South Carolina Wine Joe

With a few notable exceptions, I have tried many wines lately that were uninteresting or even bad enough to save for the next pasta sauce.  I was fretting about what to write about for my next blog, when I opened the Conn Creek Herrick Red that I found at Costco.  Finally I have something good to write about. Conn Creek Herrick Red is a blend of 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Syrah, 6% Merlot, 6% Malbec and 4% Primitivo with an alcohol content of 14.5%.  I found flavors of plum, blackberry, vanilla and a little spice from the Syrah.  The tannins provide some bite but it does not overwhelm the fruit and the finish is long lasting.  I really enjoyed this wine and was disappointed when it was gone.  I hope there is some left when I get back to Costco. This wine normally sells for $19 to $25, but my local Costco has a small quantity at $15.99.  It is probably not available at every Costco Warehouse. SC Wine Joe rating = 90 points

Canoe Ridge Vineyards released their 2015 "The Explorer" in December 2017.  The 2014 version was a very limited production that was not widely marketed, but the blend of the 2015 version was modified and production was more than tripled.  This will result in the wine being available to a wider audience.  In anticipation of release of this wine into South Carolina, Precept Wines, parent of Canoe Ridge Vineyards, provided a sample of the wine for my review. The Explorer 2015 is a blend of 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Syrah, 20% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc from three vineyards in the Horse Heaven Hills portion of the Columbia Valley, Washington.   The wine was aged 20 months in French oak- half new and half second or third use.  The stated alcohol content is 14.62%. The wine is a dark garnet color.  I tasted black cherry, blackberry, plum, cola and a hint of mocha.  The wine is fruit forward and elegant, with softer tannins and a very long, pleasant ...

In 2001, Charles Smith began making wines in Walla Walla Washington.  Some of his brands became quite successful and in 2016, he sold 5 brands including Kung Fu Girl Riesling, Velvet Devil Merlot and Boom Boom Syrah to Constellation Brands.  In 2017, Smith combined several of his remaining bramds, including "Substance" under the title of "Wines of Substance". Substance CS is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Columbia Valley.  The wine is aged 100% in French oak and has an alcohol content of 14.5%.  Although it remains quite affordable, the wine has received critical acclaim, including a rating of 92 points from Robert Parker, who described it as one of the best values available. I found the wine to have flavors of dark fruit combined with flavors of cola and vanilla.  Although the wine has a silky texture, there is a significant amount of tannins making this a dinner wine and certainly not a party wine.  This is one of the best Cabernet Sauvignons that I...

I found Fat Barrel Perseverance at Lidl for $9.99.  Fat Barrel represents a group of South Africa estates with 14 wine brands as well as private label brands.  Perseverance is a blend of 61% Shiraz, 32% Pinotage, and 7% Merlot from the southern tip of Africa, where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Indian Ocean.  Many American wine drinkers may not be familiar with the Pinotage grape.  It is the signature grape of South Africa and was created in 1925 by crossing Pinot Noir and Cinsault.  It is a difficult grape to grow and the wine made from it can sometimes turn out to be very unpleasant.  Nevertheless, there are great Pinotage wines being produced and Pinotage is often blended with Syrah and other grapes from the Western Cape with distinctive results. Fat Barrel Perseverance is definitely a medium bodied wine.  Our initial tasting was very interesting.  My initial impression was related to the raspberry, cherry flavors.  My research assistan...

I purchased this wine in early December at Costco for $14.99 and planned to enjoy it with our Christmas turkey.  Some events got in the way and we did not have the wine for the holiday but happily opened the bottle at the end of January. The Willamette Valley of Oregon is one of the great wine producing regions of the United States.  Several wine magazines have honored the area as wine region of the year and the reputation of the region grows every year.  The climate and the soil conditions are best suited to growing Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and especially Pinot Noir. Cloudline Pinot Noir is 100% Pinot Noir sourced from low-yield vineyards in the Willamette Valley including the Roserock Vineyard.  The wine has 13.5% alcohol. The winemaker says that the wine has flavors of dark berry, blue fruit, cola and a touch of spice.  I did not note the cola but accept the rest of the description.  I actually was not as enthusiastic about this wine as I expected to...