Jean-Claude Boisset - Méditerranée Merlot - Vin de Pays D'Oc 2000 (France)

Price - unknown - Size - 1.5 L - Tasted at home on Sunday, April 29. My in-laws bought this, but neither of them knows which one or where they even got it.

This wine has a deep red color with medium quick legs and some sediment, implying that it is unfiltered. The nose is semi-sweet fruit with a hint of alcohol. The wine has some tart cherries up front (mediterranean characteristic?) with a hint of raisins in the middle. Has a somewhat light flavor and light body making it food friendly. It gets dry and a touch astringent on the medium length finish. Grade: C+

La Morandina Moscato d'Asti 2003 (Italy)

Price - $15.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This wine is called frizzante, meaning it is somewhere between a still wine and a spumante (the Italian sparkling wine). This wine is bubbly, but the bubbles go away quickly (some of that might be the fact that we weren't drinking from flutes but just normal glasses, but it shouldn't last as long as a champagne style sparkling wine anyway). Has a light gold coloring with quick running legs. Has a peachy orange nose indicative of the muscat grape. Flavors of orange and peach mix together to form a crispy, smooth, and refreshing wine. It has a nice long finish, but is never sticky sweet. Grade: B+

Martinborough Pinot Noir 2000 (New Zealand)

Price - $35.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

The bottle claims that this pinot noir is done in the old world style. Will it live up to that claim? Has a deep red color with heavy legs. Earth and tobacco on the nose. Flavors of raspberries and cherries mix together to form excellent fruit flavors and depth. Ends pleasantly with a long earthy finish. Lives up to the old world claim and then some. Excellent! Grade: A

Domaine Olivier Guyot Fixin 2000 (France)

Price - $25.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This pinot noir from Burgundy is unfiltered, so expect a little sediment in the bottle and your glass if you don't decant it. This is a darker red with some sediment and medium-quick legs. Hints of earth and black cherry mix on the nose. Flavors of earth, spice, tart cherries and mushrooms mix together to form a wonderful smooth, silky wine. This wine is not overpowering but has a long dry finish. Grade: B+

Amity Gamay Noir 2001 (Oregon)

Price - $6.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Has a medium red color with medium legs and an earthy nose. Flavors of earth, licorice and dark berries mix well and end in a medium length finish. This wine can handle a little chill as well, so it would be refreshing on a warm day. For more information visit Amity Vineyards website. Grade: B

Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau 2004 (France)

Price - $11.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau is meant for drinking right away and each Thanksgiving season the new ones come out. They are usually best through the winter holiday season, but this one is still tasting well. This has a red color with medium legs. Has tropical fruits and banana on the nose. Flavors of soft light fruits drop off to a slate taste. Has a medium to short finish. This wine from the gamay grape is a real quaffer and is easy to drink and would pair well with pizza and hamburgers. For more information see Joseph Drouhin's website. Grade: B

Thirsty Lizard White Shiraz 2004 (Australia)

Price - $6.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This is a rosy ruby red color with medium heavy legs. Has a cherry fruity nose. Flavors of cherry and raspberry with a fuller body and some light dryness. Has a medium length smooth, clean finish. Would go well with something like pork tenderloin. For more information visit Thirsty Lizard website. Grade: B

Canyon Oaks White Zinfandel 2004 (California)

Price - $3.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Has a light pink color with medium legs with honey on the nose. It is sweet with flavors of strawberries, cherries, and watermelons. Overall it is smooth and easy to drink with a short to medium crisp finish. Definitely the top value at this tasting at $3.49 Grade: B

Domaine Marc Colin "Les Cortons" Saint-Aubin 2000 (France)

Price - $28.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This Premier Cru from France is also made of chardonnay grapes. It has a lighter golden amber color with medium heavy legs. It has a light melon nose. Has flavors of light fruit, minerals, and is crisp, acidic, and smooth. This easy drinking wine is food friendly and has a medium length finish, but is drinking at its peak, or perhaps it peaked already. Grade: B+

Chappellet Napa Chardonnay 2000 (California)

Price - $18.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 28, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Golden amber color with medium heavy legs. Has pear on the nose with a little oak and tropical fruit as well. This wine has light fruits with subdued oak and buttery hints. Has a medium finish with a little heat on the throat. For more information visit Chappellet Winery website. Grade: C+

Montichiello de Pienza - Rosso di Toscana NV (non-vintage) (Italy)

Price - unknown - gifted bottle Size - 750 mL - Tasted at home on Friday April 27. My father-in-law got this as a parting gift from the President of Italy for Christ when he was in Italy.

This Tuscan wine is IGT classified (a ranking below the top DOCG and second ranking of DOC), and as far as we could read from the label is a blend of Sangiovese and Cieliegiolo, although I couldn't find the Cieliegiolo grape listed in any books (a google search brings up only 4 hits, so it's very rare indeed). This wine has a medium red coloring and has light fruit and tart cherries on the nose. It also has somewhat heavy legs. This wine has bright tart cherry fruit with a subdued sweetness and a light body. The tart flavors continue into a medium length finish. Due to its lighter body this would be good with food, possibly some of the red pasta sauces, meat sauces and possibly pork or veal with red sauce. This is probably not something you would find unless you are in Italy, but if you do go, at least you could look for this one. Grade: B

Quady "Essensia" Orange Muscat 2002 (California)

Price - $19.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Golden orange coloring with very heavy legs. Has a fuzzy peach nose. Flavors of orange, peach and caramel mix together in a fully heavy bodied dessert wine. Is sweet but not sticky with a clean finish. For more information visit Quady Winery website. Grade: B+

