South Carolina Wine Joe

Matetic EQ Coastal Sauvignon Blanc is from the Cassablanca Valley in Chile.  When you think of Chilean wine, you may first think of Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux red blends but Chile is a large country with varied climates.  The grapes for this Sauvignon Blanc are from the windswept vineyard of Valle Hermoso, only 8 miles from the Pacific Ocean. This wine pours a pale yellow color in the glass.  There are aromas of citris and lime and flavors of Tangerine and Grapefruit.  This is a crisp acidic wine with minerality on the finish.  It is not as grassy as a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc but there is a touch of that here.  The fruit flavors are not as muted as in some California Sauvignon Blancs and this reminded me of what Kim Crawford was before it was made into a mass appeal, grocery store wine.  We enjoyed this wine with crab cakes and it paired well. Costco is selling this for $9.99 and it is a steal at that price.  I have already gone back...

I have been tasting more Cabernet Franc lately and enjoying it more than I expected.  Since Cabernet Franc can be grown in a wide variety of climates, the wines are quite varied in color, body and flavor.  Cabernet Franc is native to the Bordeaux region and along with Sauvignon Blanc is the parent of Cabernet Sauvignon.  Although Cabernet Franc is used for blending in Bordeaux, it is the star in many other regions such as the eastern US, parts of California and parts of South America. The wine manager of my local shop has been introducing me to the red wines from Chinon in the Loire Valley of France which are 90 to 100 percent Cabernet Franc.  The Loire Valley is a cool wine region where white wines dominate, except for the middle Loire including Chinon.  Since the climate is cool, the Cabernet Franc wines are lighter bodied and fruit forward. M. Plouzeau Chinon Rive Gauche is made from organically farmed grapes from 30 year old vines.  The aging proce...

Costco has produced their Kirkland Signature Toscana wine for several years.  The last time I reviewed it was for the 2014 vintage (see here for my post).   The bottle for the 2016 vintage does not tell the blend, but it is likely similar to the 2014 vintage which was predominately Sangiovese with lesser amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. This is still a medium bodied wine with flavors of dark cherry and raspberry, but the 2016 is a little more complex with some flavors of darker berries and a touch of chocolate.  The tannns are still smooth and the wine has a nice finish. Kirkland Signature Toscana 2016 just arrived at the Greenville Costco and it remains a good value for $13.99. SC Wine Joe rating = 89 points

Red Mountain is a small AVA in Benton County near Richland Washington.  It is part of the larger Yakima Valley AVA which is part of the Columbia Valley AVA.  Red Mountain contains only about 600 acres under grape cultivation, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc and Syrah.  There are warm daytime temperatures, cool nights and a desert climate. Some of the most highly rated wines in the State of Washington are from this small AVA. Descendants Liegeois Dupont Red Mountain 2014 is 100% Syrah from Les Gosses Vineyard, a 16.7 acre vineyard.  The wine is 100% barrel aged for 19 months in 72% American oak and 28% French oak.  41% of the oak is new. On the nose, I detected dark berry aromas with vanilla and some cinnamon.  On the palate, I noted blueberry, vanilla, more cinnamon than I expected with some spice and dusty tannins into the finish.  This is a rich, delicious wine and I did not want the bottle to be empty.  This wo...