It’s not often that we get to try a 97 point wine for under $25, but when we saw that one of our red blends had garnered a 97 point score from Wine Review Online, we had to decant the Location “P” Edition 4 and taste for ourselves.
 
Just after pouring, the aromas of prunes, blackberry compote, leather, roasted vanilla beans, and the spiciness of crushed black peppercorns filled the glass.  A brief 10 minutes of air exposure brought forward sumptuous flavors including cherry liqueur, hints of soft bay leaf, dark, dry chocolate, and a depth of purple violets.
 
At 25 minutes of decanting, another side of the Location “P” emerged with hints of crushed stone, faint smoke, baking spices, and cherry pipe tobacco coming forward.
 
30 minutes in, we took our first taste and enjoyed a generous 40-45 second delivery of rich cherry liqueur, prunes, and roasted vanilla. Being mostly Touriga Nacional, the principal grape in port, every sip delivered delicious port-like flavors in a unique completely dry style.
 
With a sub $25 price tag, 97 point review, and a delightful blend of Touriga Nacional, Trincadeira, and Touriga Franca, this is a superb wine that will be a must try for all the lovers of big Zinfandels and Shirazes as well as anyone who enjoys contemplating a wine’s complex aromas.

- Andrew, Jimm, and Tasho

Let's face it: at the $10 mark, we tend to expect fruity, pleasant wine, but nothing really special. Just a decent glass of wine for the midweek meal or an after-work wind-down. If we get that, we are happy. But occasionally, an inexpensive wine will surprise us with a bit more, and today, we had that pleasure.

Today we opened the Trinity Oaks Merlot and, as always, gave it a vigorous decanting. Initially, the nose revealed chocolate, blackberry, and black cherries with a pleasant aroma of roasted vanilla bean. The palate coated the tongue with red and black cherries sustained by powdery tannins.  No fruit bomb here! While the fruit was rich and offered interesting aromas (including salted taffy, of all things), it was well balanced by the wood which continued to the fore, over time granting whiffs of autumn underbrush and pencil shavings. Over time, there were even elements like faint bell pepper and burnt matchstick that continued to entice.

We are always delighted to find a true bargain, a wine that delivers beyond its price point and exceeds expectations. The 2015 Trinity Oaks Merlot California, at $10.98, delivers. And, as if giving you more than your money's worth on the wine isn't enough, Trinity Oaks has a program, One Bottle One Tree, where they plant one tree for every bottle sold. Great people making great wine!

At Kats Wine and Spirits, we strive to bring our customers wines with an excellent price to score ratio, and with the Handcraft 2014 Malbec, we have a real winner on our hands. With a 91 score, the tasting team (Tasho, Jimm, and Andrew) decided to see how this Malbec would respond to a little decanting.

From the start, this wine had a very inviting aroma with inky blackberries, dark plum skins, dry cooking chocolate, and dried herbs filling the decanter in the first five minutes.  Each interval brought a new flavor to the party with soft purple flowers and cocoa powder at 10 minutes, blackcurrants and faint peppercorns at 15, and a soft minerality at 20 minutes.

At 20 minutes, our first taste delivered an exceedingly generous 45+ second finish of rich fruits and a soft, powdery minerality that stayed even longer. With just 20 minutes of patience, this wine delivers a range of fruits on the palate with yellow plums, tart black cherries, hints of baked dark fruits, and blackberries, all complimented by a light taste of cocoa powder.

However, this wine was not finished.  At 35 minutes, a lovely anise scent arrived to complicate the nose further.  By 50 minutes, the melding of flavors, silky texture, and soft powdery minerality had us saying the wine was well worth twice its price.

While the 91 point score from Tasting’s.com is no slouch, we feel that this Malbec and its dash of Zinfandel is worth an extra point. We give the Handcraft 2014 Malbec a Kats 92, and at $11.98, it’s our best sub-$15 Malbec out of California!

Hailing from the Carboneras vineyard, the highest vineyard in the Rioja appellation, the 2014 Tempranillo is our newest wine from the Baron de Ley winery. Promising red fruits and well-developed tannins, we at the tasting team selected this Tempranillo as the next wine for our decanting test.

10 minutes after opening, the initial nose of this wine was resplendent with black cherries, soft herbs, and subtle whiffs of scorched earth. An additional 10 minutes began to reveal the sweet cherry pipe tobacco aromas while ever so slightly tart and extended red and black cherry notes and soft white pepper spiciness attacked the palate.  These flavors came in a sustained wave that showcased an impressive 35+ second finish.  While this wine may not be especially acidic, the slight tartness and a delightful salinity give this wine a very refreshing personality.