Geyser Peak Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 (California)

Price - $14.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Dark purple coloring with very heavy legs that hardly move at all. Deep dark fruits on the nose. Dark blackberries and other dark fruits mix together to form a velvety deep wine. There is some tartness as well. Has a long finish and would pair well with ribs and red meat. For more information visit Geyser Peak Winery website. Buy Geyser Peak 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon . Grade: B

Franciscan Oakville Merlot 2001 (California)

Price - $19.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Heavy legs with a deep red coloring. I detect mostly alcohol and little fruit on the nose. I describe this wine as velvety smooth with a medium full flavor and nice depth. It has good dryness and a medium finish. For more information visit Franciscan Oakville website. Buy Franciscan 2002 Merlot . Grade: B+

Glass Mountain Syrah 2000 (California)

Price - $6.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Dark red with heavy legs. The nose is spicy, juicy and has pleasant hints of earth. This syrah is spicy and fruity with some earth flavors. Lighter body than most syrah. Has a long earthy finish. For more information visit Glass Mountain Wine website. Grade: B

Sebastiani Sonoma Pinot Noir 2001 (California)

Price - $13.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Dark red with heavy legs and a fruity sweet nose. Flavors of cherries, spice and some tart notes mix in a wine with medium body with nice dryness. The finish is dry and of medium length. For more information visit Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery website. Grade: B

7 Heavenly Chards 2003 (California)

Price - $16.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Golden amber with medium legs. Vanilla and honey on the nose. The wine is sweet, buttery, and juicy. It's not very dry, however and the finish is long. Not too rich or buttery, but too much for my tastes. For more information visit Michael David Vineyards website. Grade: C+

Incognito Viognier 2003 (California)

Price - $16.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This lesser known varietal has light coloring with heavy legs and a sweet nose. Good fruit including melon. Has a medium body with a medium finish that turns a tiny touch sour at the end. For more information visit Michael David Vineyards website. Grade:B

McManis Pinot Grigio 2003 (California)

Price - $10.49 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting held on Thursday May 26, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Light color with quick running legs. Has a flowery nose. The wine is fruity, sweet, crisp but has some bitterness. Is light bodied with a short mostly clean finish. For more information visit McManis Family Vineyards website. Grade: C+

X Winery

If you have been reading my wine reviews or attend wine tastings with me you know that I love the X Winery Petite Sirah. So when I stumble across a story about X Winery on Vinography, you know I'm interested. Did you know that X Winery was the result of an MBA project? The goal of the project was to prove that California wine can be made with the best technology, sold at $20 a bottle, all while making money as a business. Congratulations to Winemaker and CEO Reed Renaurdin who is making good California wine at good prices. And they are now putting their wine into boxes (see Boxed Wine) which will save consumers even more money (about half!) X Winery is a success in both winemaking and business, good for all!

Clos Mimi "Petite Rousse" Syrah 2002 (California)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Inky dark with heavy legs giving away the 15% alcohol on this one. Has dark berries and strong earthiness, almost moss, on the nose. Spicy with fruit and deep flavors. Full-bodied, slightly dry with a medium finish. For more information visit Clos Mimi website. My thoughts on 3 tastings of this wine. Grade: B

Glen Fiona Syrah 2001 (Washington)

Price - $12.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This unfiltered (many winemakers believe that filtering removes some of the essential body and flavors of a wine) is inky dark with heavy legs. Has a spicy nose with hints of rubbing alcohol. Full dark fruit flavors and hints of earth. Very full body on this one, nearly overpowering complexity. For more informatioin visit Glen Fiona Walla Walla Valley website. Grade: B

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 (California)

Price - $14.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Dark red with medium legs with oak and cherry on the nose with 13.9% alcohol. Has lighter fruit flavors with a good amount of oak. This well-rounded wine is smooth with a medium finish. Would pair well with red meats and grilled meats. Buy Napa Valley Vineyards 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon . Grade: B

Easton Amador County Zinfandel 2002 (California)

Price - $11.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Deep red coloring with 14.5% alcohol. Has medium legs and raspberry on the nose. Good mix of fruit on this one. Is dry, smooth and easy to drink. For more information visit Easton and Terre Rouge Wines website. Grade: B+

Lemelson Pinot Noir Rose 2003 (Oregon)

Price - $12.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Pink coloring with quick legs and light citrus and cherry on the nose. Lots of cherries with a tart edge, spicy, earthy and easy to drink. Overall very smooth with a short but clean finish. This refreshing rose would pair nicely with salmon or pork tenderloin. For more information visit Lemelson Vineyards website. Grade: B+

J. Lohr Riverstone Chardonnay 2001 (California)

Price - $10.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Golden color with heavy legs. Oak and perhaps melon on the nose. This wine is full-bodied, buttery and oaky. Flavors of apples and peach mix with crisp acidity which ends with a decent finish. For more information visit J. Lohr Vineyard and Winery website. Grade: B

Rancho Zabaco Russian River Sauvignon Blanc 2001 (California)

Price - $13.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

Rancho Zabaco is on its own a line of barbeque wines, their several levels of Zinfandel are especially good paired with barbeque. Very light color with tiny bubbles and heavy legs. Hints of honey on the nose. Flavors of citrus and grapefruit combine in this heavy bodied wine. Has a medium finish. For more information visit Rancho Zabaco website. Grade: B

Eola Hills Pinot Gris (Oregon)

Price - $10.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines for Barbeque Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 21, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum.

