My inexcusably embarrassing attempt to sound Aussie notwithstanding, I had some very good wine over the weekend, and felt compelled to share the news.
See, I haven’t been drinking much wine lately.
I’ll take your sudden, sharp inhalation of breath as a sign of shock. If you’re choking, call 9-1-1. If truly all you’re dealing with is the minor trauma that comes from learning that your favorite1 wine writer hasn’t been partaking of the juice a whole lot lately, then read on.
My mother-in-law had a birthday. I thought it might be a good idea to bring some wine, and frankly, the cellar is getting a bit full. Because I am completely clear about my status as a crapshoot, I have no qualms sharing wine that I’ve been sent by the winery, or a P.R. firm, or whoever else randomly sends me bottles on occasion.
But I do try to pay attention. And I’m glad I did.
Bottles of Mollydooker wine include the direction to do “the Mollydooker Shake” before drinking their wine. What is that, you ask? It’s this, actually:
Sounds patently ridiculous. But then, I’ve been known to do patently ridiculous things. At times in my life, with regularity. So screw it, I thought, I’ll give their silly little process a chance.
Since the Mollydooker Shake includes pouring out a touch of the wine that you can’t get back into the bottle, I took the opportunity to taste that first. It was nice, but nothing special. A run-of-the-mill syrah, with a hint of red fruit, but also some sharp, jagged edges that kept me from loving it.
Then I shook, or Shaked, perhaps,2 and followed the instructions in the video to the letter.
Oh. My. Goodness.
Quite the difference. Supple, silky, rich and creamy, simply bursting with dark red fruit notes. Raspberry and dark cherry flavors mingle with chocolate and espresso in this ridonkulous way. The wine may have been a bit one-note, but that one note had it pleasing everyone present.
I think I might need to drink some more wine. And soon.
Verdict: 89/100