2005 Perrin and Fils Chateauneuf du Pape Les Sinards

Chateauneuf du pape- don't ask me to pronounce it- is a region in the Southern Rhone of France known for its red wines. The region usually blends grenache and syrah along with up to 11 other grape varieties, many of which are unrecognizable to the average folk. Unfortunately for cheapskates like myself, the average price per bottle has risen dramatically over the years. For this, we have Robert Parker to blame. While Burgundy and Bordeaux have historically always been well known throughout the wine world, chateauneuf du pape was France's little secret. With Parker's commercial success, he quickly drove prices to fall more in line with the reviews he transcribed.
As it stands today, there are other wine appellations within the Rhone that are probably the "next chateauneuf du pape" including Cornas and Vaqueryas, which are increasingly improving their quality and provide much better value. They do, however, lack the unique bottle of a chateauneuf. For those unfamiliar with what I am speaking of, the bottle has a mitre, or papal regalia, on the front of the bottle, giving it a very important look. Good thing the wine is worthy.

As for this particular bottle, it was the second time I had it and it wasn't as good as the first tasting. It was much too reserved and didn't have the depth I recalled. This is not a fruity wine, nor should it be, and it carries more of a minerally texture, along the lines of many French wines. I usually like that but this was lacking too much in the flavor department.
Speaking of Parker, he gave it a 91, while Wine Spectator gave it a 92. I'd go even lower and settle on a 90. The last time I had it, I believe I gave it a 93. Go figure. Just goes to show....
Regardless, if you do find yourself buying a 2005 chateauneuf, you should probably give it a little bit more time (check out the clip for one of my favorite songs of all time).

2006 Catena Alta Chardonnay

Butter and spice might be in the recipe for egg nog this time of year but it is also the key for this wine. With grapes grown over 5,000 feet above sea level, this wine is grown at an altitude that is abnormally high. While growers are attempting to repeat this feat in the Rockies, it has not happened yet. If it does, God knows that there is plenty of land available in Colorado and Utah. Think value.

This wine is very smooth and round. It's full bodied without being too oaky, nutty or buttery; in other words, it has balance.

This is an interesting test of the reviewers. Wine Advocate rated this wine a 93 and claimed that the wine had a level of complexity for a Burgundy that would cost 2 to 3 times this wine's $25.00 retail tag. Wine Spectator gave it a 90 and Stephen Tanzer of IWC gave it a 91. Each reviewer pointed out different characteristics of the wine, which goes to show that everyone's palate is different; even the experts! While there may be some commonality among the reviewers, ie in this case the rich, full bodied nature of the wine, there are many differences "picked up" by the experts. I think this wine exhibits a lot of vanilla and butter and some spice but I did not notice the baked apple, tropical fruits and floral notes. To be honest with you, I'm not sure I'd want a wine that was buttery, spicy, tropically, appley, peachy and floral. That might be a little too complex, wouldn't you agree?
At any rate, I'd give the wine a 91 and you'd probably give it a higher score if you really enjoy round, rich chardonnays. This adds to my theory that Wine Advocate tends to rate rich, round, strong flavored wines higher scores than do their competitors, especially Wine Spectator, who tend to place more emphasis on balance and soft, nuanced flavors. I'm not saying either is right or wrong, but knowing this going into assessing the reviewers is helpful as you use these ratings to economically select wines.

2006 Monte Antico Toscana

Sometimes wine takes a few chews before you can enjoy it. Other times, you enjoy a wine on the first sip. Personally, the former is a lot more common than the latter as was the case for me with this wine. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Some of my favorite bands also required more than one listen before I "got it". One of those bands was Modest Mouse. Once I "got it", I never looked back.

The Monte Antico Toscana is a blend of 75% sangiovese, 15% cabernet sauvignon and 10% merlot. A wine like this is now called a "super tuscan". This wine is $10.00/bottle so I would call it the "super-priced tuscan." It combines the dark flavors of sangiovese with the rounded fruit and tannins of merlot and cabernet sauvignon and does it beautifully.

I give this wine a 91 and would label it *********CASE WORTHY*********CASE WORTHY*********CASE WORTHY******************