January 3, 2019

Casas Del Bosque Gran Reserve Syrah

Happy New Year!  I hope you had a safe and happy holiday season.  Mine has been wonderful (so far, one more family visit pending at the time of this writing, so there’s still time).  I had some wonderful friends I chose to call family come see me sing on Christmas Eve, drank some wonderful wines, and set myself on the course for a healthy and productive 2019.

One of my resolutions for this year is to continue to develop my palate trying new things.  South American wines are one of the new things I’m trying to conquer.  It sounds funny, but I find that I consistently don’t love South America.  I try, I really do.  It’s not the wine is bad, it’s simply that it isn’t as stunning as I’d like for it to be.

I went to an all South American tasting during the holidays to try some new wines.  Four of them were just okay.  One was decent.  One was good enough that I picked up a bottle.

Baby steps, young grasshopper.

I get stuck in my favorite “go to’s.”  Spain.  France.  Pacific Northwest.  Parts of California.  I don’t call it a rut because I could probably only drink from these regions for the rest of my life and still never try every varietal and wine maker.  These areas are comfortable, happy, I know what I’m going to get.

It’s like eating at the same restaurant every day.  I know exactly what that dish is going to taste like.

Wait!  Does that mean me, a person who prides herself on being different and unique, is predictable?  Gasp!  It can’t be true!

(It’s totally true.  Check out my Netflix account.  It will show you exactly how predictable I am.  That, and that there’s a good chance I’m on a watchlist somewhere.  I watch a lot of crimes shows.  Enough crime shows to make my husband uncomfortable.)

Big, bold, and in your face.  That’s this wine.  It’s everything I’m missing in most South American wines that seem “just okay” to me.   It’s worth a try, if you’re into a big read, pick up a bottle of this one and try something new with me this year.