Freak Show Cabernet Sauvignon – 2013

First off, you should spend $20 and buy this wine just for the label.  I received my first bottle of this from the parent of one of my students.  I think it was meant to be humorous because managing that student’s team is very much like managing a circus.  I challenged the parent to give me the same bottle next year, but replace the faces on the label with the faces of our team families.

Like a good cab, the wine has a fabulous dark cranberry color.  It’s absolutely beautiful.

I didn’t expect much of this bottle at first.  Anything with that creative of a label can’t possibly be good, right?  (I am a wine snob, after all.) 

It smells like a heavy red, which is it.  I think the nose reminds me of a wood shop, maybe one with a fireplace for a hint of smokiness.  I smell more cedar and earth than oak, which works well for me.  I don’t love heavy, heavy oaky wines.  The smokiness makes me think about a zinfandel.  It’s that heavy.  

Warning to beginning wine drinkers: this label is not for you!  Skip this for something lighter before you get turned off to cabs.

The nose is represented in the taste.  There’s a heavy bite at the beginning followed by the slightest flavor of blueberries.  I thought at first my taste-buds were off, so I tried again and got the same thing.  So, blueberries.  What follows is grounding, earthy, and a little woody – but again, I get more cedar than oak. 

The wine is warming; I wouldn’t drink this is the hottest of the summer months.  This wine needs to be opened in front of the fireplace in the fall.

The winery that births this wine is Michael David Winery.  They have other labels you can find in your local grocery stores: 7 Deadly Zins and 6^th Sense Syrah are two I’ve seen locally.  Ironically, I found this bottle at the local wholesale club.  You can find it at your larger wine shops, too.  I would love to also find some of their other labels: Earthquake Petit Syrah, Inkblot Cab Franc, Lust Zinfandel.  I could make a hobby out of collecting these bottles alone.

I’m going to spotlight a local Georgia cheese maker as a great pairing for Freak Show Cab.  CalyRoad Creamery is in the Sandy Springs neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia.  They make a nice line of cheeses, but their goat cheeses are phenomenal.  If you can handle heat, I highly recommend Diablo – an aged goat cheese dusted with chipotle and crushed red pepper flakes.

However, for this wine, I like their Black Rock (named for Black Rock State Park).  It’s an aged goat cheese coated with black pepper.  It pairs beautifully with the Cab.  You might have to search for this cheese or order it online.  Do it.  It’s worth it.

Thanks for tasting with me this week!