I can’t begin to tell you how many years I have had a prejudice against Chilean wines. Each time I tried one, I was unimpressed–or worse, ended up with a raging headache.

Living in California, we are positively spoiled when it comes to wine. We have a never ending selection of fine wines, so it never occurred to me to search out fine wines from Chile.

At least not until I started connecting with wine folk on Twitter. There, I ran into Robert Bralow, who works for the country of Chile. And to my surprise and delight, send me a wonderful sample pack of 6 different wines (one white and the balance luscious reds).

The first one we opened up was a 2006 Santa Carolina Reserva Carmenere. My husband got to it first and said, “You will never believe how good this is.”
And was he ever right!

This was unlike any Chilean wine we had ever had: Very earthy, smooth and oh so drinkable!
The next night we opened the 2006 Caliterra Tributo Single Vineyard Carmenere. This wine was unbelievable! It resembled a very full bodied Pinot with intense fruit and flavor that just exploded with each sip.
The remaining 4 bottles went down just as smoothly and not a headache to be had!
This article is my mea culpa to the winemakers of Chile. Their price point is very affordable (all the ones we tasted were under $20), and with the great assortment out there to choose from, I am confident you and I will easily find wines that capture our tastes.

Wine Tip: Searching for a specific bottle of wine and can’t seem to find it? Check out www.wine-searcher.com. I found that Caliterra Tributo and ordered 6 bottles!
Na Zdrowia!

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When not engaged in San Diego real estate, cooking, travel and other ventures, you just might find me twittering on Twitter. In fact, by keeping my Mac PowerBook close at hand, I just might be reporting on and following thoughts, ideas and friends via Twitter, that ubiquitous social networking site (just follow me @EveSieminski).

Six months ago, I would never have dreamed of discovering a favorite wine through a site like Twitter. But that’s just what happened when Jeff Stai (aka El Jefe) and other wine buddies started twittering and raving about Twisted Oak wine. I loved the twisted name, trusted the reviews–and winemaker Jeff suggested I try their 2007 Calaveras County Viognier and the 2005 Murgatroyd.

Murgatroyd?

Had to give it a try, and when it arrived in the mail, decided to wait and share it with Roberta and Mike Murphy over some wonderful Italian cuisine.

It was a memorable evening and wine tasting. We all drink lots of wine, and none of us had ever heard of anything close to a Murgatroyd blend. Try 24% Cabernet Sauvignon from Vallecito Vineyards, 22% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Tanner Vineyards, 23% Petit Verdot from the Tanner Vineyards, 12% Tempranillo from Silvaspoons Vineyard, 10% Tempranillo from Rolleri Vineyard and 9% Grenache from the Boeger Vineyard. This exotic blend was then aged for 23 months in American, French and Hungarian oak barrels before bottling. Talk about twisted….

We let the wines breathe for an hour prior to the arrival of our guests–but immediately poured glasses of the Murgatroyd when they walked into the kitchen.

WOW! This was unlike any wine any of us had ever experienced. You really had to get your nose into it and let it float over your tongue a few times to appreciate all the complexities and flavors.

As most of you know, I generally review good wines under $20–and this Murgatroyd just makes it at $19.20 per bottle– because of the Twisted Few Wine Club. Outside the club, the price is still a very reasonable $24.

We also tasted the 2007 Calaveras County Viognier from Twisted Oak, and found it to be a light, refreshing a citrusy white–and one that is not too sweet. The taste of other fine fruits come through cleanly, without it being a fruit bomb. Not too dry, not too sweet–but just a perfect wine to begin your evening and enjoy into dinner. It’s another twisted winner with a club price of $17.60–and an outsider’s tag of $22.00.

I recommend a visit to their web-page www.TwistedOak.com as it is fun and the way they ferment wines is unique. Tell Jeff I sent you!

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