Day Two – something for the weekend?


It’s Friday evening, and I’d usually sign off work early, head for the kitchen and begin cooking, with lubrication being provided by something appropriately soothing yet stimulating. However, today my kitchen companions are the red counterparts of yesterday’s Chardonnays….

Blossom Hill Soft & Fruity Red (non-vintage)
‘Soft & Fruity’ is pretty accurate. Smooth would be another word. But as I’ve said before, smooth isn’t what I want in a wine. This reminds me of Ribena infused with Jammie Dodgers. I said of the BH White yesterday ‘This is inoffensive, slightly off-dry wine that tastes like it comes from a factory rather than a vineyard.’ I’d say much the same of the red too.

Gallo Sycamore Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
We don’t see enough Californian Cabernet in the UK, largely because the home market guzzles it up with patriotic gusto. The bits we do get tend to be either good but not very affordable, or affordable but not very good. Gallo has some decent Cabs higher up its range, but alas this doesn’t give much encouragement to trade up to them. You know that overt vanilla character you get in Vimto, Camp coffee and mint imperials? There’s something of the same flavour here. It’s rather mushy, formless wine, fruity but not fine, like trying to drink a vanilla-infused duvet.

The good news – for me – is that I’m going out later. And since the Top-10-brand-drinking rule only applies at home…

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