Flat Creek Estates Tempranillo: The Little Wine That Could

To be honest, this wine almost didn’t get reviewed. I picked this 2012 tempranillo up at Central Market in Houston on one of my trips. It was recommended, and I tend to really like Texas Tempranillo so it seemed like a perfect match. Unfortunately, the first glass did not live up to its potential and I pretty much wrote it off. However, I was raised not to be wasteful, so once a wine is open it is going to be finished off. When I opened the vacuum sealed bottle, I was greatly surprised by the change in the wine.

This little tempranillo went from being a discordant mix of fruit, spice, and tannin to a smooth symphony of flavor. Cherry and plum greet the palate up front, but a much subtler earthiness follows at the end of the draw. Mild spice undertones work throughout the sip and add the right bit of punch--subtle and not overpowering. It is amazing what can happen when you let a wine breathe.

I paired the wine with a pasta salad made from organic whole wheat pasta, grilled chicken, olives, sweet peppers, feta, and herbed olive oil. The sufficiently opened wine was a perfect counterpoint to the light fare. The grilled chicken paired especially well with the wine, and I would like to try it with more grilled meats once I pick up another bottle.

Hall Revisited: Good Times are Here Again

As Pris and I work to get back into the habit of enjoying a good glass of wine a few times a week, we noticed that there are a number of great wines that we’ve reviewed and still have in stock. One of these is Hall’s Cabernet Sauvignon. Several years ago I reviewed a 2007 vintage, and recently had the pleasure of working through its 2011 cousin.

Despite the age difference the tasting notes remain relatively the same as in the original post (http://rgvinophiles.blogspot.com/2011/08/hall-simple-name-for-damn-good-wine.html).  However, one major difference was the overall smoothness of the wine. The initial Hall was about four years old while this vintage was five pushing on six. And that year seemed to make a delicious difference. Dark, full bodied, and smooth as liquid silk this was everything a fine wine should be.

We paired the 2011 with a bit of surf & turf, and it was amazing. But this wine was versatile enough to pair with anything from burgers to tenderloin and everything in between. What really seems to work is the aging. Most of our wines were purchased several years ago and seem to really be opening up nicely. If you decide to spend the $30 or so dollars on a bottle of Hall, wait on it. If you can store it in a relatively cool temperature let it age in peace, then enjoy it four or five years down the road. If you can’t wait that long I understand, but it will be worth it.