2012 Mockingbird Hill ZINFANDEL Reserve (Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, California)

This wine is very young and, at present, needs a lot of time to breathe.  The first night I thought it was going to be mediocre, since it showed zero fruit and seemed to display nothing but vaguely oaky scents and alcohol.  Then I put it under a Vacu-Vin closure for two full nights and forgot about it.  I came back to it on the third day, and, in an Easter season miracle, it rose from the dead (i.e., it was a different wine altogether).  These notes are from day three.

Very dark, youthful-looking ruby.  Classic Dry Creek Valley scents of creamy, spicy black raspberry/blackberry fruit, augmented by some stony scents.  Soft, rich, and mouthfilling.  It's ripe, but not overripe, which seems to be a problem with Zins these days.  Loads of pure, ripe, dark berry fruit, and some darkly-minerally notes.  Full-bodied, and possessing loads of youthful but reasonably soft tannins.  Pure, long, juicy finish.  If you want to "pop-n-pour" this one, you're going to need to wait 2-3 years.  If you want to drink it before then, be sure to decant it (through a Vinturi) for several hours ahead of time.  B+(+).  Was $14.99 from WTSO.com, making it a pretty good value.

(Note:  Cabernet label shown, but the Zinfandel label has the same look.)

2012 Domaine de le Potine TOURAINE Blanc (Sauvignon Blanc) (Loire Valley, France)

A zesty, refreshing wine.  Not a lot of depth, but, boy, is it easy to gulp down.

Nose has scents of lemon-lime, green apple, tarragon, and chalk.  Crisp, zingy, and minerally in the mouth.  Light-bodied, with loads of crisp acids, it has a solid beam of lemony, green apply fruit, and a very clean, refreshing finish.  Drink over the next 18 months (particularly on hot summer days and nights).  B/B+.  Was $13.99 from wineaccess.com.  Imported by Fleet Street Wine Merchants.

2012 Michel Chapoutier "Bila-Haut" COTES DU ROUSSILLON VILLAGES (Southern France)

Not as extroverted as the 2011 or 2009 renditions, this blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Carignane is
very nicely proportioned and in nice balance.

Nearly saturated dark violet-ruby.  Subdued nose grudgingly yields scents of smoky, stony minerals and a shrinking note of ripe blackberry.  The mouth is a different story.  It aggressively leaps at and clings to the sides of your mouth with flavors of iodiney, dry blackberry extract and liquified dark stones.  Bone dry, with a significant amount of fine-grained tannin dustily coating the mouth.  This wine has decent acids and a reasonably long finish.  This wine wine likely be a little more aromatically expressive, and maybe a tad softer, in a year.  B.  Was $12.99 at Whole Foods in Arlington.  Imported by HB Wine Merchants, NYC.

2010 Domaine La Bastide "Les Genets" SYRAH Vieilles Vignes (Rhone Valley, France)

A terrific value in a deep-flavored, complex, well-balanced Syrah.  Very linear, and not a hint of flabbiness.

Saturated dark, plasma-like ruby.  Nose features smoke, dark minerals, roasted herbs, meat, and cassis fruit.  Flavorful on entry, with lean, clingy, iodiney/minerally notes overlaying dark, dry blackberry skins.  A fair amount of fine-grained tannin and a surprising level of acids lends structure and liveliness.  Full-bodied, bone dry.  All muscle with not fat.  This went very well with braised lambs shanks and grits.  B+/A-.  Imported by Paul Young Wines, Los Angeles, and purchased from Winex.com for a ridiculously low $9.99.  Get some of this.

PS -- I believe I had this wine in Houston several years ago (a different vintage, obviously, and liked it a lot).

PPS - It occured to me after I posted this review that this wine is basically a "Poor Man's Cornas."

2009 Clos Pegase PINOT NOIR "Mitsuka's Vineyard" (Carneros, Napa, Cal.)

A fragrant, balanced, fairly complex and ready-to-drink PN.  Very good value at the $15.99 I paid.

Medium ruby/garnet with a little tawny at the edge.  Lots going on in the nose:  sappy ripe cherry, a little tartish cranberry/rhubarb note, sweet, earthy baking spices, and some underlying minerality.  Lots of flavor in a smooth, fairly full-bodied (for a PN) frame.  Tart cherry and loads of dark, stony minerality.  The finish, which is very long, molts into a clingy, iodiney, sappy cherry melange.  It's bone dry.  I really like this.  A-/B+.  Got it from WTSO.com.

