Karmere 2012 Kade du Rhone (California)

This is one of my favorite wines of the year. I tasted it at the Amador County winery in November and brought back two bottles with the intention of ordering more. Karmere’s Kade du Rhone is a GSM—Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre. The ruby color is beautiful, and the nose evokes the berries in the Grenache and Syrah. The Mourvedre comes through with a hint of earth and chocolate. It has just enough sweetness.

Flavors include the berries, plum and raisins going to tart cherry and finishing with black pepper and a breath of oak. It has a nice, full body, is slightly tannic and is dry on the center of the tongue.

I think of beef steak on the grill when I taste this wine. It would also go with Italian sausage, salami and not-too-sweet dark chocolate.

2011 Karmere Empress La Petite Rachel Syrah (California)

When this arrived in a package this week, I have to admit I was slightly disappointed. I tried it at the winery in California in November, and my tasting notes on the “La Petite Rachel Syrah” futures say, “Meh.” But, I thought, it was the end of a full day of tasting, and Karmere’s other wines are very good. So I opened it up.

When I poured, I got aromas of black pepper and some oak. The dark ruby color is beautiful, and the nose develops from oak to coffee and ending with hints of chocolate. The flavors travel the same path with a fruitier middle and dry finish—just a bit too dry a sipping wine, for my own preference.

Then I heated up some chili, which contained some jalapenos. The spice in the wine helped balance the spice in the chili, bringing out more fruit. While there was a lot of heat in the mouth—due to all the spice—the chili turned the lingering dry finish into a smoother, fruity one.

Other compatible foods would include barbeque, meat like pepper-encrusted steak or tuna, venison, hamburgers, mushrooms, sausage, eggplant Parmesan and aged cheeses like Pecorino Romano, Parmesan and Gouda. While it’s kind of a dry wine for desserts, it may pair with coffee flavors or spicy chocolate, possibly something with cinnamon but not too sweet. .