The Carmenet (pronounced Car-mah-nay) brand has been around for a while, but just recently became part of the Bronco Wine Company portfolio. Perhaps you haven’t heard of the Bronco Wine Company, but you’ve probably heard of some of their wines. They are best known for producing Charles Shaw wines, known by many as “Two Buck Chuck” at Trader Joe’s, but they have over 50 brands in their portfolio. They are one of the largest wine companies in the US. The company is owned by the Franzia Family but ironically, the Franzia wine brand is not owned by Bronco.
From what I know of him, CEO Fred Franzia is one of the most interesting people in the wine business. There was a great article about Franzia in Inc. Magazine a couple years ago. He is definitely a savvy businessman and I respect him for that. I also admire his individualism, as I’ve been known to be an independent thinker myself. To many, he’s a controversial figure. He seems to be a straight shooter who doesn’t hold back his opinions no matter what you think. One of those opinions is that most wine producers charge too much. Now that’s music to my ears.
While there are aspects about Fred Franzia and the Bronco Wine Company that earn my admiration, I’d be lying if I said I was a full-fledged fan. Although I’m on a quest for inexpensive wine, I am skeptical that you can create good wine that is that cheap. I’ve tried the Two Buck Chuck and it hasn’t made my “favorites” list.
Not all of the wine that Bronco produces is $2-3, in fact this Carmenet Merlot sells for around $11. Nonetheless, I had my fair share of skepticism before I tasted this wine, but I was pleasantly surprised.
Plum, blueberry and black pepper make a nice bouquet on the nose of this wine. It lacks some intensity and there could be a touch more complexity, but it is enjoyable. The palate is filled with fresh fruit flavors, including plum, blueberry and blackberry. There’s a green apple twist that hits the mid-palate and lingers into the surprisingly long finish. Green apple is not a flavor I expect to find in a Merlot, but at the same time it didn’t seem out of place. The fruit qualities are quite enjoyable in this wine. Silky tannins also give this Merlot a satisfying mouth feel.
I like this Merlot a lot.
Wine: Carmenet Vintner’s Collection
Variety: Merlot
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 12.97%
Rating: 86
Price: $11.00
The first kosher wine we reviewed last week was a Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon from Golan Heights Winery and today we’re trying another wine from the same producer. This time it’s a Chardonnay produced with grapes from the northern Golan Heights.
To me, this is a well made Chardonnay. This has some of the butter and oak qualities for which Chardonnay is known. Some folks like that characteristic about Chardonnay and some don’t like Chardonnay because of it. But with this wine I would say that it’s there, but not overdone.
The color is golden and brilliant. It has a good complexity on the nose with pear, lime, mineral, straw and soft oak aromas. The palate brings a nice balance of crisp acidity and creamy butter. The flavors are a combination of yellow delicious apple, pear, lime and mineral. The finish is lingering and pleasant.
This is a great choice for a Passover wine, and it’s reasonably priced.
Wine: Yarden Galilee
Variety: Chardonnay
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 89
Price: $16.00
I was intrigued when I saw a kosher wine from Chile on the shelf, so I had to give this one a try. I’ve reviewed a number of Chilean wines recently and have been generally pleased with what I’ve gotten, so I was really curious how this one would stack up.
In doing some digging, I didn’t find any background information on the vineyards where this was sourced. But I did see a couple places selling it that touted a score of 87 from Wine Enthusiast magazine. It should be noted that the 87 rating was for the 2000 vintage… the places selling it did not note that fact and were selling the 2007 vintage.
This is not as big as many other Chilean Cabernet Sauvignons I’ve had and it’s definitely not as fruit-forward. The nose has reasonable intensity, but not a lot of complexity. It’s a rather smoky nose with a blackberry and a hint of clove. The palate is full but, as I mentioned, it is not fruit forward. Sour cherry is the dominant characteristic on the palate and there’s a bitter quality mid-palate. In fact, I found the bitterness to be objectionable. The tannins are soft and the finish is OK.
