Drink or Dump – Judging Cupcake Merlot

Anything with the name “Cupcake” will create a hook around your wine loving throat.

I get it.  I’m sure you want to love this.  I’ve seen this wine EVERYWHERE, and well, judged it on it’s name.  In my mind, there was NO WAY I would suggest this wine to a friend, and NO WAY I would drink it myself.  Cupcake?  Really…

Wow, what a rotten thought to put down on paper.

For the sake of Wine Girl Gone Wild, and for the love I am receiving on my wine reviews (thanks guys, I really mean it), I decided to put it to the critical, snobbery aside, test.  I wanted to see if I could like something in this wine.

Will the pillowy, round berry fruit of Merlot satisfy me?  Will I find balance and perfect tannic structure?

Insert great disappointment quote – “Don’t blame people for disappointing you – blame yourself for expecting to much from them.”

 

IMG_1389What this wine did NOT have was what impressed me.  You will pay about $8.00 for this bottle – not bad.  Some ideas that pop into my mind when I know the cost is, at that price, this wine will be loaded with alcohol.  You will FEEL the eight dollar bottle of wine, rather than enjoy it.  The alcohol was actually in balance with this wine.  What was lacking was any character at all.  The wine came and went, and didn’t leave an impression.  Now, if you are looking for that, then start popping corks.  Maybe you just want to drink and not grasp on to imagery.  Maybe you think I project way to much into this stuff; I probably do.  However, I always like to find the expression of a vineyard when I taste new wines.  I like to follow the notes of a grape.  We all want the story when we are led to the book; maybe not the written word, but where we are taken when we drink a wine.  We get nothing here – hopeless journey my friends.

My dining companions disliked this wine more than I did.  I love trying new wines with other “palates” to show how personal your tastes are.  Check out the video below to see more of what we thought – and subscribe to my YouTube channel!

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About Me

It doesn’t take magic to transport yourself through flavors and stories. This is what keeps me up at nights; what narrative does wine have to reveal to me, and how does your experience begin a journey I can help host. My name is Susan, and I am just like you; curious, full of nothing but love, and ready to learn more.

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