Yellowtail Shiraz Grenache 2010 Southeastern Australia Blueberry flavors come first with this wine, but they melt away into something that reminds me of the fig butter I just picked up from Trader Joe’s. But this wine is bitterer than the fig butter and pretty dry. There’s a heat to it, and I’d call it medium
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6th Sense Syrah 2005 Lodi, CA Lodi does wine? Who knew? Not this uncultured gourmet, apparently. Also, the back of the bottle has a somewhat gruesome poem about being buried in a barrel of wine. I think it’s meant to be metaphorical, but I don’t really want to imagine someone in the vat this came
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McWilliams Hanwood Estates Shiraz 2008 Southeastern Australia Curry leaves and pepper come forward in the nose. The taste is interesting: cherry, not fully ripe, is foremost on the palate, but with a spicy tone that actually reminds me a lot of Trader Joe’s Cherry Cider. I can down a jug of that beverage in no
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Jujube’s Semler Wine Dinner There are few things I like more than wine dinners at Jujube. For $42 per person with four courses and four glasses of wine, they really aren’t a bad deal at all. Tuesday night, I went to one with my husband and a pair of foodie friends that was hosted by
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HRM Rex Goliath Shiraz Woodbridge, CA This wine has a lot of pepper on the nose, with some rhubarb and caramel coming through also. On drinking, my mouth fills with that pepper, which is not something I ever mind. It is tart. Raspberry is the primary fruit, but there’s some rhubarb, too. It’s a thick,
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Rootstock Syrah 2007 North Coast, CA Smell: Oak, touch of cinnamon, dash of plum. Taste: A well-rounded wine with minimal fruit, though there is that bit of plum. There’s also a mellow presence of spices with cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and some light vanilla. This wine is fine and dandy but nothing special.

Wine: Trader Joe’s Reserve Syrah 2006 Region:  Mendocino County, California I’ve recently become suspicious of wines labeled reserve or vintner’s selection because I haven’t found that I like them any more than ones without a fancy classification in their name.  So it was with trepidation that I tried this Trader Joe’s wine, even more so
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Wine: Alice White Shiraz 2006 Region: Southeastern Australia Nose: Candied cherry and chocolates. Taste: Bright, ripe cherries and semisweet chocolate, which surprises me as a lot of the wines I’ve tried lately have had noses that vastly diverge from their tastes. This is a medium-bodied wine, mildly tannic, and overly pleasant. It’s easy to enjoy
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This is my 50th Red Wine Review! That means I can take the day off, right? No, not that celebratory a cause? Aw, shucks. Without further adieu . . . Wine: Falcon Ridge Syrah 2006 Region: Central Coast, CA There is some sort of fruit trying to wave at my nose hairs in this wine.
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Wine: Black Swan Shiraz Cabernet 2008 Region: Southeastern Australia This wine’s nose is like a warmed mulberry potpourri. It tastes of bright blackberries that have been spiced with cardamom and cinnamon.  Other than the slight kick at the end, I thought it was intriguing, enjoyable, and paired very well with monterey jack. Reviewed 8.17.09.