Wine By Nine

Red Wine by Concha y Toro from Chile, South America. Don Melchor was hailed the best Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile by both the Wine Spectator and Robert Parker. Named after the founder of the winery, Don Melchor de Concha y Toro, the wine has become a symbol of the best the land and the winemaker's hand can produce in Chile. The Puente Alto Vineyard in the Maipo Valley has the perfect combination of climate and soils for producing world-class wine: the climate is ideal and predictable, and the soil is poor and gravelly to reduce yields and increase concentration naturally. After fermentation, the wine is matured in the finest French oak barriques for 14 months, followed by another year in the bottle before release. Ripe fleshy fruit and berries lead off this highly aromatic wine. Later, the tobacco and chocolate come through and marry with the vanilla. Agreeable, mature tannins elegantly convey the best expression of the Puente Alto vines. The pleasant, long finish displays great harmony and balance.

Red Wine by Los Vascos from Chile, South America.

Red Wine by Catena from Argentina, South America. The 2004 Alta Cabernet Sauvignon was sourced and blended from three vineyards with distinct terroirs and aged for 18 months in new French oak. It offers greater aromatic complexity with elements of pain grille, scorched earth, espresso, black currant, and blackberry liqueur. Medium-bodied, it has the elegance of a classified growth St.-Julien, with intense, spicy, cassis, mint, and black fruit flavors, superb balance, and a 45-second, pure finish. It will profit from 6-8 years of further cellaring and drink well through 2030. When all is said and done, Catena Zapata is the Argentina winery of reference - the standard of excellence for comparing all others. The brilliant, forward-thinking Nicolas Catena remains in charge, with his daughter, Laura, playing an increasingly large role. The Catena Zapata winery is an essential destination for fans of both architecture and wine in Mendoza. It is hard to believe, given the surge in popularity of Malbec in recent years, that Catena Zapata only began exporting Malbec to the United States in 1994. -Wine Advocate

Red Wine by Concha y Toro from Chile, South America. Named after the founder of the winery, Don Melchor de Concha y Toro, this wine has become a symbol of the best that the land and the winemaker's hand can produce in Chile. The Puente Alto Vineyard in the Maipo Valley has the perfect combination of climate and soils for producing world-class wine: the climate is ideal and predictable, and the soil is poor and gravelly to reduce yields and increase concentration naturally. After fermentation, the wine is matured in the finest French oak barriques for 14 months, followed by another year in the bottle before release. Ripe fleshy fruit and berries lead off this highly aromatic wine. Later, the tobacco and chocolate come through and marry with the vanilla. Agreeable, mature tannins elegantly convey the best expression of the Puente Alto vines. The pleasant, long finish displays great harmony and balance. The result is a rich, full-bodied wine with unmistakable character in the bouquet and on the finish. Drink with any hearty dish, lamb, steak, and strong cheeses.

Red Wine by De Martino from Chile, South America. Gran Familia is the De Martino family's most exclusive wine and it is aged in French oak barrels for 18 months. It displays an intense red color with a hint of dark violet. On the nose, it is deep, fresh, elegant and complex with lots of dark fruits such as cherry, blackcurrant, plum and cranberry. There is also violet, wood, tobacco and vanilla, which help deliver an immense complexity of aromas that gradually reveal themselves in the glass. In the mouth this wine has great structure; full-bodied with very round, ripe tannins. It is well-balanced, complex and expressive with a great variety of flavors deriving from the French oak which gives it extra complexity and depth. A long and very pleasant finish. A great wine to age.

Red Wine by Catena from Argentina, South America. In an effort to produce a super premium wine, the winemaking team of Catena began in depth investigations into the yields within each of their specially selected, high altitude vineyards, identifying those lots which produce the best fruit. These vines undergo a careful thinning process, leaving only a select few clusters, resulting in remarkably complex, aromatic and flavorful fruit. Expanding on the vineyard lots previously used in this wine, the 2003 vintage is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aromas of red berryfruit accompanied by hints of tobacco lead into intense flavors of black cherry, plum and spice which come together with a touch of pepper on the smooth lingering finish.