Wine: Alfasi Reserve
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 77
Price: $11.99
Today we are trying another kosher wine, this one from Barkan. The roots of the Barkan winery go back more than a century, but it was born into it’s current name and ownership in 1990. The winery overlooks a 120 hectare vineyard at Kibbutz Hulda in Israel and has capacity for 12 million liters of wine… that’s a lot of juice!
Like many wine producers, Barkan releases a number of different line of wine at different price points and the “Classic” line is one of their entry level wines in terms of pricing. This bottle was just $12.
The color is relatively light for a Cabernet Sauvignon, but the nose has fairly good intensity. It has a pleasant and somewhat spicy nose, with aromas of plum, cherry, coffee and leather. The palate is also pleasant, although rather thin. The flavors are good with mostly plum and cherry, although it’s fairly one dimensional. The acid level is adequate and the tannins are soft, but it doesn’t have a very filling mouth feel.
There is nothing unpleasant about this wine, however it’s simple and not as majestic as you would expect from a Cabernet Sauvignon.
Wine: Barkan Classic
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 13.0%
Rating: 81
Price: $11.99
With Passover just around the corner, I wanted to post a few reviews of kosher wines over the next week or so. The first kosher wine I’m reviewing comes from the Golan Heights in the Galilee appellation in Israel.
Yarden Mount Hermon Red is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot. It’s produced by the Golan Heights Winery in—you guessed it—the Golan Heights. When I think of Israel, I think hot… too hot for producing wine. I admit that I haven’t been there and don’t know much about the climatology of the region. But the Golan (as it’s called for short) is the coldest region in Israel and is has been the source of some very good wine.
The appearance of the Mount Hermon Red is relatively light in color. Given the grapes varieties used in this blend I was expecting a somewhat deeper color, but the proof is in the tasting. It has an earthy, herbal characteristic to the nose. Dusty sage and tarragon mingle with plum and raspberry. The palate is soft and fruity with plenty of plum and cherry flavors. The finish is relatively long and brings the herbal characteristics from the nose into the back of the palate. Overall, it’s an interesting, medium-bodied wine that will pair very well with foods.
Wine: Yarden Mount Hermon Red
Variety: Red Blend
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 13.9%
Rating: 85
Price: $11.00
The Shiraz challenge is over (for now) leaving us with seven picks that won’t break the bank. We ended up trying wines from several different regions for this showdown, including France, Chile, Australia and the US. Shiraz is actually a challenging variety to find one that is both inexpensive and exceptional, but we did find a number that are pretty good.
The top pick goes to the Marquis Philips Shiraz from South Eastern Australia. This is a very tasty Shiraz, and it’s their entry-level version (Marquis Philips has a few pricier lines of Shiraz available too). In addition to having sumptuous fruit, this Shiraz also had a very nice chocolate characteristic in both the nose and palate.
The St. Hallet Faith, from the Barossa region in Australia, and the McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate, from South Eastern Australia, both tied for the second best pick. This gives the top three picks to Australia, although Chile isn’t far behind with the Tamaya Syrah.
Here is the full line-up of scores.
|
Brand
|
Year
|
Rating
|
Price
|
| Marquis Philips |
2006
|
88
|
$12.98
|
| St. Hallett – Faith |
2005
|
86
|
$15.99
|
| McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate |
2006
|
86
|
$12.00
|
| Tamaya |
2006
|
85
|
$14.99
|
| Sebeka |
2006
|
84
|
$10.00
|
| Barefoot |
n/a
|
83
|
$7.99
|
| Hob Nob |
2006
|
82
|
$9.99
|
McWilliam’s Wines has a long heritage as a family-run winery in Australia since 1877. They tout themselves as “Australia’s most awarded winery,” and they certainly have earned a number of awards over the years.
McWilliam’s has vineyards in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales—the latter being the area where the grapes for this Shiraz were harvested. While there are a couple different lines of wine available under the McWilliam’s name, the Hanwood Estate is their entry-level wine in terms of price.
