The Frugal Oenologist

Friday, May 22, 2009

Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

This, like the Cabernere previously reviewed here, is a pleasant Chilean red, with a blend of dark berries and, unmistakably, chocolate flavors. The tannins, however, are considerably more assertive. At the sale price of $8.99 this makes an eminently acceptable everyday wine.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

For your information

Today I complained to the manager of a PA wine outlet that they were repeatedly out of their specials. He acknowledged that this was indeed the case and said that they had no control whatever over what they stocked, this was all determined in Harrisburg. A local hotel had ordered several cases of various specials, they had been obliged to deplete their stock, and there was no way for them to restock. The result was that his customers were unhappy, but there was nothing he could do about it. Here you have it, my friends, a state monopoly with no bottom line to worry about does whatever it pleases and we are at its mercy. How about putting this on the ballot someday?

Red Bicyclette Chardonnay 2007

This white from Roussillon in s.w. France, heavily marketed in the U.S., is on the quiet side. It blends vanilla and subdued citrus flavors and, the best thing that can be said for it, is sufficiently unassertive to go with almost anything. $8.99.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Chevalier d'Anthelme Cotes du Rhone 2007

This is a powerful country red from the south of France. There are notes of cherry, dark berries and pepper, with a good deal of tannin. It will stand up to just about anything. $9.99, which is no bargain, but acceptable.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Quara Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

Like the Malbec previously reviewed on this site, this Argentine red is a decent but not outstanding wine. It offers a blend of plum and dark berry flavors, complemented with a hint of chocolate and considerable acidity at the finish. $7.99, on sale.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Casillero Del Diablo Carmenere 2007

This Chilean red, a premium product of the huge Concha Y Toro combine, lives up to its name. It's peppery, fiery, without overstepping the bounds. Underneath the heat, there is a pleasant blend of plum and caramel. At $8.99 on sale, it represents a good value and will stand up to about any spicy dish.

Santa Helena Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2008

Confusion may well arise, as there is a California winery of the same name, but this white comes from Chile. It is a nicely blended mix of apple and citrus flavors, with just a hint of grass. The finish is smooth, the wine was a fine accompaniment to our shrimp. $9.49.

Some Personal Notes...

I was born and grew up in Belgium. There, as in all of the francophone world, children, as soon as they were old enough to sit up at table to have their dinners (usually at midday) with the adults, were allowed a glass of wine. The thought behind this was that they should enter their turbulent teens already accustomed to alcohol and not treat it as yet another exciting discovery, to be abused with the ungovernable energy that the hormonal storms of those years produce. By and large, this premise was a sound one. The level of alcoholism in the French-speaking countries tends to be well below that of the Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian ones, never mind the United States. To be sure, this datum can be challenged on a matter of definition: while there may be fewer binge drinkers who get raging drunk whenever they have access to alcohol, a goodly proportion of the working class, which habitually has a glass or two of wine with breakfast, is working on a mild buzz throughout the day. Still, the results are less deletirious: they function. At one point a Prime Minister of France, appropriately named Mendes-France, himself an anti alcohol crusader, launched an initiative to persuade the French to throw away their wine and drink milk instead. Needless to say, the project was still-born. The French consume as much wine as ever. The point I'm trying to make is that it seems to me that it is eminently possible to go through life enjoying one's wine without being seriously impaired in one's judgement or one's work level. In the old days in Europe one had the main meal of the day at noon, invariably following that up with a nap, so that when one returned to work one's mind was again clear. Nowadays dinner tends to be taken in the evenings, which means that one isn't really fit to do much serious work afterward, but I would argue, pace all you workoholics, that one's evenings should be devoted to less demanding and more congenial activities. I have enjoyed my evening wine throughout a long life, I've drunk some very good bottles and remember them fondly, and I would urge you to do the same.S