and blackberries. The taste is an explosion of black plums, boysenberries and tree bark. That last one doesn’t sound so appetizing, we know, but it translates to “good with barbecued steak.” So have at it.

Hedges CMS Red Wine 2007 – $12.04 for 2!:

A very European-style red wine blend from the Columbia Valley of Washington. Now, you might be thinking “European-style wine on the 4th of July?” but we really feel like this can bring something to your table full of barbecued hamburgers, steaks, chicken, ribs or pretty much anything else. It’s a “Meritage” wine, meaning a blend, that shows a lot of strong coffee, licorice and blackberry flavors and smells. Open it when you light the grill to give it time to breathe, then enjoy once the food is ready. Trust us, anything char-broiled is going to go perfectly with this bottle.

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We hope you have a fantastic 4th of July holiday weekend!

Cheers!

Wine Welfare

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