Oops..the Secreto of the Cheeky little white with a Spicy Splendor

The title sounds like a good soap to watch. But all those phrases are names of wines I recently tasted. Mistakes and Secrets. The story of someones life wrapped up in a couple of wine bottles. In the Hudson Valley?

Oops...the wrong wine showed on the table, or so I thought. Did someone make a mistake and thought it would be funny to label their wine oops? Would you purchase a wine called oops. Well, oops ended up in my wine cellar. I brought it over to friends house for dinner and they were questioning my selection. oops? That's a winemakers mistake. Or maybe NOT.

We opened the Spicy Splendor Carmenere 2007 and what a spicy wine it is. Before we let it breath, we all took a sip. WOW! What serious black pepper! The spice on the finish illuminates the sides of you tongue like wild fire. Hence, the Carmenere grape is known for the black pepper, and this is 100% Carmenere. It will definetly light a fire under your seat.

As we let this wine open the hints of plum started to appear. The spice on the nose begins to disappear to a more earthy aroma. The wine does get softer as it breathes. I would recommend decanting this wine before drinking it. As it breathes spice is still there,but not as strong and the plum and coffee flavors come out.

The oops 2007 Spicy Splendor retails for about $12. It's orgin is the Central Valley in Chile.

oops Spicy Splendor has a sister..yup oops Cheeky little white also from the Central Valley of Chile. Obnoxious as can be, Cheey little white is a blend of 85% Sauvignon Blanc and 15% of Carmenere. I was quite surprised to see the Carmenere in this blend. The color is vey pale. On the nose I smelled a blend of pink grapefruit and lime. Those are the flavors that stood out as I tasted. I enjoyed this wine, there wasn't a lot of acid causing me to pucker with a grapefruit finish. The wine was smooth with just the right amount of acidity. Was very enjoyable, especially on a nice spring day on the deck.

oops Cheeky little white retails for about $12.

Now the secret is out. 2008 Viu Manent Secreto Sauvignon Blanc. Nice sexy seductive label. This Sauvignon Blanc is 85% Sauvignon Blanc and 15% other. This is from the Casablanca Valley region of Chile.

On the nose there was melon. Slightly minerally, it showed a lingering of grapefruit. On the finish, the grapefruit was subtle which gave the wine a nice smooth finish. This was a very nice Sauvignon Blanc. It would pair very well with Scallops. It sells for approximately $14.

I am really liking these Chilean Sauvignon Blancs!

Don't judge a wine by it's label. The label doesn't have to be sophisticated to be good.

Disclaimer: I receive these wines as a sample from the folks at Wines of Chile. Did you know that Chile is the forth largest importer of table wines.