2013 Charles & Charles Post No. 35 Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah Blend -Columbia Valley

Well here we are, my first post of September.  I'll freely admit I've been slacking off at the end of August and should have made a number of posts, but with family visiting from out of town and holiday excursions it was a tough life!  But now I'm back in the saddle and tonight I've opened a rather young wine, the 2013 Charles & Charles Post No. 35 Red Blend, a nice little blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah from the Columbia Valley of Washington.  I admit that in my visits to Walla Walla, I've been past the Charles Smith tasting room, but have never had the opportunity to stop in, either I was on my way somewhere else or they were closed when I came by, but at least now I've tried one of their wines!

The wine is a lovely deep ruby color in the glass.  The nose is a wonderful combination of ripe fruit, leather and lovely warm spice notes, over just a hint of tar and cut grass.  The tastes is actually reasonable given its youth and immaturity (oh for the days when I was youthful and immature!), with a nice bit of black fruit, currant, black cherry and cocoa power with just the faintest hint of rose petals midpalate.  The finish is somewhat subdued, as the fruit and spice subside, the young tannins give structure to a soft but very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this one a solid 7.5, it's a very nice table wine blend at a great price - I bought this at G.B. Russo's in Grand Rapids for just $10!  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with leftovers from all the labor day grilling we did over the weekend, some brats, grilled veggies, dill pasta and cucumber salad and broccoli slaw.  But this wine would work just as well with a nice steak or big beef dish, or some nice pasta with red sauce, as the wine has enough character to stand up to those big flavors without being overpowering.  Cheers!

2009 Stephen Vincent Cabernet Sauvignon

The best laid plains of mice and men...so the saying goes and so my week of wine went!  I had originally planned to bring a bottle of nice Bordeaux with me on this trip and it's still sitting on my kitchen table.  But where there are disappointments there are opportunities, as I had the chance to stop at the local wine shop in Elkhart to find another bottle to enjoy, hence the 2009 Stephen Vincent Cabernet Sauvignon.

The wine is a classic deep purple in the glass, just as you'd expect of a California Cabernet.  The nose is a pleasant and full of fruit, blackberry and cherry with notes of plum and cherry cola.  The taste is fruit forward, with some ripe fruit, plum, cherry, ripe berries that transitions nicely to some lovely tarragon and floral notes, and an earthy minerality midpalate.  The tannins are fairly mellow leading to a soft finish that is just pleasing and food friendly.

Overall I would rate this wine a solid 7, it was nothing spectacular, but a solid wine at a great price.  I bought this wine for only $11!  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with some chicken tacos and a nice salad with a balsamic vinaigrette.  Cheers!