Wine Review - 2010 Farmer Robert Grenache Noir: Organic, Purple, And Mellow...The Trifecta

It was a long weekend here in Canada and so with it comes an enjoyable three days of wine drinking.  We took it upon ourselves to try a few wines during the weekend and we wanted to give some highlights:

Day 1 - Jose Maria Fonseco Periquita ($12): Fruity and bold Portuguese Red that went well with the grilled steak and chicken sliders we had.  Made with Castelao grapes (could that be Castel to us???), it was a very reasonably priced red wine. 77.5%

Day 2 - Torrevento Primitivo ($18): Very bold and bright red wine with a silky mouthfeel and excellent balance.  Primitivo at this price point can be a little one dimensional but this one showed really nice complexity.  A keeper for sure.  82.5%

Day 3 - 2010 Farmer Robert Grenche Noir.....see below.

This wine is purple.....not crimson or inky or ruby red.....it is purple.  Hold it up to the light...purple, look down at your glass...purple.  You get the idea.  Nice to look at and somewhat unique in the spectrum of the red wine colour palate.

On the nose, you get nice ripe cherries (as you would expect) with a solid amount of what we might call eucalyptus....interesting but that transitions into a minty smell as well.  Definitely interesting.

Once you taste it, you will find it to be a nice red wine slightly on the lighter side of things.  Think of it as the Robin Thicke of red wine versus the Michael Buble of red wine.  It is a widely pleasing wine with just a bit of edge.  Wow, where did THAT analogy come from?  The cherries/strawberries dominate the palate with a lighter body and a pretty good overall balance.  The tannins are subdued and not at all out of place but it does finish a touch on the tart side.  Again, a nice red wine on the lighter side of things.

In any event, it is a nice wine with a good for the planet story and a nice price point at $16 locally.

	Tasting Notes:	Score:
Sight (0-5)	This wine is purple.....nuff said.	4.5
Smell (0-5)	Ripe cherries and eucalyptus dominate a solid nose that is not overpowering	4.0
Taste (0-10)	Solid ripe fruit with a lighter body and somewhat tart finish.  Pretty good overall.	7.5
	Total:	16.0 / 20  (80%)

We liked it and it was a great red wine to have on our back patio on a very summer like day.

Keep on drinking!

Chris & Shannon