2002 Sagelands Four Corners Cabernet Sauvignon $13
Spicy oak and dark cassis fruit flavors blend effortlessly in this smooth Cabernet from vineyards in Washington State's Four Corners—the Wahluke Slope, Horse Heaven Hills, Rattlesnake Hills and the Walla Walla Valley.
2004 Avignonesi Rosso di Montepulciano $14
This seductive Sangiovese from one of Tuscany's oldest producers—some say the cellars date back to latter half of the 16th century—mingles strawberry and raspberry notes with a dash of spicy wood.
2004 Hewitson Miss Harry $16
Winemaker Dean Hewitson harvests most of the fruit for this opulent blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvèdre, full of crushed wild berry flavors, from Barossa Valley vines that are at least 80 years old.
2003 Ajello Furat $17
Winemaker Salvatore Ajello named this complex, succulent Sicilian blend of Nero d'Avola, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah after the Arabian commander Asad ibn al-Furat, who conquered Sicily in the 9th century.
2004 Andrew Murray Tous Les Jours $17
California winemaker Murray, one of the Central Coast's most promising young talents, gave this luscious Syrah its name (which in English means "every day") as a nod to its drinkability—think ripe blackberries, with hints of bacon and peppercorn.
2003 Clos LaChance Buff-Bellied Zinfandel $18
The wines of Clos LaChance's more affordable Hummingbird Series are sourced primarily from the winery's estate vineyards, and offer very good quality for the money—particularly this juicy, boysenberry-rich Zinfandel.
2003 Musar Cuvée Réservée Rouge $19
The Hochar family has been making great wines in Lebanon since 1930, through conditions that would have made most winemakers give up long ago. This Cinsault blend, a more affordable cuvée from the same vines that produce their flagship Château Musar, belies its light red hue with mouth-filling spiced cherry and currant flavors.
2000 Masi Brolo di Campofiorin $22
Italian producer Masi makes this formidable, black-cherry-filled blend of Corvina and Rondinella using the ripasso method (also used for Amarone), in which the fermented wine spends a few weeks in casks containing the lees from a prior batch to intensify its flavor.
2003 Morgan Monterey Syrah $22
Meaty, smoky and loaded with roasted black fruit flavors, this is a forceful Syrah from one of Monterey's most reliable producers.
2004 Warwick Estate Pinotage $23
The Pinotage grape variety was created in South Africa in 1925 by a professor at Stellenbosch University, who crossbred Pinot Noir and Cinsault to create a blueberry-inflected, spicy hybrid. Warwick's talented winemaker Louis Nel ages this bottling in French oak, giving it an exotic aroma suggesting anise and black pepper.
2003 Curran Syrah Reeves Ranch $26
Reeves Ranch, a tiny, three-acre vineyard in California's Santa Ynez Valley, provides all the fruit for this ink-dark, earthy, blackberry-rich Syrah, made by star winemaker Kris Curran of Sea Smoke Cellars.
2003 Lucas & Lewellen Petite Sirah $26
Longtime California Central Coast winemaker Daniel Gehrs fashions the wines for this up-and-coming producer; 30-year-old Petite Sirah vines provided the fruit for this potent, blackberry-driven red.
2004 Philip Shaw No. 89 Shiraz Viognier $49
Gamey black fruit flavors and an evanescent scent of ripe peaches (from the Viognier) define this focused, powerful red from Australia's up-and-coming Orange region, on the slopes of Mount Canobolas, west of Sydney.
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