2009 Baloiro BIERZO Mencia Reserva (Spain)

Totally overblown.  This wine is a caricature of a what the Anti-Parkerites think Parker advocates (he's not as bad as they make him seem, but you get the point).  Overripe, flabby, overoaked, tasting of nowhere.  Tasted blind, I would have no idea where this wine came from.  Given the extract level, this could have been a great wine if they had picked it earlier and skipped the new oak.

Completely saturated, plasma-like black ruby.  The nose is intense, displaying loads of liquid baker's chocolate and overripe blackberry extract.  Underneath there's some nice minerality trying to make its way out, it's struggling, giving it a game try, but it's no use . . . the chocolate is too strong . . . must get air . . . can't go on . . . can't . . . aaarrrggghhh!  [Strangling gasps].  Back to reality.  The texture is nice, not too much tannin despite the heavy-handed extraction.  There is a dense weightiness of sweet blackberry extract and dark chocolate in the mouth.  But the acids are nonexistent, so it just seems heavy and one-dimensional.  C-.  Was $14.99 from WTSO.com.  Imported by Classic Wines, Stamford, CT.

2011 Heinz Eifel "S" RIESLING SPATLESE (Mosel, Germany)

This is an excellent value in a slightly sweet, bright Riesling.

Very pale greenish-gold color.  All sorts of ripe fruit in the nose, with white peach, juicy pear, and ripe apple scents, augmented with a light dried tea note and some extraordinarily high-toned slatey/stoniness.   Fills the mouth with ripe, juicy fruit, yet has enough acids to keep it fresh and interesting.  A very mild bitter tea component comes through at the end.  Light-bodied and round-textured.  Not super complex, but really fun to drink.  B+.  Was $9.99 from Winex.com.  Imported by Winesellers, Ltd. of Niles, IL.

2009 Clos des Menuts ST. EMILION Grand Cru (Bordeaux, France)

This is a style of Bordeaux I like.  Not trying to emulate a New World wine; structured, not overripe, not overoaked.  It needs a few more years, however. It is: Merlot 85%, Cabernet Sauvignon 10%, Cabernet Franc 5%.

Dark black ruby.  Nose closed at first, but on the second night it was showing lovely, subtle dark cherry fruit, and a dark, gravelly earthiness, along with a lifting baked cake note.  Densely-fruited, but in a dry extract -- not jammy -- way, it packs the palate with dark fruit and loads of gravelly minerals.  Full-bodied, with lots of fine-grained tannins.  Still feels a bit tight.  It's very good, if a bit youthful now, but will certainly improve over the next 5 years.  B+ now, probably higher later on.  I'm not sure what this cost or where to get it around the DC area, as a good friend brought this wine to our Super Bowl party as a gift.  Nice gift!  Imported by Monsieur Touton Selections, NY.

Viña Alarba GARNACHA Viñas Viejas (Calatayud, Spain)

I haven't had this wine in 10 years or so.  It used to be a ridiculous bargain.  This one is still cheap, but it's thinner than I remember it being than the vintages I drank in the early 2000s.  Eh.

Dark ruby violet color.  Light intensity nose of raspberry and rock dust, with a teeny note of dried tarragon.  Bone dry in the mouth, with slightly bitter raspberry/cherry fruit, and loads of rocky minerality.  As it lingers it gets more bitter, and some medium-grained tannins show up.  Not very concentrated, and the texture isn't great either.  C.  Was $7.99 from Winex.com.  Imported by the Artisan Collection, NYC.

2011 Tilia BONARDA (Mendoza, Argentina)

This is a terrific value.  Vibrant, loaded with fruit, and balanced.  Buy cases of this to have on-hand for cookouts this upcoming summer (if it ever gets here).

Very dark, blackish ruby.  Fantastically lively nose with loads of bright, ripe raspberries and mixed red berries, along with rock dust.  The attack is intensely fruity, with excellent concentration.  Lots of pure dark and red fruits in the mouth, turning a bit minerally as the finish progresses.  A fair amount of soft tannin gives some structure.  It's not complex, but it's very flavorful and nicely-textured.  B+.  Was $7.99 from Winex.com.  Imported by Winebow, Inc., NYC.

PS, note that Bonarda in Argentina isn't the same thing as Bonarda in Italy.  It's actually the grape called Charbono in this country.

2011 Napa Wine Co. ZINFANDEL (Napa Valley, Cal.)

Organic!  I like that.  And it's a darn good Zin.  Tangy tangy tangy.  I wouldn't have been able to place it as a Napa Valley Zin if it had been served blind.  But it's got lots of character, nice texture, and would be great with Italian or Portuguese meat dishes, or grilled beef.

