Not So Mysterious. A Great Blend

Apothic Red Winemaker’s Blend 2009
Modesto, California | Apothic.
T his wine has been mentioned no less than seven times on this website since BottleReport was founded.

I was lucky to reach down and find a bottle of Apothic Red as I continue with my New Year’s Resolution to drink all the wine (and beer) in the rack before spending any money on wine or beer. I think I paid more than $10 for this but every now and then I try to impress Mrs. Dan with something more expensive. (I think I paid around $10.99).

It is one of the most consistent wines from year to year in both popularity and in taste. This is a great red blend. Here’s the tasting notes from the First Friday tasting back on April 1: ” Wonderful, rich, fruit-forward, “New World” blend of Syrah (45%) and Zinfandel (44%) with a splash of Merlot. Intense black cherry and blackberry aromas and flavors. Hints of earthiness, black pepper, smoked meats, dark chocolate, mocha. Great texture, balance, and length. A crowd-pleaser.”

I remember one taster at the Coco Wine Festival saying he can never remember the name and calls it “Apathetic Red.” He was quick to add he loves it just the same. This is not an unemotional wine.

This wine is one of the many Gallo labels. The mysterious name gets its name from the dark ages. Their website says “more than 800 years ago, vintners blended and stored their most coveted concoctions in a mysterious place called Apotheca. In late 2005, a Master Winemaker envisioned an epic red wine combining Old World traditions of blending while realizing a markedly New World style. Thus began the path that led his protégé, winemaker Boyd Morrison, to select grapes from California’s bountiful vineyards for this new blended red. Morrison was inspired to blend spicy Zinfandel, with smooth Merlot and lush, dark Syrah to create Apothic Red.”

It’s got great flavor. The Zinfandel and the Syrah make for a bold full bodied wine. Nice dark fruit. I agree with the black cherries and blackberries flavors mentioned in the tasting notes. I’m glad this wine is usually above $10 because if it were consistently cheaper I would drink too much of it.

I can only hope the rest of the wines in the rack will be this good.