Sideshow Novelties and Oddities No. 2: The Puppet master

Today’s blog is on the very budget end of the spectrum.  I spent $5.50 at my local grocery store for this one.  It had a cool label.  I figured how bad could it be?  (Do you notice this theme?  I find myself saying that a lot.)

Fortunately for me, this one worked out well.  The Puppet mater is a Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon blend from Australia.  Which was splendid because it’s been a really rough week at work and I needed something positive.  A glass of this, along with a good book and a bubble bath turned out to be just what I needed before I faced another day of frustrations. 

Honestly, I’m tired of angry people.  I have a suspicion there will be a lot of angry people all the way up until November 8 and then a little longer yet.  But that’s politics.  I’d much rather chat about wine.

I love the spicy/smoky flavor of this wine.  It’s complex, especially when you first open the bottle.  After a day or two it smooths out and becomes more “drinkable” for the less intense wine drinker.  You’ll catch raspberries and plums before the smoky end.  It’s delightful for the price.

But be warned expensive cab drinkers – you won’t find the depth a truly amazing cab has. 

So clearly it’s been a bad week.  I went right to flavor before I tested the nose.  Bad blogger!

The nose has more blackberry than raspberry and hints of chocolate.

Overall, this is a good every day wine.  I imagine it would go well with peperoni pizza.  I tasted it with goat cheese on crackers with jalapeno mustard. It wasn’t the right pairing.  This needs more body with it’s food – a steak or hamburger.  It’s not girly enough for goat cheese.

There are two other sideshow varietals: No. 3 The Charmer (Shiraz) and No. 1 Queen Roma (Chardonnay).  I’ll be looking for those soon.