At the 30-35 minute mark, this wine became impressively complicated with emerging subtle flavors of black olive, elegant cedar, faint graphite, and sweet cinnamon spices.  This level of complexity is a rarity, particularly at the $13.87 price point.  This wine is truly a gift from Baron de Ley and would be ideal for your next tapas outing or a prosciutto & olive pizza.  For those who enjoy tuning into the subtle complexities of this Tempranillo, Wine Spectator’s 90 point review will seem a tad stingy.  Go ahead and consider this a Kats 91 and a spectacular value! 

Often pigeonholed as a sweet wine, Riesling is not a one trick pony.  There is a bevy of dry Rieslings available, and we at the Tasting Team (Tasho, Jimm, & Andrew) had a chance to inspect an example of the style with the Pacific Rim Dry Riesling from Yakima Valley.

This Pacific Rim, a 2013 vintage, wine pours a rich honey color, a trait of rieslings with age. After 10 minutes of decanting, this Riesling stayed true to form with a pleasant dusty, dry chalkiness and honeyed green apples on the nose. An additional five minutes revealed a soft and attractive herbal component to the aroma with hints of citrus and pear coming through as well.

20 minutes in, our first taste revealed a myriad of citrus with lemon, lime, and ruby red grapefruit arriving front and center with a tinge of orange on the side of the tongue and a mouth-coating finish.

At 30 minutes of decanting, the minerality of this wine begins to emerge and contributes to more body than your average dry Riesling. On the whole, this is a very approachable wine that will be sure to garner plenty of praise. However, we found this Pacific Rim Riesling to be lacking the big punch of acidity that we've come to expect from a dry Riesling so expect a softer style.

At $14.98 and 90 points from Wine Enthusiast, we feel this rich and slightly softer style delivers great value and will drink well on cooler Spring and Summer evenings. 

The J. Bouchon Canto Sur is a Chilean blend of 50% Carmenere, 25% Carignan, and 25% Pais and with a little decanting, we, at the Tasting Team, believe this wine is a sterling example of those obscure varietals.

With five minutes of air, the Canto Sur exhibited a delightful melange of stone-ground herbs, peppercorns, baked black fruits, cherry licorice, and inky raspberries on the nose. A scant 10 minutes later, whiffs of soft chalky peppermint over a palate of sour cherry and raspberry demonstrated Carignan's place in this blend and the wine's friendly and approachable personality.

At 30 minutes of decanting, what was a jovial and light finish gains a breadth that endures past the 30-second mark.  With a little patience and aeration, the Canto Sur appeared to gain weight and mature into a more "serious" wine.

While the J. Bouchon Canto Sur can be slowly enjoyed after 20 minutes of decanting, it's at the 30-35 minutes that this wine begins to broaden and exhibit the fruits and spices of the Carmenere and Carignan grapes. 

At just $16.98, the 93 point Canto Sur red blend is a steal from J. Bouchon! A blend like this is ideal for the salinity and earthiness of a prosciutto and mushroom pizza or your favorite herb roasted chicken. Regardless, be sure to set aside a little time and thoroughly enjoy the 2015 J. Bouchon Canto Sur. 

Jacob's Creek calls the 2015 vintage their best in a decade and after tasting their "Two Lands" Pinot Grigio, we, on the tasting team, understand their need to celebrate.

This South Australian white opens with an aroma of green apples and pears with hints of peaches over soft chalkiness. A few minutes of air allows aromas of high-pitched lemon zest to add dimension to the nose. With 20 minutes of decanting, developing notes of banana pudding with vanilla wafers and the fleeting nuances of fruit stripe gum round out an already complex nose.

With such dimension to the nose of this wine, we had hopes that the "Two Lands" would follow through on the palate.  Initially, this Pinot Grigio delivered a burst of energetic, refreshing lemons and peaches with an impressive staying power.  Lingering for more than 40 seconds, the finish of this wine has an elegance that far exceeds its $11.98 price point. 

A unique feature of this wine is a creaminess on the palate that contrasts and yet perfectly intertwines with its acidic citrus energy.  In fact, we would describe the finish of this wine to be refreshing like lemon meringue pie (without meringue).

 2015 Jacob's Creek "Two Lands" Pinot Grigio would be ideal for redfish at the Mayflower Cafe or a summer evening on the patio. We find Tastings.com's 90 point review to be entirely fair and validating of this remarkable $11.98 value.

