Subtle Scents…Strawberry, cherry, compost
Tempestuous tastes…This was purchased as a way to grade the Kirkland Signature Russian River Valley Pinot Noir that I enjoy and my wife really likes. While that wine is light and floral containing components that I would assign to a white wine; this wine while still being a light red is deep and complex with intense red fruit flavors and characteristics more akin to a red wine. I knew I was in for a treat right after I popped the cork on this as I was greeted with amazing aromas of strawberry and cherry with hints of potpourri and herbs (when swirled there is an added scent of compost and root beer). The first sip was intense and amazing all at the same time; rarely have a I found a light red wine that had this many flavors and textures (2009 Beaujolais truthfully is the only wine that makes the grade until now). On first sip this brings strawberries and molasses mixed with cherries and vanilla and right in the back a semi-sweet black pepper flavor and heat. The mid-palate has alcohol that tingles and slightly warms my gums and just a hint of tannins that dry my cheeks and add a “dark” texture to this wine (I frequently use “dark” to describe a deepening, intense flavor that I would not have expected from a wine. Kind of like a spur-of-the-moment thunderstorm that blows in=”dark”; this “dark” flavor blows into a wine that I had not expected or intensifies already deep and dark flavors). The finish is medium in length and definitely the highlight of this already stellar wine. This finish is bright strawberry/raspberry and cherry, vanilla and brown sugar, roses and wet leaves with a slight trace of cherry cola (I know that even sounds weird to me but right at the end of the finish I get a fizzy Cherry Coke flavor and sensation). As I stated before this is a light bodied red wine that sometimes leans into medium bodied territory. It’s much more complex than similarly priced Pinot Noirs and is one of the least expensive Pinot Noirs from the Russian River AVA. All of that adds up to a great big, tasty wine.
Overall, you can’t go wrong here. At $12.99 a bottle this wine is a freaking steal. It’s smooth; it’s complex; it’s drinkable with or without food; and it’s damn good. I don’t normally rave about Pinot Noir because I think that Pinot Noir in the sub-20 dollar range tends to be rather weak and/or fruity; this wine proves me wrong. It does has some fruit flavors that make this a pleasant drinking experience, but there is an underlying foundation of powerful dark and savory flavors that lend this wine credence and truly make it an outstanding wine. This is a great QPR, no doubt about it this wine is worth WAY more than 13 bucks (I’d pay 20, maybe even 25 for this bottle and feel like I still got a good deal). While I love Beaujolais and the flavors that varietal can bring to a wine, this is just a little more up my alley combining the best of Beaujolais and Malbec, two wines that I love to sip. This is a must buy, and you should add several bottles to your cellar for enjoyment in the coming years.
Martin Ray Winery
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