Montinore Pinot Noir 2004

Concentrated color. Very wet woodsy nose, etched with black cherries, treebark and maybe some citrus sparkling through? Luscious reasonably priced Oregon Pinot. Not overtly fruity, but does have some jammy jam lacing the tongue with black pepper and a vanilla wafer hanging on the mid-palate. Daniela Hantuchova on the body yet emminently drinkable. Ahoy.

Price: $16.99 (Gary's)
Closure: Real cork.

Las Perdices Reserva Don Juan 2004

70% Malbec, 11% Syrah, 10% Bonarda, and 9% Merlot. Crushed flowers and dark plum on the nose. This is a fat-bottomed girl that just fills up the mouth, like holding a piece of chalk on your tongue. The mouth flavors echo the sniff and introduce spicy herbs and a far out subtle mocha flavor. Drank this with lamb and it was pure harmony. Las Perdices makes a venerable Malbec, but this blend is its darling and it shows.

Price: $26.99 (Gabriel's)
Closure: Real cork.

Kangarilla Road Shiraz 2-Up South Australia 2005

Goodbye, ruby Tuesday. Plush fat albert blackberries on the sniff; do I smell crabapples? This is a plucky impetuous fatty for slurping on a Tuesday, maybe use a straw. Nice wide tannins on the tongue with a smooth gratifying finish. Why'd they have to put their names on the label though?

Price: $9.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: SCREWCAP.

Craneford Allyson Parsons Shiraz 2003

What color is blood outside the body? It's red! Rusty and ripe black cherries on the sniff. Chunky shiraz fruit, typical sturdy Patrick Rafter serve, backed with a big brassy bitch on the B-side. Outstanding easy-to-drink robust wine, not all fruit either, this one casts a wide berth. Fantastic label, too.

Price: $17.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: SCREWCAP.

Sarah's Vineyard Merlot 2002

Darth Vader red. Lilac and cherry vanilla cream on the nose. This is the kind of bright spicy Merlot that makes you want to crawl around inside the bottle. Heady tannic mouthfeel, steel-cable structure, notes of beets and spices on the way out. The description doesn't sound like much fun but this is a water park ride of a wine. Finish still lingering a full fortnight later.

Price: $22.99 (Gabriel's)
Closure: Real cork.

Concha y Toro Carmenere Casillero del Diablo 2005

Maroon six. Copious olfactory dose of smoke and incense, like a Catholic mass. It's been said if God made Cabernet then the devil made Pinot Noir. Yet here's evidence that perhaps the devil made Carmenere. The unheralded Carmenere varietal is not uncommonly used as a blending grape in Bordeaux, and when it hit the valleys of Chile the grape was thought to be Merlot. Indeed, Carmenere in its finished form is very Merlot-like, though spicier with an ominous smokey edge that works to justify the dark fruit. From the massive Chilean producer, Concha y Toro, this is a smaller wine with tons of character and an unassuming price tag to match. My only beef would be that it's a little Olsen twins on the palate, but very drinkable and probably perfect with pizza, burritos or roast chicken. New house red indeed.

Price: $8.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: Real cork.

Amavi Syrah 2003

Ruby slippers. Smells like fat blueberries. Ripe, extremely well-balanced Syrah from Walla Walla, WA. Layers of rocky mouthfeel, like the varied steppes of a distant planet. This is one that keeps giving with new compartive nouns/adjectives on every mouthful. Big, ripe fruit, but so even-keeled like your Buddhist rocker uncle. Must seek out more Syrah from Washington, oh yes.

Many thanks to neildrinkswine.blogspot.com for pointing this one out.

Price: $20.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: Real cork.

Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon 2003

Inky dark red baron. Aerodynamic lush fruit on the nose. This is a juicy and meaty wine with pleasantly surprising consistency. Russell-Stovers chocolate-covered cherries at the bottom of the well. "Hellooooo dooowwwnnn theeeeerrre." Licorice/cassis on the finish.

Price: $13.99 (A&P)
Closure: Real cork.

D'Arenberg "The Stump Jump" 2005

Dark maroon. Fruit and herbs (thyme?) on the nose. Weighty on the tongue. This is a round and earthy Australian wine with a nice long finish. Shows sweet characteristics of shiraz/grenache tempered nicely by the gamier mouvedre. Good stuff.

Price: $9.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: SCREWCAP.

Trentadue Petite Sirah 2004

Looks like purple mountains majesty. Smells like sweet blackberry/blueberry, with a knob of tangy dirt. This juicy North Coast petite sirah tastes like it smells: big and fruity, cut with some dense earth, like biting into a two-days-past-fresh fallen apple. It just rolls around the mouth. A lush easy chugger, 14+% alcohol, tannic with a puny finish, I drank this on its own and that's the way it probably tastes best. A nice alternative to a mid-priced Aussie shiraz, though overtly American.

Price: $13.99 (Gary's Wine)
Closure: Real cork