Saturday, December 13, 2008

Summers Cabernet Sauvignon

Summers Winery
Cabernet Sauvignon
Adrianna's Cuvee
Napa Valley
Calistoga, CA
2005
14.1%
$23.99 at Whole Foods, Austin, TX

Color: Dark red with purple tinge
Nose: Raspberries, cinnamon, spice
Body: Medium
Front: Cherries
Middle: Licorice or peppermint
Back: Ginger, a hint of caramel on the way out
Burns clean?: Yes
Cap: Cork

While it's not quite to my taste, as not being sufficiently bodiful for a Cabernet, this would be great for folks who like their wine layered but not heavy. I decanted it for an hour, and then had it with a little aged goat cheese, and it couldn't really stand up to the cheese. For me, that's a problem, because if Asmodeus has an ethnicity, it could only be described as "cheese-eater."

There are interesting flavors in this bottle, delivered in quick but interesting succession before a relatively rapid flavor exit. It seems a little odd to me to recommend this as a "good Cabernet for a hot summer day" but it's a strange world we all live in here.

A good song pairing for this one would be Jet's "Are You Gonna Be My Girl." I'll let the cultural critics out there speculate about the metaphorical and material dimensions of this sister-arts harmony.