2006 Chateau Chevalier Cabernet Sauvignon, California

One of the few purchases I’ve made that breaks my budget rule; one could call this a splurge wine seeing as it comes in at $24.99. I don’t feel that this is that much of a splurge. Sure it breaks my rules, but I picked it up when it was on sale for 20 dollars; so I figured it would count. It pours a very dark red with midnight flecks throughout. Wafting from the glass are amazing aromas of spice box, black cherry, blackberry jam, and cedar. The attack is just as amazing as the nose, full of dark berry and stone fruit flavors intermingled with wood smoke, dust and a nice level of chalkiness. The mid-palate is exceeding smooth, with soft tannins that glide over the tongue tempering some of the sour cherry flavors that pop up, and leaving my tongue and gums with a wonderfully clean and tingly sensation from the perfect astringency. The finish is delicate and long, stretching out with flavors and textures of oak/cigar box, anise, white pepper, chocolate covered cherry, cola and dirt; then rallying back with hints of leather, ash and black tea. This is a full bodied wine that comes across just a little lighter in body due to the balance of flavors and textures, especially where tannins and alcohol are concerned. It left my tongue with a black cherry and burnt toast flavor that was actually quite nice.

Even though this is a little bit above my usual price point, I still love this particular Cabernet Sauvignon. It falls into a budget wine if you can get it on sale, if not you should still pick it up for a special occasion or when you have wine-discerning guests coming over. The complexity and overall smooth flavors/textures of this wine make it a truly special bottle. I would rate this a good QPR at 25 dollars, and good-to-great if you can find it under 20 dollars. For a fan of the Cabernet Sauvignon varietal this is definitely a winner and one to add to your list of Cabs to try before you die. Maybe add a bottle to your cellar, you won’t be disappointed.

Chateau Chevalier 

2008 Santa Ema Amplus Cabernet Sauvignon, Chile

Thank God for the wine buyer at my local Costco and their ability to bring in amazingly priced gems like this particular wine. Priced just under 17 dollars, this particular Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon might seem a little overpriced for those of you that frequently purchase South American wines. And that would be a valid point if this wine wasn’t as balanced and complex as it is. I am a huge fan of Chilean Cabs and Carmeneres as well as a big fan of Argentinean Cabs, Bonardas and Malbecs. And while those wines are frequently very inexpensive, they just as frequently display a limited level of complexity even at the 15-20 dollar range. This particular bottle brings out some of the best qualities of the Chilean terroir while limiting its shortcomings. 

This pours a lovely deep purple shade with rose shaded bubbles and a black core. The nose is sweet blackberry jam, creamy vanilla, golden butter and just a dash of lean green pepper. And oh, how this sips! Gorgeous black currant and blackberry flavors built on a foundation of vanilla and tar with shimmering walls of pencil lead and green bell pepper. The acidity, astringency and tannins, all perfectly balanced, morph this wine’s sweet-ish fruits into wonderfully semi-sweet/sour flavors. The finish is quietly long; what I mean by that is that it is a rather mellow, balanced finish that lingers quite some time. The flavors present here are green bell pepper, blackberry, currant, raspberry, vanilla, oak, tar, ash and just the smallest notes of black pepper, grass, and forest floor. This is a medium-to-full bodied wine that leaves an aftertaste of blackberry, grass and smoke. What truly sets this above and beyond the majority of Chilean Cabs is the fact that the green bell pepper flavors present in the Amplus are quite reserved and take a backseat to the fruits and other herbaceous notes in this wine. Most sub-15 dollar Chilean Cabs have a tendency to be overwhelmingly bell pepper flavored; limiting the versatility of the wine and my palate feeling abused. This has just the right amount of herbaceous flavors and a surprisingly heavy dose of fruit for a Chilean Cab.

Overall, I’d rate this a great QPR if you hold it up to its South American counterparts. Though you will find a slew of sub-15 dollar Malbecs that outshine this bottle you won’t find many Cabs from anywhere that taste like this does. It features just the right amount of savory characteristics while not overdoing the fruit. I haven’t found a Chilean Cab that is this balanced nor this inexpensive and I’ve sampled quite a few. I would highly recommend this if you enjoy drinking wines from Chile or want a pleasantly refined, yet inexpensive Cabernet Sauvignon.

