Strikingly black at the core with a tiny mulberry-colored rim, this wine’s color suggests sultry, ultra-ripe fruit. While the nose shows black fruit aromas, it also reveals canned green beans and tar-road on a hot-summer day. The palate is streamlined, simple and finishes quickly. Supporting acidity and light, rather rounded tannins make this a decent by-the-glass candidate. Drink through mid 2015, as this wine’s modest complexity will not allow it to age. Fun and sexy bottle shape, though it is surely a pain to stock.

— Published (3/27/2014)