The nose on this wine is beautiful. It has a nice nutmeg nuance layered on top of blackberry, cherry, toasted oak and black pepper. The palate is equally enjoyable. It starts out with a lively spice feature which I would call a combination of black pepper and nutmeg. Raspberry and blackberry flavors are the next thing you notice, and I would say that the fruit is full, but not jammy. Some cocoa flavors come to life in the mid-palate and the nutmeg returns on the finish, which is relatively long.
They used both French and American oak barrels in the production of this wine, as well as oak staves. I know some purists scoff at the idea of using staves, but if good wine can be produced using oak staves and it saves a few bucks on the price of the wine then I have no problems with it.
I’m usually one to avoid Australian Shiraz in this price range due to the fact that it’s often filled with overtly jammy fruit, a whack of spice and nothing else. But this wine is quite nice, especially for the price.
Wine: McWIlliam’s Hanwood Estate
Variety: Shiraz
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 86
Price: $12.00
Sebeka is still relatively new to the American wine market, as it first appeared here in 2007. It’s produced in the Swartland Winery in South Africa, which dates back to 1948, and distributed in the US by E.J. Gallo. You can’t miss this wine on the shelf, as it stands out with a bright yellow label showing a cheetah running. Sebeka is actually named after a cheetah that was raised by wildlife conservationist Lente Roode, who founded the Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre to help preserve endangered species.
I haven’t had the opportunity to sample many wines from South Africa, so I was curious to see how this compared to Shiraz from other regions. My first impression upon pouring this was that the color was a little light for a Shiraz, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, and so I let the tasting be the judge.
Upon first opening this I was underwhelmed, but after decanting and letting it aerate for about an hour it came to life. Therefore, this is a wine that I do recommend decanting. The nose has a good balance of fruit and earthy aromas, with blackberry, cherry, leather, and smoke.
The palate is crisp and vibrant with bright cherry flavors. This wine is not as jammy and overpowering as a lot of Shiraz I’ve had, which makes it a little more approachable than some others. It is also a little bit on the acidic side, which can work well for pairing with certain foods. I would think this would go quite well with a yellow fin tuna steak.
Wine: Sebeka
Variety: Shiraz
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 84
Price: $10.00
Today is my favorite day of the month, Wine Blogging Wednesday. It’s one day each month when wine bloggers around the world all blog about a common theme. Today the official theme is North Versus South, which is intended to be a theme that gives bloggers some latitude with how they bring it to life. My version on this theme is Chile Versus California. You may recall the Wine Blogging Wednesday I hosted a few months ago highlighting affordable red wines from Chile. Speaking of hosts, I should mention that Rémy at The Wine Case is the host of this month’s Wine Blogging Wednesday and will be posting a summary of all the blogs that participate.
I have an affinity for Chilean wines and Californian wines, so I found the idea of this head to head challenge quite interesting. And the results surprised me. In short, Chile kicked California’s bootie in many ways… but not every way.
The challenge included both red and white wines. One Sauvignon Blanc from Lake County, California versus one from Casablanca Valley in Chile; and two Merlots from Alexander Valley, California versus two from Colchagua Valley, Chile.
The tasting for this challenge was done blind and included a tasting panel to get reactions from average consumers—who almost unanimously preferred the Chilean wines. I also challenged everyone to blindly pick which they thought were Californian versus Chilean and most participants—myself included—got this wrong with the Merlot. The Chilean Merlot was big, fruit-forward and very tasty and I was sure that it was characteristic of Alexandar Valley Merlot, but I was wrong.
While the the Chilean Merlots had somewhat of a “shock and awe” effect with how big and juicy they are, at least one from California I found to be very good and more elegant than the Chilean challengers—although definitely not as powerful.
Here are the results. While I’ve included a couple comments from other tasters, these reflect my tasting notes and ratings.
Hess Lake County Sauvignon Blanc (California)
The nose is a classic Sauvignon Blanc with green pepper and loads of tropical fruit aromas such as pineapple, melon and lime. The palate falls off a bit in terms of fruit, compared to the nose. The palate is mostly citrus and while the acid is definitely noticeable it doesn’t really have the crisp acidity I expect from a SB. It seems like they softened this with malolactic fermentation and I’m wishing that they hadn’t. One taster called it a “Sauvignon Blanc for someone who prefers Chardonnay.”
Wine: Hess
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 84
Price: $9.59
Errazuriz Estate Sauvignon Blanc (Chile)
This is distinctly different from the Hess. The nose is predominantly grassy with a floral/pollen aroma complemented with melon, banana and flinty mineral. Spend some time exploring the bouquet on this wine as it seems to evolve and get much more interesting as it opens up. The palate has much more of the crisp acidity I want from a SB, compared to the Hess. The dominant flavors are citrus and it evolves on your palate into granny smith apple and honeydew melon with a nice long finish.
Wine: Hess
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 88
Price: $15.00
Goode-Ready Alexandar Valley Merlot (California)
The aromas on this Merlot are interesting, but it falls off on the palate. The nose has a rather spicy, red raspberry, plum and cedar aromas. It’s an enjoyable bouquet, but the palate is rather thin. It has mostly plum, pine and very subtle blackberry. There’s not a lot of fruit in this Merlot. The tannins are good, but in general the palate is a little off balance.
Wine: Murphy-Goode, Goode-Ready
Variety: Merlot
Vintage: 2004
Alcohol: 13.5%
Rating: 81
Price: $11.99
Montes Classic Series Merlot (Chile)
There’s nothing subtle about this Merlot, the nose is big, full and fruity. There are mineral, cinnamon, plum and blackberry aromas making an interesting and complex bouquet. The palate is very good, with lots of plum and blackberry. It has great mouth feel, with full flavor and silky tannins. The finish is long and brings some cocoa characteristics.
A friend of mine analogizes Cabernet Sauvignon to a chiseled, muscular guy, and Merlot to a round/rotund guy. This particular Merlot seems to have both the muscles and the fat. It’s a very good Merlot and was a favorite for a few tasters.
Wine: Montes Classic Series
Variety: Merlot
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 88
Price: $12.00
MontGras Reserva Merlot (Chile)
I really need to start taking pictures of these bottles before I get wine all over them.
Smoky smokiness is the first thing I noticed about this wine. Plum and bacon may be the best way to describe the bouquet. There is also some cassis. The palate is full of abundant ripe fruit. It is very well structured. It finishes a little quicker than the Montes, but is still quite good. The tannins are rich, giving this a nice mouth feel also. It’s a very good wine.
Wine: MontGras Reserva Merlot
Variety: Merlot
Vintage: 2007
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 87
Price: $11.99
Alexander Valley Vineyards Merlot (California)
This is a fantastic Merlot. It’s structured and interesting. The nose is very perfumey and brings lots of intensity. It has aromas of clove, violets, dark cherry and raspberry. The palate is full and concentrated, with abundant ripe cherry and raspberry, along with some licorice and black pepper. The tannins are silky smooth and the acid is good. There is a lot of depth and character to this wine and it will definitely go down as one of my favorites.
It’s not a big as either of the Chilean wines, but I found it to be more elegant. While the Chilean wine had a lot more fruit, this one features more floral and herbal tones that make it interesting—not just big.
Wine: Alexander Valley Vineyards
Variety: Merlot
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol: 14%
Rating: 89
Price: $15.99
The St. Hallett winery resides in the Barossa region in Australia and focuses on producing wines from this region. They are best known for their Shiraz, of which they release a few different lines. The Faith Shiraz is their most affordable Shiraz—other than a Shiraz Grenache blend they offer.
The winery was established in 1944 and was named after an early surveyor of Southern Australia. In 2004, St. Hallett was named “Winery of the Year” by Wine and Spirits magazine.
Faith is a big, fruit-filled Shiraz. If you’re a fan of fruit-forward Shiraz, you may like this one. The nose is filled with jammy plum, blackberry and blueberry. A little licorice, cocoa and black pepper to add complexity to the bouquet. The palate is jammy, with loads of blueberry, blackberry and black cherry. The finish continues the fruit theme, but is a little short. All told, this is a big and enjoyable wine.
Wine: St. Hallett Faith
Variety: Shiraz
Vintage: 2005
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 86
Price: $15.99
Find St. Hallett Faith with Snooth
Prev