RED BLENDS
Tenuta di Trinoro 'Le Cupole' 2006
Over Achiever
Pick up some of the best vineyards in Pomerol and slap them down in this little Tuscan valley with rolling hills, and you've got a recipe for one of the absolute BEST VALUE wines from Italy I've had in a long time. I'm a sucker for good Cab Franc, and when I can find one that expoldes with those cool, floral aromatics that jump out of the glass and fly around my head... I freak out!! No really, I go in to 'wine geek' mode... yes, that does happen from time to time.
47% Cab Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauv, and a little Merlot and Petit Verdot for balance, and life is good. The blend is so elegant yet seductive, aromatic yet restrainded... it's sounds like I don't know how to describe it, but when you pop it... you'll get what I'm saying. $39 - $42
Merkin Vineyards Chupacabra, Paso Robles 2006
Achiever
From the brain of Maynard James Keenan (Tool, A Perfect Circle) comes a really cool Paso field blend that comes alive in the glass!! I don't know if it was the music blasting my ears or the fact that here is a REAL rock star making wine that put me in a wine drinking trance, but the robust flavors of black berry, and spice and a long finish that kept pounding with the beat really struck me on this one.
$19-$22
![Papillon by Orin Swift, Napa 2008 Double AchieverThis has to be one of the coolest labels on the market today!!! Now that I've said that, I usually try to keep people away from just letting their eyes do the buying when it comes to wine. It just seems to be something that can get you set up for a let down once you've tasted the juice. BUT I AM DIGGING THIS ONE!!!A bordeaux style blend from the maker of The Prisoner, another one of my past picks, this is Orin Swift Cellars third release of what really typifies "fruit bomb" wines. This is more like an atomic bomb of fruit. The 2006 vintage needs about an hour to change gears. It starts out quite tight, with some great old leather notes that give way to some monstrous dark cherry, wild blackberry, and cooking spice that seems to grow in the glass till you have to put your hand on the top of it just to contain the aromatics. I popped a bottle and poured my second glass, and with in the hour it had me convinced that this is a wine that needs a prison guard from a French prison (Papillon) to keep it from jumping out of the glass and walking out on you. I would think this wine would cellar for the next 10 yrs, and really be even better with some time in the bottle. Though once you pop a bottle I don't see how you could keep it around that long. $62-$68](http://content.bandzoogle.com/users/cowtownwinedude/images/photos/gallery/2401955-thumb.jpg?2 "Papillon by Orin Swift, Napa 2008 Double AchieverThis has to be one of the coolest labels on the market today!!! Now that I've said that, I usually try to keep people away from just letting their eyes do the buying when it comes to wine. It just seems to be something that can get you set up for a let down once you've tasted the juice. BUT I AM DIGGING THIS ONE!!!A bordeaux style blend from the maker of The Prisoner, another one of my past picks, this is Orin Swift Cellars third release of what really typifies "fruit bomb" wines. This is more like an atomic bomb of fruit. The 2006 vintage needs about an hour to change gears. It starts out quite tight, with some great old leather notes that give way to some monstrous dark cherry, wild blackberry, and cooking spice that seems to grow in the glass till you have to put your hand on the top of it just to contain the aromatics. I popped a bottle and poured my second glass, and with in the hour it had me convinced that this is a wine that needs a prison guard from a French prison (Papillon) to keep it from jumping out of the glass and walking out on you. I would think this wine would cellar for the next 10 yrs, and really be even better with some time in the bottle. Though once you pop a bottle I don't see how you could keep it around that long. $62-$68")
Papillon by Orin Swift, Napa 2008
Double Achiever
This has to be one of the coolest labels on the market today!!! Now that I've said that, I usually try to keep people away from just letting their eyes do the buying when it comes to wine. It just seems to be something that can get you set up for a let down once you've tasted the juice. BUT I AM DIGGING THIS ONE!!!
A bordeaux style blend from the maker of The Prisoner, another one of my past picks, this is Orin Swift Cellars third release of what really typifies "fruit bomb" wines. This is more like an atomic bomb of fruit. The 2006 vintage needs about an hour to change gears. It starts out quite tight, with some great old leather notes that give way to some monstrous dark cherry, wild blackberry, and cooking spice that seems to grow in the glass till you have to put your hand on the top of it just to contain the aromatics. I popped a bottle and poured my second glass, and with in the hour it had me convinced that this is a wine that needs a prison guard from a French prison (Papillon) to keep it from jumping out of the glass and walking out on you. I would think this wine would cellar for the next 10 yrs, and really be even better with some time in the bottle. Though once you pop a bottle I don't see how you could keep it around that long. $62-$68
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![Papillon by Orin Swift, Napa 2008 Double AchieverThis has to be one of the coolest labels on the market today!!! Now that I've said that, I usually try to keep people away from just letting their eyes do the buying when it comes to wine. It just seems to be something that can get you set up for a let down once you've tasted the juice. BUT I AM DIGGING THIS ONE!!!A bordeaux style blend from the maker of The Prisoner, another one of my past picks, this is Orin Swift Cellars third release of what really typifies "fruit bomb" wines. This is more like an atomic bomb of fruit. The 2006 vintage needs about an hour to change gears. It starts out quite tight, with some great old leather notes that give way to some monstrous dark cherry, wild blackberry, and cooking spice that seems to grow in the glass till you have to put your hand on the top of it just to contain the aromatics. I popped a bottle and poured my second glass, and with in the hour it had me convinced that this is a wine that needs a prison guard from a French prison (Papillon) to keep it from jumping out of the glass and walking out on you. I would think this wine would cellar for the next 10 yrs, and really be even better with some time in the bottle. Though once you pop a bottle I don't see how you could keep it around that long. $62-$68](http://content.bandzoogle.com/users/cowtownwinedude/images/photos/gallery/2401955.jpg?2 "Papillon by Orin Swift, Napa 2008 Double AchieverThis has to be one of the coolest labels on the market today!!! Now that I've said that, I usually try to keep people away from just letting their eyes do the buying when it comes to wine. It just seems to be something that can get you set up for a let down once you've tasted the juice. BUT I AM DIGGING THIS ONE!!!A bordeaux style blend from the maker of The Prisoner, another one of my past picks, this is Orin Swift Cellars third release of what really typifies "fruit bomb" wines. This is more like an atomic bomb of fruit. The 2006 vintage needs about an hour to change gears. It starts out quite tight, with some great old leather notes that give way to some monstrous dark cherry, wild blackberry, and cooking spice that seems to grow in the glass till you have to put your hand on the top of it just to contain the aromatics. I popped a bottle and poured my second glass, and with in the hour it had me convinced that this is a wine that needs a prison guard from a French prison (Papillon) to keep it from jumping out of the glass and walking out on you. I would think this wine would cellar for the next 10 yrs, and really be even better with some time in the bottle. Though once you pop a bottle I don't see how you could keep it around that long. $62-$68")