Very crystalline dark ruby color.  Exuberant nose was earthy and exhibited loads of tangy mixed red berries on the first night.  The earthiness was much more subdued on the second night, but the tangy berries were even tangier, and mixed with some fresh-cut herbs.  Round, vibrant, and dry in the mouth, with very nice concentration of fruit, full body, and pretty good acidity.  It weighs in at 13.9% alc., which is very low for a Zin these days.  Nice soft texture and good length.  B+.  Drink this over the next 1-2 years.  Was $19.99 from Total Wine in Fairfax.

(I remember buying a case of 1979 Napa Wine Co. Zin as a close-out in 1983 or thereabouts for about $5 a bottle at Yankee Spirits in Sturbridge, MA, and passing it out to my family.  That one was very nice as I recall.  I have not had a wine from these guys since then!)

(Sorry: 2009 depicted.)

2010 Domaine Coudoulis LIRAC (Southern Rhone, France)

Liracs always seem to me to be the lazy sibling in the Cotes du Rhone family.  Never exuberant,  usually laid back.  Sometimes verging on boring.  This wine needs significant airing, but after it gets it, it's pretty nice in a typical Lirac-ian low-key sort of way.

Very dark, rich-looking black ruby.  The nose sucked on day one.  Nothing there but dark scents.  Like sniffing Darth Vader's helmet.  On day 2 (under a Vacu-vin enclosure), it exhibited low-toned, medium-intensity, rich, sweet dark crushed berry fruit, along with significant crushed stone minerality.  Soft, rich, and low-toned flavors of dark crushed berries and forest floor earthiness.  A little iodiney quality in the finish.  It's got loads of medium-grained tannin, but I wouldn't age it too much longer because as the second night wore on I detected some oxidation.  So give it some air and then kill the bottle.  B.  Was $14.99 from Total Wine in Fairfax.  Imported by Saranty Imports, White Plains, NY (which I think is Total Wine's importing arm . . .  because why not take the middle man's cut yourself?).

2009 Vecchia Cantina VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO (Tuscany, Italy)

I have never had great luck with Vino Nobiles.  They tend not to be great values, and I think many are basically clumsy relations of Chianti Classico.  But this one, produced by a co-op in the region, was reasonably priced and has very nice fruit and balance.

Dark ruby color.  Nice nose of macerated cherries, tobacco leaf, lemon zest, and gravel.  Lots of dark cherry fruit in the mouth, with a hint of unsweetened cocoa powder and lots of stony minerals.  Full-bodied, with loads of dusty tannins providing a nice framework for some additional aging.  Bright acids keep it fresh.  A touch of bitterness in the finish.  Would be excellent with meat-sauced pasta.  B+.  Was $15.99 from WTSO.com.  Imported  by Superior Wines, Cranford, NJ.

2012 Cottanera ETNA ROSSO "Barbazzale" (Sicily, Italy)

I love Etna Rossos.  They have a unique purity of fruit.  This one was very nice, with the purity thing augmented by a smoky note.

Medium dark ruby color.  Bright, vibrant ripe cherry fruit on the nose, along with loads of stony minerality and the aforementioned smoky note.  Bright, pure cherry fruit pounces in the mouth, riding a wave of fine-grained tannins, and there is a lot of clean minerality on the palate as well. It's a little more full-bodied than some other Etnas I've had.  Medium long finish.  A little loose, this would really kill it if it had just a touch more concentration.  But it's a cuspy B+/A-.  Was $15.99 from zachys.com.  Imported by Cottanera USA, Saucelito, CA.

2010 Shingleback SHIRAZ "The Davey Estate" (McLaren Vale, Australia)

I don't buy many Aussie Shirazes, and I've had way too many oaky, liquid jam-jars, but this one was billed as a leaner, more minerally exhibition of the grape, and it actually is.  It's quite nice.  Still identifiably Aussie, but stripped down.

Impenetrable black ruby, with a violet tinge.  Loads of liquid, slightly saline dark minerals, cedar, and blackberry and cassis skins on the nose.  Bone dry, dark blackberry extract and a clingy, iodiney streak in the mouth initially.  Loads of soft tannin then announces itself, and the lean, concentrated flavor profile grows slightly riper and sweeter on the back end.  Full-bodied, but not nearly overbearingly huge like some of its Aussie cousins.  The finish is very long and linear.  There is a lot going on in this wine.  Really fine.  A-.  Was $14.99 from WTSO.com, making it a very good value.  Would be outstanding with a juicy, grilled prime porterhouse.  Imported by Precept Wine, Seattle, WA.

