The Atalaya Almansa 2007 will surprise you not only with its ridiculously low price tag, but also with its richness in flavor. The Atalaya Almansa is a distinguished blend of Monastrell, Garnacha Tintorera, and other grapes.  Brought to you from Spain, and aged eight months in French and American oak, its impressive nose consists of violet, blueberry, black cherry...

Perhaps you’ve read our previous post, Fooled by Numbers: Wine and You?  If so, this short comparison between two very different wines compliments it nicely! I recently purchased, for the same price, a bottle of El Salegar Tinto Fino 2007 and a bottle of the Maison Elise Richard 2008 Corbieres Red Blend, without knowing at their ratings. Made from a...

Vintage Cellars’ very own custom cellar designer Jake Austad is currently touring the wine country in Paso Robles, California.  Some of the wineries is visiting include “local favorites” like Justin, Denner Vinyards, Turley, and Tablas Creek.  Jake checked in on Monday with an exciting discovery claiming, “I think we may have found the greatest $10 wine ever made!”  Apparently...

This hearty, Argentinean Malbec is quite robust!  Its delightful nose contains pleasing plum and vanilla scents.  The wine itself has prominent spicy flavors--very characteristic of Argentinean Malbecs--as well as those of dark plums, blackberries, and traces of vanilla.  The finish is quite good, lasting well over 40 seconds, and includes satisfying blackberry notes.  This is a wine sure to...

This rich, dark red hails from the Limoux region of Southern France.  With sufficient aroma, the Le Grand Pinot Noir 2009's nose consists of delightful red berries, cherries, raspberries, currants, and a note of fig.  The wine is rounded, and delights the taste buds with exploding flavors of red berries, cherries, and currants.  Its semi-spicy kick is nicely countered by...

I picked up a bottle of Cantine San Silvestro’s “Ottone I” Piemont doc Barbera 2009 the other night on a whim, not sure what to expect.  Consisting of 100% pure Barbera grapes from the Piedmont region of Northern Italy, this full red was simply bursting with big fruit flavors.  Ruby red in color with a soft-but-sound nose including black raspberry...

The delicious, first-class 2007 Forefront Cabernet Sauvignon pours out a regal, dark purple.  With a powerful nose consisting of aromas including blueberries, raspberries, slight truffle, leather, and light vegetable notes, this scintillating wine pleases before it is even sipped.  On the tongue, it certainly demands attention, too!  Surprisingly well-balanced for such a young Cabernet, it is mouth-watering, rich, and meaty...

Here’s a spectacular, summertime recipe for slow cookers & Crock Pots--an alternative to firing up the grill on a hot day. With just a few minutes of prep time (followed by 8 hours simmering in a slow cooker) you can prepare a delicious mix of red wine and flavorful ribs that seem to melt in your mouth! All you need...

Recently, we recommended serving a Cabernet with steak and butter-rich foods, partly because of the wine’s tannins.  But what are tannins, actually? Tannins are polyphenolic compounds naturally found in plants that bind to proteins and other organic compounds.  In other words,  they are naturally found in the skins, stems, and leaves of grapes, and they are attracted to proteins, like...

For those of us working hard to incorporate more veggies in our diets, here’s a fun recipe that uses a variety of tasty produce as well as your favorite dry, red wine.  Think veggies and reds don’t mix?  Think again!  Here’s what you need: 1 potato chopped into cubes (each about 1”) 1 carrot, chopped 1 onion (white), chopped 2...

As we’ve discussed in previous blogs, the temperature at which a wine is stored (and served) can bring out the best (or worst) of a given bottle, but an entire wine collection can be at stake if “ideal” storage temperatures are not maintained.  Many big collections have been unnecessarily damaged because of such unstable temperatures.  For example, temperatures above 65ºF...

Though a perfect addition to any winter dinner, this easy-to-make port wine sauce recipe is ideal for those later, cool days of summer--those days when you can “sense” that fall is just around the corner! You’ll need a bottle of your favorite port wine, 1 tablespoon butter, 2 tablespoons chopped shallots, 1/2 cup of mushrooms (thinly-sliced), 1 tablespoon of cream...

What a name! Stray Dog Zinfandel, though it may be a fairly new name, is crafted by a man who’s been producing quality wine for 20+ years, Mark Gendron, who recently sold JanKris winery (founded in 1990.) Mark currently owns JK Estates, and the Wildfire Cellars brand. (Stray Dog Zinfandel is released with the JK Estates label.) Stray Dog's interesting...

While looking for more sauces with wine as a primary ingredient, I came across two delightful ones on Tasting-Wine.com.  I’m re-posting the recipes here, and you can check out the source of these at Tasting-Wine.com. Red Wine Sauce This makes a thick, intensely flavored red wine sauce that's great on red meat. Ingredients •1/4 cup shallots, chopped fine •1 tsp...

Traditionally known as a “winter” drink, mulled wine can also be enjoyed in the late summer/early fall season.  It actually makes a great segue into fall, and its familiar aroma often brings back happy childhood memories. (And since there is abundant evidence that connects our sense of smell with episodic memory, a warm cup may just surprise you with an...

I’ve been a big fan of Gnarly Head’s Cabs for many years, and the Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 is no exception.  This regal, concentrated wine is rich with dark fruit flavor (currants, black cherries, and tart cranberries), and has a velvety “cab” texture that briefly exposes its well-integrated tannins just before a subtle taste of cloves and violets. ...

A “Red Rhone Blend” (a wine made from two or more traditional Southern Rhone grape varieties), this rustic French wine is a well-balanced, fantastic find!  Consisting of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Carignan, 20% Grenache, and 9% Syrah, its slight barnyard nose, common to many “old world” wines, also includes blackberries, raspberries, and candied scents.  On the tongue, wild berries...

A few years ago, I was offered plain turkey cutlets at a dinner.  (The bland poultry was less-than impressive!) After giving them a second try, however, this time dressing them up with this delicious sauce, I discovered that they can easily make a satisfying entree. Here’s what you’ll need: 4 Turkey Cutlets 1/3 Cup Marsala Wine 3-4 Tbsp. Flour 2...

This relatively inexpensive Pinot Noir is quite a treat!  Beautiful garnet in color, its nose consists of violet, iris, strawberries, and black cherries.  Its velvet-like texture is soothing to the tongue, and its body is solid.  For fans of sweeter Pinot Noirs, the Block Nine 2009 is a good find; the typical earthiness that turns people off from many Pinots...

They're like a Jell-O shot, but with the addition of some class. And cherries. What's not to love? You’ll need: 1 jar of maraschino cherries with stems 1 cup orange juice 7 1/2 teaspoons of gelatin powder 2 cups red wine, your choice! Rainbow sprinkles Coat two mini half-sphere silicone baking pans (the kind with 15 indentations per pan) with...