One year ago, Lidl opened the first North American stores. On my initial visit, I purchased the 2012 Northbound Railway Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley. I was exuberant when I tasted the wine, calling it a $30 wine selling for $15.
Time passes and last week Lidl advertised Northbound Railway Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon on sale for $10.49. Since I drive past the store nearly every day, I told Wine Jane I needed to get bananas and stopped for bananas and wine. After bringing the wine home, I noticed some unusual facts when comparing the bottle to the wine I reviewed last year:
1. The wine I bought last year was a 2012 vintage. One year later, the wine was a 2015 vintage. What happened to 2013 and 2014?
2. This wine has 13.5% alcohol and the 2012 had 15%. That is a significant difference.
3. The label on 2012 said the wine was aged 24 months in oak. The bottle now only says it was aged in oak.
Obviously, this is a very different wine than the one purchased last year. My tasting notes last year show flavors of dark berries, plum, chocolate and licorice. The 2015 has fruit forward flavors of dark berries and some plum but not the deeper rich flavors that included chocolate and licorice. So, the question remains, with all of this, is the wine worth buying? My answer is that the wine is a good fruit forward wine worth at least the $10.49 sale price, but that there are better choices at $14 or $15.
SC Wine Joe rating = 88 points
Time passes and last week Lidl advertised Northbound Railway Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon on sale for $10.49. Since I drive past the store nearly every day, I told Wine Jane I needed to get bananas and stopped for bananas and wine. After bringing the wine home, I noticed some unusual facts when comparing the bottle to the wine I reviewed last year:
1. The wine I bought last year was a 2012 vintage. One year later, the wine was a 2015 vintage. What happened to 2013 and 2014?
2. This wine has 13.5% alcohol and the 2012 had 15%. That is a significant difference.
3. The label on 2012 said the wine was aged 24 months in oak. The bottle now only says it was aged in oak.
Obviously, this is a very different wine than the one purchased last year. My tasting notes last year show flavors of dark berries, plum, chocolate and licorice. The 2015 has fruit forward flavors of dark berries and some plum but not the deeper rich flavors that included chocolate and licorice. So, the question remains, with all of this, is the wine worth buying? My answer is that the wine is a good fruit forward wine worth at least the $10.49 sale price, but that there are better choices at $14 or $15.
SC Wine Joe rating = 88 points
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