Grocery Store Wine Conoisseur's blog

I had this wine the 3rd day after opening it, but haven't gotten around to blogging about it until now.  On the third day, just about all the fruit had disappeared.  It was very dry in the mouth.  If I understand correctly, this is the tannic aspect of the wine.  I had it with a mexican casserole dish that was fairly spicy.  The tannins and spicy finish still went well with the meal.  Maybe my memory was faulty, but it seemed that the wine was better the 3rd day then the 2nd day.  But with most of the fruit gone, the wine was caught between to extremes as it was on day 2. 

So over all, a good experience.  I would buy it again.  Wine Spectator rated the wine an 85.  I guess that meshes pretty well with my rating system.  85=B=buy it.  Again, I wouldn't know the difference between an 84, 85 or 86.

A wine may be very drinkable the first day.  A true test is how it will taste 2-3 days after first opening.  I'm the primary wine drinker in my household.  Sure, my wife may have a glass or two but it'd be a rare day when we finish a bottle in one night, especially now with 2 little girls.  It's important that a bottle of wine be drinkable 2 or even 3 days after opening. 

I use the vacuvin system to store bottles of wine.  You place one of the stoppers provided into the bottle of wine and use the hand pump to remove all of the air, thus preserving the bottle of wine.  No, I'm not savvy enough to have researched wine storage solutions, determined the best one for my needs and purchased it.  If I remember correctly, we got it as a wedding present.  Exciting I know.  :)  I am thankful for having it though.  So thanks to whomever bought it for us.  :)  There's other options for storing wine, but this seems to be the least complicated.  I read an article in the newspaper a while back where the columnist recommended pouring the leftover wine into varying size containers as it is consumed to decrease the amount of oxygen that can react with the wine.  That may or may not work, it just seems like a lot of work to preserve the wine.  And besides, I hate washing dishes.

The Marques de Caceres was alright the 2nd day.  I had some wine alone and some with the leftover lasagna we had for dinner.  It was flabby the 2nd day.  Still drinkable, but definitely flabby.  I could still taste the cherry fruit and the finish was still spicy.  It fared better with the lasagna especially with the red pepper flakes that I added to it.  It had a litte more back-bone to it.  Maybe it just opened up more while in the glass.  It wasn't as great as yesterday, but still drinkable. 

So I cheated a little bit in this first post of mine.  I didn't buy the wine from my local grocery store.  I bought it from Costco instead.  But, I still paid under $20 for it.  The list price at Costco was a very pleasant, low-down price of $9.99.  I spend a lot of time drooling over the wines at Costco.  To be sure, they have their inexpensive wines.  But they also have very expensive wines from Bordeaux and elsewhere.  I even look at the wines above $20 and $30 but just can't bring myself to buy them.  Am I really going to get more pleasure from those wines then I would from a wine $20 or less?  I don't know.  But I would like to find out one day.

Anyways, on to the wine.  I bought a Marques de Caceres Crianza 2004 Rioja.  You can check out their website here: http://www.marquesdecaceres.com/.  According to the website it is 85% Tempranillo and 15% Graciano and Garnacha Tinto.  The winemaker's description of the wine: "Bright, ruby red color.  Lively bouqet with notes of red fruit (wild strawberries and morello cherries) seasoned by slightly spiced sweet vanilla derived from aging in oak barrels.  Fresh and fleshy in the mouth with a delicious balance between full fruits and smooth tannins that delight the palate whilst revealing great complexity and length.  Moreover, the 2004 harvest season was blessed by ideal weather conditions." 

If you continue to read this blog, you'll notice that tend to prefer the red spicey wines over the drier red wines.  I like fruit and I like spice alone or with spicey foods.  I was definitely pleased with this wine.  I had some alone and with dinner.  I even followed the directions on the label and opened it an hour before dinner ( though I did drink some about 30min after opening it).  It poured a transluscent red.  I could smell the fruit on the bouqet, especially the cherries and it had a strong liquor presence to it. On the palate it was all fruit....very smooth with a long finish that had lots of wood and spice to it.  This is a very solid wine and it paired well with the barbeque ribs we had for dinner, in more ways then one.   We smoked the ribs over a cedar plank which infused the meat with just a hint of the sweetness of the cedar, which is the similar effect I experienced in the wine with the slight woody sweetness on the finish, from the oak barrels. 

So how do I go about rating wines?  I could do a simple up/down vote, but 50/50 really doesn't capture the different qualities in wines.  I could use the school grading system: A-F, A being superior, F being failure.  It'd be exactly the same as the system the "Three Wine Guys" use, which I'm leaning towards right now.  I just can't get my head around the whole 100 point system.  What makes a 93 point wine better then a 92 point wine?  How can you tell the difference?  That's becoming too precise.  And I'm not at that level....yet.  I could use stars....5 being great, 1 being horrible.  I suppose that would be the same as the letter grade.  Should I use a 5 point, 10 point, 20 point or 100 point system? 

I think I like the 10 point system, in which case I'm giving this wine an 8.  It's a solid wine, but it didn't knock me off my feet.  I'd definitely buy it again, but I don't feel a need to rush out and buy a case of it or anything.  Not like I have any special wine cellar or specially tempered place to store wine.  I just have a little wine rack sitting on top of a book case in our basement.  If I have more then 2 wines stored there at a time, then I must have splurged.

I think I'm going to change my rating system.  Didn't take long, huh?  There's: dump, consume, buy, and Gotta Have it!  This wine is a definite buy, but not a Gotta have it!  You'll be the first to know when I come across one of those. 

JT 

I've recently begun to develop a taste for wines.  But I don't have much of a budget to enjoy some of the finer wines.  So I buy wines from my local grocery store or sometimes Costco.  I always stay under $20, usually under $15 and often under $10.  I would love to get into the more expensive wines, but I just can't bring myself to buy them yet.

Now I live in the Chicagoland area.  My local grocery store is a regional chain, Jewel-Osco.  I sometimes go to Dominick's Food store, but the local store's selection leaves a lot to be desired.  Depending on where you're from, your store may or may not carry the same wines as my store does. 

The reason I started this blog is to write down my tasting notes and keep track of what I thought of wines.  I also wanted to share my passion for wine with those that might appreciate it.  I also may include video ratings or other wine resources to check out.  I know there's a lot out there, but it's a lot to sift through.  I'm just a regular joe, with a middle class income that wants to share my wine experiences with others.