Tasting - Smoking Loon Sauvignon Blanc

Name: Smoking Loon Sauvignon Blanc
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Region: California
Country: USA
Year: 2009
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: This bleached blonde beauty is reminiscent of fresh green apples, pineapple and has hints of hibiscus blossoms. The concentration of zesty lemon and gooseberry fills your mouth leaving notes of thyme and melon behind. The bright acid in this wine gives you a zing while the fruit keeps your mouth watering for more. This wine pairs beautifully with a grilled prawn salad with a grapefruit vinaigrette, veggie spring rolls or grilled tilapia with mango salsa.

My Review:  Flowers and lime on the nose.  Peach, lemon, lime with a crisp, clean finish.  I did not have this wine with food, but I would like to try it with a salad.

Tasting - Bricco Dei Tati Rosè

Name: Bricco Dei Tati Rosè
Variety: Barbera
Region: Piedmont
Country: Italy
Year: 2012
Price: $6.95

Winery Review:  100% Barbera
Fresh with aromas of strawberries, cherries, and rose petals, this
an ideal wine with shellfish, salads, chicken, and appetizers

My Review:  Cherry and strawberry on the nose.  Sweet lingering taste.  Flabby.  I did not have this wine with food.  I did not care for it.

Tasting - Wilson Daniels Merlot

Name: Wilson Daniels Merlot
Variety: Merlot
Region: Central Coast California
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Price: $7.95

Winery Review:  Made predominantly from Paso Robles grapes, the wine is fullbodied and silky yet robust, with aromas of black cherry and plum and a palate of blackberry, raspberry and blueberry jam laced with vanilla and toast.

My Review:  Peppery and cherry on the nose.  Jammy, spicy with lots of berry flavors.  Acidic backbone and very dry.  I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting - Torre Castillo Alegre

Name: Torre Castillo Alegre
Variety: Monastrell
Region: Jumilla
Country: Spain
Year: 2010
Price: $9.95

Winery Review:  100% Monastrell
4 months in new American oak barrels. Bright ruby-red. Dried cherry, pipe tobacco and rose aromas, with a hint of woodsmoke. Sweet and fleshy on the palate, with blackberry and cherry flavors complimented by licorice and a suggestion of dried herbs. The cherry and smoke notes repeat on the finish.

My Review: Tobacco, apple pie and Twizzlers on the nose.  Smoky, tannic with a hot back end.  I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting - Caprice de Bastor- Lamontagne

Name: Caprice de Bastor- Lamontagne
Variety: 60% Semillon, 36% Sauvignon Blanc, 4% Muscadelle
Region: Saunters
Country: France
Year: 2004
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: Very clean, with lemon, mineral and honey aromas that follow through to a medium body. Shows vanilla, apple and melon flavors, with a medium finish. Lightly sweet.

My Review:  Honey, black licorice on the nose.  Sweet ice tea, caramel apple, light and sweet.  This is a dessert wine, so I wasn't surprised that I really liked it.  I did not have it with food.

Tasting - Ruta 22 Malbec

Name: Ruta 22 Malbec
Variety: Malbec
Region: Patagonia
Country: Argentina
Year: 2011
Price: $7.95

Winery Review: Stout and dense from the beginning, with blackberry and violet aromas. Despite being a bold and dark Malbec, this is fresh and composed, with sweet blackberry and cassis flavors. Good on the finish, with candied fruit and caramel sweetness.

My Review:  Raspberry and blackberry on the nose.  Sweet, candy, acidic and hot at the end.  Good mid palate.  I did not have this wine with food.

Tasting - Château Serres Sainte Lucie Corbières

Name: Château Serres Sainte Lucie Corbières
Variety: Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre
Region: Corbieres
Country: France
Year: 2010
Price: $4.95

Winery Review: Superb dark garnet color with a few reflections of dark orange.  Intense nose of ripe fruits, spices, and roasted coffee. The palate is rounded and full, with silky matured tannins and hints of vanilla. This wine is rich and powerful with layers of tannins.

My Review:  A very funky, spicy aroma.  Smooth, spicy, oak, full bodied, big tannins and hot on the back end.  I did not have this wine with food which might be part of the reason that I did not like it very much.