Rymill Coonawarra Shiraz 2004

Here is a review from Chris MacDonald, ANBL's wine buyer:

"The appearance of this wine was definitely not bright or intense..it was closer to mildly dull and weakly hazy. The aroma was medium in intensity but there was a lot in there...a mix of primary fruit aromas, oak influence, fragrant spice(take your pick!) and some more mature notes on the leather and tobacco side....definitely complex.

The taste revealed its cooler climate roots..good acidity paired with medium soft tannins and the flavour was more on the spicy side than fruity. The finish was long and satisfying."

Price: $25.99
Value: 4/5
Score: 91
Region: Coonawarra, Australia
Tasted: Nov 2008
UPC:9315128981034

Quinta da Rigodeira Baga 2005

Luke has mentioned this wine in a comment, and I've heard other people talk about it, but I haven't tried it myself and no one has given me a full review. So I thought I'd just start a post on it to allow anyone who has tried it to tell us what they think.

I noticed that Oz Clarke's Grapes and Wines entry on Baga mentions Quinta da Rigodeira as one of the best producers of Baga. He also notes that it lasts very well in the bottle, though I don't know if that would be true of any entry level wine.

BTW, Oz Clarke's book is a great purchase for anyone interested in wine. It provides encyclopedic information about all (well, maybe just most) of the world wine grapes, listed alphabetically. It is packed with information, reasonably priced, and best of all, it is beautifully written. While it has an encyclopedia style, it is not a book that you'll pick up only when you want specific information. It is so well written that you'll find yourself flipping it open and reading at random.

Here it is at Amazon, and at Chapters.

Anyway, back to the Rigodeira Baga:

Price: $15.79
Score: ??
Grape: Baga
Region: Portugal
UPC: 5600398620030

Wakefield Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

Here's a review from tancred. BTW, the ANBL website says this is a cab/shiraz/merlot blend, but it's not.

I tried the wakefield cab (2006, clare valley) after seeing it on the wine show table at nbliquor. clare valley is an interesting wine growing region - it is cooler than barossa and maclaren vale and so is best known for its crisp zingy rieslings. however there are micro-climates within the clare that support the growth of shiraz and cab grapes, and it is not surprising to see even small wineries producing both rieslings and shirazes on grapes grown on the same estate. this wakefield cab was a typical australian cab with notes of cedar, capers, and plum. probably not a lot of cellaring potential but very drinkable now, with nice structure and longish finish. at a price around $20 (i forget the exact amount) it is great value for a cabernet.

Price: $18.79
Value: 4/5
Score: 87
Region: Australia, Clare Valley
Tasted: Nov 2008
UPC: 9311659000626

Le Bonheur Prima 2004

Here's a review from Michelle:

Tonight..while I was peddling my trainer watching last year's Stage 10....I let a bottle of Le Bonheur Prima 2004 breathe. I didn't decant...because I am the only one drinking it :) Therefore this bottle will be "stopped" and consumed at a later date. I did read, however one review said it didn't lose anything after a day or so. Time will tell.

This wine is a blend of 75% merlot and 25% cabernet. I found first on the nose was a deep berry with plum overtones, earthy perhaps. It really reminds me of a muted California Zin. Not the berry bomb though. More subtle. On the palate, it's hard to nail it down. Cherry is the most prominent. Characteristic Merlot with subtle Cab nuance. I rather enjoyed it. I think it would be more suitable with a food pairing. Red meat of course..such as a beautifully cooked sirloin but would be stellar with a good blue cheese, brie or a nuttier aged gouda.

The value - I am not so sure it's a good value. Yes, I did enjoy it, but would I buy it again if someone gave me $30 to pick out a wine? Probably not.

Price: $26.07
Value: 3/5
Score: 88
Alcohol: 13%
Region: South Africa, Stellenbosch, Simonsberg Ward
Tasted: Nov 2008
UPC: 6001497413254

Sartori Marani 2006

We've got a puzzle here. We tried this at the Wine Expo and loved it. We bought a bottle and loved it - rated it 92. Here's my original note:

-
This wine from Sartori is great. Complex, balanced, long - it has everything. Kelly's note: "Apricots, petrol, minerals, musk, and maybe something green and herbal on nose. Very nicely put together - well balanced, with clear, refined/delicate flavours. Lovely smooth, full mouthfeel, ending with crisp/tart edge." Awesome value. It is one more step in my conversion to the white side.
-
Then I got another bottle and tried it again, and had nothing like the same experience. I don't know that I'd change the description much, but the "wow" factor was missing. Still a good wine, but more like an 87-88. We had it side-by-side with the Ribeauville Pinot Gris and the Ribeauville seemed clearly better. (As always, Kelly had them both blind.)

I don't know what's going on, so I'll just give both scores.

Price: $19.99
Value: 5/5; 3.5/5
Score: 92 / 87
Alcohol: 13.5%
Grape: Garganega
Region: Italy, Bianco di Verona IGT
Tasted: Nov 2008
UPC: 8005390006702

Marqués de Riscal Tempranillo 2006

Here is a review from Vesper:

"Last night I had a couple glasses of the Marqués de Riscal Tempranillo and really enjoyed it. Nice deep berry nose. On the palate it was fairly full bodied and smooth with good tannins. Really nice mouth feel too. I had this in a restaurant so not ideal conditions for tasting but I like it enough to buy a bottle and to try it again. Note: I had two glasses and the second one (initially) was a touch cooler and slightly more sharp on the finish. I put this down to opening of new bottle or the like.

