For the first post, I thought I'd go with wine. I've been working on the material for the intro sommelier class, and I figure I should get to crackin' on tasting. I just got back from a quick jaunt to the Hill Country of central Texas, and they're producing some wine down there. Apparently Texas used to be a major producer for the U.S., and now there are over 270 producers in the state (and I'm sure every single one of them has a version of "sweet red.") Also, it's Sunday, so no liquor stores are open; I had to pick up wine from HEB.
I got a bottle of Sister Creek Vineyards (sold in Texas only) 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon 3 varietal blend for $15.12. The label says it's 59% cabernet sauvignon, 29% merlot, and 12% petite verdot. Further, "this wine was aged in traditional 60 gallon oak barrels and is lightly filtered French & American Oak barrels & is lightly filtered." Redundancy in labeling is always a good start.
Here goes.
Sight: Deep, bright ruby. No sediment, apparently filtered. Very little rim variation. Thick, slow moving legs. Presumably high alcohol.
Nose: Strong vanilla (I'd guess new oak there), cherry, plum. A slight chemical presence, but what that is is unclear to me. A bit of cinnamon. Not much earthiness that I can tell.
Mouthfeel is a little harsh, but more from alcohol than tannin, I think. Light to medium body. Strong fruit on the front end, with maybe licorice and oak rounding out the midpalate. Tannin isn't overly pronounced, but there's still enough there to keep the wine from feeling lifeless. A bit of acidity balances. Finish is longer than I expected, but nothing crazy. Overall, I would say that the palate is much more enjoyable than the nose. All in all pleasant, and I would probably pair it with a lighter meat like a pork roast, maybe even duck.
