Cameron Hughes Lot 73 Chalk Hill $13.99

There are times when I drink wine like gangbusters, the past month has been one of those times. Tons of whites, tons of reds, tons of international varietals.

Today's selection is from one of our most blogged about wine company, Cameron Hughes' latest offering, Lot 73 Sonoma County Chalk Hill Cabernet. Here is what their website had to say...

Taste: This colossal cab hails from the Bordeaux like climate of Chalk Hill in Sonoma. It presents a bouquet of freshly picked roses and black cherries. Its smoky earthiness gives hint to the volcanic soil composition of the area. The first sip will slam your taste buds with dark chocolate and big ripe blackberries backed by silky vanilla from new French oak. This enormous cab will pair well with…or should I say…a juicy rib eye, New York, or your favorite porterhouse will pair fantastic with this delicious Chalk Hill Cab.

Cameron Confidential: This wine is a monster. When we first tasted the barrel samples we were blown away. The broker who brought us the wine said that the owner of the vineyard had recently broken free of a contract with another winery and the wine could be available to us long term. Done, where do I sign?!!

The grapes are sourced from one of the most beautiful vineyards I have ever seen (grapes always seem to grow best in beautiful places). It’s huge - spanning over 500 acres, several hundred of which are planted to grapes, almost all of which are hillside with little nooks and crannies that create a variety of microclimates. The vineyard is the source of many different grape varietals for something like 20 small, ultra-premium brands (though we control all the cabernet off the vineyard). The winery that was previously buying the fruit was putting it into their $60 cabernet.

The wine is contracted through the 2009 vintage so stay tuned for additional offerings in future vintages.

While pretty good, I don't agree with the monster description, also at $13.99 it isn't really price friendly for those of us balancing checkbooks, clipping coupons and unemployed. ha! From a company like Cameron Hughes, you tend to think you'd get better value for your money, while Lot 73 is good for $13.99 you think you deserve more for that money. Does that make any sense? I sure hope so. I don't know if I'd buy it again, if I could i'd check to for Lot 71 Alexander Valley for $12.99.

Up next is a 2006 Louis M. Martini Sonoma Cabernet.

What are you drinking these days?