Nero D'avola

2010 Cantine Colosi Nero D'Avola, Sicily, Italy ($12.99 at Whole Foods)
This wasn't a memorable bottle but we liked it and finished it. We feel that Whole Foods offers higher quality reds than Trader Joe's. I remember not liking it at first, but my palate got adjusted to the wine and it tasted better with every sip. I think I remember it being fairly tannic with sour cherry and wet bark that you'd find in an Italian forest.

Secrets of a Sommelier

Secrets of a Sommelier: Pinot Noir at Pebble Beach Food & Wine

Rajat Parr, Wine director of Michael Mina and RN 74 says it best, “You don’t want a Pinot to be too loose.”

Damon Ornowski, Master Sommelier and Italian wine expert adds to Parr's theory, “Great Pinot has tension. It says, 'I’m going to seduce you and you’re going to have to take your time.'”

As the panel of legendary sommeliers, began to blind taste these Pinot Noirs, I took notes about how they assess a wine's color, aroma, and taste. They make note of the wine's: acidity, alcohol, earthy nuances, use of oak, climate etc.

2008 MacMurray Ranch, Russian River
It was viscus, had notes of raspberry and cherry-cola and offered potent alchohol.

2008 Cusumano, Sicily, Italy
Everyone thought this was a Barbaresco. Those Nebbiolo based wines are compared to great Pinots from nearby Burgundy. However, this one was a Pinot from an island much further south. It had firm tannins, subtle earthy notes, and it was intense and extracted. After all, a warm climate translates to more alcohol.

2009 Hamilton Russell, Walker Bay, South Africa
There were nuances of burnt tar and rubber. Nevertheless, it was bright because it came from a cool climate.

2007 August Kessler, Rheingau, Germany
This Spatburgunder had lots of acidity and extremely light-pale color because Germany is one of the furthest wine growing regions away from the equator

2009 Evening Land “The Tempest Vineyard”, Santa Rita Hills
It was woodsy like you were kicking up underbrush in a forest. It had: black cherry, baby fat (whatever that means), truffle, and ample alcohol that was balanced and far from offensive.

2007 Peregrine, Central Otago, New Zealand
Nice core fruit, great acidity and nuances of cinnamon and rose petal. Look out for wine this region. They are not showy but racy.

2009 Twomey Pinot Noir, Russian River
Larry Stone, Master Sommelier and wine god thought this was a warm-climate Burgundy, which proves that wine humbles everyone.

I'm the Man. Just Ask Me.

2005 Ovello Barbaresco ($60 at Soif) - The color appeared fairly translucent, but not quite like that of a Pinot Noir. My buddy Zane, who purchased the bottle picked up on some red Twizzler nuances. I didn't know what the wine was because I was tasting it blind. I got some sour cherry-cough drop aromas, so I thought it might be a Sangiovese from Brunello. On the finish I noticed a touch of tannin, like that of a bannana peel. Yeah, there were some tannins and it was clear, so I thought maybe it was a Burgundy, but I decided to stick with my original guess.

Zane thought it was sleek, subtle and femenine. After a glass, he said his heart caught fire and all he could think about was, "Getting that real sweet baige."

After we killed this bottle, I blind-tasted Zane on one of my cellar gems: the 2008 Ruggero de Tasso Nero D' Avola from Sicily ($3.99 at Trader Joe's). He noticed the color was inky and dark like his soul. The aroma was sickly and a bit like dried out herbs. He thought the wine was extremely masculine. He noticed some sour, bitter mint characteristics that made him want to hurl. After he sipped this beauty, he set it to the side, a clear indication of his dissaproval. It had a touch of carbonation and reminded us of a disgusting Dolcetto or bad Beaujolais, but in a good way.

When we got back from the Red Room's upstairs bar at 2:30 a.m., Zane put on some records from the Pixies, Pavement, and Bob Dylan with hopes of impressing the ladies we were entertaining. We poured them some of Nero D'avola and realized that you don't need a $60 bottle of wine to have a good time. But it helps.

Zane Hawley is single and can be reached at: 831-760-0076. Warning: he claims that he's tough to get over if you get with him. "Once you get a taste of this, you'll never want to be with another man, " he said. See picture above.