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Red Wine Review: Colosi Sicilia Rosso 2004

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Colosi Rosso Sicilia Red WineOver the last 25 years or so, the island of Sicily has tranformed itself from an overgrown grape juice factory into a hotbed for cutting edge, superripe, fine wines. Its long, arid, sweltering summers allow for extreme ripening of grapes, thus producing ripe, dense, fruit-packed wines. In the last decade some remarkable (and expensive) Sicilian wines have stunned the wine world, but the island is also becoming known as a place for great values.

One of these is this red wine from the Colosi winery — Colosi Rosso — which retails for under 10 bucks. It has a somewhat closed nose at first, but if you give it some time it will eventually produce aromas of sour cherry, sour cranberry, and a touch of plum. In the mouth it has a ripe, fresh, open fruit flavor — cherry again, along with jammy red raspberry, black raspberry, plum, and pomegranate. It displays good depth, with mild hints of earth and tar, and has a smooth texture, with medium tannins.

I originally discovered this wine about four years ago, and though the acid and tannin levels seem to fluctuate according to the vintage (in some years, this wine may remind you of Chianti), the fruit has always been ripe and buying a bottle has never been a disappointment. Try it with chicken fricasee or chicken pot pie, or with meals based on turkey or lean ground turkey. It�s also enjoyable on its own — consider it with simple frozen-food type appetizers (hot poppers, pigs in blankets, mini-pizza). Because of the juicy jammy fruit, this might be a good bridge wine for transporting Yellow Tailers to real wine.

a-7 t-8 b-8 fc-7 v-9

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This wine is imported by Vias Wine

Red Wine Review: Castelvero Barbera 2004

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Castelvero Barbera red wine bottleHow often can you find a Barbera from Piedmont under ten bucks? And would you believe it would be any good?

Once again Vias Imports delivers a great wine value from Italy, this time it’s Castelvero Barbera.

The wine comes from a high-altitude (about 1200 ft.) vineyard in the Monferrato hills of Piedmont, is fermented in stainless steel, sees no oak, but does get a malolactic treatment, for those who want to sound smart when chatting about it. The lack of oak allows the pure, clean Barbera fruit to come out in the wine — which for me is a positive.

That pure fruit is immediately noticed in Castelvero Barbera’s perfumey, open nose, which bursts with red cherries, black raspberry, hints of spice and earth. The palate has ripe black and red cherry fruit, raspberry, touches of cranberry and spice, all delivered on a smooth texture. Gushing, mouthwatering acidity and soft tannins add to the structure and help with food compatibility. It’s well balanced through the finish, which is longer than expected and includes both red and black berry fruits. Match it with pasta in marinara and other red-sauce dishes, grilled or blackened poultry, meaty fish (salmon, trout, blackened catfish), mild cheeses, mac and cheese. This is a really nice red wine for the price: soft and easy drinking, yet complex enough to be enjoyable and matchable with a variety of foods. Great Value and an Everyday Wine.

A-7 t-7 b-8 fc-10 v-10 ~ 92 Points

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Red Wine Review: Vinos Pinol Ludovicus 2005

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Vinos Pinol Ludovicus Terra Alta wine bottleThis wine could have been the result of Southern rap (Ludacris) meeting punk rock (Sid Vicious) … but, in reality this wine has nothing to do with either.

Looking again at the label, you might think “oh great, another Pinot!”. Wrong there too … it’s actually “Pinol” … but you’re getting warmer. But hey, there’s no reason you can’t say this is a “Pinol from Spain” — and let the uninformed think it’s Pinot Noir.

Pinol is actually not a grape, but the name of a family owning a winery (Vinos Pinol) in a little town in Spain called Batea, within the region of Terra Alta. This is a significant fact of geography, because Batea is in what is called “Zone 5”, and just a hop, skip, and jump away from Priorat, which is a Spanish wine region that produces world-class wines that no one with a nose in Napa Cab has ever heard of. Which is just as well — allow geeks of Spanish wine to continue getting great deals.

Back to Ludovicus �

The grapes in this wine are Garnacha (35%), Tempranillo (30%), Syrah (25%), and Cabernet Sauvignon (10%) — and all can be perceived on the nose, which is vibrant, open, and full of ripe black and red fruits, earth, tar, tobacco, and vanilla.

