CheapoWino

Wine: Tin Shed “Melting Pot”

Type: Shiraz

Origin: Australia

Year: 2005 (????)

Cost: $35.99 ??

Rating: 10/10

Value: 8/10

Alcohol: ??%

Our opinion:

This wine probably shouldn’t be on a cheapo wino blog, but every now and then you have to treat yourself, to see what you’re missing. We went to the Antrim 1844 for a dinner the other evening and each had a ($15) glass (!!) of this wine before we ate. It was amazing! Honestly I cannot remember a Shiraz this delicious and balanced and perfect tasting. Nothing was too strong, nothing was weak, it wasn’t too heavy or light or spicy or fruity or sweet or dry. Everything just seemed right. Every sip was delicious and exciting. If you want to splurge, you need to know what on. We were told that there were no more of these bottles available for purchase anywhere; the Antrim had bought them all out. However, I see it on both Corridor and Total Wine & More websites. Corridor in Laurel seems to carry it, but if anyone goes there and looks for it, let us know if they have it in stock!

We unfortunately don’t know the year, but all the years have great reviews and > 90 points for their ratings, so my guess is you can’t go wrong.

Merchant Reviews:

Barossa Valley, Australia- The Melting Pot Shiraz offers wonderful aromas of cassis, black pepper and licorice. This rich and full-bodied Shiraz encompasses remarkable flavor intensity and a lengthy finish. {Intense, Licorice, Currant, Full-bodied}”

Others Say:

Bright and aromatic with lovely fruit characters. The palate is smooth with spice and fruits.

“A stunning offering, the 2005 Shiraz Melting Pot reveals flamboyant aromas of cassis, black pepper, licorice, and espresso roast. This medium to full-bodied, pure, rich Shiraz offers another example of the seamlessness of this vintage.”
- Wine Advocate (#167, Oct 2006), 91-94 pts

Wine: Pacific Peak

Type: Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin: California, USA

Year: cannot find a year on this bottle! 1814??

Cost: $2.99

Rating: 5/10

Value: 6/10

Alcohol: 12.5%

Our opinion:

We bought this a while ago and thought it was a great value for the price, so we bought more. The next few bottles were pretty difficult to choke down. I don’t know what happened….

So today when we had an opportunity to try our Vinturi Wine Aerator, we decided to revisit our last bottle of this confusing wine. You want to love it, because it’s so cheap. Well at least we want to love it for that reason. After opening the bottle we poured a little directly into one glass with one of these nifty items which prevents drips and red ring-shaped stains on your table:

The other we poured through our new aerator:

Let me just say that Bernoulli’s law never mentioned anything about a swooshing sound. But it’s kind of cool to hear as you pour your wine through this little bubble into your glass.

Then came a taste-test. On the first sip neither tasted that great. In fact we were both initially disappointed at how bad the pacific peak was tasting. A few more sips and we decided that you could tell that one was a bit better than the other, though I admitted that in a blind taste test I’d be somewhat stumped. It was just very acidic and ..well.. cheap-tasting. Then again I’m not a big Cabernet Sauvignon fan, so that probably didn’t help.

I had an idea.. if the aerator improves the taste by a factor of X, then wouldn’t pouring the wine back through the aerator N times increase the drinkability of the wine by NX? I know what you’re thinking, you can’t do it too many times or you’ll be aerating INXS. We wouldn’t want that. So I just did it 2 times. Better!

Actually by the end of dinner, it was palatable and decent. On the second glass, I admit I did N = 3 aerations on poor pacific peak. Even better. I don’t want to wear it out, I mean we just got it… but, it’s doing its job!

I suppose in summary, if you want to drink this cheap wine, you better get the aerator, because it certainly does it make it taste better! I don’t know how to describe it, but I guess I would say it went from being heavy and tart to a bit lighter (hence the aeration???) and sweeter. Less tang. Or you could cook with this wine, because it’s cheap enough you won’t feel guilty not drinking it.

One last point I want to make. Or maybe a question… Where is the date on this wine?!? Why would they hide it?? What else are they trying to hide….

California- Deeply colored and full flavored with essence of dark cherries, cassis and blackberry, this wine eliminates thoughts that quality must be sacrificed for value. Strong, firm tannins and explosive fruit flavors make this wine a natural friend of food. {Intense, Dark Cherry, Cassis, Full-bodied}

Wine: Twin Wells

Type: Shiraz

Origin: South Eastern Australia

Year: 2005

Cost: $7.00

Alcohol: 14%

Purchased: Corridor Wine & Spirits, Laurel, MD

Rating: 4/10

Value: 4/10

Our opinion:

Eeengh. That’s about all we have to say on this one. We drank it… but there was a glass left on the table, which means it couldn’t have been that good. Cheap price, cheap wine. Not worth it either way. Move on!

Others Say:

Winemaker Review: “South East, Australia- Fresh fruit and ripe tannins surround this medium-bodied, smooth and spicy Shiraz. Aromas of dark ripe fruit, chocolate and vanilla are supported by a palate of spicy plum, blackberry flavors and a velvety smooth finish. Enjoy with BBQ, hamburgers, or kebobs. {Fresh, Plum, Medium-bodied}”

From Total Wine:

“Undrinkable; had to pour it down the sink. :-(”

“Skip it”

One person liked it though:

“If I had read the previous reviews, I probably would have missed this gem. Unbelievable for $7. Very smooth.”