This wine would be known as Pinot Grigio in Italy. Light almost clear color with medium legs. Acidic crisp nose with hints of citrus. Pleasant citrus and mineral flavors combine with high acidity to form an excitingly clean and smooth wine. The wine has a medium finish and would pair well with white meats. For more information visit Eola Hills Winery website. Grade: B+

Yellow Tail Shiraz - Cabernet 2004 (Australia)

Price - $5.99 Size - 750 mL - Tasted at a friend's Apartment with my wife and some of our friends on May 19, 2005.

I know you've seen the Yellow Tail display in your liquor store. So far this is my third Yellow Tail, I liked the pure Shiraz but not the Chardonnay. This is a blend of 60% Shiraz with 40% Cabernet Sauvignon. The coloring is purple with medium legs. The nose carries hints of grapes, jam, and a little alcohol, and is generally sweet. The flavors are of sweet fruit and spices, very juicy with some oak and decent dryness. My wife said it was meaty. I would call it yummy, balanced and smooth and finishes long and smooth. It would pair well with some steak and even a cigar. I did decant for 45 minutes, so if you can it would help. For more information visit Yellow Tail Wine website. Grade: B+

Baron Philippe de Rothschild Médoc 2001 (France)

Price - $13.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

This wine from Bordeaux is made up of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot and is filtered. Very dark color but clearer due to the filtering. Has medium to heavy legs with cherry and strawberry on the nose. Has a good mix of fruit and earth. Ends long with a nice hint of mushroom. Would go well with big flavored meats. For more information visit Baron Philippe de Rothschild website. Grade: A

Foris "Fly-Over" Red 1999 (Oregon)

Price - $12.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

This Bordeaux style blend is unfiltered (many people believe you can lose a lot of the character of the wine with filtering) and is 53% Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc making up the remaining grapes in the blend. Deep purple coloring with very heavy legs. Has a fruity, jammy nose, reminded me somewhat of grape juice. Deep raspberry and blackberry flavors with a rich mix of fruit. Very deep flavors. Good earthy finish. For more information visit Foris Vineyard Winery website. Grade: A

Sanford Pinot Noir 2000 (California)

Price - $27.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

Light red but slightly darker than the Drouhin Volnay. Has heavy legs with strawberries and fruit on the nose. Flavors of fruit, cherries and a smoky vanilla hint. Nice tannins (ageable) with big depth and a lot of body. Long finish on this one. For more information visit Sanford Winery website. Buy Sanford 2001 Pinot Noir . Grade: A

Joseph Drouhin Volnay 2001 (France)

Price - $24.49 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

This Pinot Noir is light red with heavy legs. Earth and juice on the nose. Pepper, earth and mushroom flavors. Earthy, complex and deep with nice acid and good dryness. Has a medium finish. Would do well with salmon. For more information see Joseph Drouhin's website. Grade: A

Rosemount Estate Traminer/Riesling 2003 (Australia)

Price - $6.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

This is a seldom seen blend of Gewürztraminer and Riesling grapes into one pleasant wine. It has a nice golden color with medium legs. Has light hints of honeysucckle on the nose. It is sweet and honeylike with a medium body, not sickly sweet, however. Good amount of acidity. The finish stays sweet and is medium length. For more information visit Rosemount Estate website. Grade: B

Joseph Cattin Muscat 2003 (Alsace)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

Very light coloring with medium legs with honeysuckle and citrus on the nose. Peachy sweet flavors, like other muscat based wines I've had. Gets dry at the end and the finish is short. Grade: C+

La Crema Chardonnay 2002 (California)

Price - $14.49 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

Light color with quick legs. Melon and vanilla on the nose. Fruit flavors change to vanilla and butter quickly. Has a long oaky finish. For more information visit La Crema Winery website. Buy La Crema 2003 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay . Grade: C+

Sad Times at Holy Cross Abbey

In today's Gazette they ran as the cover story an article about the Holy Cross Abbey and how it has little left but memories. Some pertinent information to those of you who love the Winery at Holy Cross Abbey's great selection of wines:

The Holy Cross Abbey will soon be no more.

The grand old landmark off U.S. Highway 50 is for sale for $13.5 million.

In 2002, facing the prospect of closing anyway because of their aging ranks and the dearth of new members to take their place, the monks voted to disband. Now the entire property, including the winery, which operates as a separate nonprofit, is for sale.

What would happen to the winery if, or probably when, the Abbey closes? I'm not really sure, but it would definitely be a sad day for Colorado wines. The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey is definitely putting out some exciting and tasty wines. It's nice for those of us in Colorado Springs that we don't have to drive to Palisade (5 hours) to see a winery and vineyards, Canon City is only an hour and a half at most. We do have another vineyard and winery here in town, but still it's nice to have Canon City as well.

If there is a way for me to find out more details on what would happen to the winery in the case of a sale, I will. Let's hope the new owners will say, keep on doing what you have been, your wine is exciting and needs to continue.

For a different take on this issue, I posted at my political blog about some of the other issues related to the impending closure of Holy Cross Abbey.

Joseph Drouhin Pouilly-Fuisse 2002 (France)

Price - $15.99 Size - 750 mL- Old World vs. New World Wine Tasting held on Monday May 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Will Gillum, comparing representative varietals from Old and New World Styles. I posted some thoughts I had before the tasting, and thoughts I had after the tasting.

