Here’s a quick note on two reds we recently opened. Both are quality, well made wines that pack a lot of value into their sub-$20 price tags. One is from the very southern tip of the Rhone in France, the other from the Barossa Valley in South Australia. Here are the details, first the French wine:
Wine: 2014 Domaine du Prince
Winery Location: Costieres de Nimes AOC, southern Rhone, France
Tasted By: Neil & Cheri Date: July 2017
Tasting Notes: a rich, full bodied wine with lots of red and black fruit, spice and a little oak. Some savory notes as well. This is 75% Syrah and 25% Grenache. The Costieres de Nimes region is at the very southern tip of the Rhone Valley region, and here Rosé starts to be a major part of the wine production as we are not far from the sea. In fact the Costieres de Nimes AOC area used to be part of the Languedoc region, only moving to the Rhone jurisdiction in 2004. This is no Rosé, however, but a serious red wine with lots to offer. The area is a good one to look toward for value priced red wine.
Price Point – $14 at Triangle Wine in Morrisville, N.C.
Would We Buy It? – absolutely. This was a steal under $15. It is a rich wine, one that you would have been happy with at twice the price. Highly recommended.
And now the Cabernet from the Barossa Valley:
Wine: 2012 Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon
Winery Location: Barossa Valley, South Australia
Tasted By: Neil & Cheri Date: July 2017
Tasting Notes: this is a rich and layered Cabernet, with ripe fruit, great depth and a long, full bodied tasting experience. Berry fruit dominates, with blackberry and currant. The word luscious would be appropriate here. If you like big expressions of Cabernet then this is a wine for you. Well done.
Price Point – $17 at a Harris Teeter supermarket in N.C., and that is exactly where wine-searcher puts it as well. You should find this under $20.
Would We Buy It? – yes we would buy this again. We did an article and wine review on Chateau Tanunda a few years back, following a conversation I had with John Geber, the owner and proprietor (you can read that by clicking here). John is making great wine, winning all kinds of awards, and staking a claim to being one of the pre-eminent wine producers in all of Australia, and the world for that matter. Some of his higher end, old vine wines are supposed to be amazing, although we have not yet had the chance to try those.
If you find either of these wines you can’t go wrong. It is likely you might run across more recent vintages, and based on our past experience we suspect they will be excellent as well.
A votre santé!
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