With the mercury rising, we're entering prime Sauvignon Blanc weather in Jackson. To help combat the heat, our tasting team decided to put the 2016 Boya Leyda Valley (Chile) Sauvignon Blanc to the decanting test.

After initial agitation in the decanter, the Boya presented aromas of soft chalk, sea breeze, and salted cold pears. Within 25 minutes, aromas of white grapefruit, grass, and lime zest became evident as whiffs of green peppers added interest to the mix.

At 25 minutes, we had our first taste of this wine and were impressed by a persistent 50+ second finish that delivered energetic waves of oceanic salinity carrying zesty herbs, juicy lemons, and white grapefruit across the palate.

10 minutes later, aromas of elderflowers awoke on the nose while the wine continued to gracefully deliver powerful citrus flavors across the palate with great length.  

At $18.97 and 93 points from Descorchados, the 2016 Boya Sauvignon Blanc is one of the vintage's must-have Sauvignon Blancs! With an abundance of citrus and soft herbal notes, this wine would be sensational with steamed seafood, particularly mussels & clams. The Boya also makes the perfect wine for Spring and Summer backyard cookouts.

At just $14.98 and 91 points from Descorchados, the 2015 Calcu Sauvignon Blanc is our next contestant for the decanting test. Within five minutes of opening, this impressive wine from the foothills of the Andes Mountains in the Colchagua Valley (Chile) exhibited a bounty of the Sauvignon Blanc's traditional flavors with earthy notes of faint smoky flint, light sea breeze, and moist chalk with fruit flavors of lemon zest, pears, green apples, and undertones of pineapple. 

Our first tasting came at 15 minutes. Initially, there's a brief moment on the palate when the wine seems like it may be a little short and linear.  However, the wine promptly expands and coats the palate with a lush delivery of concentrated waves of pear, green apples, and lemons, echoing the initial aromas.

At 30 minutes, additional development reveals attractive aromas of delicate wintergreen deep within the glass. That scent, combined with the bracing flavors of light salinity and lime make the 2015 Calcu Sauvignon Blanc a refreshing companion for your next patio outing.

Overall, we find the Descorchados 91 to be a fair review and the 2015 Calcu Sauvignon Blanc to be a great value at just $14.98.

Due to its Decanter 95-point score at just $17, we've had the 2010 Baron de Ley Rioja Reserva targeted for tasting since discovery. It certainly has not disappointed and, at $17, this wine way over delivers. I'd be impressed by this wine at five times its price.

We poured this wine in a decanter and violently agitated it washing-machine-style for about 5 minutes to get it going. I'd recommend being on point after 25 minutes of decanting to nose the wine and take a few test sips over about 10 minutes to the 35-minute mark when I'd start slowly sipping the wine.

The initial nose offers cold, dry chocolate, blueberries, blackberries, pencil lead, and cool, dry herbs (not quite spearmint or wintergreen, but slightly cool). On the palate, there's a free delivery of abundant blue and black fruits along with notions of the other mentioned components. By 25 minutes in, additional elements of chalk and black plum skins emerge with a very slight tartness that alludes to developing red-fruit complexity. 

At 32 minutes, the wine is opening further, becoming a harmonious melding of the scents and flavors above while new complexities of elegant cedar and violets stir around the nose. If you are not into this wine by now, you're late to the party.

Later, slightly raisinated black plums with hints of red-fruit brightness emerge to take the complexity of fruit to extraordinary levels. Eventually, the red-fruit nuances become convicted in offering up dark cherries that join with the other fruits to deliver an incredibly dynamic palate that spans the entire red-blue-black spectrum.

The 2010 Baron de Ley Rioja Reserva and the 2013 Aquinas Pinot Noir are my top two must-have red recommendations.

- Tasho Katsaboulas

Pinot Noir this impressive is beyond rare around $20. Jimm and I (Tasho) were amazed as the 2013 Aquinas Pinot over delivered with extreme excess making many Pinots at two to three times the price look bad! 

Importantly, it can't be stressed enough that this wine demands 35 minutes of decanting before it will begin delivering its riches. Immediately after pouring the wine into your decanter, please set an alarm for 35 minutes because you won't want to miss any stage of this dynamic wine! At 35+ minutes, this wine remarkably broadens and becomes intensely aromatic. 