Vina Santa Ema 

2009 Cincuenta Ugarte Rioja, Spain

I’ve been wondering for quite some time what has been happening to my Total Wine & More mailers. I hadn’t received one since the first of the year and wondered what good deals they were offering. I figured my daughter was probably hiding them from me or they had ended up on the bottom of a stack of junk mail. So it was with great surprise that I found the latest mailer when I was cleaning off my kitchen table of a few days worth of mail. Low and behold, such deals on some great wines. 2009 Bordeauxs under 15 dollars, 92 point Rhone blends for 12 and 90 point rated gem for less than 10 dollars. I have grown to love Tempranillo when it’s done right and that means from Spain, usually from Rioja. This wine fits that bill perfectly. It pours dark into the glass with swirling rubies, garnets and purples that at times edge into midnight black making for a mesmerizing glass to look at. The nose wafts strongly of sugared black plums, blackberry jam, vanilla and licorice with subtler elements of dust and charcoal. The palate itself is elegant and layered; stacking dark fruits (blackberry, currant and cherry) on top of caramel and cocoa in the attack. The mid-palate is wonderfully focused; featuring perfect tannins, crisp acidity in all the right places and beautiful astringency that pull the caramel and cocoa flavors through into the finish. And what a wonderful finish it is; long and luxurious where the fruits mix and mingle with sugars and savory flavors. Chocolate covered cherry and caramel tinged plums, with sweetened coffee and vanilla laced milk leave my tongue feeling as if I’ve gone on a pleasure cruise through a box of designer candies. Underneath these flavors are more pungent tastes of cedar and smoke with hints of ash and dirt, but they all build a wonderful flavor profile that is extremely gratifying. This finishes strong and though it feels heavy it is in fact a medium bodied wine that pairs well with just about any grilled meat, some spicy barbecue, sausages and especially hamburgers.

Overall this wine was phenomenal. I was amazed at the flavor and texture that it produced and just how complex this bottle really was. It paired so well I went through the bottle in three consecutive nights and came back on the fourth night disappointed I hadn’t saved a little for a few slices of pizza. At 10 dollars this is an amazing QPR. Sure it got 90 points from The Wine Advocate, but this one was a surprise to me. I frequently sample 90+ point wines (those that ring up at the register under 25 dollars and there are quite a few); this bottle is right at the top of the list of those wines. Complex, daring, with a depth that is hard to find; it is a truly wonderful wine that will slake your thirst and have you coming back for more. Highly recommended and if you find it purchase more than one because you are either going to want to add it to your cellar or you are going to want to sip it for several weeks!

2006 Adler Fels Russian River Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, California

Artistically colored...Black tinged ruby red with a rust hued rim

Masterful aromas…Blackberry, black currant, molasses, oak

Savor the complexity…Those three words sum up everything about this wine. You just have to savor the complexity and textures that this wine has to offer; anything less does this wine a terrible disservice. Firstly this wine benefits from 2 ½ years of oak cask aging, by that I mean the tannins are tightly packed and come out throughout this wine smoothing the attack and finish just as much as they bring vibrancy to the mid-palate. The attack is intense, heavy and dark brining out the best in blackberry, black currant and black cherry flavors; then mixing in flavors of brown sugar, cedar and tobacco around the edges of this wine. The mid-palate features crisp acidity and astringency that pull down the alcohol heat that mingles nicely with dense tannic acids that swirl over the tongue nicely. The finish is brilliantly crafted and long enough to enjoy even the smallest flavor it holds. The fruits come back first this time led by sugared black plum and blackberry jam. This is followed by just a little licorice and smoke. And finally more tobacco, cedar and a hefty dose of chalk dust right at the end. This is a full bodied wine that covers every base and truly brings and enjoyable drinking experience.

Overall this is a superb glass of wine. It was a featured wine at my local Total Wine & More and was recommended by one of their staff on a recent visit. It’s definitely underpriced at 17 dollars. I’d pay 25 for this bottle and be happy. It’s because of that reason that I rate this a solid Great QPR. To be honest this wine is not for everyone. It is very oaky and definitely a “heavy” red wine; but I love everything about it and it is firmly in my top ten. Keep an eye out for this if you enjoy big red wines with a lot of oak aging, you won’t be disappointed if you pick this up.