This wine made from chardonnay grapes has a light coloring with quick running legs. It has a citrusy nose. Flavors of minerals and light citrus fruit combine with nice acidity. Has a clean taste and is light bodied, with little or no hint of oak. Medium length clean finish. This would pair very easily with white meats as neither would be overpowering. Is a clean drinking sipping wine. For more information see Joseph Drouhin's website. Buy Joseph Drouhin 2003 Pouilly-Fuisse . Grade: B

Oregon Wine: Exciting and Favorably Regulated

I have rarely found a red wine from Oregon that I did not like. In a quick look over the reviews, I couldn't find any reds from Oregon that were below a B grade. Now that's some good exciting wine. I don't remember any other region holding up that well. I love Italian, Spanish, California, but they have all let me down at some point or another. I have yet to be let down by an Oregon red. This is an exciting prospect. Oregon is the neighbor state to my birthstate of Washington and sits north of the state I lived in from the age of 2 to 7, California. In fact my parents were both born in Oregon and I still have lots of family there, so I do feel some ties to Oregon.

I found an Oregon Winery Guide I had picked up at a tasting a while back and was looking at it yesterday. I would love to take a trip through Oregon wine country, it's one of the most beautiful states and then add wine touring and you are almost in heaven. Something I found intriguing in the Winery Guide was the extent of regulation of the wine industry in Oregon, or at least the regulation of the label.

The regulations don't necessarily guarantee quality, but they are a step towards it. At least you know the wine you are drinking conforms to the law they have set up, that's not the case in California where things are wide open. I won't debate the merits of each system now, but each does have its strong points. Here now is an excerpt from the Oregon Winery Guide on label regulations:

The nation's most stringent wine labeling laws were adopted in Oregon in 1977. Then, and now, many wine labels used region and variety names that Oregon wine leaders did not believe adequately described the bottle's contents. Oregon winemakers therefore created standards that provide more accurate and meaningful information to consumers.

For example, the names of foreign regions like "Chablis" and "Champagne" are not allowed on Oregon wine labels. Oregon wine must contain at least 90 percent of the stated varietal. Nationally, 75 percent is required; Oregon allows Cabernet Sauvignon to comply with this standard, since it is traditionally blended with Merlot, Cabernet franc, etc.

Label Specifics
Winery Name: Name of the producer
Vintage: Harvest year, 95% must be from the stated year
State: Origin of grapes
Varietal: Type of grape (Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling, etc.), 90% must be of stated varietal
Appellation: An official American Viticultural Area. Oregon has six. 100% of the grapes must be from the stated region to use the appellation.

Winery Name Vintage Oregon Varietal Appellation

Oregon wine, exciting, and you know what you're getting!

Interview With Etienne Hugel of Alsace

Terroir France interviews Etienne Hugel, one of the most influential and famous of the Alsace winemakers. He's 12^th generation running the Hugel Winery. Alsace is one of the least well known French wine regions, but important and exciting nonetheless. This is a must read, it's very good and interesting information. An interesting contrast would be German Riesling against Alsace Riesling. I would do a tasting like that at home if anyone is interested.

How Did the New World vs. Old World Tasting Go?

Well, technically it came out a tie, no I am not kidding. The first comparison was a French Chardonnay against a California Chardonnay. I enjoyed the French one better as it would pair much better with foods and I don't really like the vanilla flavor common in American Chardonnay. I don't mind some tannin and oak on red wines, but white wine in my opinion should be cleaner than that vanilla butter.

Next we compared an Alsatian Muscat against an Australian Gewurztraminer/Riesling blend. For me the Australian did the trick, having a longer smoother finish. So for the whites, New World and Old World scores were equal. For the exact scoring you will have to come back and read the reviews.

Next we moved into Burgundian style Pinot Noir and Sanford Pinot Noir from California (yes Sanford is in the movie Sideways as the first Pinot Noir featured). These wines were not identical, they each had their strengths and high points, but they did score the same ultimately. I would say the French wine would be better with food while the Californian would need something a little heartier, but could even be enjoyed with a cigar.

Finally at the end we compared two Bordeaux style blends, one from Oregon and the other from Bordeaux. Again, the scoring was identical, but the wines were not. They both had their strengths and high points. But they were both top notch wines, just different.

So perhaps nothing was decided except that I like good wine (was that in doubt?) It seems that old world is earthier wine, a little lighter, possibly pairing better with food. New World wine could overwhelm some food, so you need something appropriately hearty to enjoy it well. There's something to be said for steak every night (my wife wouldn't protest), but you can't always afford that. Hopefully when the reviews get finished it will help you to see what differences exist between Old World and New World wine. Now I'm off to have my glass of wine for the night...

Marques de Caceres Rioja Riserva 1995 (Spain)

Price - $23.99 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

Has a fruity deep nose with hints of leather. Good earthy fruitiness, very complex and has good dryness. Would be nice with a good cigar or steak. Buy Marques de Caceres 1995 Rioja Reserva . Grade: B+

Marques de Caceres Rioja 2000 (Spain)

Price - $14.49 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

100% Tempranillo grapes. Fruity nose with a hint of steel. Spicy with good depth and character, nice dryness. Finishes nicely. Would pair well with a cigar or a nice steak. Buy Marques de Caceres 2001 Rioja Crianza Red (Crianza is a step up). Grade: B

Conde de Valdemar Rioja Crianza 1999 (Spain)

Price - $14.49 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

This blend of 85% Tempranillo and 15% Manzuello grapes sees 6 months on oak and 18 months aging in the bottle. Has a sweet fruity nose. This wine is decently dry and is a little too light, almost watery. Nothing to be impressed with. For more information visit Wines of Martinez Bujanda. Grade: C