The initial slightly darker fruit flavors of black raspberry, plum, and black cherry begin to work themselves into a high-pitched frenzy of bright red-fruit flavors featuring cherry, raspberry, pomegranate, and cranberry skins delivered with a sensational citrus-fruit juiciness that's like Mandarin orange! The incredibly bright acidic energy results in some of the fruit flavors displaying a tartness that interestingly contrasts a slight sappiness similar to that of candied-apple coating (wine is dry). Plus, an incredible array of aromas and nuances make this an absorbing wine. Roasted vanilla, eucalyptus, purple flowers, graphite, spice (distant clove), fine French oak, and a pleasant earthiness are all delivered on the long mouth-watering finish! For those patient enough to allow full development, blueberry flavors further complicate the array of red-fruit flavors after an hour and fifteen minutes or so. 

This wine is the epitome of a holiday-food-friendly wine; however, the wine is so nuanced that it's a shame to introduce the distraction of food flavors. Importantly, because this wine demands 35 minutes of decanting followed by very slow enjoyment over the next 45+ minutes to allow full development, it's best enjoyed alone or with one friend. If you taste with four, get a couple of bottles and decant them simultaneously in a large decanter.

Because this wine retails for just $21, I was skeptical of Wine Review's 95 point review. However, this dominant Pinot delivers a spectacular parade of flavors with remarkable energy, a silky mouthfeel, and a long elegant finish that has me on board! I would love to see this Pinot in a blind tasting against this year's very best $50+ Pinots.

- Tasho Katsaboulas

- Tasho Katsaboulas 

This 2014 Concannon Cabernet from Paso Robles is coming in with a 93 point score from Tastings.com, and at $15.69 per bottle, it's fighting well above its weight. The Concannon has initial aromas of blackberries, black currants, and whiffs of cocoa powder. However, a little swirling of the wine introduces blueberries, eucalyptus, and hints of bell pepper to the nose.

On first taste, juicy black fruits, riding on acidic energy, flood the palate while the conclusion is a cascade of black grapes, black plums, and blueberries. For decanting, this wine is ripe for test sipping between the 20-30 minute mark where beautiful oak, vanilla bean, and elegant cedar notes fill the nose. After 30 - 35 minutes of decanting, one's patience is handsomely rewarded as a seamless wine with character and elegance that far exceeds its price reveals itself. Concannon has come through with a massive over delivery in this wine that easily drinks like a wine twice its $15 price!

- Andrew Dunaway, Jimm Brumley, and Tasho Katsaboulas

2014 Casarena Estate Malbec, Mendoza (Suckling 92): The 2014 Casarena Estate Malbec is from famed Lujan de Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina.  By the end of our experience, Jimm and I (Tasho) were amazed at how delicious and easy drinking this wine is while still displaying intriguing minerality. After vigorously agitating in a decanter, an initial nose of sweet charred oak, rich vanilla extract, and blackberries with faint sage emerged. At 10 minutes, aromas of damson plums join with a whiff of dried dill. On the palate, the juicy blackberries and luscious plums finish with slight spice and attractive minerality. At 25 minutes, a lightly floral aspect like violets adds complexity with faint wet chalk or a slight soapiness. By 45 minutes in, the fruit is becoming even more textured in revealing a red-fruit dimension like cherries. The wine is elegantly balanced with juicy acidity keeping the wine light on its feet while gracefully delivering rich fruits. Everything that this wine does is in perfect harmony. It's like each flavor was meant to go with the other in the proportions delivered. Malbecs don't get much better at $16, and the ones that are won't appeal to as many as this one.

The excellent 2011 Edgebaston Chardonnay from Stellenbosch, South Africa opens with aromas of white flowers, bread-dough yeastiness, fresh lemons, and mineral water. On the palate, crisp green apples, pears, and faint almonds come through with caramel custard and ground cinnamon. The personality of this wine is crisp with refreshing citrus minerality, yet there's warmth from the caramel custard and cinnamon that creates an attractive duality. Many who love unoaked Chardonnays and Chablis will love still love this wine as the caramel custard, and cinnamon nuances are subtle and add interesting complexities. This wine is ideal for those who love Northern Burgundy but do not want to endure the price. I feel that Wine Spectators 90 point review was a little stingy and would rate this wine in the 91-92 range.

- Tasho Katsaboulas

James Suckling reviewed this outstanding $16.98 value 92 points. The wine's initial aromas are of cranberry skins, struck flint, dry herbs, and white pepper. With air, dark fruits begin to emerge on the nose with pleasing oaky aromas, charred vanilla, and mocha. The initial palate is lively displaying tart black cherries, cranberry skins, and yellow plums. At 15 minutes, blue fruits join on the nose a palate with dry mint flavors. At 25 minutes, the wine starts becoming more varietally correct with a whiff of bell pepper accenting black currants, mocha, dry mint, and vanilla extract. With more time, the wine seems to become darker and richer while still maintaining a tart cherry component that keeps the wine dynamic. This Cabernet is a steal. 

