2005 Nessa Albariño, Spain. This
Albariño is from
the lovely region of Rias Baixas in Galicia
on the Western coast of Spain. While the
region produces
reds and rosés, it is with the highly
aromatic, low-yielding Albariño that it truly
achieves success. The juice for Nessa is
stainless-steel fermented and ages on its
lees for several weeks. Pale gold and just
slightly effervescent, it has a very aromatic
nose (as one expects from Albariño) filled
with apples and limeaid. On the palate, on
the palate you get a blast of lime zest and
spice blend to make your mouth water. This
wine begs for fresh seafood. ($12.99)
2003 Taltarni Three Monks
Cabernet/Merlot, Australia. Three Monks
is one of
Taltarni's newest additions to the portfolio
and has already become a crowd favorite in
just a short time at the shop. Three Monks is
often spotted in top city wine shops,
including NYC's Morells.
Sourced from
cool climate regions,
Cabernet Sauvignon provides layers of rich
cassis and roast chocolate flavors while the
balance of Merlot adds weight from the
luscious concentration of plum and red cherry
fruits. Such a beautifully crafted wine. ($18.99)
2004 Falesco La Carraia Sangiovese, Italy.
Falesco is one of Italy's premiere wine
making families, and a taste of any of its
wines will reveal why. Falesco, owned by
brothers Riccardo and Renzo Cotarella, was
established in Montefiascone in 1979 with the
aim of recovering historical varieties,
starting experimentation and identifying
viticultural areas which might produce high
quality wines. This Sangiovese is a brilliant
ruby-red in color with loads of berry fruit
on the nose. The sweet cherry and red currant
fruit, the light notes of oak spice, and the
balanced palate add up to much pure drinking
pleasure. ($10.99)
2005 La Fortuna Pinot Noir, Chile.
La Fortuna is a great value brand that
produces organically grown wines. Its Pinot
Noir is a soft, elegant, selection at a nice
price. Reminiscent of an old-world, style French
Burgundy (aka Pinot Noir), it has elegant
strawberry aromas and flavors with a touch of
tea leaf. The mouth feel is velvety and it
offers a dry finish. This is a nice red
selection for the upcoming warmer weather.
($10.49)
2005 Two Hands Bella's Garden Shiraz,
Australia.
Wow, this is an intense, deep, rich wine that
shows great power. Its color is a deep purple
red, almost black, with a nose of
blackberries, plums and nutmeg spice. On the
palate, the flavors of plums and blackberries
are also detected, as well as sweet vanilla
spice, likely from its French oak aging.
This is a special wine, making a lovely gift
for a good friend or simply yourself. This
should age well for 10-15 years. For Wine
Spectator followers it recently scored a
95. ($73.99)
