Vino Friday Flights (11/21/08): Rob Moller and His Band of Badass Aussies!

When I was planning this tasting it is always a temptation to take the easy way out and go with the tired, way overplayed "Great Reds for Thanksgiving." "Wines for Turkey Day," etcetera, etcetera, blah-blah-blah. To me, if you want wines for Thanksgiving, come in, ask me, and I promise you'll go home with something you'll love. Given that choice, or what we'll be pouring on Friday, I think you'll agree this is much more interesting. Besides, I rarely bring in guest wine guys for our Friday soirees. I'm always worried they're not going to connect, or wait for you to ask the questions. Which is why Rob Moller, a local importer who brings in the awesome Epicurean Wines from Australia, unquestionably the greatest collection of boutique Aussie wineries, has made repeated appearances. Not only will Rob get you involved, he'll tell it like it is with background info and enthusiasm. The Epicurean wines are all fabulous, full-throttle wines, impeccably crafted, beautifully flavored, really world class. And, not to go all cliche, but when people ask about Thanksgiving wine, big, upfront fruit is what you want in a red, and these are nothing if not that. Also, with the regular doses of economic news, we all need a drink...or several. These deliver huge return on your drinking dollars. Much better than throwing money down the toilet by bailing out Detroit. And what was up with Larry, Moe, and Curly in front of Congress this week, going all Sisters of the Poor and asking for us to bail out their disastrously run car companies? I think the real Three Stooges couldn't have effed up their jobs any worse than these guys. Oh, and when they went to the District to ask for all those billions, they all flew in their private jets! As I've said repeatedly, pass the bottle, please! And if it happens to be a bottle of uber-satisfying Australian greatness, then all the better. With that, here's is what Rob will have in his bag of tricks tomorrow:

• 2006 Black Chook Shiraz
• 2007 Heartland Stickleback Red - 90 pts., Wine Advocate
• 2006 Piping Shrike Shiraz - 89 pts., Wine Advocate
• 2006 Cimicky "Trumps" Shiraz - 91 pts., Wine Advocate
• 2006 De Lisio "Quarterback" - 92 pts., Wine Advocate

And then the first two bonus pours to help you see things more clearly:

• 2006 Glaetzer "Wallace" Shiraz-Grenache - 94 pts., Wine Advocate
• 2006 Torbreck "Juveniles" Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvedre - 93 pts., Wine Advocate

And then, to prove how good life can be, our mind-blowing bonus-bonus:

• 2005 Massena "11th Hour" Shiraz - 96 pts., Wine Advocate

I think this might just be a good one, don't you? Rob and his wines will be here from 4:30 until 8:00 tomorrow. The cost to sample through, as always, will be just ten dollars for the first five, with a nominal bonus charge for the extras. I would absolutely recommend bringing some snacks along to help soak up some of the octane contained in these wines. So feel free to drop by anytime with your drinking partner(s), because these are, as always when Rob visits, not too be missed! Cheers!

Taste a set of five wines during our informal drop-in tastings from 4:30pm to 8:00pm every Friday.

Nov. 21: Big Australian Reds with importer Rob Moller. Can you say teeth-staining goodness?
Nov. 28: Vino's Tour of Italian Red Wine. From the top to the heel of the boot.
Dec. 5: Vino's Holiday Fizz Fest. Find out how to put some sparkle in your holiday!
Dec. 12: World-Class Spanish Reds. And some of the best deals on the planet.
Dec. 19: Italian Red Wines from importer Small Vineyards and Tom Kelly.
Dec. 26: No tasting tonight. Merry Christmas!
Jan. 2: Cabernet Shoot-Out. California vs. the Northwest.

Saturday Sampling (11/22/08)

Now, this is the venue to pull out the best Thanksgiving reds. I'd rather give them to you for free from 11:00 until 6:00 than charge you on a Friday. You'll drink just as well, on my dime! We'll have FIVE different wines going, all things that I feel are absolutely perfect for every wine drinker who might show up to sup at the table. It's going to be fun, and I hope you can get in to get yours!:

• 2006 Cameron Winery "Gehrt's Vineyard" Pinot Noir
• 2005 Domaine des Chesnaies Cabernet Franc - An awesome Loire Valley cab franc that I just cut a crazy deal on with the importer. The old price was $20.95 a bottle. The Vino price for this fab holiday red: $14.95!
• 2006 Vinum Cellars "PETS" Petite Sirah
• 2006 Selback Oster Riesling Kabinett - Don't roll your eyes! Riesling, and I'm talking GOOD riesling, is the perfect T-day white!
• NV Perdrier Brut Rose - Still the most incredible bubbly value out there. At $9.95 a pop, this kills. If it was good enough to be my wedding bubbly last spring, you know I love it!

Hope to see you here! Salud!

Find us in Portland, Oregon, at 1226 SE Lexington St., Portland, OR 97202. Phone 503.235.8545 (toll free dial 1.888.922.8545) or simply e-mail vinobuys@qwest.net. Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:30am to 6pm (Friday 'til 8:00).