2003 Folie à Deux "Menage à Trois" Red

Region: California, US

Composition: Zinfandel, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon

Background: This was an experiment of sorts, mostly because I keep hearing "it's good and cheap" about it. I am not normally a fan of corporate wineries, or cheesy wine names, or wineries who levy lawsuits against other wineries on some pretty lame circumstances, but, well, sometimes you have to try something you normally wouldn't. And when it is late at night and you are watching the kind of boring but still funny commentary track on the Sideways DVD and suddenly you want some wine but don't want to get out anything good because you won't be able to finish it and are going wine tasting the next day and will probably not want to drink the rest of the bottle after all that and are worried about the bottle going mostly to waste, this is the kind of thing you get out. And then sometimes you even finish it the next day anyway.

Folie a Deux makes two versions of this wine; the red, here, and a white (Chardonnay, Moscato, Chenin Blanc), along with a couple of other wines like Zinfandels and Cabernets. The winery, founded by two psychiatrists (hence the name) has been making wine since 1981 and was purchased by Trinchero Family Estates last June.

Notes: Dark purple in the glass with ruby-red highlights. It has a nose of currants, blackberries, and something I couldn't quite place....blueberry jam? There was a lot of raspberry in the mouth, with slight jammy spice at the finish, and very very soft tannins. Overall it was super soft and round and all about the fruit, though. If you like fruit, it's right up your alley. It's very drinkable, but not overly interesting or complex.

Cost: $10

Overall: B