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Scott McCulloch Distribution Manger When buying a house, the proximity of a good school is often a deciding factor. For me, in choosing a school, it's the proximity of a good wine shop. The education at Shoreline may be top-notch, but, just as important, it's merely a stone's throw from my favorite place to shop for wine: Central Market, the grocery store in the strip mall next to Sears on 155th and Aurora.
Hold onto your money, and find the ever-expanding Australian section, where $50 will buy seven or eight bottles of decent wine. By the way, Central Market gives a 10-percent discount for purchases of six bottles or more. I picked out six bottles of red wine, all less than $8, and got together with a few friends - friends were in ample supply that day - along with a bunch of steamed mussels. I know, red wine and seafood is anathema to the folks who sniff and spit this stuff for a living, but the Aussies aren't ones to stick at convention, so we didn't either. Many of the wines below, and Australian red wine in general, have a lot of tannin, a substance absorbed from grape skins during fermentation. This gives wine a tart, astringent sensation, which is even more noticeable when a wine is young, as all of these are. If you don't care for this, you'll have to be choosier, or possibly look on a different continent.
Yellow Tail ($5.95) 3 1/2 boomerangs Merlot-2002 This one gives it to you with both barrels, with enough tannin and spice to take the back of your head off. Quintessentially Australian, this was the best of the lot, especially considering the price. This wine also took the prize for best bottle design, with a stylized orange kangaroo decorating both the label and the synthetic cork. Rosemount Estate ($6.95) 3 1/2 boomerangs Cabernet (70%) Merlot (30%)-2002 This one got the most "best wine" votes. It may have been the best, but I thought it was too similar to many other cabernets from America or Europe. Fairly meaty but ordinary, this would make a good table wine. McGuigan's Black Label ($6.95) 3 boomerangs Shiraz-2001 The marquee grape of Australia, shiraz accounts for 40 percent of all grapes grown there. We tasted this one about five minutes after pulling the cork, and nobody was impressed with it. I tried it again the next day (I'm a dedicated wine taster) and thought it was much better. Strong smell of cranberries. Very fruity.
2 1/2 boomerangs Merlot-2001 Much fuller flavor, but lacks some of the zest that makes the others so lively. This one had the widest range of opinions; one person put it at the top. Lindemans Bin 99 ($7.45) 2 1/2 boomerangs Pinot Noir-2001 Filtered, clean and inoffensive, this one was a little bit too Protestant for my taste. It had a softer feel on the tongue and longer finish than the others. Needing something greasy for backbone, it was better after I scarfed down some cottage cheese. Pinot noir tends to be a bit more low-key than shiraz or merlot, and the nuance of this one may have been lost among the fireworks of the others. Banrock Station ($5.35) 2 boomerangs Shiraz (63%) Cabernet (37%)-2001 Too fruity and light, this is pretty much jug wine with less sugar. It does have a lot less tartness and pepper than the Yellow Tail, if you want to cut down on the pucker effect. © 2003 Shoreline Community College™ |
