Wines for the New Depression 3: Colombelle Cotes de Gascogne

This charming entry came from The Chelsea Wine Vault comprised of 60% Tannat with 20% each of Merlot and Cabernet. Much more than I expected from it's 5.99 price tag. It's the wine they would serve at lunch in Toulouse; the house wine you like well enough to learn the origin of; the wine your friends serve at a really good party.

Full and fruity on the palate, each sip is a delight. I paired it with a simple meal of bread, cheese, and olives, along with a little more of the garlicky eggplant. It's charms were consistent all the way through to the chocolate and fruit, by which time we had to move to port having emptied the bottle.

Ultimately, this is a romantic wine. Share with a friend and double your pleasure.

Just a note about wines...prices will vary depending on what part of the country you are in. I can't guarantee you will get the exact same price in Northfield Minnesota. Even in NY we have price variance. On the East Side everything is priced higher than on the West.

Wines for the New Depression part two: Coastal Vines Pinot Noir

One sip of this wine and I was immediately sent back to the Paris of the 1980's when the franc was cheap. It was my first night in town and I was lost and it began to rain, soaked to the skin in a neighborhood I did not recognize I spied a cafe and went in. The waiter took one look at my soaked through clothes and took me to the back and made me remove them. He gave me some clean kitchen whites to wear sat me at a table and brought me a carafe of wine. It was thin and light but with all the flavor of something more substantial. The wine was like the ghost of a wine, I recognized everything one would in the living but it glided past my tongue like a spirit, yet somehow still warmed my body. Soon I was eating a boiled chicken in broth with wonderful bread and the wine was perfect, romantic even, as the tiny bits of acid washed down as easily as the chicken broth.

Soon I met the chef; who to this day is a dear friend. It was the start of something very good and substantial.

As is this wine.

White wine drinkers will love it Red wine drinkers will find nothing to object to. Rose drinkers will chill it and it is happy to be chilled. At $4.94 college students will pair it with Ramen noodles and romantic evenings.

Thusly it qualifies as a worthy choice for the new depression.

Last night I paired it with garlicky eggplant and pasta with mushrooms. We sat on the back steps of the house on pillows enjoying the Indian Summer.

Thanks to my friends at Acker Merral and Condit we have several more wines to introduce.

Politics are filthy and the markets are crashing, so what's important? Time in your life with the people whom you love is what we will all remember in twenty years. So have a glass of wine and see where it takes you.