Finca Antigua Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 (Spain)

Price - $7.99 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

This Cab comes from the La Mancha region of Spain. The wine has a light fruit nose. Has a good flavor and good body while not being especially deep. Finishes decently. Grade: B

Conde de Valdemar Rioja Rose 2003 (Spain)

Price - $5.49 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

This Rose is made from the Grenache grape, or Garnacha as it is known in Spain. This has a sweet nose. Not quite enough fruit on this one. Has deeper flavors more reminiscent of a light style red wine. Finish is dry. For more information visit Wines of Martinez Bujanda. Grade: C+

Marques de Caceres Rioja Blanco 2002 (Spain)

Price - $9.49 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

This wine has a semi-sweet nose. It tastes of chalk and minerals and is a little sour. It's too heavy, not smooth and has a bad aftertaste. Buy Marques de Caceres 2003 Rioja Blanco . Grade: D

Jaume Serra Cristallino Brut (Spain)

Price - $7.49 Size - 750 mL- Spanish Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 9, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs and presented by Grand Vin Distributing.

This Cava wine comes from the Peneres region of Spain. This sparkling wine has a little sour edge on the nose (Is that normal or out of the ordinary for sparkling Cava?) This wine is decently dry and has a pretty good flavor. For more information visit Jaume Serra website. Grade: C+

Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Wineries

From todays Denver Post.

Colorado's wineries had reason to toast the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday after justices struck down laws barring interstate wine shipments in two states.

The ruling could lead to an increase in the amount of vino flowing across state lines from winemakers in Colorado and other states, said Bill Nelson, vice president of WineAmerica, a national trade association for wineries.

"Now they can build mailing lists and a list of loyal customers," he said. "This is an incentive to have additional wineries."

Amen to that. I think Colorado wineries are starting to put out progressively better wines, but they have only been available to a small part of the country, until now.

"Yahoo," said Jackie Thompson, owner of Boulder Creek Winery. "Just last week in our tasting room we had two different parties from states you can't ship to. They wracked their brains to find friends in another state that we can ship wine to, so they can drive there from home and pick them up."

Small wineries - those that produce on average about 4,000 cases a year - have quadrupled since 1980 and account for about three-quarters of the nation's estimated 3,726 wineries, according to the U.S. Treasury.

The smaller wineries say they can't compete with huge companies unless they can sell directly to customers over the Internet or by allowing visitors to their wineries to ship bottles home.

This should help the small wineries and should make travelling to them an even better vacation option. Why travel and visit these wonderful wineries when you can't have a case sent home? My guess is that liquor stores and wholesalers will be minutely affected by this. It should just expand peoples options for the wines they are drinking. This is good for everybody.

Old World vs. New World

Tonight I have the opportunity to attend an Old World vs. New World wine tasting. I have always assumed that I love Old World better than New World wine. I have found during recent months that my tastes might be shifting towards the more fruit forward newer style wines. I still do enjoy Old World wines as well, sometimes a good earthy wine is very pleasurable. As far as I can tell there are many differences. Old World wine is driven by the region or terroir. So when you taste old world Cabernet Sauvignon you are tasting the region of France it is coming from. New World wines are more interested, in the case of Australia for instance, in creating wine that is technically correct. They will control the conditions much more where Old World will let the weather have it's way with little intervention from the grower. In New World you are tasting the grapes and not the land. That's my limited understanding of Old World versus New World, tonight I hope to learn more, and later this week we will see which I prefer. Or maybe I like them both equally well.

Frei Brothers Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 (California)

Price - $19.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Comes from the Alexander Valley in California. This wine is a very deep red with medium legs. This wine has a leathery nose. Has good fruit flavors with earth and leather mixed in. Has a clean finish albeit relatively short. For more information visit Frei Brothers website. Grade: B

Washington Hills Rainier Red 2002 (Washington)

Price - $10.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

This blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot comes from the Columbia Valley in Washington. Deep red coloring with heavy legs and a mostly alcoholic nose. The wine is juicy but not especially sweet. This wine is also dry. The finish is medium length and turns bitter at the end. Would pair well with Barbeque, lamb, veal or stew. For more information visit Washington Hills website. Grade: C+

Red Bicyclette Merlot 2003 (France)

Price - $8.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

This wine has heavy legs and is deep red in color. The wine is juicy, jammy, smooth and fruity. Has a big body and the big flavors that go with it. It is clean with a decently dry edge. It has a smooth finish of medium length. Something unique about this wine, it's basically a new world style wine from France. Some American winemakers met with French winemakers to invigorate French wine sales and they created a new world wine with a more simple new world label, as it is difficult unless you know a region in France to read their labels. For more information visit Red Bicyclette website. Grade: B+

DaVinci Chianti 2003 (Italy)

Price - $9.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Wine is a blend of 70% Sangiovese and 30% Syrah which is uncommon for a Chianti, the wine sees 2 years ageing on oak and 1 year ageing in the bottle. Chianti Classicos would receive more ageing and Chianti Classico Riservas would see the most ageing. Wine is deep red with heavy legs. It has an earthy and leathery nose. The flavors are of earth and leather with a tiny bit of bitterness. There is some tartness but also good fruit and some jammy features. The wine finishes clean with no hint of heat and a little bit of bitterness. Buy Da Vinci 2003 Chianti . Grade: B

Bloom Riesling 2003 (Germany)

