While I’m sure the flavors of this wine sweat a bit, knowing they have to live up to a nose that good, they are more than up to the task. In the mouth the wine is full and velvety. It starts with a little cola at mid/front palate, and then kicks the crap out of you with an explosion of fruit.The perfect amount of wood and spice also come in to give the cherry and plum flavors more depth.

The finish is gorgeous, and while it’s reeeally long, it’s not long enough. Nothing could be long enough. I want it to still be swirling in my head. I want it bottled as a cologne. I want it so long that under “finish” my notes would read “next Thursday.”

If you come across this wine, don’t fall for Domaine Alfred’s clever reverse marketing tricks. They can’t possibly drink all of it.

Cheers,
TSW

* - WoW's Splurge Wine designation is given to those bottles that cost more than our self-imposed $20 ceiling, but are just too good to not grab. Sometimes that's easier said than done, but almost all of us spring for a nice bottle once in a while. If you have something to celebrate, WoW's Splurge Wines are a great buy (and still a great value).

** - WoW's Nectar of the Gods designation is given only to those rare wines that are so great, price becomes (almost) a non-issue. These are wines you'd step in front a moving bus to remove safely from the street. These are wines you don't forget.

I have a sneaking suspicion that the fine folks at Domaine Alfred are so in love with their wine that they don’t want to part with any of it. Look at the facts:

1. The name is pretty bad. “Domaine Alfred”? It sounds like Batman’s butler got into winemaking.
2. The label is easily one of the ugliest I’ve seen on a bottle of wine costing more than $10.
3. While honestly a helluva deal, it’s not exactly selling for “get it out of my sight” prices.

Once you taste the wine, however, you can hardly blame them for doing all they can to horde their creation. It’s absolutely stunning! This is a WoW Splurge Wine that, with the right food or company, quickly elevates to the rarely-reached WoW Nectar of the Gods** classification. Ooooooh! Yeah, it’s that good.

The nose has red cherry, raspberry the brightest plum you’ve ever tasted. You like spicy pinot? It’s got spice for days. Rarely do you smell something both so bright and so rich. It’s like the Bill Gates of wine. And when was the last time you smelled Bill Gates?