#58 Prieto Picudo from Dominio Dostares

One of my favorite wine shops in the city headlined this grape in their latest newsletter. A 100% Prieto Picudo from Dominio Dostares. For $13 its a great deal. I will pass along kudos to the Wine Discount Center for finding this wine and will let them tell you about it....

"Here is a rare treat from a rare grape variety. This is 100% Prieto Picudo. Only a few hundred acres remain of this rare indigenous red varietal. In 2004 Dominio Dostares purchased 75% of the remaining vines, many of which are in excess of 100 years old. For years the grapes had been used to produce a high quality Rosé. Dominio Dostares, however, realized the potential beauty and elegance of this grape and came up with the 2005 Estay. Matured for six months in French oak, it has a deep, deep purple color with aromas of violet, red berries, pepper and spice. This is a complete wine that has wonderful juicy red berry flavors, plenty of spice, some oak nuances, good acid balance and smooth tannins. Perfect for red meat, chicken or hearty salads."

#57 Montepulciano from Canaletto

Tonight's bottle is an Italian red called Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. I have to admit I did a double take when I saw the $7 price tag. I can't possibly pass up such an inexpensive bottle of a famous grape so in the cart it went.

Not really expecting much I am delighted to find that it is very drinkable. There isn't a whole lot of structure but there is a nice sour cherry fruit without any aggressive tannins. Canaletto did a nice job with this simple wine. How they can make money selling it to me in Chicago for $7 I just don't understand.

#56 Viognier from Yalumba

I had to take a break from the quest but am slowly working back into the routine. Shockingly it took 56 wines to get to an Australian wine. My first bottle back is a Viognier from Australia's Yalumba. I have enjoyed quite a few of their reds so I decided to give this $10 bottle the nod.

Normally I don't pay too much attention to the tasting notes on wine bottles but I am going to reprint this one here as it really hit the nail on the head. "Golden in colour, the Yalumba Viognier enchants with its heady perfume of lemon, honeysuckle and hints of spice. The palate is rich, luscious and silky with tropical fruits, citrus and lychee flavours." This is one of Yalumba's "Y Series" focusing on varietals. I will be looking for more of these.

#55 Uva di Troia

We are all friends here right? This one is an Uva di Trioa. The nose hints at shiraz but this baby must have been aged in particle board boxes and blended with pine chips. It tastes like the inside of an Ikea bookshelf. I tried it a few time with and without food over a few hours and it amazingly just got worse. $13 poorly spent but at least it is #55 (on more than one list). Time for a beer.

#54 Falanghina from Feudi

Feudi Di San Gregorio makes a wide range of wines. Founded in 1986 these guys have made a serious effort to modernize production and utilize ancient grape varietals. I have been lucky enough to try many of their wines and so far I haven't been disappointed.

Tonight we decided to prepare the handmade pasta we made when Anne and Kirk last visited. The pasta was still perfect. (drying experiment successful). So I grab a bottle thinking it was a red and instead was faced with yet another white. This time a Falanghina. Prepared to be let down I pour a glass. Thankfully its a full bodied complex wine with solid fruit and strong acidity. A huge relief from the insipid plonk I have run into recently. At $15 its a steal relative to many in this price range.

#53 Arneis from Healdsburg CA

Shudder, my taste buds needed a reprieve from the previous bottle so I sort through the dwindling varietals remaining in my fridge and find an Arneis from Seghesio in Healdsburg California. Seghesio generally delivers a consistent product and they are known for growing Italian varietals. (Though I would be remiss if i didn't point out that of all the wineries in all the places in all the world I have been to... they were the most condescending and brutish.) I bought this bottle only because its hard to find as a single varietal as it is most often used as a blending grape to soften other wines.

And that pretty much defines this wine. Extremely pale, lightly sweet and somewhat flabby. At $15 this is not a white wine to go out of your way for.

#52 Silvaner from Wagner Stempel

A weekend spent mostly preparing my 2007 taxes and analyzing a year past in grueling detail. It is finally Sunday evening and I have about 5 pounds of paperwork to send off to my CPA in the morning. Thank goodness that is over, for now anyway. Not many bottles left before I have to head over to Sam's for another mixed case.

Tonight's splurge is a $20 Terry Theise Silvaner. Theise is an excellent importer and his name on a bottle is usually a good sign. This one has a swift hint of sulfur which is replaced by a waft of rotten raw poultry. I would consider this a reisling lite. I have had more than a few disappointments from the retailer I purchased this from so I would like to blame storage but I am not sure that is fair.