Review : Chateau Andrea Paso Robles 2005

Chateau Andrea “Cabernet Sauvignon” Paso Robles 2005
Tasting Notes : 100% cabernet sauvignon, 13.5% vol. Dark, vivid, violet in the glass. Pleasant on the nose with rich, dark, ripe black and blue fruits and notes of herbaceous spice. In the mouth there is a silky, smooth texture, sweet tannins, and a rich full body, accompanied by a good acidic balance. This wine is very fruit forward, displaying flavors of cherries, strawberries, blackberries, and cassis. A little sourness lingers through the mid palate on into the finish. Pair with savory, hearty foods.
Rating : 14/20 (87/100)
Price : US$15 @ 4seasons

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Tasted: 2006 Estancia Cabernet Sauvignon Keyes Canyon Ranches

2006 Estancia Cabernet Sauvignon Keyes Canyon Ranches

Appellation: Paso Robles, Central Coast, California

Tasting Notes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.  13.5% ABV.  Dark violet color.  Nose is dark fruit, blueberry/blackberry, with a little chocolate coming through.  A little jammy.  Nice initial attack of dark fruit, a hint of chocolate and oak.  Tannins are a little harsh, and it’s a bit hollow on the mid palate.  Finish is short, this sort of just disappears.  There is a little vegetal flavor right at the end.  Decanting would help (it was a little better on day 2).  I was excited to try this, and it turned out to be OK.

Rating: 2/5

Price: Unknown, someone brought this to my house.  The winery website has it at $16

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Tasted: 2007 Blackburn Cabernet Sauvignon

2007 Blackburn Cabernet Sauvignon

Appellation: Paso Robles, California

Tasting Notes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13.9% ABV.  Very dark purple.  Nose is some dust, lots of fruit, but that ‘fake’ fruit rollup smell.  Like jammy, but fake.   Good dark fruit on the palate, some of the fake carries over, but not as much as I thought; a good thing, because I really didn’t think I was going to like this at all.  A little hot, which makes it off balance (given the AVB is under 14%).  One dimensional, not really thought provoking, but not offensive.  Decanting smoothed out the rough edges, but didn’t make it much better.

Rating: 3/5 (but as close to a 2 as you can get and still get a 3)

Price: $10.99 at Wells.

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Tasted: 2007 Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles

2007 Rabit Ridge Allure de Robles

Appellation: Paso Robles (California)

Tasting Notes: Rhone style blend of Petite Syrah, Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvedre.  15.4% ABV.  Purple velvet color.  Nose is red fruit, a little candy, a little pepper.  Very big red fruit at first, then some pepper, smooth.  A little heat on the back end, nice dry finish.  Might need a little decanting time to calm down, 15.4% alcohol comes through a bit strong for me.  A nice new world interpretation of a Cotes du Rhone blend.  Would certainly be a crowd pleaser.  If I could get this for $8 a bottle, I’d buy a case;  at $15 it’s an OK Wednesday night wine with a roast.

Rating: 3/5, 14/20, 86/100

Price: $14.99 at Bin 604 (Snooth lists this at $7.99, and some folks on Cellartracker say they can get it at Trader Joes for $5, so the price I paid may reflect the high rent of Bin 604)

A note on ratings:  I use the 100 point rating for Cellartracker, even though my palate is still developing.  As a statistics geek, I know that the variability in scores works itself out as the number of scores increases.  However, my score may not be yours, or Robert Parker’s.  I much prefer to use a 5 point (or star, or whatever you want to call it) scale, as it more represents my reaction to wine, which is more simple than a 100 point scale represents.  I like the 20 point scale as the more detailed score.   On this site, I will provide all three, although the most meaningful are the 5 and 20 point ratings.

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