Wine reviews from October:

(hey, I was busy)

I just laugh at the prices people pay for California and Washington wines. Even just a $15 California supermarket Cabernet. Why do I laugh? Because anything California and Washington can do, Chile and Argentina can do cheaper. It’s a simple postulation of real estate valuation.

Argentinian winery Dona Paula: Stefano Gandolini, the winemaker of Dona Paula and their sister label Los Cardos, expertly coaxes very balanced, rich/light wines, at every price point. To sit down and taste a medium rich, apply crisp, clean Chardonnay…followed by a tangy, cherry red, juicy Malbec that manages to fire off every lovely requirement of said grape (NERD ALERT: acidity, minty/herbal aroma, intense mid-palate fruit) … followed by the bestest, cheapest, drinking-while-I’m-eatingest Cabernet Sauvignon I’ve had in at least a year…made me very happy. And that was just the Los Cardos label, what’s considered their entry level. And they are all $8.00 or less, dpeending on where you live. (full post here)

Oh Roagna, how do I love thee? Because you can experience the perfection of the bitch goddess of Piedmont, Nebbiolo. She lives in every goddamn bottle of Roagna Pajé Barbaresco. Every. Goddamn. One.

Nebbiolo is closest in style to Pinot Noir. But she’s not so much a pretty, perky pleaser as Pinot Noir. She has aristocratic airs and rough, unkempt edges. The Italians use a phrase: “tar and violets” to describe her. To me, Nebbiolo is best encapsulated by Ava Gardner in The Barefoot Contessa, an aloof and captivating beauty born of gypsies.

**Roagna wines are distributed in WA state by Triage Wines and imported into the USA by the most execellent House of Louis/Dressner.