Who loves Cabernet Sauvignon? We DO!

The Cheapfunwines gang had a blast at our first monthly wine tasting. Aside from getting a bit tipsy, we all learned a bit more about why we love Cabernet Sauvignon.

Our group, which included a trained chef, a photographer, a computer programmer, a pharmacist, my retired neighbor and a handful of semi-boozy journalists, tasted 10 Cabernet Sauvignons from around the world that cost under $20.

We are no experts, just wine lovers on a mission to evolve our palates. Marlo had just went to a huge Zinfandel tasting here in San Francisco the day before my soiree so she was right up there with the descriptions.

Before we tasted we hid the labels on all 10. (This is good to do because I recall reading somewhere that women tend to buy more bottles of wines with blue labels...and people also tend to have preconceived notions about what a wine is supposed to taste like if it's a certain brand.) Thankfully, there weren't a lot of household names among the wines people brought. No Bogle, Ravenswood or Rodney Strongs among the pack, thank you.

After we finished trying all 10 bottles (eek!) some of us went back and tried the ones we were unsure of again. We found a few had opened up and improved. Others were still nice.

Miraculously, we only hated one bottle. I am embarrassed to admit it but this was my bottle :) recommended by the weekend sales guy at Plumpjack, a local wine shop here in San Francisco. He recommended the Marquis Philips, a 2004 South Eastern Australian Cab. He said it was a big juicy wine. He should have said big and boozy wine. (But the Marquis is in no way as bad as the crappy Yellowtail)
No one really loved the Marquis.

My friend Aimee, who works for a Berkeley wine shop and is partial to French wines, led the tastings. I am still learning about wine, so stick with me if I do not use perfect descriptions or occasionally mess up my wine terminology. The idea behind this blog is to help us all learn more about wine together. So wine snobs, be gone. You might not find much of use here.

Here is what else we tasted and a list of why we liked it. I’ve also included the price, which is what we paid for the bottle.

1) 2003 J. Lohr, Paso Robles, CA $17.
I liked this wine. A lot of people liked this wine. I found it nicely balanced, if a bit acidic. Some cherry. “On the sweeter side with a dry finish,’ Alorie wrote. ”Peppery nose and on the acidic side,” according to Marlo. Several folks thought this wine was nicer once it opened up. John found strong tannin and a sour/bitter aftertaste.

2) 2002 Sagelands Columbia Valley, $14.99
This is a mellow, quite drinkable wine with some vanilla and light bright berry, cherry in the mouth. “Less fruity on the tongue. Leathery?” John wrote. John thought this wine was balanced and opened up nicely. “Nice fruit and oak,” Marlo said. “Smooth.”

3) 2003 Chalone Vineyard, Monterey $16.99
“Very light nose,” wrote John. "A little bing cherry fades quickly." Alorie tasted vanilla and berries and found this wine spicy. “Not my favorite.” "Big fruit and acid, but with some spice," wrote Marlo.

4) 2004 Marquis Philips, South Eastern Australia, $14.99
The label on this wine, a kangaroo sporting an eagle’s head, cracks me up. Otherwise, I found this wine sharp and acidic with a boozy alcohol taste that blew away any balance it may have had to start. Aimee found it boozy. “Slightly bitter,” Andrea wrote. “Unremarkable,” wrote Marlo. “Nice, long finish,” Cristof wrote, although he found it to be a bit too strong on the alcohol.

5) 2004 Gato Negro, Chile $8.99
Wahoo for this wine, which came out on top with our group. In some circles this wine is known as the Two Buck Chuck of Chile. I'd say drinking this nice wine is a hell of a lot better than slugging down Two Buck Chuck, the equivalent of sucking on a tire iron. It was a lot of fun trying to describe what we tasted in this wine. I found it barnyard earthy. (Mooooo!) Stefanie called it "Spicey poop in the earth." YUCK. The winemakers say it's got blackberry jam aromas against a spicy and minty background. Soft tannins and red fruit. “Vegetative nose,” Marlo wrote. “Pepper mustard,” added Stefanie. “Balanced and pretty juicy,” according to Aimee. “Definitely a little poo-ey," added John.

Stay tuned for our next five wines in a later post.

February 18, 2006

Who loves Cabernet Sauvignon? We DO!

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