Price - $7.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

This has a Stelvin screw-cap closure with a plastic rim, according to Elizabeth Smart this type of screwcap closure originated in New Zealand some time back when they were getting the worst corks and it was too expensive to ship them back. This wine is almost clear with heavy slow legs. The nose is sweet with a dry hint and some minerals. The flavor is sweet with full green grape flavors. There is also a nice floral flavor. Nice smooth well-constructed wine finishes very clean. Would pair well with spicy food. Grade: B+

McWilliams Hanwood Estate Chardonnay 2002 (Australia)

Price - $9.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Darker golden color with medium to heavy legs. Wine has a fruity nose. Wine has flavors of tropical fruits with some vanilla. Relatively short but clean finish. Would pair well with salmon. For more information visit McWilliam's Wines website. Buy McWilliams 2003 Chardonnay . Grade: B

Washington Hills Rainier White 2003 (Washington)

Price - $10.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Blend of Chardonnay, Semillon and Gewurztraminer with 13% alcohol comes from the Columbia Valley in Washington. Golden with heavy legs and a honey or maybe honeysuckle nose. Flavors of pear and apple leap out in this sweet although not highly acidic blend. Smooth with a nice medium length finish. Would be good with a wide array of Asian foods. For more information visit Washington Hills website. Grade: B

Maso Canali Pinot Grigio 2003 (Italy)

Price - $17.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Darker gold coloring with light quick running legs. Has an applelike nose. Fruity, crisp and refreshing but with a sour finish. For more information visit Maso Canali online, bet you didn't know that Ecco Domani makes Maso Canali too? Neither did I. Buy Maso Canali 2003 Pinot Grigio . Grade: C+

Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio 2003 (Italy)

Price - $9.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 14, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Elizabeth Smart of Mountain Wine Distributing.

Ecco Domani means here's tomorrow, does that mean they are trying to be new world? From Venezia in Northeast Italy. Very light coloring almost clear with grapefruit on the nose. Fruity, light tasting with decent acidity. Relatively short but smooth finish. For more information see Ecco Domani Liquid Style website. Buy Ecco Domani 2004 Pinot Grigio . Grade: B

Lindemans Bin 99 Pinot Noir 2004 (Australia)

Price - $7.49 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Red color but not especially deep. Has heavy legs with a pleasantly fruity nose. Good strawberry and raspberry flavors. Light, smooth and easy to drink would match good with foods. The finish is long and drops off clean. Proves that not every good Pinot Noir costs $15 or more, but I wouldn't experiment too much with that. This is trusty for food pairing and at an excellent price point. For more information see Lindemans website. Grade: B+

Penfold's "Club" Tawny Port (Australia)

Price - $29.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

This port style wine sits 5 years on oak and scored 89 pts. in a wine review magazine (didn't catch which one) and is composed of Shiraz, Grenache, and Mouvedre grapes. Nice golden brown with heavy legs. Brown sugar and alcohol on the nose. Good sweetness with brown sugar flavors. Would be very nice for dessert. Clean, good. For more information see Penfolds website. To buy this Port Style wine visit wine.com . Grade: B+

Penfold's Bin 389 Cabernet/Shiraz 2001 (Australia)

Price - $23.49 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

This is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and 40% Shiraz grapes and ages in American oak. The wine is inky dark with heavy legs. Dry nose with a little bit of fruit. Good depth of fruit with a good somewhat crisp finish. For more information see Penfolds website. Grade: B+

Lindemans Reserve Shiraz 2002 (Australia)

Price - $9.49 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Dark purple color with heavy legs. Good mix of spice and fruit on the nose. Mostly flavors of dark berries. It is not especially spicy or terribly deep but it has a good clean dry finish. For more information see Lindemans website. Buy the Lindemans 2002 Reserve Shiraz . Grade: B+

Lindemans Bin 45 Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 (Australia)

Price - $7.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Dark opaque red with medium to heavy legs. Has a fruity blackberry nose. Has flavors of blackberry and is juicy and fruity with pleasant dryness. Has a good tasty finish. For more information see Lindemans website. Buy the Lindemans 2004 Bin 45 Cabernet Sauvignon . Grade: B

Cloudy Bay Chardonnay 2001 (New Zealand)

Price - $25.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Lighter gold color with heavy legs. Minerals and apple on the nose. The wine is a little crispy with more acid than the other white at this tasting. Flavors of apple, oak and some mineral are present. Overall clean and crispy although the finish disappoints by being sour. For more information see Cloudy Bay website. Wine.com has the Cloudy Bay 2003 Chardonnay . Grade: C+

Penfolds "Koonunga Hill" Semillon/Chardonnay 2002 (Australia)

Price - $10.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Wine is a darker golden color and has heavier legs. Has a little honey on the nose. Some oak and a little bit of vanilla flavor, somewhat full bodied in terms of mouthfeel, flavors are not especially deep. Finish drops off fast. For more information see Penfolds website. Grade: C+

Penfolds "Rawson's Retreat" Chardonnay 2002 (Australia)

Price - $8.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Amber golden coloring with heavy legs. Hints of pineapple on the nose. Contains light flavoring of oak with astringent alcoholic flavors coming through. The finish is sour. For more information see Penfolds website. Grade: C

Lindemans Bin 95 Sauvignon Blanc 2003 (Australia)

Price - $7.99 Size - 750 mL- Australian Wine Tasting held on Saturday May 7, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs with Drew Robinson of Grand Vin Distributors.

