STAN’S PICK FOR JULY 2019

Posted on July 8, 2019 by Stan The Wine Man

I normally focus on whites in the summer for my pick. However, I ran across this gem from the Tuscan region of Italy and I couldn’t help myself. I do a lot of grilling during the summer months and often bust out a red to go with the grilled meats. I’m not stuck on any specific varietal, but whatever it is that I choose, it has to compliment the main course. This red from the Maremma appellation of Tuscany has a ton of flexibility with food. Chicken, steak, ribs or hamburgers would all work nicely with this wine. The other cool thing about it is that the longer it’s open the better it gets. I drank it three days later after opening a bottle and it was stunning. It is a steal for what you pay and I would put away a couple of bottles for up to three years to see how it develops.

2015 Petra “Zingari” Toscana Red (Maremma, Italy)… $14.

Deep aromas of black olives and currants, with a splash of meat marinade and dried red flowers. Sweet tannins support notes of black plums and currants with a hit of leather and a kiss of rust. It expands on the mid-palate and finishes long with a kiss of tobacco on the back-end. Nicely integrated acidity and structured tannins make this baby perfect with food. Decant it to bring out the best this has to offer. A blend of Merlot, Sangiovese, Syrah and Petit Verdot (B/B+

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man


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FRIDAY’S FIVE

Posted on June 28, 2019 by Stan The Wine Man

In a weeks time, I taste a boatload of wine (seriously). A lot of my friends think I’m lucky. Well, they’re right, and I wouldn’t give this job up for the world. The only thing that makes my job hard, is my feeling of responsibility to taste the samples given to me as quickly as possible and to put my reviews either in my Moleskine, on my YouTube channel (Stan The Wine Man TV), or right here on Stanthewineman.com. Here for your reading pleasure, are five wines that I have reviewed in my Moleskine (good or bad), this past week

2017 Bernier Chardonnay Val De Loire (Loire Valley, France)… $12.

Light lemon and apple notes on the nose with a little concrete thrown in. Light and fresh on the palate with notes of lemon and apple and a solid under belly of crushed rock. Nicely integrated acidity keeps it fresh and clean. Lemon and apple notes linger (B-/B)

2016 Aia Vecchia Logone Toscana Red (Tuscany, Italy)… $16.

Aromas of licorice, currants, menthol and dark cherries with a healthy dose of red flowers. Nice integration and balance on the palate. Dark cherry and currant notes come through with a backbone of tobacco and baked earth. Approachable tannins that have a little attitude. Tobacco and currant notes linger on the finish with a big splash of red flower petals. (B/B+)

2017 The Cosmic Egg Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley, WA)… $22.

Currants on the nose, with a kiss of brown sugar, cherries, licorice and a hint of chocolate. Notes of currants, chocolate and cherries front to finish on the palate, backed by solid acidity and edgy tannins that show a little grit on the back-end. Currant notes linger on a fresh finish. (B-/B)

2017 Domaine La Calmette “Trespotz” Malbec (Cahors, France)… $25.

Smells just like fermenting grape juice with an edge of cedar and a kiss of orange citrus. Orange citrus on the palate, joined by notes of purple and red flowers with a backdrop of red raspberries, cranberries and cherries. Good balance of acidity and fruit with a fresh, long finish where purple flower notes linger. (B+/A-)

2017 La Senda Diego Losada 1984 (Bierzo, Spain)… $22.

Coffee bean big time on the nose backed by notes of roasted tomatoes with a kiss of earth and blackberries. Red flower and citrus notes all day on the palate backed by edgy tannins. There is an underbelly of coffee bean and blackberry notes leading into the finish where tomato and meat marinade notes join up and linger. 100% Mencia (B+/A-)

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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FRIDAY’S FIVE

Posted on June 7, 2019 by Stan The Wine Man

In a weeks time, I taste a boatload of wine (seriously). A lot of my friends think I’m lucky. Well, they’re right, and I wouldn’t give this job up for the world. The only thing that makes my job hard, is my feeling of responsibility to taste the samples given to me as quickly as possible and to put my reviews either in my Moleskine, on my YouTube channel (Stan The Wine Man TV), or right here on Stanthewineman.com. Here for your reading pleasure, are five wines that I have reviewed in my Moleskine (good or bad), this past week.