Adler Fels Winery

Head to Head to Head: Three Cabs

Being limited in my posts-per-week due to lack of internet, my next few posts will be multiple bottle reviews. We'll start with three Cabs (2 from California and 1 from Chile). This review will lay them out from least expensive to most expensive (not taking into account coupons or sale prices) and at the end I'll give a recap as to my preference of the three taking into account flavor, cost and availability. Without further ado, on to the review!

2008 Santa Helena Vernus Cabernet Sauvignon, Chile

Color – Ruby red

Nose – Blackberry jam, blueberry, raspberry, green bell peppers

Taste – This bottle of wine showed up at my local Costco, and I couldn’t pass up the chance to sample yet another Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon. After this wine had decanted for nearly 30 minutes I decided to take my first sip, and I was nicely surprised. This wine seems simple, but in reality is far from it. The attack bears lovely notes of black currant and blackberry with just a hint of bittersweet chocolate. The mid-palate is rather “warm” with firm tannins, astringency that is nearly perfect and acidity from the alcohol but not a lot of heat. The finish is long with heavy flavors of licorice, burnt caramel, tobacco and leather. This wine is full bodied, fruit forward with a finish that balances the fruit notes with “sharp” flavors and leaves a pleasant after taste on my tongue. For under 10 dollars this is a pretty good purchase as this wine holds up to a lot of different flavors (I personally tried it with burgers, steak and pizza on three different occasions and this wine went great with all three).
Overall, this wine shows a good QPR as the flavors are complex enough to allow this wine to hold up to multiple kinds of foods. This Cabernet Sauvignon is also very drinkable by itself. I was surprised that this is as good as it is. I am truly perplexed by the number of superior Chilean wines that are priced in the sub-10 dollar range is so large; perplexed but very happy. This is a must try, pick it up on your next trip to Costco because it might not be on the shelves for long.

Santa Helena Winery

2008 Dominican Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon, California

Color – Dark red, with a near black core

Nose – Black currant, licorice, chalk dust, caramel

Taste – This was a recommendation from one of the Total Wine “Beverage Specialists” or whatever they’re called. He talked about it as if it were the best Cabernet Sauvignon for under 20 dollars, considerably better than the Courtney Benham Cabernet Sauvignon I like so much. So at 17 dollars I went out on a limb and grabbed this bottle. I won’t say that he’s completely wrong, but his palate and mine differ quite a bit. This is a very silky, smooth red wine in the beginning that transforms into something of a mangled beast in the middle, then reforms again after the finish back to silky, smoothness. The attack is “warm” (reminding me almost of a liqueur or cordial) and somewhat heavy for my tastes. I can taste cherry, currant, raisin and licorice. The licorice holds on a long time, all the way through the mid-palate. Speaking of the mid-palate this one is a little rough for my palate; with the majority of it coming on as strong alcohol heat/acidity and puny tannins/astringency. As I said before the licorice comes through the rough but short mid-palate and right into the medium-length finish and is joined by blackberry, dark cherry, vanilla, black pepper and oak. The finish tapers off into a smooth, warm, silky mouthfeel that is full of cherry skins and red plum flesh. This is a medium-to-full bodied wine, and at warmer temperatures the medium falls right off that and this wine takes on a weight of its own that can seem rather cloying at times.
Overall, this is not my cup of tea, or glass of wine as it may be. I am sure this is a quality wine, I can tell by the mouthfeel and texture of the wine that runs throughout the entire sipping experience. It might even be a pretty good QPR, but for my palate I’d give it a fair QPR rating. I won’t be coming back here again even though this wine went well with steak and a hearty salad, it failed with simpler foods (spaghetti marinara on one night and grilled chicken breast with rice au gratin on another night). It’s just too much money for what I would consider a rather confused red wine. It starts yummy and smooth, and finishes yummy and smooth; but the middle is one big yucky “hot” mess. I’d recommend passing on this and getting the Courtney Benham I mentioned above for a few dollars more or maybe the Crios de Susana Balbo Cabernet Sauvignon for the same amount. Either of those are just as complex and far more balanced Cabernet Sauvignons. You let me know what you think.