The palate has similar characteristics: wide open, forward, upfront ripe black berry fruit is immediate on the palate, and is followed by spicy vanilla notes before finishing with a mixture of fruit, earth, black pepper, and tobacco. Everything is held together with ripe, mild to medium tannins and mild to medium acidity. By itself, it is interesting and borderline contemplative. With food, its upfront ripe fruit and structure has enough to match with burgers, mac and cheese, leaner meats, such as roast turkey and chicken, turkey or tofu burgers, gamey fish, and grilled vegetables. This might be a bargain bottle for Thanksgiving dinner, and at around $9 qualifies in my book as an Everyday Wine and Great Value.

a-7 t-7 b-7 fc-7 v-9 ~ 87 points

By the way, thanks to David Ogilvie of Purple Lips Wine Log for the bottle photo of Vinos Pinol Ludovicus you see here. He also reviewed this wine, if you’d like to get another person’s opinion.

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Vinos Pinol Ludovicus 2005 from Wine.com

White Wine Review: Tasca d’Almerita Regaleali Bianco

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Tasca d'Almerita Regaleali Bianco wine bottleTasca d’Almerita makes two very reliable everyday “table” wines from its Regaleali property, one white, one red. This is the white — Bianco — and the 2004 vintage is still fresh and enjoyable.

In an attempt to clear up some confusion: Tasca d’Almerita is the name of the winemaking family that owns the Regaleali estate. Generally speaking, wines made by “the Count” — Count Tasca d’Almerita that is — are referred to as “Regaleali”. Whether you call it Regaleali or Tasca d’Almerita, the wine is the same — and it’s usually very good. The Regaleali Bianco is made from three grapes indigenous to Sicily — Inzolia, Catarrato, and Grecanico — but you won’t see these grapes anywhere else so it’s not necessarily important to commit them to memory.

Regaleali Bianco teases the nose with subtle aromas of pear, straw, and lemon, but the wine really comes alive in the mouth. Fresh, clean, ripe white fruits are tasted immediately, specifically pear, white peach, and a citrusy component that resembles lemon. The fruit remains strong and seems to increase in concentration as it lays on the palate, and stays ripe and apparent through a surprisingly long and balanced finish. This wine’s ample, chalky acidity and hint of mineral make it a wonderful wine to match with a wide variety of foods, especially dishes based on chicken, fish, and pork — I’d also recommend it with Asian cuisine and vegetarian dishes. At around around a dozen dollars, this wine gives you a lot of bang for the buck. A good value.

a-7 t-7 b-10 fc-10 v-9 ~ 93 points

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Miguel Gascon Malbec 2004

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Bottle image of Miguel Gascon Malbec wine from ArgentinaBuying a bottle of Malbec can be a somewhat mysterious experience, as the grape — much like Chardonnay — can be so many different things. Think of Malbec as the Peter Sellers of grapes: so many disguises and personalities, and you’re never quite sure which one you will get.

Of one thing there is little doubt: Malbec from Argentina is nearly always a good value. (Though we’ll see how long that lasts, as more and more people are discovering the grape, and demand is increasing.) However, it can be soft and easy, lively and vivacious, or bold and dominating. There are simple Malbecs that you may chill for a while and enjoy with chicken salad, and there are complex, full-flavored, tannic Malbecs that you store in the cellar for 10 years or more.

Never having the Gascon Malbec before, I had no idea what to expect. Since it cost only about nine bucks, I figured there was a good chance it would be on the fun and fruity side, soft, and easy drinking. Boy was I wrong, and knew it the minute I stuck my nose in the glass. Green, herbal, earthy aromas dominate the nose, saddled by black fruits, black pepper, and a touch of tar. On the palate, it’s all black, ripe fruit, with black pepper, tar, and hints of tobacco, wrapped with ripe tannins and a good level of acidity. The finish is mostly tar, tobacco, and black pepper, and is longer than expected, carried by the medium-high level of tannins and acidity. Final verdict? This is an excellent value, a bold red wine begging for steak, chops, or cheese. And if you like a wine in this style, it is fairly enjoyable all by itself.

Note: I recorked the half-full bottle and stuck it in the fridge, and two days later it was nearly as enjoyable as when it was freshly opened. To me that makes it all the more valuable.

a-8 t-7 b-8 fc-8 v-10 = 91 Points

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Wine Reviews Tasting Notes and Education for the Non-Snob, by Vino Joe, a Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW)