Pennywise - Merlot

Price: $12
Region: Napa
Year: 2009

As is usually the case, I have a nice little backlog of wines to review. This is my attempt to get through a few of them by writing more then one every other week. I think two a week would be a good clip and get me caught up relatively soon. On another note, someone (not to be named) keeps telling me I use the word "nice" way too much in my reviews. Therefore, I'm banning the word until further notice. This particular bottle of wine was sitting on the counter one Friday night when I returned from work with a bags of hamburgers and fries from 5 Guys. There was actually a couple of other bottles to choose from that night, but this just seem to be the best fit.

At first glance, there was nothing out of the ordinary about this wine. It wasn't overly rich or dark in color, but was kind of middle of the road. I would say a typical looking merlot. I will say as I gave the glass a swirl, and held it up for a sniff, it was a little bit light for my liking. It was OK, and definitely not bad, but again, nothing special. After a couple of bites of my burger, I took a sip, and found the wine had pretty good balance, and a generally pleasant upfront taste, but just lacked something when it came to the finish. Overall it was not a bad wine, but ended up being a little tart on the back of the tongue. Given it wasn't and "under $10" bottle of wine, although I would assume some could find it at a better price then I did, I would just have to say there are better values out there. (and I don't think I used the word nice)

Rating: 2.75 corks (Doesn't stand out)

Vina Zaco - Tempranillo

Price: $15
Region: Spain
Year: 2007

It is another one of those weeks where I had a review all set to sit down and write, and then I decided to open a bottle of wine for dinner tonight, so I figured it was better to review what was freshest in my mind (and on my palette). This is a bottle we had actually bought for last weekend (Labor Day '11), but with baseball tournaments, and just general chaos, it never got opened. So, after a short week at work, I decided to start the weekend early (not sure how that adds up, but work for me). We were having meatball sandwiches for dinner, and now a bottle of Tempranillo as well.

It was kind of hectic when I got home, so I didn't have as much time as I usually do to sit down and take good notes. As I sit here though with my 2nd glass, this wine has a generally pleasant appearance, that is a bit light, but expected for this grape. it is the kind of wine you can just barely see through when you give it a swirl. On top of that, it has a very nice aroma. It just reminds me a little of fresh cut flowers when I hold it up to my nose to smell. When it comes to the taste, it start off very nice, and stays consistent on the tongue. When I usually use the word 'acidity' to describe a wine, I tend to use it in a negative way, but not here. The one thing that comes to mind is this wine has a nice balance of acidity. It isn't a big bold red, but it is a wine I could enjoy on a regular occasion. I was just label it a smooth, easy drinking wine that is easy to enjoy.


Rating: 3.75 corks (Very enjoyable)