This month's Wine Blogging Wednesday is hosted by Andrew over at Spittoon. He picked a really neat theme, "Obscure Red Varietals", which prompted me to buy two wines.
WINE #1:
Wine: Apaltagua
Vintage: 2002
Varietal: 100% Carmenere
Appellation: Colchagua Valley
Price: $10
The Nose:
Overwhelmingly of smoked paprika. Beneath that (and it takes some work to get there, IMHO) there is brambles & blackberry. Imagine the smell of you hands after picking blackberries in August.
The Eyes:
Deep, dark violet, but a bit thin around the edges.
The Palate:
Again, the smoked pepper is fairly overwhelming. However, there is a long finish of ollalieberries (not quite as fragrant and juicy-sweet as blackberries). Still, this wine is pretty green.
Overall Impression:
It's hard not to like this wine - there is something about it that makes you want to play, swirl, sniff, taste and then sniff some more. But that said, it's overly green. And there are plenty of other better representations of Carmenere out there.
If this wine were a person, it would be...
The loud office manager with smoker's voice who has led such a fascinating life that you end up asking another question when all you really want to do is walk away.
WINE #2
Wine: Paul Lehrner Claus
Vintage: 2003
Varietal: 85% Zweigelt, 15% Blaufrankisch
Appellation: Mittelburgenland
Price: $18
The Nose:
Bright cherry, a bit of petrol and, don't laugh... coconut. Seriously. C smelled it too.
The Eyes:
Deep blackberry color. Light legs.
The Palate:
The first impression here is of the acidity. There is fruit to back it up, but it's not particularly complex. Despite its relatively low 13.5% alcohol, it feels hot. Nice, medium-length finish.
Overall Impression:
This wine has a lot of "integrity" - it's well made, well-balanced and fairly easy to drink. Unfortunately, it's just not that interesting. I wouldn't buy it again, especially at $18.
If this wine were a person, it would be...
The mousy doormat-type colleague whose work is faultless but you can't stand to be in the same room with.
