Tried this last night w/ my Hot Italian Sausage:
1. BlueHeronBrewingCo Rinconada Red NewMexico RTW (12%; "a Blend of Locally Grown Grapes"; www.BlueHeronBrews.com; 75% local BacoNoir/25% Deming RubyCabernet) Embudo/NM NV: Very dark/near black color; quite earthy/dusty/loamy some toasty/vanilla/Am.oak/smokey some blackcurranty/Cab/blackberry/black cherry bit herbal/rosemary slight hybridy/rustic rather interesting nose; rather tart fairly earthy/loamy/dusty bit rustic/coarse/hybridy some toasty/vanilla/Am.oak rather blackcurranty/Cab/blackberry fairly rich/lush very slightly off-dry(??) flavor w/ some rough tannins; med.long fairly tart earthy/loamy/dusty/herbal/rosemary/thyme some blackcurranty/Cab/black cherry somewhat rough/coarse finish w/ some earthy/rough tannins; reminds a lot of an Austrian Blaufrankisch w/ the earthy/loamy character; a bit like an AltoAdige Lagrein; a quite interesting if rough/rustic red that went well w/ the Dr.FieldGoods Italian Sausage but not so well w/ the poached tofu. $22.00 (KK)
_____________________
A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. BlueHeron is (primarily) a brewery in Rinconada, midway betwixt LosAlamos and Taos. Driven by it many times, but just never had the time to stop in. Winemaker is JoshJohnson, who, I'm assuming, is the son of owner/winemaker at Dixon's LaChirapadaWnry.
I spied this wine on the shelf at Kokoman's and, never having had a BlueHeron wine, thought I'd give it a shot, with very low expectations. I was quite pleasantly surprised at how good & tasty this was. If you can get past the NewMexico on the label (and there's no reason you shouldn't); it's a pretty good, if rustic red.
W/o knowing the grapes therein, I picked up a noticible blackcurranty Cab character. But I was quite surprised that it was mostly BacoNoir. I find many Bacos have a very coarse/hybridy/earthy/mushroomy and a strong plastic character, not unlike sticking your head in a brand new vinyl trash can at HomeDepot and getting a good high from the plasticizer. There were faint hints of a hybridy Baco character, but it was one of the best Bacos I've tried since the LosLucero and Henry of Pelham versions.
Anyway...this red was quite a pleasant surprise to me. They make a TierraTinta blend of Sangiovese/Aglianico that I must try.
Tom