Sangre de Toro 2007

This wine comes from Spain as it is obvious from the bottle and the name (de Toro - bull in English). Deep ruby colour with a hint of ochre. Rich complex Mediterranean aromas with exuberant notes of spices and blackberries. Velvety tannins are noted on the palate with elegant flavours of small dark forest fruits (blueberries and blackcurrants).

I loved this wine. It does remind me of my trip to Barcelona long time ago when I tried Sangria for the first time. Sangre de Toro has a very similar taste! Naturally, it goes well with all kinds of tapas. I would recommend it for a cosy night-in with a Spanish dinner.

I will also give credit for the interesting story on the bottle label of the wine. I was pleased to learn that the name is inspired by Bacchus, Roman God of wine, known in ancient time as the " Son of the Bull". Now I know why my favorite wine magazine is called Bacchus.

Canti Merlot Sicilia 2007

We had this wine two days ago while dining with friends in a fancy new Italian restaurant downtown Sofia. The wine's aroma is a splendid bouquet of dried fruits and leafs. The wine is full-bodied and harmonious with a long lasting finishing. The taste is sleek, with pleasant viscosity and enough extrusion elements. We had the wine with some tasty taglietelle in parmigiano, Italian style. It did make our evening very special. A recommendation!

Two Oceans Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot 2007

This evening we decided to order a South African wine, while watching a game from the World Football Cup in this country. Although I am fond of South African wines, I wasn't charmed by this one. Let's be honest - if it is not closed with cork, it's not a real wine. We ordered this in a restaurant and we didn't know it is with an aluminium cap. Our expectations, of course, were met. The wine is not among the best I have tasted. Yes, it's a cheap wine, but it could have been better design and taste. The aroma is of strawberries and cherries, but rather nosy.

The wine itself has a taste of red fruits and sweet tannins. Nevertheless, it is soar, not very pleasant. Short and unpleasant finishing. I wouldn't recommend this wine.

Chateau Copsa Cuvee Rouge 2007

The wine is produced in the vineyards of the Copsa winery situated in the heart of the Rose Valley in Bulgaria. The colour is dark red and very intense. The aroma is fresh with tinges of black cherries, french grapes and gentle vanilla. The taste is full-toned and concentrated with, a very pleasant sweet tone and a long lasting memorable finishing.

A recommendation by my ex-classmate and friend Slaveyko Djambazov.

Terrae Nobilles Piave Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

This is the last wine we had during our trip to Rome. A brilliant ruby red with hints of garnet in colour. Generous aromas, remarkable for their velvety elegance, infuses with ripe fruit and a gentle note of spice and herbs. A remarkably length finish with some notes of wild berries. A truly wonderful wine.

The wine comes from the collection of Barrone Bianchi, who was a famous sommelier in Italy during the 19th century. Source: www.lesommelier.com

It was a wonderful Italian evening in the middle of old historical buildings and a truly romantic atmosphere with the most pleasant company.

Cabernet Sauvignon Rupci 2007

Although middle class, this wine surprises with wonderful taste. It has a dark red ruby, dense colour. The taste is a mixture of old wooden barrels and dried fruits. A typical Bulgarian taste, but very saturated and well balanced with a fruit aroma.

A very well balanced wine with wonderful aroma. A great surprise for me, because the Vidin region is not well known for its wines (at least to me). I have never heard of this winery before, but I will try something else from it soon, especially vintage 2007. I am left with wonderful impressions. The bottle also looked very stylish and elegant. I liked the wooden "retro" label and the bottle form. A pleasure for my senses and great value for money, costing only about 5 Euro from the supermarket.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild Mapu Merlot Reserva 2007

The Mapu Merlot comes from the Mapu region in Chillie and we had it with currey from Shri Lanka at my friend Rouja's place. Quite an interesting and magical combination. The wine was absolutely splendid, I really loved the rich, flowery aroma. The taste was deep and intense, very unique and different from the Bulgarian merlot. I am starting to be completely fascinated by Chilean wines. Light, delicious and utterly gorgeous taste, this wine goes into my top listed.

