Masperla, Priorat, 2007, Spain

Kelly drank most of this wine without me.  Shame on her but I do remember a few things about it.  The nose was dominated by red fruits and veggies.  Think strawberries, rhubarb, and fresh from the garden baby radishes.  The flavors of this medium-bodied wine were also super bright and treblely.  The oak was supportive of the fruit but still this wine seems too young to drink at this time. This is an extremely dry wine but the fruit bounces a bit on the finish and I loved that contrast.   The tannin structure definitely foreshadows complexity over the years.  We'll get back to you in a few.

Bodegas Martin Codax, "Burgans" Albarino, 2011, Riax Baixas, Spain

Just got back from a perfect happy hour pupu-fest at the lovely Salt Kitchen in the Kaimuki neighborhood of Honolulu.  They had a great duo of happy hour wines to choose from including a bright berry-centric Beaujolais and this super fresh, crisp Albarino from Riax Baixas.  There couldn't be a better red or white wine for warm Honolulu evening if you ask me (except maybe a dry rose). The Burgans had a punchy in your face nose of lemon, rock candy, and fancy french soap.  Also, something is on the tip of my tongue.  Oh yeah, it's a shit ton of acid that locked in almost before the wine actually hits my mouth.  This Albarino has a nice medium weight and notes of round watermelon that balance out well with all the dominate bright lemon/lime citrus.  After a while the lemon gets a little too "rindy" and begs for something else I couldn't quite put my finger on to provide some sort of counter-weight.  Still overall this wine kicks ass and paired well with the bar's ridiculously yummy edemame guacamole.  Watch out Salt.  I'll be back!         

Bodegas Borsao, 'Tres Picos' Garnacha, 2010, Campo De Borja DO, Spain

This Grenache from the small northwest Campo De Borja region of Spain has a straight up massive, complex, and appealing nose.  Initial dark brambly fruit notes transition into graphite, savory meats, and dank ocean water.  The heat and oak are definitely present but always kept in check.  The color is all high contrast waves of black and red.  It's got a sweet (yet still bone dry) juicy new world core with shimmers of acidity that last through to the finish.  And no doubt there is a long finish on this one.  The fine grained tannins give structure and are more sweet than bitter.  This wine is easy to find, popular with a certain mainstream critic, and fucking delicious so of course the wine snob haters gotta hate on it.  But if you can find it on sale for 15 bucks like I did, you'd be dumb not to take it home for the night.  Let the haters hate and the players play.