2016 Quadri Nero D’Avola (Terre Siciliana, Italy)… $11.

Aromas of dark berries, currants, dirt , blackberry bush and red flowers. Round shoulders on the palate with notes of currants, crushed rock, blackberries, earth and red flowers front to finish. There is a candied element that comes through on the mid-palate. The tannins get a little grit element on the finish with earth and tobacco sneaking in on the back-end. Lingering finish. (B-)

2016 Quadri Sauvignon Blanc (Delle Venezie, Italy)… $11.

A touch stinky on the nose, with a little diesel action, joined by notes of wet stone and a little grapefruit pith underneath.. Balanced acidity, keeps it fresh in the mouth, with notes of Meyers lemon, wet stone and a kiss of grapefruit. Dry, but there is enough fruit to keep it from going to bone dry. Diesel notes sneak in on the mid-palate into the finish. Decent complexity for the money. (C+/B-)

2018 Paxton “Now” Shiraz (Mclaren Vale, Australia)… $19.

Aromas of dark cherries, red flowers and a little blackberry thrown in with a hard candy element coming through. Solid dark cherry and blackberry notes up front on the palate into the mid-palate where it thins out just a bit on smooth tannins. Tobacco notes show up big time on the back end with the dark cherry and blackberry notes, joined by a hit of red flower petals. Made from organically grown grapes (B)

2017 Paxton “MV” Shiraz (McLaren Vale, Australia)… $19.

Slight cherry and blackberry notes on the nose with a little kiss of red flowers. Earth and red berries on the palate with a kiss of red Bing cherries. Thin up front and into the mid-palate, than it goes to ripe dark cherries on the finish, joined by a hit of tobacco. Smooth, easy tannins. (C+)

2017 Paxton “AAA” Shiraz-Grenache (Mclaren Vale, Australia)… $19.

Absolutely nothing on the nose (believe me I tried to get something). Slight splash of blackberry and plum notes on light tannins with a hit of pepper on the back-end. Very thin and simple. (F/D-)

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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BITS & BOBS

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Stan The Wine Man

I shot my first YouTube episode in the new studio which will go up tomorrow and I am very happy with the results. The sound quality is the best it’s ever been, the lighting is good and although the backdrop needs work, it’s not bad. I also applied a few suggestions from our good friend Meg. When we were staying with her in London a few months ago, we talked about my YouTube channel and how some improvements could be made. She has spent a lot of time in marketing and understands what it takes to produce good content. She suggested I lose the spit bucket and take less time analyzing the wines. Since I am the blue collar wine guy, it makes sense to simplify the content to reach a broader audience. She is not the first person to suggest that I don’t use a spit bucket. Since I only review a few wines in each episode, it makes sense to take that part out of the episodes. Unfortunately, my first episode which goes up Tuesday is a canned wine blitz. In the episode, I review at least ten or more canned wines in under 18 minutes. I have to say, that I felt it after the shoot. An exception to the rule of course, and sans the spit bucket, it definitely went quicker than it normally would have.

Taking less time to analyze each wine is a tough one for me since that is my passion and I really get into it. However, with a little discipline, I think I can come up with the same results in less time. As I said, I need to de-geek a bit. I believe it came up in the London conversation as well that I might think about just giving each wine I review a thumbs up or a thumbs down, instead of grading each wine. I’ve decided to stick to the grading system and here’s why. If a wine is stellar and deserves the highest grade (A+), I want the audience to know that. A simple thumbs up does not convey the quality of the wine I am reviewing. If it is an average wine with no flaws, giving it a “C” lets the audience know that it is probably a safe bet and there may be no harm in giving it a try. Any wine in the “F” or “D” range has some serious flaws and by giving the wine that kind of grade (it doesn’t happen very often) it is a good indicator that one should not waste their money on said wine. A simple thumbs down does not have the same impact as an “F” would. So by toning down on the descriptors, a grade will convey to my audience how I feel about the wine without all the explanation as to why. I hope that makes some sense. I would appreciate any comments from you about this as I try to fine tune my YouTube episodes for the benefit of my audience. I so appreciate all the advice that Meg gave me and I hope she continues to give me much needed input.

Susie and I are diligently putting our new place together and we are liking the results. I am still having difficulty getting back into the routine of writing for my blogs, but I feel a sense of urgency to get back at it again. There is so much to do to the new place, but I cannot afford to slack on my writing. Once again, thank you so much for your support, it means the world to me.

Cheers!

Stan The Wine Man

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