Variety: 62% Mourvedre; 22% Syrah; 16% Grenache
Region: Contra Coast & Oakley, California
Cost: $15 (SRP)
Winemaker’s Notes: Enjoy our red wine blend with rich aromas of ripe cherry and raspberry leading to generous flavors of red berry fruit, chocolate, and plum with hints of cracked black pepper. Smooth and delicious.
My Review: Without looking, this may be the first blended California wine I’ve had that didn’t feature a Cabernet grape in it. At least in a while. But then, that’s the joy of getting to do something like this – trying new things. So, how did this new thing hold up?
In the glass the wine was a bright ruby color. On the nose I picked up subtle aromas of ripe cherry that were a bit overwhelmed by the raspberry notes. In the mouth the wine was bright and fruity, with flavors of raspberry and red berry fruit leading to a clean finish.
My wife and I paired the wine with beef stew we’d had going in the slow cooker all day, and the bright notes of fruit and clean finish were a nice balance to the hearty flavors of the stew. In fact, I would say that it was the best pairing for the wine – it needs something more robust to allow it to provide balance, otherwise the fruit flavors of the wine could become a bit much.
The fruitiness of the wine is a bit of a knock on it, but I do appreciate that it’s bright and fruity without just being this overwhelming fruit flavor. That being said, pairing it with something to help cut through that fruit will likely determine how far this wine goes for you.
Editor’s Note: I received this wine as a free sample for review.
