Well, a new year hasn’t made it any easier to come up with just two top picks, but the bottle stops here, so here it goes. The Carmen Reserva Chardonnay and Reserva Carmenere are both splendid wines, and it is far more difficult than consumers realize for a winery to excel equally with red and white wines, but Carmen does.
Nevertheless, the thought of slighting the 2010 11 Pinos Bobal, a tasty and unique offering from a little known varietal, was simply unthinkable. Hence, I have chosen two reds this month as my top picks. No offense to the 2010 Can Feixes Blanc Seleccio, either. It’s just that the 2009 Carmen Reserve Carmenere could serve as the poster child for the most beautiful Carmenere of the vintage. Moreover, in one of our largest tasting panels (27 happy souls) the 2009 Carmen Reserva Carmenere was the unanimous choice for best wine of the evening. Hence, it is the 2009 Carmen’s Reserva Carmenere and 2010 11 Pinos that get the nod.
A Votre Santé!
Don
