2001 Arboleda Merlot – $15

Talk about an end of the bin special, this is a Chilean Merlot from the Colchagua Valley that has nine years of bottle age. Now most wines in the under $20 category are not made to be cellared for too long, but then again almost all red wines could benefit from a couple of years of age, so how much is too much? This particular Merlot is a joint venture between Robert Mondavi and Vina Caliterra of Chile, it has a bit of Cabernet Sauvignon added along with a splash of Carmenere to give the Merlot some body and structure. It has been aged in oak barrels, so there is a good chance this wine is still improving, rather than on the way down. The color is a glistening see thru burgundy. The nose is elegant, spice drops, dark stewed fruit, beef gravy and a dusty flower garden scent. The mouth feel is light upfront with tannins grabbing at the back of your mouth. Not much fruit is evident, I had the bottle open for three hours before I tasted it and I am using my Taste of Purple glass that helps bring air into the wine, so the wine shouldn’t be “tight”. The vanilla from the oak is there, but it is not over powering. There are is prune or fig flavors, but the main component is the vanilla from the oak. I can’t come to any conclusions about cellaring wine because 1) I don’t know under what conditions this was stored and 2) I don’t know what it tasted like when it was young. But, it is an out of balance wine, still drinkable but not all that enjoyable.

2007 Viña Ventisquero Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon – $10

Unquestionably the best $10 Cabernet Sauvignon from South America that I’ve had in a long time!  The Chilean vineyard’s name Ventisquero is Spanish for “glacier”, which takes its name from the hanging glaciers in the nearby Andes Mountains.

For such an inexpensive wine this Cab is very full bodied with an intense red color.  It has hints of vanilla, oak and sweet cherry.  It is full bodied, but has an elegant, velvety finish of cherry and black currant.  It is delicious! Drink with mature cheeses, grilled meats or Buffalo Wild Wings with Asian Zing.

2006 Four Vines Old Vines Zinfandel – $12

This is another “follow the wine maker” wine. Christian Tietje (based out of Paso Robles) is something of an outlaw winemaker – he makes wine the way he wants to and does not pay a great deal of attention to tradition, and makes no apologies. He makes wines named Loco, Heretic and the Biker and is known affectionately as the “Zinbitch”.  The Old Vines Cuvee Zinfandel is his entry level red wine and he calls it the “best” deal in red wine.

Zinfandel is the American grape, most varietals come from France, Spain or Italy, but not Zinfandel. Now, I know all about how they traced this grape back to Croatia, but as they say, use it or lose it, and when’s the last time you had a Croatian Zinfandel. So, it’s our grape now, we should be using Zinfandel for making toasts on the 4th of July!

The Four Vines Old Vines Cuvee Zinfandel is sourced from vineyards all over Northern California and was aged in small French and American oak barrels. Alcohol content is listed as 14.6%, and the alcohol and the tannins are well balanced. This is a bit of a throw back Zin, big, bold and spicy. Tastes of jammy black and blue berries upfront with that nice Zin spice cutting right into all that jammy fruit.The finish has nice vanilla notes with some cola flavors. Not a good Zinfandel for the price, but a straight up real solid Zin,period. Should be widely available for around 12 bucks.

2006 Hess Allomi Cabernet Sauvignon

Here’s a screwtop, estate-grown Cabernet out of Napa Valley that overachieves its $21 price tag. Think Larissa Ely in Cherry, Harry and Raquel (Russ Meyer, people): great body and smells like Cherry (groan). Soft taste with more cherries, plum, and chocolate with a loooooong vanilla spice finish.

And just like Larissa my bottle was gone and not heard from again. I recommend sharing a bottle with Charles Napier if you have the means.

Get it HERE, although for slightly more than I found it for in my area.