Red Diamond Temperamental

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

This new red blend from Washington brings a New World twist to Spanish grapes.

The main body of the wine is the Spanish noble grape tempranillo (85 percent), with a combination of cabernet sauvignon (9 percent) and carignan (6 percent). Because the bottle is non-vintage, the fruit was probably sourced over several growing seasons.

Let’s call it a tempranillo starter wine, because this is not your typical robust and dry Spanish blend. It’s made in a fruit-forward style more familiar to American palates with a semi-sweet body and a very smooth finish that displays just a hint of barrel-aging.

Sherry: “Jammy raspberry and strawberry flavor with a hint of prune on the finish.” 3-1/2 stars

Chris: “Aromas of raisin and cocoa with strawberry and blackberry flavors.” 3 stars

Available locally for between $8 and $11.

Coming next week: Lindeman’s Bin 70 Chardonnay-Riesling

Caves Velhas Catedral

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

Portugal is still known for its port from the Douro region, but other parts of the country show promise.

This red blend hails from the Dao region, south of Douro. It contains a mixture of tinto roriz (also known as tempranillo), touriga-nacional (the national grape of Portugal used in port) and alfrocheiro, a grape coming into its own in the Dao region.

 The grapes were sourced from a 16-acre vineyard. After six months of oak aging, the result is an intriguing bouquet of leather, dried fruit and coffee that turns into spicy red fruit with pronounced but balanced tannins and a dry finish.

Sherry: “Raspberry and strawberry and clove, with floral notes of violet.” 3-1/2 stars

Chris: “Notes of raisins and dates with flavors of strawberry and cherry.” 3-1/2 stars

Available locally for between $9 to $12.

Coming next week: Red Diamond Temperamental

La Posta Cocina Tinto 2010

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

The name is translated into kitchen red, but there’s some elegance of fine winemaking at work with this wine from Argentina.

Sourced from growers in the Mendoza region in the west-central part of the country, the wine is a blend of malbec (60 percent), syrah (20 percent) and bonarda (20 percent). It is aged for a year in a combination of French and American oak.

From the nose to the tongue, there’s much to savor in this wine with aromas of licorice, leather, cedar and spices, plus fruit and spice flavors. The big tannins are nicely balanced.

Sherry: “Notes of leather with flavors of strawberry, dried plum, light licorice and vanilla on the finish.” (3-1/2 stars)

Chris: “Licorice and cedar notes with flavors of cherry, blueberry and plum.” (3-1/2 stars)

Available locally for about $12 to $15.

Coming next week: Caves Velhas Catedral Dao

Chateau Ste. Michelle Sweet Riesling

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

Riesling is one of the more versatile wine grapes. It is made in many styles, explained with often confusing German wine labels, ranging from very dry to very sweet.

Riesling wines have found a home in Washington’s Columbia Valley, where the latitude gives lots of sunshine during the ripening season.

It has a residual sugar level of 5.22 percent, which falls into the 5 to 10 percent range of sweet dessert wines. Dry wines are usually in the 0.2 to 0.3 percent range.

It’s not overly sweet, though, with plenty of orchard and stone fruit flavors balanced with acidity for freshness. So you don’t have to wait until dessert to enjoy it.

Sherry: “Green apple with a light touch of honey.” 3 stars

Chris: “Apples on the nose with flavors of apple, pear and apricot.” 3 stars

Available locally for about $7 to $10.

Coming next week: La Posta Cocina Tinto

The Dreaming Tree Crush 2010

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

This California red blend joins a host of other wines made for celebrities or famous people. “Dreaming Tree” also is a song title from rock musician Dave Matthews, who has joined with winemaker Steve Reeder of Simi Winery to create his own label.

Matthews, who also has a winery in Virginia, wanted to create a very approachable wine made from sustainably farmed grapes and environmentally friendly packaging. The blend is merlot (78 percent), syrah (13 percent), zinfandel (6) and a splash of other grapes grown in Sonoma County.

The flavors crash into our palates with a rich texture of fruit and spice with well-balanced tannins. We suggest pairing with barbecued ribs.

Sherry: “Smooth cherry and licorice with a rose floral finish.” 3-1/2 stars

Chris: “Raisin notes with flavors of raspberry and cherry.” 3-1/2 stars

Available locally for about $12.

Coming next week: Chateau Ste. Michelle Sweet Riesling

HandCraft Chardonnay 2010

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

Chardonnay continues to be the dominant grape and wine in California, which ships more than 50 million cases a year domestically. It’s the most widely planted grape in the state.

HandCraft makes a chardonnay with lots of appeal. It has enough oak and cream to satisfy drinkers who enjoy some heft, but there’s an assortment of orchard and tropical fruit flavors to enjoy as well.

It reflects its blend of chardonnay (86 percent), viognier (7), chenin blanc (5) and a 2 percent dash of malvasia bianca — an Italian grape. The wine is fermented in both oak and steel and then blended before bottling.

Sherry: “A bouquet of pear and melon, with tastes of almond, lemon and lime.” 3 stars

Chris: “Notes of melon with flavors of apricot, pear and a bit of vanilla cream.” 3-1/2 stars

Available locally for about $10.

Coming next week: The Dreaming Tree Crush

Cryptic Red 2010

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

Clever packaging gets noticed in store shelves, and this new label certainly fits that bill. The label on a silk-screened bottle features a replica of a 16th century French encryption wheel that represents the three grape varieties used in this blend.

The wine itself has an alchemist feel as well, with zinfandel, petite sirah and cabernet sauvignon grapes sourced from 30 different California vineyards. The wines were fermented and aged in separate lots of stainless steel and oak barrels before the final blend.

The wine displays the big fruit flavors you’d expect of a zinfandel, additional nuances of berries and a semi-sweet finish that makes it a very easy quaff.

Sherry: “Bold and fruity with black cherry, raspberry and hint of licorice.” 3-1/2 stars

Chris: “An earthy bouquet with flavors of raspberry and plum.” 3-1/2 stars

Available locally for about $13.50.

Coming next week: HandCraft Chardonnay

Greg Norman Shiraz 2008

By Chris and Sherry Hardie

Legendary golfer Greg Norman owns no vineyards and is not a winemaker. But he has licensing arrangements around the world to create his wines, including this one from his home country of Australia.

Norman once won a case of Penfold’s Grange — the country’s most famous wine — when he was a young golfer and admitted that he didn’t know what a delicious prize it was. Now he works with the same winery to make his own labels.

The Limestone Coast region where this shiraz is sourced is known for a cooler climate than the famous Barossa region. The result is a more balanced shiraz with less spice and not as fruit-forward but with more complexity and layers.

Sherry: “Flavors of plum, mint, cherry, licorice and strong tannins.” 3 stars

Chris: “Tobacco bouquet with flavors of plum, raisin and blueberry.” 3-1/2 stars

Available locally for about $17.

Coming next week: Cryptic Red