Top 20 under $20 continued – the reds

Published 9:00 pm Saturday, January 22, 2005

The seemingly perpetual gray and moistness of the Pacific Northwest can be somewhat thwarted with a crackling fire and a glass of high quality, hearty red wine. The trouble with this tactic is the sheer quantity of days that just may require such evasive maneuvers and the associated potentially mounting costs.

Here’s a list and review of some delicious reds that can help quell the gloom and quench your thirst for affordable, quaffable and available wines in this second installment of “Wick’s Top 20 Under $20.”

MontGras 2003 Reserva Carmenere $9.

Vina MontGras, in Chile’s Colchagua Valley, has been producing estate-grown wines of exceptional quality and originality for well over a decade. With the help of renowned Napa Valley winemaker Paul Hobbs, MantGras has garnered international acclaim for all its wines and helped bring the obscure, misunderstood lost grape of Bordeaux (carmenere) into global prominence. This wine is 100 percent carmenere and has a deep violet-red color and powerful aromas of spices, wild herbs and black fruits with a splash of caramel. Well-rounded on the palate, with more subtle fruit flavors than is suggested by the nose. This wine is a great summer grilling wine, but also would be delicious with a beef stew and potatoes.

Renwood Sierra Series

2003 Barbera $10.

These Sierra Series wines from Renwood are consistently great values, and this latest offering of barbera is certainly no exception. Its signature aromas of blueberry, ripe Bing cherry and raspberry are always inviting and intriguing. The wine is surprisingly rich in body with a nice creamy texture that unfolds all that jammy berry fruit. A little spicy edge adds a pleasing nuance to the blackberry, cherry, raspberry, black current and slight vanilla flavors that are nicely balanced with the tannins and the slightly high alcohol (13.5 percent). A very food-friendly and versatile wine that can enhance a burger, a slice of pepperoni pizza or grilled marinated flank steak.

Aquinas 2002 Napa Valley

Cabernet Sauvignon $11.

A Napa Valley Appellation designated cabernet sauvignon for around 10 bucks? That isn’t something you see that often, so I had to do a little research and see what would develop (that’s the right kind of R&D). And you know what? It’s a beauty. Medium plum-purple color with a strikingly rich, aromatic profile of cassis, cedar, toffee and black cherry. On the palate, the wine is supple and polished with an explosion of dark fruits like plum, fig, dried cherry and pomegranate. The tannins and the texture are soft and approachable, which gives you the impression that this wine might be dynamite with a couple of years of cellaring. A rack of lamb would be a suitable companion for this delectable Napa cab.

Six Prong 2001 Alder Ridge

Red Blend $13.

Another big, juicy and decadent wine by Washington’s super-talented winemaker Charlie Hoppes. This wine has intriguing floral aromas of fresh blackberries and cherries. The huge juicy flavors of spice, currant and raspberries are integrated with a hint of sweet vanilla and toasted oak. The tannins are fine, the acids are racy and the finish is well rounded, with a soft lingering complexity. This wine is a blend of 60 percent cabernet franc, 10 percent cabernet sauvignon, 10 percent merlot, 10 percent malbec, 5 percent sangiovese and 5 percent cinsault. For the money, it’s a steal.

Waterbrook 2003 Melange $13.

These blends from our home state just keep getting better each vintage and are beginning to represent some really great values. The 2003 vintage of Melange is a seamless blend of cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese, merlot, syrah and cabernet franc that brings to the table a generously plump, ripe and juicy wine. Herbal and spicy on the nose with flavors of chocolate-covered cherries, blackberry and a vine of black licorice that lingers on the palate and begs for another sip. This wine has to be recognized as a real trailblazer for affordable red wine from Walla Walla and continues to be an impressive effort in every vintage.

MacMurray Ranch 2003

Sonoma Pinot Noir $15.

The late Fred MacMurray, of “My Three Sons” fame, once owned the vineyards and winery of MacMurray Ranch located in the idyllic Russian River Valley in Northern Sonoma County California. The Gallo family purchased the property in 1996 as part of Gina Gallo’s quest to produce ultrapremium pinot noir from the Russian River Valley. The success of this effort is evident with this pure and delicious pinot that is tough to beat for the price. Flavors of freshly plucked raspberries, wild blackberries and dark spices just seem to glide across your palate.

Flora Springs 2003 Sangiovese $18.

A 100 percent sangiovese from northern Napa’s Pope Valley, where the temperature extremes are more pronounced than Napa, with hotter days and cooler nights, which allow the fruit to ripen with intense flavor. Although slightly lighter in color than previous vintages, this 2003 is a beauty that boasts the same varietal characteristics of the grape, including cranberry and blackberry, both of which carry through to a very clean and satisfying finish. There are tannins, but they are not overpowering, giving the wine wonderful balance and structure. Try this terrifically food-friendly wine with salmon or a hearty marinara sauce over pasta.

A to Z 2003 Pinot Noir $18.

Here’s a pinot noir from Oregon that is one of the best bargains on the market. The A to Z Wineworks is a bit of an anomaly, in that it owns no vineyards and makes no wine. It is one of the first “negociants” from Oregon that blends wines already made from some of the most prestigious vineyards and wineries in Oregon to make one harmonious wine. It has a beautiful ruby-red color and a bouquet of ripe red fruits with a touch of violets and lavender. There are copious amounts of lush, sweet, perfumed fruit on the palate and just the right amount of tannin and bright acids to round out the body.

Chateau Souverain 2002

Alexander Valley Merlot $19.

A rich and spicy wine that is 85 percent merlot. The balance is cabernet sauvignon and petite sirah to add a little punch of black pepper. Deep garnet in color with a soft purple hue, this Alexander Valley merlot packs a dense concentration of blueberry and ripe black cherry with a subtle back note of pepper. A really well balanced wine on the palate, with a hint of brown spices, vanilla and roasted coffee, which comes from its time in French, Hungarian and American oak. A quality merlot such as this usually comes with a steep tariff, yet this offering from Chateau Souverain brings a mouthful of classic, high dollar, California merlot character for less than a twenty.

Torbreck 2003 Woodcutter’s Red $19.99

A fabulous value in Australian ultrapremium shiraz from the Barossa Valley. The name Woodcutter’s Red stems from Torbreck’s founder, David Powell, who spent years working in the Scottish highlands as a lumberjack in the Torbreck Forest. This wine is 100 percent shiraz and displays all that big, rich jammy fruit that’s indicative of juice coming from this part of Australia. Lots and lots of flavor and aromas are in this wine, such as blackberries, licorice, spice, chocolate and much more. The whole line of Torbreck wines is wonderfully made but don’t all represent great values. Its top of the line Runrig sells for more than $150 per bottle (Ouch!). But I must say it is a phenomenal experience. The added twist to the ‘03 Woodcutter’s is the introduction of a screw cap, another example of this trend that is pouring out of Australia and New Zealand.

Jeff Wicklund can be reached at 425-737-2600, or wick@colbyhospitality.com.