2011 Kupelweiser LAGREIN (Alto Adige, NE Italy)

I haven't had a Lagrein since the 1980s, I think.  This one is beautifully balanced, a little tight at first, but then opening up in to a food-friendly good value.  And this is yet another wine that was much better on the second night, so be sure to let this one breathe if you open it anytime soon.

Saturated, very crystalline blackish ruby violet.  The nose almost reminds me of a young, unoaked Medoc, with loads of tightly-wound cassis and blackberry fruit and gravelly minerals.  A little tight fist of youthful fruit punches the mouth on entry, but it's wrapped on a smooth-textured, medium-bodied package.  It is not weighty, but has good concentration of fruit and a linear timeline in the mouth.  Bone dry.  Just a wee bit of soft tannin, and really nice, slightly mouth-watering acids make it feel fresh.  The finish is very pure-tasting.  Very nice.  B+/A-.  Was about $18 from Total Wine in Fairfax.  This would be amazing with a basic Yankee Pot Roast.  Drink over the next 3 years.

2009 Viticcio CHIANTI CLASSICO (Tuscany, Italy)

This is a textbook Chianti Classico.  And I got this for a song on sale (I bought a case for a price that netted out at $10.50/bottle, including shipping, from zachys.com on a close-out!).  I am an unabashed fan of the wines from this estate.

Very black-tinged ruby.  Lively nose of red berries, tangy rich cherries, and a whiff of dry, dusty gravel.  Smacks the mouth with ripe, zingy red fruits, wine-soaked gravel, and stony minerals.  Very nice acids and well-integrated soft tannin keep the mouthfeel interesting.  Nice length.  Just a pleasure to drink.  It's textbook Chianti Classico, which means not only is it fun to drink but it also will go well with a wide variety of foods.  B+/A-.  Will keep for at least another 2-3 years.  Imported by Massanois Imports, Washington DC.

2011 Cline Ancient Vines CARIGNANE (Contra Costa County, Cal.)

A big, deep, fruity, rich wine.  A bit more complexity and it would have been outstanding, but as is, it's really nice.

Saturated black ruby/violet.  Intense nose of ripe mixed berries and plums, along with wafts of sweet, high-toned smoke.  Intense and pure in the mouth.  Hits right away with weighty, dense ripe dark berry fruit and dark, gravelly minerals.  Lots of weight, but not overbearing, the flavors tenaciously cling to the mouth.  Very full bodied and moderately tannic.  This wine does not skimp on flavor.  A-/B+.  Was $14.99 at Total Wine in Fairfax, VA.

2010 Romain Parisis "Cuvee Signee" CHINON (Loire Valley, France)

A straightforward, zesty, bone dry Cab Franc.  Not a lot of depth, and just barely ripe enough, but it's got a lot of vivacity.  It seemed thin and underripe on night one, but the second night it filled out a bit and was much more pleasurable.

Youthful medium ruby still with a hint of violet.  The nose has classic Chinon scents of machine oil, dried fall leaves, and tart black cherry.  You can smell the acidity that's about to hit you.  Lots of barely ripe cherry fruit in the mouth, with a substantial streak of dried underbrush and minerals.  Clean, medium-long finish with loads of acids, keeping it very fresh.  I had it with fried chicken and it went very well.  B, though if it had bit more depth I'd rank it higher.  This was $12.99 at Total Wine in Fairfax, making it a pretty decent value.

2010 La Celestiere CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE "Tradition" (Southern Rhone, France)

This is a chewy, extremely young wine.  Lots of potential, but not nearly ready to drink.  It really only opened up on the third night I had it open.

Saturated, youthful-looking black ruby.  The first night, the nose was somewhat reduced but showed lots of ripe, raw dark berry fruit.  On night three, the nose was still youthful and one-dimensional, but showed beautifully ripe dark cherry, plummy fruit and sweet, warm sandstone scents.  On entry, there's loads of ripe dark fruit, very good concentration, and a wheel barrow-full of chewy tannin.  The finish is long.  Each of the three nights a little more complexity came through, suggesting a wine that would benefit from several years of cellaring.  I'm going to try to forget about my other three bottles for at least a couple of years and then re-visit it.  Right now, a B.  In 5-8 years, maybe an A.  If you do open it over the next 2 years, decant it in a wide decanter and pour it through a Vinturi to try to aerate it as much as possible.  Was $24.99 from WTSO.com.  Imported by Votto Vines, Hamden, CT.