2007 Ravenswood Vintners Blend Zinfandel, $10

If you're a wine buff, you probably already know that Ravenswood is one of the big names in Zinfandel, and for good reason, as I recently found out. This is another of the three bottles of wine I bought at World Market in March, and I paid around $10 for it.

This full-bodied, dark ruby red Zin gives off tantalizing aromas of sour cherry, oaky vanilla, and just a hint of chocolate. On the palate, round, smooth tannins give way to intense fruit at the forefront. Spicy oak emerges to compliment the fruit flavors (cherry, other berry), leading to a nice fruit finish.

I can't say enough how impressed I was with this Zinfandel. It truly lives up to its hype, and does the Ravenswood family proud. Soft, supple tannins and a round flavor profile make this Zin a joy to drink, and it is extremely well balanced. It is full-bodied, but not heavy; fruity but not overly so; and just all-around yummy...It would be great with food, too!

My Grade: ++++

Pink by Yellowglen Australian Sparkling Wine, $10

I purchased this pink-tinted sparkling wine at World Market last month for around $10. I have to admit, that it was an impulse buy--I just couldn't resist the girly-bubbly-pink-ness of it, and so I ended up buying it along with my more "serious" wine purchases!

Upon opening the bottle and pouring myself a glass, I noted that the color is more of an orange-tinted pink instead of just pink, and there was white grape, peach, and grapefruit on the nose. At first sip, it was acidic and very bubbly, along with an almost salty quality. Next, soft peach and grapefruit flavors emerged, growing stronger as time passed to round out a nice finish.

All in all, this one was good, but I think it could use a little more of something (time?) to allow a better balance in acidity and sweetness. Soft fruit flavors carry this sparkling wine, while acidity and bubbles tend to overdominate.

My Grade: +/- to +

2008 [yellow tail] Shiraz-Cabernet, $5

An Amazing Bargain Wine--At the Right Temperature

[yellow tail] has greatly impressed me thus far with their budget-friendly, but still flavorful wines. This Shiraz-Cabernet blend is yet another example of [yellow tail]'s excellence at a price point that won't scare off an oenophile with a limited cash supply.

I bought this bottle at (yep, you guessed it!) Walmart for just under $5. I really wanted to try the Cabernet-Merlot blend, but my local Wally World didn't carry that particular variety, so I opted for this one instead.

In my original tasting of this wine, I noted that this full-bodied red wasn't bad, but not great either--just okay. The grade I then assigned it was a +, because it had good balance, but a "wierd taste at the midpoint." The next evening, I decided to try it again, this time at just a little cooler than room temperature. You see, the first time I tried it, I did so right out of the fridge. Since I had nothing to lose, I figured I better at least try and taste it at a different temperature before writing it off as a "nothing special" wine.

Upon allowing it to come close to room temperature, an amazing array of flavors and balance came forth--plum, boysenberry, oak, & spice at the forefront, with a superb balance of acidity and sweetness. Plum flavors rounded out a more-than-respectable finish. This Shiraz-Cabernet blend brings out the best characteristics of both varietals, and makes for a very, very good wine for a steal!

My Grade: ++++

Lesson learned...Temperature, temperature, temperature! I had a similar experience with Barefoot Zinfandel (see my review in March), but surprisingly it didn't readily occur to me that I would have the same issue with this variety.

I'm sure most wine experts serve their wines at precise temperatures, but I think I've found an easy rule of thumb for most bottles:

• Reds taste best at slightly cooler than room temperature rather than just out of the refrigerator--Not warm, but definitely not chilled either. I think that's the problem most people have with dry red wine--they drink it cold, which doesn't allow its true flavors to come forward, and can even make it taste "off."


• White wines, many rosé/blush wines, and sparkling wines tast best chilled, or at least at a fairly cold temperature. The richer the white wine is, the (slightly) warmer its optimal temperature.

I found a good, down-to-earth article on MSNBC's Food and Wine section about wine temperature if you're interested in learning more:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9392760/

2008 [yellow tail] The Reserve Shiraz, $12

I knew it had been a while since I'd posted a wine review for my blog, but I didn't realize just how long it had been until I looked at the date of my last post...Almost a whole month ago! How I let that get away from me, I don't know. Nonetheless, I have been tasting wine during the past month, if not making the actual leap of posting them on here! Anyway, I have four new reviews to post, so bear with me!

2008 [yellow tail] The Reserve Shiraz, $12

This is one of three bottles I purchased in February on Wine.com. I highly recommend their site if you want to order wine online--they have a great selection and their prices are reasonable. If you're a really dedicated oenophile, you can also pay $49 to enroll in their Steward-ship program, which includes unlimited standard shipping for a year with no minimum purchase requirement. I did just that, because due to the limited selection of wine in my area, I knew the cost of membership would pay for itself in no time.

This deep ruby red full-bodied Shiraz from [yellow tail]'s Reserve line gives off aromas of cherry, spicy oak, mocha, vanilla, and black pepper. On the palate, it has an acidic effervescence at the forefront with red berry flavors emerging and carrying through the finish.

This wine is smooth and pleasant, but lacks the richness of the Rosemount Diamond Label Shiraz. It is, however, good in its own right. Its light effervescence plays on the tongue with smooth tannins and nice acidity. This Shiraz is an easy drinker, straightforward with a subtle roundness of flavors.

Grade: ++ to +++