Golden, bubbly and somewhat thin. The wine has a melon and grapefruit nose with a hint of minerals. The wine is sweet while maintaining a little dryness. It has a little crispness, with nice acidity but not quite enough. The finish is somewhat short and gets a little bit sour at the end. This is an easy drinking wine and would make a refreshing summer drinker. For more information see Lindemans website. Grade: B

Riesling: A Short Introduction

German wines are one of the more complicated wines to pick out. Most specifically this would be useful when picking out Riesling, the best of white wines. Riesling is a wine that you will find pairs with more foods than any other white wine. Riesling is not that Liebfraumilch in the blue bottle, no it's far better than that. Of course the best and easiest Riesling to find is from Germany. You can also get Riesling from Alsace in France or from Austria, and the new world wineries are starting to put out some Riesling, although reports on new world are mixed at best, most being too sweet.

Riesling is one of the most difficult grapes to grow well, that might explain why the new worlders are having some trouble with it. It just might prove to be the next big white wine. If Riesling lovers had their way, it wouldn't become all that popular. More demand would raise the price of this somewhat underpriced gem. Good Riesling can be cellared for 10 years even. So good with food, underpriced and eminently ageable, no wonder those of us who have discovered it love it. The following style guide from The Wine Avenger will help you pick out the right Riesling for your purpose, look for the following ripeness designation on the bottle:

Kabinett (dry to off-dry): racy, light-to-medium body, little or no sweetness. Elegant.

Spätlese (riper, off-dry): fuller body, fruitier, juicier. Thrilling when well-made.

Auslese (very ripe): light-to-medium body, yet not too sweet for rich entre#233;es. The aging process diminishes an Auslese Riesling's youthful sweetness, resulting in a succulent, yet vibrant white wine that dwarfes all others as a choice for rich fish and white meat preparations. Mature Auslese Rieslings make superior choices in these instances to most light red wines.

Beerenauslese (B.A.) (luscious and sweet): from selected late-harvested, shriveled bunches of grapes. Ethereal dessert wines.

Trockenbeerenauslese (T.B.A.) (unctuous, very sweet and concentrated): from selected late-harvested, shriveled individual grapes. Sweet, vinous Valhalla.

Eiswein (Ice Wine) (ultrasweet with uncanny acidity): from late harvested grapes picked frozen. What little water remains is hung up in the press as ice. The remaining juice is pure fruit extract, sweetness, and acidity. A high-wire balancing act of power and finesse.

A dry idea: Two subcategories that may appear on Kabinett and Spätlese labels are:

Trocken (literally "dry"): nearly zero residual sugar, drier and crisper than the driest Sauvignon Blanc.

Halbtrocken (literally "half-dry"): significant body and richness, yet still essentially dry.

I hope this guide gets you started on your Riesling adventure. There is so much more to learn, but this will get you started appreciating and enjoying the best white wine, Riesling!

Lapis Luna Merlot (California)

Price - $6.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is 75% Merlot and 25% Syrah and has heavy slow legs. The wine exhibits flavors of sweet berries with a smooth flavor but a relatively short finish on the end. Grade: B+

Laird Chardonnay (California)

Price - $18.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

674 case production annually, 91 points American Spectator, sits 16 months on new oak. Wine is a golden clear color, unsedimented, and has slow legs. The flavor has a hearty oakiness, is somewhat sweet and has a relatively long finish. For more information visit Laird Family Estate. Grade: B

X Winery Petite Sirah (California)

Price - $20.29 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

600 case production annually, ages 18 months at winery, can age 10-15 years. This wine is very dark, and has medium legs, it has a very long and smooth finish with a hint of blueberries, excellent wine, one of my favorites ever. This is the wine I think about constantly, hoping we will taste it again, maybe I should just buy some?. For more information visit X Winery website. Grade: A++

X Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 (California)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs. This wine is mentioned in Boxed Wine, so it is now available in 3 L boxes (X Box) for a much better price.

This wine has thin legs, is fruity, oaky, and dry. For more information visit X Winery website. Grade: B

Lapis Luna Chardonnay 2000 (California)

Price - $6.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is produced at 10,000 cases annually, it sits 12 months on oak. The wine is practically clear, has light, fast legs, some apple taste, this wine is a little too light, the flavor drops off quickly. Grade: C+

Cornerstone Stepping Stone Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 (California)

Price - $12.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is limited in production to 874 cases. Wine has heavy legs, is oaky with a long smooth finish. For more information see Cornerstone Cellars website. Grade: B

Clos Mimi "Petite Rousse" Syrah 2002 (California)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- California Wine Tasting with Damon Lobato held on Saturday April 3, 2004 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is blended from 2 single vineyards. Wine is very dark, and has heavy legs. Taste is smooth and fruity, a little bit oaky, has nice fruit with berries and raisins, good wine. For more information visit Clos Mimi website. My thoughts on 3 tastings of this wine. Grade: B+

Franzia American Chianti (California)

Price - $12.49 Size - 5.0 L - Tasted at home on May 10, 2005.

I know you've all eyed the cheapest of the cheap boxed wines. Well Franzia makes a very affordable wine for everyday drinking for health or just if you like wine everyday, a good habit in moderation either way. We try to drink wine almost every night and Franzia really is the most wine for the dollar, 5 Liters is just short of 7 bottles of wine. The nose is somewhat fruity with a little hint of alcohol. First impressions are light body, and very tart. It has a decently juicy wine flavor with good acidity but moves to an almost overpowering tartness almost right away. The finish is short and not quite dry enough. It's decent, I may have to try it with a meal to really know if that tartness would prevent me from being able to drink it everyday. Grade: C

Cecchi Chianti 2003 (Italy)

Price - $7.00 Size - 750 mL- Tasted at home with my wife's parents in Colorado Springs on May 9, 2005.

