The Bridge 2009 Syrah Cabernet: Review

Vinifera Wine Company

Paso Robles, California, USA

14.9% abv

Blend: 55% Syrah; 45% Cabernet Sauvignon

Under 10 bucks @ Meyer

I bought this over a year ago. I guess it is time to get the cheap stuff out of the cellar.

Appearance: big purple

Nose: nice syrah type spice and some dark berries swirling around; not complex but interesting

Flavors/Mouthfeel: thin on delivery; dark berries, little peppery spice, lacks depth and character but for around 9 bucks what do you expect; a generic bitterness – seems contrived;

To the Point: save your 10 bucks and put it toward a good bottle of wine; don’t ever serve to a friend – foe you are okay – friend never;

The aroma was okay – nice – after that forget it – since it is winter I’ll make purple snow 

Barefoot Pinot Grigio: Review

12.5% abv

Modesto, California, USA

No Vintage

around $9.00

Barefootwine.com

Appearance: water with a squirt of lemon in it

Aroma: very light, clean, lemon meat

Flavors and Mouthfeel: a light and clean citrus zip.  There is a fizzy carbonated feel. 

My Strength Rating: 1.5

To the Point: I don’t think I liked that fizzy feel.  Order water and add a squirt of lemon wedge into the glass then add a dash of Sprite and you have this wine. 

Ironstone 2008 Cabernet Franc: Review

Lodi Appellation

14.5%abv

Ironstone Vineyards

Murphys, California, USA

Ironstonevineyards.com

$25.00 restaurant price

I bought this at a restaurant near my summer place in Grindstone, Michigan.  I have not been to this place in 8 years.  Since my usual place is closing soon I thought I would check out another.  The food was very good and here is the wine that I had with dinner.

Appearance: deep garnet in color

Aroma: dark berries and light earthiness

Flavors: pretty simple here, dark berries, sweet bing cherry, earthy

Mouthfeel: medium bodied, cherry-berry aftertaste, tannins are undercontrol and the acidity seems simple enough. 

My Strength Rating: 5 – not what I would expect from a Cab Franc.  Too simple.

To the Point: a below average Cab Franc.  I would expect this at a bar, dinner or a low end restaurant.  This wine might go good with pizza but not the filet that I enjoyed. 

Broke Ass Red Wine 2009: Wine Review

This red wine is from Argentina and is a blend of 50% Malbec and 50% of Syrah. The taste is not all that bad. There is a tart blackberry and black currant profile mixing in with a smoky earth quality. The mouthfeel is a little jammy. It is nothing special of course – as it says on the bottle, ‘no frills great value wine.’ While it is only ??? Damn I don’t remember how much I paid – it may have been $8.00, I don’t know if I would call it a great value. Great value has to have the right price and good taste. The taste here is ‘not bad,’ which is not good but not poor either.

Just a fun wine to pick up because of the name and since I just paid for a new roof, two new doors, $1,300 on the car, $400 on doggie vet visits, and bought some new clothes here in the past two weeks – I feel broke! So, the wine is fitting.