Beronia is a frequent guest on the blog and here they're back for more! Their 2015 Rioja Reserva is 95% Tempranillo, 4% Graciano, and 1% Mazuelo. It's dark cherry in color, with aromas of black cherries, blackberries, cocoa powder, sweet tobacco, and vanilla extract. Like the 2013, I spent a lot of time just enjoying the nose. It's wonderful! On the palate it's medium bodied with perky tart acidity and a chalky mouthfeel from the thickly chalky and sweet tannin. There's flavors of cranberries, plum, cocoa powder, vanilla, and mint. Then it finishes with that tart acidity and flavors of cranberries, cocoa, and mint. This is a delicious fruit forward wine that still has a rustic aspect, and for $20 it's an excellent Rioja Reserva. QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $20 Rating: 4/5 = Recommended (what does that mean?) #wine #winereview #winelover #rioja #spain #spanishwine #thirstythursday https://www.instagram.com/p/CBB9wUvjWNV/?igshid=zoawspbju56w

Love Noir #blacklove “Love changes everything” - Another first, going to give this Dark “Sulty” red 🍷a whirl tonight #wineclub . . #redwine #red wine #wine #white wine #winelover #winereview #boydavenuewineclub #wineenthusiast (at Stamford, Connecticut)

April is @matchbookwines Month, with reviews focusing on their wine all month! The Arsonist is their label for wines a price point or two higher than their flagship Matchbook label. Their 2018 Chardonnay is 100% Chardonnay from the Matchbook Vineyard in Dunnigan Hills, California. It was barrel fermented and frequently stirred, and 100% when through malolactic fermentation. 10% of the best lots from the Chardonnay in the vineyard were aged an additional five months longer in oak, and only half of those were selected to become the final blend for the 2018 Arsonist Chardonnay. Year after year this is one of my favorite Chardonnays. There's aromas of pears, melon, buttered grilled corn muffin, and vanilla ice cream topped with butterscotch. On the palate it's full bodied with a rich and smooth mouthfeel, and an acidity that pops on the finish. There's flavors of melon, canned pears, banana, and vanilla. Then it finishes looooooong with melon and banana. The Arsonist does it again. This is an incredible Chardonnay for the price! QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $33 Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended #wine #winereview #winelover #california #californiawine #dunniganhills #chardonnay #sundaysips https://www.instagram.com/p/B_dfJnXDTBv/?igshid=f1q194cfoajr

April is @matchbookwines Month, with reviews focusing on their wine all month! Mossback is the Sonoma label for Matchbook, and their 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon from Chalk Hil, 15% Merlot from Chalk Hill, and 9% Petit Verdot from Chalk Hill. 6% of the wine was fermented in French oak barrels and aged in those same barrels, while the larger tank fermented portion would be aged for 22 months in French, hyrbrid, and American oak. The final ABV is 13.9%. On the nose there's aromas of cassis, blackberries, black tea, dried tobacco, and mint. On the palate it's medium bodied with little spike of acidity perfect for food. The Merlot and Petite Verdot provide lushness and smoothness on the mouthfeel, making this a softer / sweeter tannined, more mellow and easy drinking Cabernet. There's flavors of cassis, pomegranate, dark chocolate, oak, and a little bit of licorice. This is a very enjoyable Cabernet for the $25 that it will cost you. And it’s pairing pretty darn good with these Rice Crispy Treats. QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $25 Rating: 3.5/5 = Satisfying / Recommended #wine #winereview #winelover #california #californiawine #sonoma #chalkhill https://www.instagram.com/p/B_YjBzgD4hj/?igshid=146jnz6tle35y

The color of the 2014 @ferllenwinery Gran Reserva from Mendoza, Argentina is a dark cherry red. The nose is just amazing! There's aromas of plums, cranberries, roses, vanilla, dark chocolate, sea salt, and sweet tobacco. This is another one of those wines that you could smell all night without drinking and be happy. On the palate it's medium bodied with a silky smooth mouthfeel and moderate tannin. There's flavors of plums, cranberries, table grapes, dark chocolate, black table pepper, and mustard seed. Then it finishes with plums and leather and tobacco. Oh hell yeah! From my first sniff to my last sip I loved every aspect of this wine. Seriosuly, I fell in love. It's just sooooo gooooood! I expected it to be double the price that it is when I took a look at what it would cost your wallet, and for $30 this is A GODDAMN STEAL. Dude... amazing. QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $30 Rating: 5/5 = Highly Recommended #wine #winereview #winelover #malbec #argentina #argentinianwine https://www.instagram.com/p/B-QcUmujCuG/?igshid=jzyn83rdssq1

April is @matchbookwines Month, with reviews focusing on their wine all month! Mossback is the Sonoma label for Matchbook, and this Chardonnay is 92% from the Aquarius Vineyard (Russian River Valley) and 8% from the Matchbook Estate Vineyard (Dunnigan Hills). Despite just a small amount of the wine seeing oak aging, to me vanilla is the most prominent feature in the aroma and flavor. There's also pineapple, peach, lime, and honey. It's got a wonderfully rounded palate and is an overall balanced wine, and then there's the addition of butterscotch on the finish that ties it all together to be a solid, serviceable, and reliable Chardonnay for the price. This is exactly what you want from an $18 Chardonnay without swinging too far to the left or too far to the right in the political spectrum of the Chardonnay oak & butter war. It's momma bear's "just right". QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $18 Rating: 3/5 = Satisfying #wine #winereview #winelover #chardonnay #californiawines #california #dunniganhills https://www.instagram.com/p/B_I_AFGjWNX/?igshid=1m2vx016ztp39

April is Matchbook Wine Company Month, with reviews focusing on their wine all month! Their Old Head Chardonnay has become one of, I'd say, my top three suggestions for a Chard in the $15 price range. I've been reviewing every vintage since forever and I've loved it every time. The 2018 vintage is made from 100% estate grown Chardonnay using Clone 4, Clone 17, Dijon Clones 95, 76, 124, and Clone 809. 75% of it was barrel fermented while 25% was fermented in stainless steel. 78% saw aging in 2 to 5 year old French and American oak, 22% of that new. The final ABV is 13.9%. The color of the wine is straw yellow. Yet again, on the nose Bullseye caramel candy stands out in its aromas with melons, pears, and toasty oak. It's full bodied with a buttery mouthfeel, and it has the brighter acidity that I found in the 2016 vintage while being more tart. On the palate it's a lot more woody than I remember in other vintages, with a bit of an aggressive lime peel-ness to it. There's also pineapple, vanilla, and toasty oak. This one is more rough and limey and tart than previous vintages and that's exactly why I like it. Formulated consistency can be appreciated as a consumer, but also boring. Appreciate the vintage for what it is, homie. Maybe I should get sharper cheese to have with this than my Chardonnay/Brie stand by? QUALITY VS PRICE RATING Price: $15 Rating: 4/5 = Recommended @matchbookwines #wine #winereview #winelover #chardonnay https://www.instagram.com/p/B-njzOBj0ag/?igshid=8516raumzd1a

😁🍷 .... 🥂 Any recommendations?Drop a comment or send a DM if there is any wine in particular you want me to taste! - Send me your wine & i’ll taste FOR FREE! #wineclub . . #redwine #red wine #wine #white wine #winelover #winereview #food #foodporn #wineporn #boydavenuewineclub #wineenthusiast #lovenoir #blacklove