The Desert Wine Guy - 2016 Murphy Goode - Red Wine

   The other day I was in my local Supermarket and came across the 2017 Murphy-Goode, Sauvignon Blanc which cost me $12. I reviewed the wine the same day I bought it and I really enjoyed it. Today I went to the same Supermarket and noticed that all of the Murphy-Goode wines were on sale as the tag said "buy 1, get 1 free". That would make each bottle $6 a piece and I couldn't resist that offer, so here we are.
   Today's wine up for review is the 2016 Murphy-Goode, Red Wine and i'll start off by telling you that this is a blend of six different red varietals which are 34% Zinfandel, 27% Merlot, 16% Petite Sirah, 13% Petit Verdot, 6% Syrah, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon. That's crazy huh? Finishing this section up, the wine comes in at 13.5% Alcohol and is sealed with a Screw Cap.
   Let's go ahead now and learn a little bit about the Murphy Good Winery (https://www.murphygoodewinery.com/wine). Back in 1985 three friends who all loved wine decided they were going to put their money together and form a winery, the Murphy-Goode Winery. Two of those guys, Tim Murphy, who is actually considered the "Father" of Sauvignon Blanc in Sonoma County, and Dale Goode, were the actual grape growers of the trio and the third, Dave Ready, was the marketer of the team. Today, Daves sons are the winemakers for Murphy-Goode, and Tim Murphy's three sons oversee the vineyard operations.
   Let's now for a second go ahead and look at the label and see what I think about it. Looking at this label I for some strange reason think of a Bourbon or whisky bottle. Perhaps this is because of the Fonts used, I don't know. I also like how it seems that the label is broken into segments as well. Overall, my impression of the label is it is simply, okay and nothing special.

Murphy-Goode Founders - Tim-Murphy,Dale-Goode,David-Ready

   So as I pour this red blend into my glass I am looking at a wine that is a fairly dark Burgundy in color. The very edges appear to be the only difference as they are clear. Now when I say edge, I mean there just barely is an edge as it seems that Burgundy color seems to almost have throughout the entire wine. I am liking the way this wine looks guys, it is rather impressive in its appearance.
   As I move to the Bouquet of this wine I am getting a deep note of both Black Cherry & Cola with both coming softly up from the bottom of my glass. These notes are also giving off a rather nice perceived sense of some depth to this wine. Now, whether or not that will turn out to be a reality remains to be seen. A Cedar note is also coming on strong here and along with the other notes brings a great sense of warmth on the Nose but not an alcohol warmth. I would be remiss if I didn't mention a Black Plum Note to add to this wines ever so satisfying and rich Nose presentation. On the very back-end of the Bouquet is a note of Cocoa that I wish there was a tad bit more of. All in all I have to say that this wine is showing off a Bouquet way above its price tag folks. As for 'Legs" on this wine, there weren't many but the ones that are present are slow dripping.
   Alright now, so I have been tasting this wine as I went along here and I actually want to just cut to the chase so to speak and tell you my conclusion and what I overall think about the wine right now but, I will restrain myself. Let me begin by letting you know about the bit of Oak and a touch of Cinnamon that I am picking up. These two Notes both combine together very nicely in general and present a bit of richness on the Palate. The Cinnamon Note also however does also bring along with it a touch of sweetness which does unfortunately expand a bit as the wine sits in the glass. I will talk more about this sweetness later on. Aside from that drawback, this richness also helps in presenting the wine as a rather nicely done, slightly rich, oaked, powerhouse of a red wine. Adding to this are Notes of both Mullein & Black spice which joins in for the fun to help add to the wine an earthy Palate feel which is overall delicious.

Murphy Goode - Winemaker -  Dave Ready Jr.

Thankfully, I am not getting any fruit forwardness here in the wine but do keep in mind that there is a bit of sweetness that some may confuse for it. Now please note that I differentiated between what in my opinion is the nasty taste of a fruit forward wine and the ultra controlled release of some sweetness in a wine as there is a difference. As for Tannin's, there are none but that is okay as this wine doesn't require them in order to offer up a big mouthfeel and the wine is more than capable of sanding on its own without them. As I move on now, I wonder if you have ever tasted a Bing Cherry. For those of you who grew up with this fruit as I did when I was a kid in Brooklyn, you will find this wine to have an identifiable taste, that being of Bing Cherry. This note comes into play just before Mid-Palate and is ever present afterwards as it thankfully doesn't just fade away. This wine also manages to presents a good bit of acidity as well which adds some explosiveness on the Palate as well as a moderate mouth watering  bit of juiciness that I for one certainly appreciated and enjoyed. Do you guys like a wine that showcases a medium note of ripe Blueberry? If you do, your in luck as the Blueberry presents a softness along with it and seems to work together with that Cinnamon I mentioned previously for the benefit of the wine. Well guys, I do believe that I am done with this review as I have some wine to enjoy and so it is time to get to the conclusion section. I will see you there.