I give all my respect to Chilean people who lost hundreds of their people, homes and beloved ones in the earthquakes at the beginning of this year. I do hope the country will soon recover from this terror.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild Mapu Merlot Reserva 2007

Question mark Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot 2007

I shall close this month with probably the best wine of all. Maybe it's the cold weather this month, or it's St'Valentine but the total wine posts this month count to 19! I will probably hold this record for a long time!

Question mark is the most famous wine by the Katarzyna estate. It has a deep, dark red colour and unique, rich and plentiful taste of peppers, tobacco and black chocolate. The finishing is long lasting and harmonious. The wine is a wonderful mixture of Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot, vintage 2007 from the famous Thracian region in Bulgaria. It is a bit expensive, but totally worth it (about 20 Euro in shops).

Question mark is the first wine by Katarzyna Estate. It started with the question how to launch it successfully and it turned so successful that the name stayed the same. I like the idea. A great wine and a great finishing for my wine script this wonderful February.

+359 Cabernet & Syrah 2007

Well, I can say that the label of this bottle of Villa Lubimetz winery is more important to mention than the wine itself. I read about the label's latest design in a magazine some time before and I anticipated to taste it. I liked it, but it was a bit soar and not memorable. The aroma is bit strong and tastes of spirit.

Enough about the wine, let's say something about the label. As I already said, its more famous than the wine itself. The idea is to have a strong national appeal: +359 is the telephone code of Bulgaria and the font is the one used by the first Bulgarian Post in 1960s. However, it seems to me that the bright yellow covering on the bottle neck totally ruins the idea. More information about the label you can find on the world's number 1 package design website.

Zinfandel Redwood California 2007

This is the first American wine I picked from our local Bulgarian supermarket on quite reasonable price (about 7 Euro). Its amazing how the world is becoming so small. Only about 10 years ago it was impossible to find American, Chilean or Argentinian wine in a Bulgarian supermarket.

Second new for me is the variety - Zinfandel, which is very well known and popular in the US, as I have been told. This Californian Zinfandel is grown in Redwood Valley, California and is very close as taste to the Italian variety Primitivo. Actually, only just recently it was recognized as a separate variety (Source) . It is full and rich in flavour and I can feel a spicy note. Very well balanced and fine. I really loved it. We had it with some cheese and vegetable and it went very well. Will definitely taste another Zinfandel soon as well as some more American wines. I am curious what else can be grown in sunny California.

No Man's Land Merlot & Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

This wine from the famous Damianitza region is very reasonable price and therefore very popular in Bulgarians restaurants. However, I haven't tasted it before and after trying it last weekend, it seems I haven't missed much. The wine was a little disappointment, but fortunately it didn't spoil the great evening we had.

The taste of the wine is very intense and a little heavy I have to say. Maybe the wine will go well with a red meat, but for me, as a vegetarian, it is a little too heavy. Neverthless, I liked the fruitiness taste in it.

As almost any popular Bulgarian wine, the label has a story behind it. No man's land does sound memorable and somehow mysterious. The story behind it is that No Man's Land is a 5 mile land in Southwest Bulgarian border that used to separate the worlds of Socialism and Capitalism. During the Cold war, it used to be a scary place for those who tried to escape abroad. Although the story sounds sleazy, knowing the situation inside out, during Socialism people in Bulgaria were living better than in the recent years during Capitalism. Not so many tried to escape back then and the scary stories about the horrific Socialism are a bit exaggerated.

Frankenseele Spätburgunder 2007

This is the last wine I bought during my trip to Germany. Not knowing the complicated German language I had to seek help by Google Translate to find out what is the variety. So, it turns out that Spatburgunder is the word for the variety and it means Pinot Noir. Frankenseele refers to the region (Franken) where the grape comes from.

To be honest, if I knew that before buying the wine, I wouldn't have because I am not a Pinot Noir lover. Nevertheless, the wine was surpassingly brilliant!

The Spatburgunder is the best red grape grown in Germany, like the Riesling is for the whites. It was brought to Germany from Burgundy in the 14th Century. The wine had a velvet, delicate taste, wonderful, strong aroma and light, ruby colour. I loved its delicate taste. It's definately the best buy I made in Germany.

35° South Reserva Shiraz 2007

Although cold, snowy and dull, February is lovely, because it is the month of St.Valentine and Trifon Zarezan (The Bulgarian holiday of vine-growers and wine-makers). I think it is seen from the intensity of my wine posts this month that I am totally on a wine spree and very much in love too. So this wine from Chile is very special, because we drunk it on St.Valentine's Eve. It was splendid.

The wine itself has a very intense fruity aroma and dark violet colour. The taste is a bit edgy, but gentle and fresh. I could feel the dried cherries and strawberries in the taste. The wine has been left to get old for five months in French barrels, so the taste of oak can also be identified. The finishing is long lasting and memorable.

The grapes are 100% Shiraz variety from the Elqui Valley in Chile and have been hand-picked. The wine has won several medals in London and Paris.

Penfold Rawson's Retreat Shiraz Cabernet 2007

The wine we had for dinner last night was a wonderful Austrilian red vintage 2007 of variety Shiraz (Syrah) and Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine's aroma is a wonderful floral and fruit bouquet. The colour is medium to light red. The taste is tannic and harmonious with a fruit flavour. Very well balanced. The wine is from wineries in South Australia such as Padthaway, Langhorne Creek, Riverland and McLaren Vale. I wish I knew those places. I have always wanted to visit this amazing country, although it is so far away from where I am based.

On Penfolds website I found some interesting info about the name of the wine. It is named after Christopher Rawson Penfold's original stone cottage built in the year 1845, which is still standing among the vines of Magill Estate in Adelaide, South Australia.

The wine is very light and easy-drinkable. It goes great with beef, lamb or pasta. The floral aroma of the wine relates to the exotic country it come from.

Todoroff Gallery Merlot 2007

Todoroff is the first boutique cellar in Bulgaria and used to be my favourite for many years. Unfortunately, in the recent yeas I think the taste has changed a little and the cellar's leading position has been taken by others. Nevertheless, the Merlot listed here remains among my favourites and Todorff cellar is a respected and well know brand in the industry. They also have a splendid spa hotel near the town of Plovdiv (Bulgaria), which charmed me with exceptional art collection, style and great service when visiting last year.

The wine's colour is dark ruby red. I particularly liked the strong aroma and balanced taste of spice, dry fruits and a tinge of oak. The wine leaves a memorable finishing in the mouth. All Todoroff Gallery wines have been left to get old for about three years in "Barrique" type of oak barrels, so that's where the oak taste comes from. There is also another selection of young wines called Todoroff Boutique. More information about this top Bulgarian winery you can find on their website.

We had the wine with a light dinner in a typical and famous restaurant in Sofia: "Pod lipite". The dinner was pleasant and the wine made the food even more delicious. A recommendation.

Astica Merlot & Malbec 2007

Astica Merlot and Malbec is from the Menodza region in Argentina, vintage 2007. I have to confess it is one of the few wines from this region I have tasted, although this one was a little dissapointment.

I was curious to find out some data for the Malbec variety, which is typical for Argentina. According to Julia Kostadinova, a writer at Bachus magazine (www.bacchus.bg), Melbec is an emblematic variety, grown up in every part of Argentina. The top wines of this variety are splendid, dense and fruity, with aromas from blackcurrant, blueberries and blue plums, mixed with the aroma of chocolate and spicies.

The Astika wine had a nice aroma, but the taste was rather edgy and tannic with a very small glimse of chocolate flavour. Maybe this is due to the combination of the Malbec with Merlot, but for my dissapointment the taste was not at all dense and splendid, but rather exotic and tasteless. Maybe it is just me, as I am used to other varieties and regions, but actually I do think a single variety wine would be better and I will try another Malbec soon.



Share