Red Wine by Santa Rita from Chile, South America. Color: Ruby red with good intensity Bouquet: A commanding bouquet of ripe fruit, sweet plum and black currant, exquisitely mingled with delicate notes of leather, tobacco, vanilla and clove, enhanced by subtle nuances of mint and exotic spices. Taste: Highly concentrated, intensely flavored and rich in tannins, with a full, magnificent body and a remarkable, sleek finish. Serving suggestions: Enjoy with steaks, venison, game birds and ripe blue cheeses.

Red Wine by Los Vascos from Chile, South America. Le Dix, meaning 10 in French, was introduced in 1996 to celebrate Domaine Barons de Rothschild (Lafite)'s first ten years in Chile. It is only produced in extraordinary vintage years. Le Dix de Los Vascos is grown in the exceptional vineyard, called El Fraile, which means the monk, the oldest planted vineyard at Los Vascos and the original vineyard on the estate. The vineyard is 100% planted to Cabernet Sauvignon and many parcels of the vineyard have vines reaching 80 years in age. Le Dix 2003 has a deep intense ruby color. The powerful nose develops aromas of dry fruit and of ripe wild cherry completed with a lot of spicy and terpenic aromas (wax, cedar, laurel, eucalyptus). The oak is elegant and nicely integrated with the fruit. This adds to the wine pleasant aromas of vanilla, tobacco and cinnamon. The concentration is impressive but the wine stays very well balanced and elegant, fresh, juicy, consistent with rich but ripe and soft tannins. It finishes with a strong taste of cherry (kirsch) and a very nice mineral character with a light bitterness of walnut peel. This outstanding wine is already very expressive but it is so rich and tannic that it needs more time in the bottle to for even more softness and complexity. ...A very pure and well-made Cabernet Sauvignon that can be drunk now or aged for at least another five years. -Wine Enthusiast

Red Wine by Los Vascos from Chile, South America. Le Dix, meaning 10 in French, was introduced in 1996 to celebrate Domaine Barons de Rothschild's first ten years in Chile. It is only produced in extraordinary vintage years. Le Dix de Los Vascos is grown in the exceptional vineyard, called El Fraile, which means the monk, the oldest planted vineyard at Los Vascos and the original vineyard on the estate. The vineyard is 100% planted to Cabernet Sauvignon and many parcels of the vineyard have vines reaching 80 years in age. The vineyard is fairly large, covering some 200 acres, Le Dix is produced from severely reduced yields from El Fraille (the best) combined with the most rigorous cuvee selection - the resulting wine is of world class stature. Le Dix 2002 is of a deep intense ruby color with an elegant nose full of black cherries within a nice background of black fruits and oak. It is succulent in the mouth with live crispy tannins and vibrant fruit. It is pleasantly long while also full bodied and fresh. It is ready to drink now but will age well for some eight to ten years.

Red Wine by Concha y Toro from Chile, South America. Color: Deep red. Bouquet: Black ripe fruits, concentrated leather, chocolate and graphite are all in a perfect balance. Taste: Dense and warm, firm tannins with a sweet after-taste, a long persistence of chocolate and dry fruit. This wine is an excellent accompaniment to leg of lamb with spicy sauces, blue cheese, Gruyere and Emmentaler.

Red Wine by Miguel Torres from Chile, South America. The Single Vineyard of Manso de Velasco, named after the founder of the town of Curic?, is devoted exclusively to the Cabernet Sauvignon that produces this intense and deeply-pigmented wine. Extraordinarily rich aroma of ripe fruit. Its aristocratic Cabernet Sauvignon tannins have a majestic, regal structure, heightened by the creamy background of oak from the Nevers forest that is used in its long barrel-aging. Delicious with game, duck and sheep's milk cheeses.

Red Wine by Bodega Lurton from Argentina, South America. The beautiful purple color of this opulent wine is an instant eye catcher. The powerful blackcurrant, red fruit and vanilla aromas on the nose blend harmoniously while remaining open and exquisitely complex. On the palate, it is rich in flavors and has a firm tannic structure without being aggressive. This wine is seductive in its power, richness and magnificently long finish. This is a grand red wine to be enjoyed with game and grilled red meats.