Black Oak Cabernet 09

Here is another "half-price" wine from Gross Out. It is supposed to retail for $9.99 and you can pick it up for $4.99 right now. This is not the unreal discount of some of the other wines next to it on the shelves, but it is one we have not tried yet.

Under the plastic "foil" lies one of those plastic "corks". This is not a good sign. I know that these are a lot cheaper and produce less waste for the winery, but I have rarely liked the wine behind them. The bottle promises a "medium-bodied wine with aromas of rich plum and cedar. The flavors reminiscent of dark cherry and blackberries with a nice sprinkling of spice."

In the glass, the color is not very heartening; it is almost as clear as a blush wine. The nose is also quite "light" and I might imagine "cedar". The palate is so indistinct that I have trouble really identifying any specific taste. The finish is also light. Other than a lingering bitterness this wine does not have much character at all (to my taste.)

This wine does not have the character I expect from a Cabernet Sauvignon.

Doncaster Estate Shiraz 10

Well, it is already time for Australian 2010 vintages to arrive. Remember that their season is half a year ahead, so you could compare it to a 2009 1/2 from the Northern Hemisphere. This one appears to be bottled in American Canyon, Ca? So, it may be shipped here in bulk to be bottled.

The bottle says it is from South Eastern Australia and it a great place to grow this variety. "Bright berry fruit characters on the nose give way to rich soft fruits on the palate, supported with a firm tannin structure and light oak notes." Make sure you enjoy it responsibly with friends and eat it with a barbie or blah blah. 13.9% alcohol. This bottle has a screw cap.

The color is fairly light and the nose does have soft berry notes. The wine is light on the palate (or less charitably THIN) and does give way to a firmer finish. There is a pleasing peppery taste that is characteristic of Shiraz/Syrah. The initial tastes are best, since the wine does not get more complex and seems to have a bit of harsh sulfide treatment?

It is tough to be too critical of a wine you can pick up for $3.99. It does belong in the below $10 group, but is is a good deal? I would not run out and buy a case, but if you can't pay more than $4 for a bottle this is drinkable.

Silver Lake Merlot 06

Responding to a request for something local, we picked up this Washington State wine. Local? They even have a tasting room in Woodinville, Wa!

It's easy to look down on Merlot wines after Sideways berated them and the rebound from extreme popularity in the 90's when we started drinking wine. We might prefer a Cabernet, but the variety of grape just might be why this one is discounted!

Rattlesnake Hills is a well respected appellation. The bottle says: "Rich with blackberry and black cherry aromas, this wine is characteristically supple on the palate with a long lingering finish that makes it the perfect wine to serve with blah blah." 13.9% Alcohol.

Nice dark purple color in the glass. We agree with the Cherry and Blackberry on the nose and on the palate. This wine is quite smooth with berry dominating leading to a light oak, strong tannins, and red meat (that's what our guest said... :^) ) on the finish. The wine is distinctly Merlot, but big enough to please us.

At $4.99, this is a good deal found for $14 elsewhere. If you like a Merlot, hurry over to Gross Out because this one is disappearing from their displays.

J Kerr Syrah 99

Whoa, 1999 huh? Could be good, but where has it been?

The screwpull encounters a problem.

The bottle is corked,

the spring night is now colder,

now there's no review.

3 Blind Moose Cab 08

We felt like having a funny "blind" taste test. The name and label are pretty funny. So we go into this tasting with low expectations.

The bottle is one of those cheap ones with almost no dimple on the bottom. The foil has a nice moose on top drinking a glass. Under the foil is a very short plastic cork. The bottle says "we think you will fall for our Cabernet Sauvignon , whose rich cherry, cassis, and subtle oak (unnoticeable) flavors match beautifully with everything." (Really, everything??) 13.5% Alcohol.

The color in the glass is a nice red, but we can see the wine is fairly thin. It does not produce any "fingers" when swirled. The nose is faint, but has an agreeable berry scent. On the palate, we mainly identified currant and chokecherry. This wine is thin and shows no complexity. The finish is smooth and doesn't exhibit any tannin or oak. It drinks like cool-aid.

At $4.99, we are glad we didn't pay the $12.99 comparison price for the fun of having a pun on the label. Clever marketing and we did fall for it. This would not make good cooking wine since it doesn't have much taste.

Element 79 Barossa Shiraz 2008

The Grocery Outlet chain must have been offered a big lot of Aussie Vineyards wines. Element 79 is another of their lines. It is the "big brother" to their original Au brand. Look closely and you can see the Au watermark under the name. While sitting down to taste the wine, we were delighted by their intelligent marketing. The "Au" says Australia and gold (medal winning?) and the Element 79 reference to the periodic table has to appeal to geeky science people.

The bottle says this is a "limited release" from "the finest estate-grown fruit." It is from the Barossa region which is producing many highly rated wines. "Our 2008 Barossa Shiraz exhibits intense purple and red hues with rich aromas of dark berry fruit on the nose. Your palate delights with blackberry and licorice flavors, while firm, balanced tannins deliver a satisfying long finish. Shiraz from the Barrossa rarely disappoints, and our 2008 vintage is no exceptions following an excellent growing season". This wine has a GOLD screw cap, of course. 13.8% Alcohol.

We found a lot of agreement with the bottle on our tasting. First is the amazing color; this wine is so dark that it lets very little light through and leaves a red impression on the glass for quite a while after it is swirled. The nose does have nice fruit and spice. On the first taste, you get strong grape, stone fruit, and spice with a smooth finish. As the tasting continued, the tannin became more noticeable, but paired with palate cleansing food, we were delighted with each return to the wine. The spice is at a nice level for a Shiraz. Our guest taster felt the wine built up a metallic/spice taste on the finish as we were drinking (maybe appropriate for Au.)

At $3.99, for a $27.99 comparison, this was a great buy. Element 79 - check it out on your periodic table and pick up some wine that wins our Gross Out Gold Medal. We are going to pick more up, if we can, to confirm our winning ticket first impression.

Perrin & Fils Cotes Du Rhone Villages 09

This wine is one of our standard buys at Costco. It is a 50/50 Syrah/Grenache. It has been rated 90 points by Wine Spectator for the 2007 vintage. We have actually tasted them side by side and the 2009 does not measure up to the earlier vintage. If you are lucky, you can find a few bottles of the 2007 in displays, but they are really disappearing at our local stores. We are not sure why we never see the 2008 vintage...

The bottle says: "aromas of small berry fruit, such as black currants and blackberries, with licorice and spices are part of a well rounded and silky ensemble." 13% Alcohol by vol. This bottle has a natural cork. The addition of the "Villages" to the appellation is supposed to be more prestigious, since only 20% of the region is allowed to add it.

We found the 2009 vintage to have a light bouquet with a touch of dark berry. It has a pleasant medium color. We think the wine has a sulfide or tannin problem. The taste on the palate had very little berry and the tannins were forward (on the forward sides of the tongue.) We agree with the bottle that there is licorice and spices (and sulfites.) This vintage is not very big or complex. There was some payoff with a Syrah peppery finish.

In the past vintages, we have found this wine to be quite smooth and drinkable and one of our reliable standards. The Costco price is just under $10. We have been finding better value wines equal to Perrin & Fils at Gross Out. Bottom line, look for a different vintage or completely different ticket.