Sella & Mosca Cannonau di Sardegna Riserva 2006

I had this wine a few days ago, and my memory isn’t as sharp as I would like, but I loved this wine and I can’t let it go without blogging.  Cannonau is the name for Grenache in Sardinia.  This wine is very much in the old world style.

 It is moderate in alcohol (13.5%), medium bodied and medium coloured.  It bears no resemblance at all to the jammy style of Australian Grenache based wines.  The nose is reserved, but interesting, and I found it beautifully balanced on the palate, with good length and a distinct aftertaste of chocolate.  Kelly found it to be too astringent the first time she tried it, but she had been drinking something sweeter just before.  I mention it by way of saying that this is not a lush wine.  I am not as familiar with Grenache based Châteauneuf-du-Pape as I would like to be, but I found it more elegant and much more interesting than impressive that the Gigondas I have had at a similar price.  I wouldn’t have been disappointed to have paid $40+ for this wine – in fact, it reminds me quite a lot of the Bocca di Lupo.  There is not much left in the province.  If you like an old world style, give it a try and let us know if you like it as much as I do.  But be warned – if you like a lush, ‘big’ new world style, this wine is not for you.

$24.29
Score: 91+
Value: 5/5
Grape: Grenache
UPC 8006725100256

PS - I gave it a 91+ because I'm having a hard time dealing with score inflation / compression.  Jamie Goode has a very interesting post on the subject.