- Tasho Katsaboulas

Because the wine's grapes came from 40+-year-old vines, the winemaker named the wine Les Darons which is slang for the Dads or old men. This wine is young and requires 25+ minutes of decanting before getting too deep into it. The initial nose is of dusty blackberries, fine dried tobacco, cocoa, and soft leather. At 15 minutes, violets, blueberries, and black cherry liquor diversify the darker black fruit flavors. The Syrah and Carignan impart enough juiciness to deliver the notable tannins which would compliment rich, full-flavored meats. The fine tobacco and peppery minerality give this wine a level of sophistication typically seen at much higher price-points. This $16.98 value was reviewed 91-93 point by Robert Parker.

- Tasho Katsaboulas

At just $13.87, the '13 Seaglass Cabernet delivers a wine worth twice its price. After agitating the wine in a decanter and 17 minutes, the wine gives off aromas of vanilla extract, baked blackberries, and cool, dry mint. At 25 minutes, aromas of blueberries and dry mint chocolate (wine is dry) join a palate featuring gobs of fresh, lively black cherries on an impressive 45+ second finish! At around 45 minutes, the vibrant fruit flavors join a silky saline minerality, hints of salted dried meats, and charming sandalwood accents. At 55 minutes, green bell peppers emerge with raisin-box aromas and an array of plums on the palate. There won't be many other sub-$15 Cabernets that deliver similar quality. I find Tastings.com's 93-point review to be spot on. 

- Tasho Katsaboulas

The 2015 Penya Grenache-Carignan-Syrah blend from Côtes Catalanes, France generously rewards those who decant with patience. Out of the decanter, an initial nose of spice, violets, dry gray stones, and tart red fruits with blue and black fruit accents is joined by an interesting inkiness. At 15 minutes, faint whiffs of smokiness emerge and meld with aromas of fresh raspberries. At 21 minutes, the fruit is just beginning to loosen a bit, and plum skins are emerging on the nose, but the wine is still not quite ready to drink. At 27 minutes, the fruit is starting to loosen introducing the beginning of the drinking window. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate scored this wine 89 points. For the first 40 minutes, I agreed. However, after 40 minutes of decanting, this wine soars to a new level as lush black fruits impart a deep, rich flavor that brings a wonderful counterbalance to the tart, juicy red fruits. At 57 minutes, there's a sappiness to the plum and raspberry fruits that remind me of Now-and-Later candy (wine is dry). This interesting red blend kills it at just $13.87! I have no reservations in upgrading the Wine Advocate's 89 to the 91 point score this wine fully deserves.

- Tasho Katsaboulas

Any wine that survives the three-judge gauntlet of Decanter with a score of 94 is worth a look in our book, even more when that wine comes in at under $20 a bottle. The Amalaya 2015 Malbec fits that bill, and after our tasting, we discovered that this is not your average Argentinian Malbec.

With decanting in mind, we recommend delving into the scent of the wine at 25 minutes with a few test sips to follow in the next 10 minutes. From 35 minutes out, the wine truly shows its character and can be fully enjoyed. 

We poured this wine into a decanter, and after five minutes of vigorous agitation, we found that the initial nose was filled with soft scents of gunpowder and cocoa powder. At 15 minutes, the cocoa powder had asserted itself to be the dominant flavor while scents of dried wintergreen and dark fruits were lurking in the shadows.

At 25 minutes, hints of vanilla began to pierce through the cocoa powder cover whereas 30 minutes of decanting allowed an array of juicy plums and black cherries to shine on the palate with a solid 30-second finish.

Now 35-45 minutes in, this wine shows just how unique of a Malbec it is when the palate and nose fill with burnt matchstick, underripe strawberries, blueberries, and crabapples. Finally, at the 1-hour mark, a minerality emerged with notes of salt and yellow plums.

Throughout the tastings, we were intrigued by the character of this Amalaya Malbec.  There is a remarkable acidic energy beyond that typical for the varietal making it a fantastic food wine made for spring patio weather.  With such acidity, this wine would pair perfectly with freshly grilled ribeyes or lamb chops. However, it's not limited to the grill; this wine can be the new best friend for your meat lovers pizza, beef roast, rich cheeses, or any fatty, stick to your ribs fare. 

If you've been struggling to decide which wine should go with your Sunday dinner, we have your answer with the Amalaya 2015 Malbec.

- Andrew Dunaway