ANBL has this (2006) for $15.79. I think this could make it in the top ten under $20. If anyone else tries this let me know what you think."

Price: $15.79
Score: 86
Region: Spain
Tasted: Nov 2008
UPC: 8410866430477

Ribeauville Pinot Gris 2005

I think of Pinot Gris / Grigio as light and innocuous. A safe bet off the by-the-glass wine list - unlikely to be terrible, but unlikely to be inspiring either. And maybe an overcropped Pinot Gris is like that - but this Ribeauville is not. It is full bodied and full of character. Here's was Kelly says:

"Orange rind, cloves, petrol. Viscous on palate. Full bodied with good acidity. I find this wine a bit musky and manly, in the style of the Chateau de Nages or perhaps Pouilly-Fuissé. Now I think I know what the Aykroyd is trying to do. Ends on a bit of a sour note."

Kelly scored it a 90. I'm not sure I'd go quite that high. But pretty close. Very good value. Act soon - there is not much left.

Price: $22.99
Value: 4/5
Score: 89(N)/90(K)
Region: France, Alsace
Tasted: Oct 2008
UPC: 3156090316143

Vinzelo Douro 2006

Here is a quick review from Luke, from the Wine Expo '08 tasting, that I lifted from a comment. Note that Tinta Roriz is a Portugese name for Tempranillo.

A quick review of the Vinzelo 2006, Douro, booth 19 - Very fresh nose - predominantly strawberries and raspberries, which follow through on the palate, with a touch of spice. 30% each tinta roriz, touriga franca, tinta barroca and 10% touriga nacional. A great display of the potential of Portugese red table wines and the best wine I've had under $15 in a while. Just over 2000 bottles in the warehouse.

Price: $11.49
Value: 5/5
Score: 88
Alcohol: 12.5%
Region: Portugal, Douro
Tasted: November 2008
UPC: #5601920113952

Wine Expo '08 - Part VI - Kiosks 55 - 70

From California, Kelly was quite keen on both the Beringer Napa Pinot and their Merlot. The problem, as always with US wine, is the price. Maybe not great value at $38 - but they're good enough (says Kelly) that they weren't a bad value even at $38. The Private Reserve Chardonnay was also very good, but perhaps no better than my favourite ANBL whites, and $20 more.

From Marqes de Caceres we tried both the Crianza and the Gaudium. The Crianza was ok, but not outstanding - a hint of 'cheap wine'. The Gaudium, on the other hand, stood up very well to other wines we tried in the price range, namely the Silver Oak Napa Cab and the Torres Mas la Plana. We didn't try them side by side, so I couldn't say whether it was better or worse, but it was certainly in the ballpark - impressive.

I wasn't too enthused about the Obsession from Vignamaggio - very fruity, but maybe a bit overripe - raisiny, my notes say. On the other hand, their Terre di Prenzaon Chianti Classico struct me as good value at $24. I'll definitely be trying this one again.

The Cesanese Uno was "stupendous" value at $12. That's what my notes say, and I can't remember any more detail right now.

The Veglio Michelino was probably our favourite Barolo of the show - beautiful nose in particular. We didn't try their Barbera.

The Pangea Syrah struck us as a good wine, but not great value at the price

At booth 60 I found two Aussie Shiraz's that I really liked, the Rymill Coonawarra and the Wirra Wirra Woodhenge. Good bold Aussie Shiraz flavour without going over the top. We got some of each - if those bottles turn out to be as good as they seemed at the show, I will be getting more for medium term cellaring. The Rymill MC2 (a Bordeaux blend) was also very good - and very good value at $20.

Finally, we didn't much like the Coppola Black Label Claret - too candied at the price.

That's it for the Wine Expo '08. Phew - that's a lot of wine. But we missed lots. I'm keen to hear other people's impressions.

Wine Expo '08 - Part V - Kiosks 40 - 54

At Kiosk 40 we found the wonderful Pio Cesare Fides which we've already talked about. Their Moscato d'Asti was also delicious. I love Moscato d'Asti. Slightly sparkling - frizzante as the Italians say - light and refreshing but bursting with fruit. The Pio Cesare was a top notch example, but I have to admit to a bit of sticker shock - I've had good examples at half the price, and at 5% alcohol you tend to slurp it down.

The Ferraton Chateauneuf-du-Pape Le Parvis was good, but the show was too rushed to say more than that, one way or the other. WS gave it a 90, btw. Kelly was very taken with their Crozes Hermitage La Matiniere ($26) - she kept mentioning it through the rest of the show. This is one that is on our "must try again soon list."

We've already discussed the Chateau Fuissé at kiosk 46. Delicious. Worth the price? We bought a couple, so we'll find out soon enough.

At kiosk 48 the Pierre Sparr Reserve Gewurz had a great nose but seemed a bit flabby on the palate.

The Liogier Vacqueyras Montpezat (kiosk 50) was a touch candied for my taste, but their Cotes du Rhone La Taladette struck me as excellent value at $16.

The Sartori Marani was fantastic. We'll have a separate review of it soon.

The Terre da Vine Barolo was fine, but didn't stand out, at least in the atmosphere at the show. Their Barbaresco seemed like good value for $30.