Wine Blogging Wednesday 7

Today's show is a special edition for Wine Blogging Wednesday #7 whose theme is, "Obscure Red Grape Varieties". Thanks to Andrew Barrow of Spittoon for inviting me to participate as the first podcaster to join the fun of WBW!

I had to stoop down quite a bit at some wine stores here in Minneapolis as I looked for varietals I had never heard of, let alone tried. I ended up picking 4 wines for tasting, all for $8 USD or less. Unfortunately, one of the wines was disqualified as it was a blend of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvugnon and Merlot; my full tasting notes of that wine are posted here.

What was great about this theme was it forced me to look for things I normally pass by at the wine store and I would have otherwise never found any of these interesting wines:

- Castellani, Negroamaro, Puglia, Italy 2003 ($6) - Deep garnet, dusty berry nose, simple, peppery berry flavors somewhat like Dolchetto, good rustic finish with moderate tannins, nice pizza or pasta wine, very good value, plastic cork!

Score: 8/10

- Castellani, Nero d’Avola, Sicilia, Italy 2003 ($7) - Garnet, pleasant fresh berry nose, deep, simple black cherry flavors, no tannins to speak of, good “quaffable” drinking now, another plastic cork!

Score: 7/10

- Cortello, Estremadura, Portugal 2001 ($8) - Made from native grape Castelao (a.k.a. Periquita) and Argonez grapes; deepest garnet, lean berry nose, round plum flavors and silky mouth-feel, finishes a little bitter and funky but overall quite good.

Score: 7.5/10

Best of tasting and best value goes to Castellani Negroamaro 2003. I will be looking for this variety from other producers in the future to share on Winecast.

Thanks once again to Andrew from Spittoon for the invitation; I am looking forward to WBW #8!