The second tasting was at Hall’s of Fine Wines at a cost of $10 per person if you brought your own glass. I’m not sure if there was an upcharge for using their glasses, but they were available. This was my first visit to this store. Mr. Hall has a very nice selection of smaller winery labels, but still covers all the bases for most any wine drinker’s needs. There were a total of 10 (+1) wines being poured, 5 each from two different distributors, Atlanta Wholesale (a division of National Distributing and Gusto Brands. The following 3 selections were personal favorites.

2005 Chateau LaGrange Les Tours $21.99: Unless you are a recent resident of the International Space Station, I’m sure you’ve heard all the hype surrounding the 2005 vintage in Bordeaux. The prices went to their highest ever, with First Growth’s garnering over $1000 a bottle without breaking a sweat. Then reality kicked in, the world woke up from its monetary debauchery and the economy went brown (no offense to UPS). Well, for those of us who live in the day to day reality of $20 is nothing to sneeze at for a bottle of wine, this little bugger was pretty tasty.

This is a Bordeaux Supérieur, which means the legal yields are lower and the wines must be aged for 12 months before being sold. I also seem to recall they must be .5% alcohol higher than standard Bordeaux. Higher alcohol means the grapes were riper and theoretically, of better quality. Personally, I’ve never found a huge difference between standard Bordeaux and those with the Supérieur label, but I’m not the biggest drinker of the region’s wines either.

The wine exhibited a nice bouquet of tobacco, black plum and cherry. On the palate, it was quite smooth and delicious. I picked up black cherry, licorice and some nice earthy flavors. I’d pair this with lamb, always a solid bet when it comes to Bordeaux. If you want to try a Bordeaux from a great vintage, you could do worse.

2005 Martinet Bru Priorat (I didn’t take note of the price, but I think its around $50): Priorats don’t come cheap, so it was a great surprise to see one at the tasting. They also don’t typically show well at this age without a good 4 or 5 hours of decant time. Having said that, this was darn tasty, even with it playing things close to the vest. I got the classic hot rocks or scorched earth aromas, a signature of the region. If you’ve never had one, it is hard to describe, but sample and I think your nose will pick up what I’m trying to describe. It also had loads of black fruit, which repeated on the palate. The tannins made their presence known, but were sweet and balanced out by the abundance of fruit. Personally, I like a wine to bite back and like to drink wines like this a bit young, but your mileage may vary. Fire up the grill and throw on some red meat! This is a great cellar selection as well.

If you don’t want to lay down the $50+ for these wines, look for a Monstant. It is a region that horseshoes around Priorat and makes wines of a similar taste, but at much lower prices. You should be able to find them for under $20 and while they are typically better in their youth, they can still improve with age.

NV Sparkling Mad Shiraz (I think it was $18-20): Don’t laugh, they make this stuff in Australia and this is the third example I’ve ever had. I poured a less expensive version at one of my tastings a few years ago and it was a raging hit. Believe you me, this is a solid choice for the confunding Thanksgiving dinner with its surplus of sugary sweet dishes and dry white turkey. This version was less sweet than the other two I’ve had, which was a pleasant surprise. It had some eucalyptus and blueberry on the nose, with the palate being a cascade of black fruit with a spicy finish with a touch of tannic grip. While I’d say there was probably a bit of residual sugar, it wasn’t cloying. For those who like Aussie Shiraz (I still enjoy them), this is worth trying if for no other reason than to say you have.

Well, that wraps it up. There were some other fine selections, but these stood out the most. I was also graced with a taste of 2005 Ramey Cabernet Sauvignon, just because the rep had some in his bag. It should run you about $50 if you should run across it. While that is nothing to sneeze at, it is still a bargain compared to many other Napa Valley Cabs that sell for 2, 3 or even 15X that amount (hello Screaming Eagle). For the price, this served up classic Napa Valley Cabernet flavors, including cassis, vanilla and spice notes that sailed on for a good 45 seconds. Great stuff.