Murphy-Goode, Winery

   As I begin this conclusion paragraph I will start off by addressing that bit of sweetness in the wine that  promised I would. One of the only real drawbacks to this wine comes from that sweetness presented. At first the Palate exposure to the sweetness is perfect as it is not offensive but as the wine opens a bit it does become somewhat of a challenge to overlook it and I simply couldn't. Having said this, I have to tell you something else about sweetness in my red wines. I normally am not a big lover of sweetness in my reds and I am pretty sensitive to it. If you happen to be less sensitive to the note of sweetness in your red wines then you may consider this to be a blockbuster wine. In actuality though, I believe people who have either preference will still overall enjoy this wine as much as I did. Doing my research on this wine I have found read that a lot of people have commented that this is a "very easy drinking wine" but I must disagree, this wine is not for the person who wants an average red wine to pass the time or enjoy at the pool. Go ahead, don't listen to me, serve this wine to your non red wine savy friends and see the reaction you get but don't say I didn't warn you. This wine is just a bit too much "in your face" to please the average non Palate educated drinker. Between the acidity and the influence of the other Notes, this wine is slightly above your average daily drinker Guys, this wine took me by complete surprise and I enjoyed it. On The Desert wine Guy rating scale, I give this wine 92 points but it may have scored higher if not for the bit of sweetness that prohibited further elevation. I am glad that I have another bottle on hand to enjoy as I did get one free. Would I recommend that this wine end up in a wine cellar, certainly not but I do think that it should be kept on hand for a good time.

                                                                                                                                The Desert Wine Guy

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The Desert Wine Guy - 2019 "The Crossings", Sauvignon Blanc

  Welcome back everyone to The Desert Wine Guys wine blog. Today I am going to be doing one of the last Sauvignon Blanc reviews for a while because I do believe it is time to expand my varietal horizons a bit. I am open to suggestions that you guys might have as far as different white wine varietals to try so please, go ahead and put them in the comments section at the end of this review.
  As you already know, today I will be reviewing a Sauvignon Blanc, to be more specific, I will be reviewing the 2019 - The Crossings, Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough (Awatere Valley) region of New Zealand (https://www.thecrossings.co.nz/). I bought this wine the other day at my local supermarket on clearance for $9.20 but it normally retails for $11.99. The wine is screw cap sealed, comes in at 13% alcohol and the grapes for the wine come from various vineyards in the Awatere Valley.
  Checking out the label now, I like it as I think it fits well with being on a bottle of white wine. The label sits low on the bottle and is also on the narrow side so as to show off more of the wine as it rests in the bottle. I like the fonts and script used as well as their sizes and placement.

Wine In A Bag.....Wait, What?

  Let's dig a little deeper into this wine now and check out what it's all about. Let's continue here with the wines Bouquet. As typical with this varietal from Marlborough, the wines Bouquet is strongly on the gooseberry side and the Note is dominate which is not necessarily a bad thing. I also get a bit of grapefruit, grass and perhaps just the tiniest bit of melon as well.
  The review of the Palate of this wine will actually come in two different parts and you will see why as you read on. Starting off here, that dominant Gooseberry that I got on the Nose just transfers right on over here and it is dominant here as well, like, really dominant. Again as well, that grapefruit Note also comes across as well and it is not exactly willing to take a backseat here. When put together these two Notes unfortunately present the wine as being a very astringent expression of the varietal. Adding to this is what would normally have been some rather nice acidity but unfortunately when combined with that gooseberry & grapefruit astringency that the wine appears so proud to be putting on display, it really makes for an over the top astringent, harsh and truly Palate offensive wine. If you can somehow manage to put these Notes aside, which will be hard, you might manage to get a taste of a hidden bit of tropical fruit but not much. As an example, I am getting (barely) an unripe Nectarine that is actually trying to soften the other Notes but really has no chance at being successful and in the end falls flat in that endeavor.
  

   So, fast forward about a half an hour or so now. You always hear about drinking a white wine really cold but for me it seems that when I drink a white wine cold like that, I seem to come across wines that presents themselves as this one does which is harsh, astringent and Palate offensive. It is only as these wine warm just a bit that they begin to open and develop on the Palate and that is what happened here..... kind of. So, the wine has now warmed just a bit but enough to be a little more open on the Palate. Yes, that Gooseberry Note is still present and dominant but it has begun to give way a bit to other Notes such as one of grass. This grass Note seemed to play right into what a normal New Zealand, Sauvignon Blanc should posses and it was decent but still had a battle to fight. That Nectarine that I got earlier which was unripe and lacking any sweetness at all has now been allowed to express at least some sweetness and it is just enough to allow me to at least have some hope for the wine. Getting back to the gooseberry for a minute, I don't want you thinking that the gooseberry Note has lessened any as it hasn't, it just seems to be playing a little better with the other Notes, that's all. I am now also getting some Pineapple intermixed with the gooseberry and other Notes. That over the top grapefruit Note has been lessened as well by just a bit and is now ever so slightly enjoyable rather than just simply offensive. With this wine the word "herbal" is not just a word here as there is a nice herbal Note present that I rather enjoyed. Finishing this wine up is a light Passion Fruit Note which is just after Mid-Palate and I think the one fruit that really was at least a bit effective in providing a small amount of a change to the wine later on but once again, not enough to make any difference. This and every Note in this wine seems to unfortunately take a back seat to that darn gooseberry and grapefruit and I am disappointed. Okay guys, I think I have said more than enough about this wine, I must get to my conclusion now as quite honestly, I am at about half a bottle and I have tasted more than enough so let's do that.

