The description on the back is divine in its simplicity: Well Mixed Red.
‘What’s in it?’ you ask, turning the bottle round in your hands as if further annotation will magically appear.
Answer: who cares?
Having tried Larry Cherubino’s wines before (not to mention his glowing reputation) I know that a red blend at the price point of $17 at Dan Murphy’s is bound to turn out OK.
This wine has a great personality- a light, yet full bodied mouthful delivers sweet and long lasting fruity flavours, wrapped with a touch of spice. A good ‘quaffing’ wine as they say – one to be enjoyed across a range of different foods.
What I love most about this wine is that the label gives nothing away about it’s contents – the drinker will never know what grape varieties have gone into it’s making. I’m a big advocate of enjoying wines that resonate with your personal taste, and not letting the price or the wrapper influence your enjoyment (which they tend to do a lot of the time!)
So head down to your local Dan’s and pick up 1/2 a dozen of this mysterious delight.
I love strong, gutsy wine. Rich Shiraz. Smooth Cab Sav’s.
The only problem with some of these wines is that they’re sometimes too full bodied- you have a couple of glasses and you get all happy, followed by an instant wave of sleepiness. This gets me into a bit of trouble sometimes. The standard reprimand (morning after) is sure to follow- Whyyyy did I not just go with a bottle of Rosé??
And so, I was very pleasantly surprised to discover a hearty wine that I can just sip and sip for hours. The 2010 Langhorne Creek ’Metala’ is a Shiraz Cabernet. Tucked away on the second bottom shelf in the Red Blend section of Vintage Cellars, I took a punt on this wine one day because I took a shining to the label – call me crazy but it has a subtle air of royalty around it.
We’re fairly well acquainted now, Metala and I. Many a night have we spent just chilling out, listening to Spanish Guitar and pondering on a lot of random things that would either excite the hell out of you bore you stupid should I mention them here.
The back of her label so (like most wines) sounds like a Heston Blumenthal recipe :
“A blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon from the expressive 201o vintage, this wine is intensely fragrant with spice, white pepper, violets and black-current supported by hints of eucalypt and licorice.” More powerful tastebuds that mine may be able to pick up the black current and white pepper, but my humble tongue was quite satisfied by the rich flavour (of the grapes) followed by a subtle finish. Though I’m slightly embarrassed to admit it, I think I agree with the spice part- it’s quite full-on when you first take a sip! The taste also gets better after it’s breathed a bit of air. At roughly $17 – $20 a bottle, I’m very happy to say that this wine tastes like it costs a fair bit more.
Chef’s Recommendation: Served best with a piece of steak, some roast-oven vegetables, and a table with a few good hearted, slow-drinking personalities seated around it!
For those who love to read: Some interesting information about the Metala Vineyards here.
Set the scene: With a few candles these beautiful tracks:
