Clearance Wine

Man I love clearance items at Target. They seem to put everything on clearance, even things that don't necessarily go bad, like pencils? Or air filters? Or batteries that say they're good through 2015? Or wine? Okay, wine can go bad, but a cabernet should age well, right?

As we were scavenging for food, we came across the wine aisle and saw many a wine on clearance, including tonight's selection, a 2005 Beaulieu Vineyard Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon for only $15 (see the red sticker in the photo?). Now you might be saying, $15 that's a lot for wine (or maybe you're saying, $15? My dog won't even drink that!), but either way, this wine normally retails for $30, so half price is a pretty decent deal.

If you have had the BV Cabernet, then I suppose this is the next step up from that (just before entering the $50+ bottles). So is clearance wine as good as the non-clearance version? Were we about to find out why this wine was clearanced in the first place? Well let's see...

Initial impression: YUM!!!! This is a great wine. Maybe the best $15 wine I've purchased, which is limited company to begin with, but still... Now my palate hasn't yet gotten back to it's fighting weight, but (and not to sound redundant) I did pick up a little cherry action on the tongue. The aroma wasn't quite as distinctive for me, but did remind me of the wine tours we have been on, specifically the cellar room with the oak barrels (which is good because the reviews I've read highlighted oak aromas). According to the label, I should have picked up some black cherry (okay, so I guess a cherry isn't a cherry), crushed blackberry (which I assume tastes different in its non-crushed form), licorice (what, no black licorice?), and cocoa. One out of 4 isn't bad. I will agree that it is full bodied and bold, and I would added very well balanced with tastes that linger on the palate.

I would definitely recommend this wine at $15. At $30 (full price) it is kind of a stretch, especially for those of use who rarely venture past $15, let alone $20. I think I would choose the regular BV Cab more reasonably priced at $20 vs. this one at full price. But, if you happen to be at Target, check out their wine aisle and see if they have any clearance BV Rutherford Cabs left. Who knows, by now they maybe 75% off.

Nathan's Swimming Adventure

Nathan went swimming for the first time over the weekend and he seemed to really enjoy it. But maybe it was just his new outfit - he was actually wearing more clothes for swimming than he wears normally, just hanging out.


Getting in for the first time...do we like it???




Sonoma standing guard, well actually waiting for me to throw the ball.


Having fun splashing around.



Maybe it was just his normal legs kicks and arm flailing, but he certainly enjoyed splashing around. Now we just have to work on his technique.

Babies with Boo Boos

Both of our babies had boo boos. Nathan got the first of his vaccines and Sonoma is recovering from a broken claw. Poor babies...

Wine Review: Il Vecchio Maneggio - Chianti "Colli Senesi"

Our friends Steve and Val gave us a bottle of wine last year that we recently enjoyed for our 7th anniversary. Originally, we were planning a Europe trip for early summer 2008 and they were also going to be in the same region so we were discussing meeting up for a wine tour. However, our trip didn't happen, but Steve and Val did go and surprised us with a bottle of wine from their trip. And since Laura was pregnant, we decided to save it until after our little Bugamoo arrived.

So, we decided to pop the cork on our anniversary. Laura was so excited for her first glass of wine in over 11 months and we were both eager to try a new wine, straight from Italy. According to the website, Il Vecchio Maneggio is in the "medieval town" (ooo, spooky) of San Gimignano (Tuscany) region of Italy, which just so happens to be the same region as one of our original favorite wines, Vernaccia. The wine is a Chianti from the Colli Senesi area (never heard of it). Apparently, the Chianti region is divided into several regions with Classico being the most famous, but according to the word on the street, all regions produce fantastic wines. Our bottle was made from grapes that are typical of traditional Chianti: Sangiovese, Canaiolo, together with white and red Malvasia, and Colorino and produced with wine-making methods that "strictly follow tradition" (of course).

To accompany our wine, we had Pugliese bread (an Italian bread to go with our Italian wine), bruschetta (an Italian appetizer, notice a theme?), and Muenster cheese for appetizers (nope, it's French). And the main course was grilled steak with a baked potato. We looked into Tuscan fare, but according to our wine bible, Tuscany is traditionally known for some bland food. Apparently, when other Italians want to be derogatory towards Tuscans, they refer to them as "mangiafagioli," (bean eaters - I know, not to witty, but whatever). Having never been Italian or been to Italy, I don't know if this is "traditionally" true, but since every American brand overuses Tuscan to death, you'd think they'd have some decent grub. But back to the wine...

Now, the website offers a bit of a description, suggesting cherry and violet notes. Having never eaten a violet, let alone been around many flowers to distinguish a violet from a tulip, I can't comment of the flower aspects. And maybe because I was eating some blackberries I didn't pick up on the cherry initially, but I'd say our bottle had an unripened cherry flavor. Overall, a bit too tannic for my tastes (think of how your mouth feels after eating a very green banana), but enjoyable nonetheless, making me think of the green, rolling hills of the Italian winery where I've never been. I think we'll have to make a visit to this winery when we do finally take out Europe trip.

Thank you Steve and Valerie for thinking of us on your trip and bringing us back a little sample of Italy. Oh, and happy anniversary too!

Nathan Pics Continued...

Wine Review: Little Penguin Cabernet-Merlot

The Little Penguin - Cabernet-Merlot

South Eastern Australia (Trader Joe's: ~$5)

Overall a good wine. My palate is still in spring training, but I convinced myself that I tasted a little cherry flavor, ripe and juicy. I'd put it in the same class as Yellow Tail or those other animal character brands, which come to think of it are all from Australia. What's up with that - Wine must have and animal associated with it to be good? In the end this wine is good and dependable. If your looking for a blend or haven't tried this one before, give it a try.

More Nathan Pictures