   Well, here we are at the final paragraph of this review. I just want to come out and say that I really, truly did not care for (I didn't like it) what this expression of the wine had to present. I didn't mind the actual Notes of the wine themselves including the gooseberry and grapefruit, but I did mind the strength at which these two presented themselves as they were the cause of the wines harshness/astringency. I did mind the lack of any real sweetness or tropicalness. No, for those of you who may ask, I am certainly not asking for a sweet wine as that is what a wine cooler, Moscato or a Riesling are for. All I wanted is a Sauvignon Blanc that didn't forget it was supposed to possess at least a bit of sweetness as well as a bit of tropicalness as that sweetness and tropicalness unfortunately was not to be had in any effective amounts. What was to be had is a wine that went way over the edge of harshness to a wine that I almost found to be undrinkable. Now, there are those who will read my review and run right out and buy this wine because what I described in this review is a wine which in their opinion is what the varietal from this region is supposed to be. If this is you then I say go buy the wine because you will enjoy it, you will certainly have no competition from me at the shelves. If however, what I want in this varietal is what you want then I say stay far away because you will find this wine as offensive as I did. Before I leave you, I want to let you know that this wine is available in a bag (yeah, really) and a carton as well as a bottle. Perhaps that is the type of wine I was reviewing (Fetzer anyone), I don't know but that would certainly explain why I rated the wine at the rating I did. Having said all this, on The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine 85 points which means that it might perhaps be okay as a pool wine but other than that I would stay far away from it as there is much better for the price. I also would not present this wine to anyone with a distinguishing Palate as they will lose respect for you as far as wine goes. At the same price range I would recommend searching out a wonderful Matua Sauvignon Blanc or perhaps for a few dollars more a Whitehaven.

                                                                                                                                The Desert Wine Guy



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The Desert Wine Guy - 2018 Hess Select Sauvignon Blanc

   The other day I was doing some shopping with Mrs. Desert Wine Girl in our local Supermarket here in Florida and as we walked in I noticed that there was a display which read "buy one get one free" in reference to this wine which is the 2018 Hess Select - Sauvignon Blanc. Well I figured it was from the Hess winery so how could I resist. Today you and I will find out together if I should have resisted. Let's go ahead and get into this wine review now.
   Lets start off with the fact that the wine cost $20. Now I found out later that the wine actually  averages $10 for a bottle so this buy one, get one "deal" was really no deal at all. The wine is sealed with a Screw Cap unfortunately and comes in at 13.5% Alcohol. The Hess "Select" Collection Sauvignon Blanc comes from the North Coast of California and the wine is 100% Sauvignon Blanc.
   As I go ahead and pour the wine into my glass, what am I seeing as far as legs (Gibbs-Marangoni Effect) go is that they are thin and flowed slowly down the sides of my glass. As for the color of the wine now, I get an almost clear liquid with perhaps some slight silver showings in my glass.
   Moving now onto the Bouquet I'll tell you straight out that I loved it. This wine presented a very tropical Bouquet and one which made me think of ripe melon and Guava, I'm totally feeling it. Honeydew is presented as well and is brought out in such a way that it doesn't dominate over the other Notes. Topping the Bouquet off is a note of Pineapple as well and it matches the strength of the Honeydew in its presentation.
  Alright, now onto the Palate presentation of this
wine now. Beginning off here there was a  

massive Palate overdose of Apricot as well as a good bit of a Lemon/Lime harshness.While the Bouquet of the wine was nice and tropical, the Palate was really missing this tropicalness big time. As I continue on here I must tell you that the wine was overall abrasively harsh on the Opening which was followed up by a big Mid-Palate misfire due to its overall flatness and lack of ability to show anything off. In reality I could end this review right here and give you the Desert Wine Guy rating but I won't do that so just yet so let me backup a bit for you guys. When you first taste the wine, for a split second there is a bit of a fruity tropical melon note on the Palate and you first think that the tropicalness from the Bouquet transferred on over to the palate but that is definitely not the case. The melon note lasts for just that second and then is gone, for good. As the wine warms a bit that tropical melon lasts just a slight bit longer but not long enough to be really worthwhile or of note. An overdone and harsh Lemon Zest is what this wine seems to be proud of and is in love with exposing and presenting these notes in an over abundance. That is it, as you can see, the wine is super limited in as far as its taste goes. This is NOT what a Sauvignon Blanc should be, not even close.
   Guys, I'm sorry, I am just totally not feeling this wine. What could have possibly given this wine some sort of life was some nice tropical fruit Notes and at least some type of structure, but neither were to be had at all. Even if the wine lost a heck of a lot of its Palate abrasiveness and harshness, this wine would be a flop. On The Desert Wine Guy rating scale I am giving this wine a weak, sink pouring, 86 points. I definitely should have resisted.

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