2008 Wheelhouse Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, California

Color – Ruby red with violet hints at the edges

Nose – Plum, cherry, licorice, vanilla

Taste – This delightful Cabernet Sauvignon was nearly half off at Cost Plus, and when I can pick up a 20 dollar bottle for almost 10 dollars I jump at the chance. It only solidified my decision when several employees and a customer informed me I’d made a good decision on my wine choice. I am happy I listened to them, though I’m not completely sold on this wine’s qualities. Don’t get me wrong this wine tastes good, but it’s not 20 dollars worth of goodness. There is some complexity and it starts off right as the wine passes the lips. The attack is evenly layered dark fruits and berries; plum and blackberry mixed with dark cherry and red and black currants. These fruit flavors aren’t overwhelmingly sweet but rather dark, smoky and rich with underlying spice flavors when the wine is moved along the palate. The mid-palate is full of firm tannins, bright acids and pleasing astringency. The tannins run into the long-ish finish in the form of ripe fruit skins, but the finish is also rather dark; the predominant flavors being those of licorice, leather, tobacco, cloves and smoke. This is full bodied, though it tends to feel “lighter” when it’s chilled just a little. It tastes equally well slightly chilled or at warmer temperatures, though it fares best when paired with some charred beef and at room temperature.
Overall, this is a good wine and at the price I purchased it, I would rate it a good-nearly-great QPR. But I don’t think I would pay 20 bucks for this bottle. It doesn’t give Courtney Benham’s Napa Cab a run for its money, but falls far short of the quality of that wine. I admit that this is better than 95% of any wine you will find under 15 dollars. But if you do a lot of tasting you will find those 5% bottles crop up even at your local supermarket. In all honesty I have to recommend that you try this wine because it is a very flavorful and complex wine, that being said; seek, find, and buy – but attempt to do it on the cheap!

Wheelhouse Wine Cellars


In closing, all of these wines were drinkable though the Dominican Oaks almost got cut from the trio due to it's messy and confusing mid-palate. In my opinion, the Santa Helena Cabernet Sauvignon is the best wine for the money easily containing the most complexity and depth for the price. If you can get the Wheelhouse Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon at a reduced rate (15 dollars or less) than you are getting the best of the three, but at full price this wine comes in second. It does taste good and offer considerable complexity and flavor, but 20 dollars a bottle is just a little off-putting. Coming in last is the Dominican Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon and truly this wine was close to being taken off this list altogether. If I could focus just on the attack and the finish this wine would tie the Santa Helena for first, but the sheer brutality of the mid-palate knocks this down to third place and that's not even taking into account the 17 dollar price tag on this bottle. The Dominican Oaks and Vernus are probably the easiest wines to find. Though I purchased the Vernus at Costco, I believe you can find it at Total Wine & More which is where I purchased the Dominican Oaks. I have only seen the Wheelhouse at Cost Plus and it might not be available at the Cost Plus in your region due to the purchasing tendencies of the Beverage Specialist at your local Cost Plus. In all I hope these reviews help you on your journey with wine.

2008 Kirkland Signature Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, California

Color – Deep, dark red

Nose – Blackberry jam, licorice, vanilla

Taste – I am fast becoming a believer of the Kirkland Signature wines in flavor, quality, and price point. I sampled their Rutherford Meritage to great results and on a whim the next time I was in Costco picked up this delightful Cabernet Sauvignon. From the pour, this wine had me in its grip. The color is a dark, inviting red, the nose is layered fruit and spice, and the flavor takes the best notes of the nose and builds on them. On the attack I can taste ripe (nearly overripe) blackberries on top of the creaminess of vanilla melted into dark cherry and black currant and just a touch of chocolate. The mid-palate is a happy marriage of alcohol warmth, astringency from firm tannins, and dark cherry/vanilla. The finish is medium-long with more cherries, licorice and vanilla but also little hints of chocolate and black pepper. Surprisingly this wine is more medium bodied than full bodied; with its color and flavors I had expected it to be “heavier” but was pleasantly surprised with a medium bodied wine that is very easy to drink. This isn’t a big fruity Cabernet Sauvignon; it’s big and tasty but rather complex as well. Definitely another winner for Kirkland Signature.

Overall, this is a very nice, drinkable Cabernet Sauvignon with an even nicer price point. I think you can pick this up for 11 dollars only at your local Costco, which makes this is good-to-great QPR. The level complexity present means you are getting a wine that can compete with anything you would purchase for 15-20 dollars from the supermarket or even Total Wine. I highly recommend this wine if you want a Cab with depth and complexity but remains drinkable all by itself. Get it while they have it!