I purchased this monster of a wine from WineQ for $19.99 (free shipping!). The wine was a 2003 Deerfield Red Rex. The bottle had a real cork closure and clocked in at 14.5% alcohol by volume. It's a blend of everything and the kitchen sink, made up of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Syrah, 22% Merlot, 8% Cab Franc, 4% Sangiovese, and 4% Malbec.On the nose of the wine I found currants, raisins, spice, and oak. Overall the aroma was smoky, tinged with alcohol. This is a bottle that either needs to air for a bit, so decant, at least an hour before you want to drink or keep this one around for a few more years, I think it could benefit from some bottle aging.
In the mouth there was dark chocolate, blackberries, and spice. The wine was much fruitier than I expected based on the nose, I thought this would mostly be a spicy, leathery type of wine. Instead, after an hour or so, the flavors were fruity and not nearly what I had anticipated.
Next time, I would decant, and then serve it with food. Perhaps a lighter meat dish, a roasted chicken or maybe beef stroganoff. But definitely let this monster breathe before drinking!
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Sounds good Megan and a very interesting combination of grapes. I wonder if the Red Rex is always made up of such a combination!
nice post.
John
:)
Anything Wine
12/17/07, 3:57 PM
A lot of wineries will make a "kitchen sink" blend (our is called "Murgatroyd"), in which they try to create a pleasing wine from the bits and pieces leftover from making their main products. As a result the blend will be interesting, unusual, and tasty. And never quite the same from year to year!
12/22/07, 9:55 PM
John, as El Jefe said, I'm sure it varies from year to year. We get a Barn Blend from another winery and it is definitely different every year!
I'm a big fan of the red blends El Jefe, I'm always picking them up when I can!
1/4/08, 11:01 AM