1. Feb - Wine Tasting

2011 Velvet Moon Cabernet Sauvignon

Name: Velvet Moon Cabernet Sauvignon
Variety: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Region: California
Country: US
Year: 2011
Price: $5.99

Wine Shop Review: Fruity, but not tart or tangy.  Clean finish, not very dry.  Low viscosity, and sweeter than the average cab.

I went home for a day this weekend and my sister and I tried one of the bottles we had around the house, the 2011 Velvet Moon Cabernet Sauvignon.  She had picked up this California wine from Trader Joes for $5.99 a few days ago, so we thought we’d give it a whirl. 

The first thing we checked out was the color – it’s got a deep, ruby-red color, but still fairly see-through when held up to the light.  On the nose the most obvious thing coming through was dark cherry.  When it came to tasting, we both agreed that there was a mild oak flavor to it, as well as the cherry flavor.  On the back of the tongue there was also a light cocoa flavor, and the wine was a little bit hot.  Not overly dry and not particularly sweet – but nonetheless a little sweeter than I expected, and it’s got some legs, so maybe an indicator of some residual sugars.  Very smooth and easy to drink.

We tried half a glass without food and then another half glass with some beef and barley soup, which, if anything, made it even easier to drink, but muted the flavors a little bit.

Overall, this was a really smooth affordable wine - I usually really like Cab Sauv and this didn’t disappoint.