Charles Shaw Shiraz 2007

Vineyard: Charles Shaw
Location: Napa, California
Type: Shiraz
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol Content: 13.5%

Purchased: 12/10/08 - Trader Joe's, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $1.99
Rating: 3.25/10

Now I know that Charles Shaw makes good wine. I've had some. I know they make it cheap. I've purchased plenty. This Shiraz, however, (and the Valdiguie from a few days ago) just isn't cutting it.

It smells - bad. I mean, bad. Like shit. Somehow it doesn't taste like shit - but I had to figure that out after convincing myself to drink it after I had already decided that it smells like shit. I don't usually like to do that.

Don't worry, loyal readers -- I will find the 'Two Buck Chuck' that is both cheap AND tasty. Please, however, avoid the Shiraz. Leave that up to the Aussies.

Black Opal Shiraz 2006

Vineyard: Black Opal
Location: South Eastern Australia
Type: Shiraz
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol Content: 13.5%

Purchased: 12/15/08 - BevMo, San Francisco, CA
Cost: $4.99
Rating: 4.75/10

Not a very good wine. It tastes a little off. I blame it on the screw top.

I don't know why a winery would decide that they should use a screw top instead of a cork. I'm sure there is someone out there who says that using a cork somehow preserves flavor. The flavor of this wine, however, does not need any saving. In fact, if I were in charge of Black Opal, I'd welcome people blaming the wine tasting bad on the cork rather than blaming the taste on the actual wine.

Charles Shaw Valdiguie 2008

Vineyard: Charles Shaw
Location: Napa, California
Type: Valdiguie
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol Content: 12.5%

Purchased: 12/10/08 - Trader Joe's, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $1.99
Rating: 3.25

I bet they tricked a whole lot of people into buying this one. Don't! 2 Buck Chuck is definitely known for putting out some pretty good wines for unbeatable prices, but this one is absolutely not worth the $2 that it costs. It smells like a public restroom at first, and after half a bottle is smells like a clean public restroom. Fortunately, it does taste a little better than that, but not much. For some reason I think of blueberries...

El Torito Tempranillo 2007

Vineyard: El Torito
Location: Castilla, Spain
Type: Tempranillo
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol Content: 13.5%

Purchased: 12/4/08 - Cost Plus World Market, Mountain View, CA
Cost: $4.99
Rating: 5.5

I was rather disappointed with this one. It was really weak, kinda watery. Nothing about is was bad, just disappointing. 

I'd recommend it for old ladies and young children. Not that young kids should be drinking, of course. Maybe it would be better if you ate it with something even more bland, like rice cakes or tofu.

Black Swan Merlot '06 '07

Vineyard: Black Swan
Location: South Eastern Australia
Type: Merlot
Vintage: 2006 and 2007
Alcohol Content: 13.5%

Purchased: 11/30/08 - BevMo, San Francisco, CA
Cost: $4.99
Rating: '06: 7.66/10, '07: 6.66

Double header Sunday! I wanted to get a sense of whether or not there was any real difference if the only difference is the year. Turns out, there is. I'm assuming that the '06 has just been sitting on the shelf an extra year, rather than being aged in a cask for the extra time - but I have no real way of knowing that. I also have no way of knowing whether the '06 would have tasted different last year... these, the unanswerable questions of wine drinking.

What I do know, however, is that the good people of Black Swan probably would have done better focusing on the grapes rather than worrying about their label. Wine 2.0. They should also try to get their money back from whoever they paid to do the write up on the back of the bottle: "...with a velvet finish like a jazz solo 'round midnight." Really? You guys really thought that sounded good? Who knows, maybe it does in Australia.

Regardless, they were both actually pretty tasty. The 07 tasted a bit more acidic and alcoholic, the 06 a bit smoother, creamier. If you can find them both, it was fun drinking both and trying to figure out the difference. You also get to drink twice as much!

Pinot Evil Pinot Noir 2007

Vineyard: Pinot Evil
Location: Pays de l'Ile de Beauté, France
Type: Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol Content: 12.5%

Purchased: 12/4/08 - Cost Plus World Market, Mountain View, CA
Cost: $4.99
Rating: 5.0/10

Ahhh, Le French tried to be le funny with the name. I guess I'd try to come up with a funny name too if my wine were boring. Not bad.... just not good -- boring. At first it tasted a little watery, even.

Bottles pretty cool though. And it's from France. The fact that it comes from a furniture-like store rather than a grocery store means that its less likely that other people will know about it. Yup, that's right - that means it's very likely to be the most impressive thing you can get for the least amount of money. The fact that the taste isn't offensive is an added bonus as well.

Searidge Syrah 2006

Vineyard: Searidge
Location: Napa, CA
Type: Syrah
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol Content: 12.5%

Purchased: 12/2/08 - SafeWay, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $2.50
Rating: 6.25/10

This wine is actually pretty good, and the price is definitely right. The flavor is pretty mellow - sweet and fruity. I'd describe the small and aftertaste in the same way. I was a little sad when I went for another glass and there wasn't any left. I would have opened another if I had one sitting around. For $2.50, you can afford to have a couple of these laying around.