TN: A Dinghy-load of Cheap Crap (Feb 7, 2019)

[Jeff Grossman]

Went to buy a few bottles at the shop and I encountered an in-house tasting (and special sale price - today only!) for February's "Top 12" Mixed Case:

Bodegas del Medievo 2016 Rioja Blanco "Medievo" - yup, that is yer basic white rioja
Bodega La Tercia 2016 Tinto "Yemanueva" - this has a bit of spice to it, I could probably finish a glass of this
Portalegre 2015 Alentejo "Terras de Baco" - rustic and somewhat resin-y, better than nothing but not too much
Andarin 2017 Monastrell - well, you'll get your money's worth by weight, anyway... heavy, slightly silty, typique but lacks any charm

Yohan Lardy 2017 Beaujolais-Villages Blanc "Les Bruyeres" - it's 2-3x the price of anything else but it's still chardonnay
Adega de Almeirim 2016 Tinto "Leziria" - light body, not rustic so already better than the other Portuguese cheapie
Bodegas Covinas 2016 Utiel Requena Tinto "Aula" - OK, tiny weird DOS and look at that cepage: 100% bobal, nice, definitely worth a glass (and maybe another if it opens up a bit more)

Norfolk Rise 2017 Sauvignon Blanc - not too grassy, tangy, nice enough
Alkoomi 2018 Riesling, Frankland River - like a lot of riesling cheapies this has a palate of zing and fruit but no dirt or other complexity; at least this one does have a really long finish
Happs 2014 Semillon, Margaret River - 1 year in tank, 4 years in bottle... right now this needs food but might gain from more time laying down (say 5-8 years)
Norfolk Rise 2017 Pinot Noir - a boring fruit wine
Cumulus Wines 2015 Shiraz "Climbing" - sourced from a very high vineyard (2000'), touted as a session wine due to the low thirteen-point-oh percent alcohol; well, I got news... they managed not to let it get really sweet and ripe but it stings like after-shave, definitely leave this glass sitting someplace

So, if you've got $12 to gamble with, buying the bobal is probably better than 6 lottery tickets. As to the rest, even the Yemanueva and the Semillon, well, put the corks back in, stash them in the dinghy, and shove off.

 

[robert ames]

you have a big dinghy.

 

[BJ]

I have a small dinghy. It's an El Toro. They were designed in the SF Bay Area. Mine was built in the 60s by the Smith Boat Company on Samish Island, north of Seattle. It's a classic ply dinghy, only eight feet long, generally used by kids, but there are crusty middle aged and older dudes that putter around in them. A gust hit mine last summer and ripped the screws holding the boom plate right out of the mast, making for interesting sailing.

 

[Jeff Grossman]

And, checking out a bottle of cheap Bordeaux bought for a lamb stew: Ch. Vieux Poirier 2015 Bordeaux Rouge - apparently a vanity label of La Croix de Roche, in Galgon (wherever that is), brought in by Thunevin(?!), it caught my eye from among all the other Bordeaux cheapies because it says 12.5% and "Vin Bio"; the alky number is probably right as this feels a little lighter than many, there is a whiff of horse to it though it falls away when the cab kicks in over the merlot, OK, good enough; I still might buy the next cooking bottle based on cab/merlot percentage