Zonte's Footstep 2006 Langhorne Creek Shiraz Viognier

Unlike my bottle of the 2004 vintage, this bottle has no top crust of sediment.

It is, though, again a very dark ruby color, quite clear.

Smell of plum, blackberry, and black pepper, with floral notes. Restrained use of oak.

The next day the wine is largely unchanged.

Australia makes many nice wines, but they seem to have a special affinity for Syrah.

$15.99 seems an entirely reasonable price, I wouldn't hesitate to buy again.

Marquis Philips 2006 South Eastern Australia Sarah's Blend

Extremely dark purple/red color.

Smell of plum and black cherry, oak and leather.

Ripe plum flavor, cherry and raspberry, maybe a tannic blueberry thing, oak.

The next day still a full-flavored fruity wine that has enough acid to agree with a pasta/tomato sauce dinner.

The wine is 48% Shiraz, 29% Cabernet, and 23% Merlot. It's a reasonable buy for $15.99, I'd consider buying again. I'd probably aerate it next time.

Domaine Ste Michelle non-vintage Columbia Valley Blanc de Noirs

Medium pale color, tinged pink.

Citrus smell with toast and peach.

Tart apples and peaches, cherries and pears.

Full-bodied, drier than some US fizz, complex enough to retain interest.

A good buy for $14.99, my exploration of New World sparkling wine will continue.

Castello Monaci 2007 Salento Primitivo Piluna

Deep ruby color.

Smell of plum, black cherry, leather, oak.

Bitter tones in the stone-fruit flavor, oak builds to finish.

The next day still a pleasant, impressive, fruit-bomb. Global warming, you are my friend, and Primitivo much benefits from it's journey as Zinfandel.

A fair buy for $14.49, but I'm not inclined to buy again.

Cline 2006 California Zinfandel Ancient Vines

Dark red/purple color.

Prominent oak smell atop plum/black cherry.

Tart dark stone fruit with no shortage of oak.

The next day the fruit remains present if muffled by wood and plenty of it.

Overall, a fun fruity wine with deep flavor, $15.99 seems about right, but I probably won't repeat this. I'm a little leery of a claim like "Ancient Vines" from a bottle without a more precise American Viticultural Area labeling, but the wine is quite nice.

Bodegas Castano 2005 Yecla Solanera Vinas Viejas

I began by aerating this.

Opaque black/purple/red color.

Smell of oak predominates.

Oak nearly overwhelms stone fruit flavors.

The next day any charm this wine might have remains hidden.

This is a blend of 65% Monastrel (Mourvedre), 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Tintorera.

$13.49 represents no bargain. I'm displeased.

Domaine Ste Michelle non-vintage Columbia Valley Spumante Frizzante

Very pale color, vigorous small bubbles.

Floral pear smells.

Sweet pear nectar, apple juice.

The overriding characteristic here is sweetness. Clearly this is mean to emulate an Italian Asti Spumante and it does so creditably. To lien it to a Champagne, think Sec or Demi-Sec.

A pleasant enough sweeter $14.99 fizz. Not really to my taste, but I didn't feel the need to dump it. Not buying again, though. In fact, I didn't need to resort to the rough-and-ready mimosas with which I finish many bottles of New World Sparklers.

Bodegas Castano 2005 Hecula Yecla Monastrell

When I tasted the 2004 vintage my feelings were generally positive but I promised to "let it breathe a bit next time", so this time I made like a mad scientist and funneled back and forth between the bottle and a carafe.

Near-opaque dark red/purple.

Smell of black cherry and plum, oak and leather.

Tastes of stone fruit and oak / vanilla. Well-balanced tannins.

The next day still big fruit over oak and leather.

This vintage, like last year, is a full-bodied fruity Spanish red. Breathing the bottle, and laughing like a mad scientist while doing so, was a positive. I haven't yet quite figured out how best to determine if an unfamiliar red will benefit from aeration. I must ponder.

Reasonably-priced at $13.49. Nyah-ah-ah!

Yalumba 2007 South Australia Viognier

Pale greenish straw color.

Floral smell with peaches.

Tastes like the juice from a can of peaches, but drier. Nice concentration!

This is one of the nicest Viogniers I've had. For $10.99 it compares favorably with a $50 Condrieu. I'd happily, nay, gleefully buy it again.

Like Viognier in general, I find this benefits from serving at warmer-than-refrigerator temperature. They go quite bland when too cold.

Concannon 2005 Central Coast Petite Sirah Limited Release

Very dark purple/red color. One of the most commonly-used adjectives for Petite Sirah is "tooth-staining" and it seems quite believable when viewing this wine.

Rather closed nose, aromas of black cherry and herbs.

Black cherry, berry and plum flavors, little bit of oak.

The next day the nose is a bit more open, I'd add oak to more obvious fruit smells. The oak flavor is a bit stronger as are tannins, there's something like a strong cup of tea in the finish.

Fruity and appealing, I don't regret paying $13.49.

Domaine Ste Michelle non-vintage Columbia Valley Blanc de Blancs

I've recently sampled a range of sparkling wines from California. Tonight, I begin tasting examples from Washington state.

Pale straw color, small vigorous bubbles.

Green apple smell, bread dough notes.

Ripe canned pears, apples, hints of peach.

This is noticeably sweeter than a brut Champagne would be but I'm learning to appreciate New World sparklers for what they are and criticize them only for what's wrong, not for how they compare to something else. With that in mind, this is a nice chardonnay-based wine, but the delicacy that could be there is lessened somewhat by the high dosage. For $17.99, it's a bargain.

Kumeu River Village 2004 Kumeu Pinot Noir

As pale as a red/orange wine can be and still be distinctly not a Rosé. Just a bit darker than Schumaker-era Ferrari red.

Black cherry smell with leather, maybe freshly-turned loam.

Black cherry flavor with pleasant but (I find it) difficult to characterize organics.

Simple but satisfying, smells and tastes better than it looks. Not a great buy for $16.99 but not a terrible one either.

Francis Coppola 2007 California Blanc de Blancs Sofia

Unusual presentation: no cap over cork, the bottle wrapped in pink cellophane.

Pale straw color, small bubbles.

Floral smell, green apples.

Tangy green apple flavor, melon, dry to a fault. Thin.

The grapes used are unusual for fizz: Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscat.

A unique wine. meant, I think, for feminine customers. For $19.29, I won't buy again.

A disappointment since my favorite person is named Sophia, but this doesn't remind me of her.

Brancott 2007 South Island Pinot Noir

Medium ruby color.

Black cherry and red raspberry smells.

Tart cherry and raspberry flavors. Moderate oak.

Pleasant but undistinguished. For $15.79, I expect better.

Scharffenberger non-vintage Brut

Pale straw color, vigorous bubbles, small and fine.

Fresh clean citrus smell, restrained hints of toast.

Grapefruit flavor, no excessive sweetness. Simple and pleasant, citrus flavors and smells dominate.

This is one of my favorite New World sparklers to date. What I most like about it, I think, is the clean expression of balance of pinot noir and chardonnay without including so much sugar that "Brut" would seem a lie. I think $19.99 is a fair price, all things considered.

Happy New Year!