A Taste of 2008 Racchus Reserve Red Wine

For the longest time, I've been curious about Wine Woot!, part of the Woot.com family of online vendors. Like Woot!, Wine Woot! works by generally offering one specially priced product per day and giving sharp-eyed consumers a chance to get a great deal. It didn't take me long to get hooked on Wine Woot! Within two weeks, I'd "wooted" four times, purchasing a total of sixteen bottles of red wine for about $200. Considering the list prices of a lot of these wines, I actually did quite well.

In any case, two weeks ago Wine Woot! was offering four bottles of Ty Caton's 2008 Racchus Reserve Red for about $57 including shipping. Given the fact that these bottles retail for $26 each, I figured this was a very good deal, especially since I had never tried this wine before. After checking Wine Woot's list to make sure the winery would send wine to Georgia, I eagerly placed an order. Two weeks later, the wine was in my glass.

About the 2008 Racchus Red Wine

This wine is produced by Ty Caton's winery in California's Sonoma Valley. It's a delightful mutt of a wine, consisting of 36% Petite Sirah, 23% Syrah, 16% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 3% Malbec, 9% Petite Verdot grapes harvested in 2008. It was aged 12 months in French oak using mixed new and used barrels. A total of 529 cases of Racchus Red were produced and released on August 25, 2010. According to the winery's official Web site, this wine is now sold out.

The pour

This wine pours out a lovely deep maroon. When I swirl it around in my glass, I observe plenty of legs, indicating that this wine is definitely not for the faint of heart. Indeed, the alcohol content of the Racchus Red is at a stalwart 14.1%.

The nose

Taking in the aroma of the 2008 Racchus Red, I detect the scent of plums, blackberries, currants, and vanilla. And there might be, perhaps, the lightest touch of milk chocolate as well.

Tasting

I was really in for a treat when I tasted this wine. When I first poured it into the glass, it was a bit tannic and rough, with the flavors of berries. But within fifteen minutes... wow... this wine mellowed out a lot and was very satisfying to drink. I detected a bit of spice, tempered by the complex flavors of delicious, dark, fruits. As we were finishing this wine last night as an accompaniment to roasted chicken, I commented to my husband that this was one of the nicer wines we'd had in awhile. He agreed, and it wasn't hard to convince him to open another bottle this afternoon, even if it has sold out. We usually spend less than $20 for a bottle of wine. This wine retails for $26, and I don't think that's out of line at all.

Where to buy it

As I mentioned before, I purchased this wine on WineWoot!, which I think is going to end up being a new obsession for me. But WineWoot! only offers one new product a day on weekdays, so it's unlikely that you would be able to get this there. The winery's official Web site, likewise, reports that the 2008 Racchus Red is now sold out. I think your best bet is to either find someone who buys stuff from Wine Woot! or perhaps look around in the Sonoma Valley area of California.

Final thoughts

This was an excellent buy that has made me curious about other Ty Caton wines. And purchasing this through WineWoot! was a fun experience that now makes me want to Woot! some more. Even though the 2008 Racchus Red is sold out, the 2009 Racchus White is still available at $22 a bottle. I haven't tried the white yet, but now I'm curious. Stay tuned!