Wine Friday........Yes!

I know it is 100 freaking degrees out but don't forget about your favorite big reds. When you keep your home at 65 degrees the summer doesn't get you down so much.........so big reds are always in season for us in joco, right?

Seriously, while I do drink a little more white in the summer, mostly outside, I still drink lots of big reds too.......especially with all the grilled meat from the grill. By the way........don't drink them too warm idiots. Of course mine is straight from my temp controlled cellar but for you poor cellar-less bastards you want to drink wines like this at about 60 degrees so pop it in the fridge about 15 or 20 minutes before you open it.

I found a shocker this week and this without question was the wine of the week.....maybe the month.

2006 William Hill Bench Blend Cabernet Sauvignon. This is the winery that used to have the big leaf on the bottle years ago but I haven't seen it in awhile. They have redone the label and it looks a little less 80's now. The wine was awesome. I was blown away. You can tell it is a bordeaux blend meaning it has some Cab Franc, Petite Verdot and some Merlot in it. It is big with lots of fruit. It is rich but it isn't over the top. It is refined. It is slightly understated........restrained if you will. Okay, I'll call it elegant with many layers. Besides the black cherries and cassis it has a little mocha, some cedar, some vanilla and some spice. This is a bottle of wine to take a second look at. This could become my new house Cabernet. They make a regular Napa version is well. I'll have to try that as well. I guess you would call this their Reserve Cab. Regardless, it is everything that Napa can and should be.............

How much: About $35.

Why Bench? You'll see wineries from time to time refer to a wine as benchland or bench, especially Napa producers. In terms of vineyard sites there are 3 kinds in Napa. There is valley floor which runs along the road, there is mountain fruit which are vineyards cut into the tree line and are usually on a fairly steep grade with poor soil conditions and excellent drainage. Then you have what is in the middle. Benchlands. These are the rolling hills between the valley floor and the Vaca and Mayacamas Mountain ranges that create the valley we know as Napa. They are prized vineyards and generally produce excellent quality. It isn't a bad notion to look for wines from Napa's Benchland vineyards.

I'm out. Have a great weekend. Vaya Con Dios!