Lightly fruity nose, gets better with aeration. It has somewhat thin, quick running legs (12.5% alcohol). Has grapey flavors with a tart edge. The flavors are not especially deep. It has a dry and clean finish of medium length. It's what you would expect if you are drinking Chianti. Very drinkable. Don't know where it's available, my father in law brought it back from a recent trip to Italy, they do have a website, Cecchi.net. Grade: B

Hold On!

As you can see I now have 2 dozen wine reviews up on the page. I have been tasting wine for just over a year and have always intended to put my reviews online. I started on my web page a while back, but it didn't get very far. Now I have more time to type up my reviews. So hold on while I put a years worth of reviews online. I want this site to be a resource especially to those of you in Colorado Springs, and to other wine lovers. If you don't have access to the Powers Liquor Mart, finding them will be more of a search. Isn't that part of the fun though? When you finally find that amazing wine you read about here, won't it be exciting?

Clos Mimi "Petite Rousse" Syrah 2002 (California)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine had a foul mossy nose. The wine has a mossy flavor, too much earth, and no discernable grape flavors, maybe even a little tea flavor. For my taste, this wine was terrible, I'm not sure what others saw in this wine, though some people thought it was fantastic. If you think something else about this wine, leave me a comment. For more information visit Clos Mimi website. My thoughts on 3 tastings of this wine. Grade: F

Wild Gaucho Shiraz 2002 (Argentina)

Price - $5.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

Has some astringency on the nose. Has a full-bodied berry flavor with a little bit of sweetness and fruitiness. Good, in fact the best (my favorite) of the tasting, and the best value. Grade: B+

Edmond Cornu & Fils Savigny-Les Beaune 2002 (France)

Price - $26.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is from the Burgundy region of France and is made with Pinot Noir grapes. The flavor is earthy and somewhat light. A decent wine, would be good with food. Grade: C+

Domaine Serene Yamhill Cuvee Pinot Noir 2002 (Oregon)

Price - $31.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

The wine has a sweet nose that hints of complex depth. It is rich, deep and a little dry. Very drinkable. Could age for 5 years perhaps. For more information visit Domaine Serene website. Grade: B+

Lemelson Pinot Noir Rose 2003 (Oregon)

Price - $12.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

Sweet nose hints of strawberry. The wine has hints of berry and cherries. The wine is smooth with a nice little crispness. The finish is sweet, fruity and pleasant. An enjoyable easy drinker. For more information visit Lemelson Vineyards website. Grade: B

Eola Hills Chardonnay 2002 (Oregon)

Price - $10.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is buttery and somewhat woody. Decent. For more information visit Eola Hills Winery website. Grade: C+

Chehalem Pinot Blanc 2002 (Oregon)

Price - $15.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

Wine has a steely nose and tastes a little sour. For more information visit Chehalam Wines website. Grade: C+

Alta Vista Torrontes 2003 (Argentina)

Price - $10.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 23, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is a little bit crisp and a little bit dry. Unimpressive. Grade: C

Possums Vineyard Shiraz 2003 (Australia)

Price - $29.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is a very deep red color. It has heavy legs (15% Alcohol!) and is a little astringent in the nose. This has excellent fruit and great depth and is full bodied. Has a good finish. Another excellent wine, the small difference in score between this and the Cuvee Simone is this doesn't have quite as long a finish. Grade: Between A and A+

Ruston Cuvee Simone 2000 (California)

Price - $28.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine is a blend of Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes, I didn't catch the percentages of each, however. This wine is a deep burgundy with an astringent edge. The flavor is extremely deep on this one, and too complex to take in in one glassfull. It has nice fruitiness and a long smooth finish. Excellent wine, one of the best I've ever had. For more information visit Ruston Family Vineyards website. Grade: A+

Penascal Tempranillo 2001 (Spain)

Price - $6.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This is a bit darker red with a spicy nose. This wine has a nice earthiness and also has some fruit and is dry. It is very drinkable and pleasant, best buy for this tasting. Grade: B

Moshin Pinot Noir 2002 (California)

Price - $16.49 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

Wine has a pleasant nose of ripe fruit. The coloring is red but not very dark. Another fruit forward wine with a dry finish. Very easy and fun to drink and could be paired with many foods. For more information visit Moshin Vineyards website. Grade: A

Domaine de le Galantin Bandol Rose 2003 (France)

Price - $16.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

Light pink coloring on this wine with a light fruitiness. This wine exhibits a fruit forward character while also being somewhat dry. This wine is easy to drink and would be refreshing on a summer day. For more information visit this little information page. Grade: B

Hans Lang Erstes Gewachs Riesling 2001 (Germany)

Price - $33.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

The wine is light colored with tiny bubbles. The nose has hints of moss and steel. The grapefruit flavor of this premium Riesling transforms into a dry, acidic, crisp finish. Delicious and clean and would pair wonderfully with food. For more information see Hans Lang Weingut (Winery) website. Grade: B

Edna Valley Chardonnay 2002 (California)

Price - $14.99 Size - 750 mL- Wines of the World Wine Tasting held on Saturday April 16, 2005 at the Powers Liquor Mart in Colorado Springs.

This wine has a nice fruity nose. The wine has good crispness for a chardonnay, it has a good dry edge. Pleasant. For more information see Edna Valley Vineyard website. Buy the Edna Valley Vineyard 2003 Chardonnay . Grade: B